2+2=5?

John Wigand, in his De Neutralibus et Mediis Libellus published in 1562, said, “That twice two are four, a man may not lawfully make a doubt of it, because that manner of knowledge is graven in to man’s nature.” As early as 1728, 2+2=4 was used to describe something universally and obviously true. Epharaim Chambers’ Cyclopedia which defines absurd this way: “Thus, a proposition would be absurd, that should affirm, that two and two make five; or that should deny ‘em to make four.” Samuel Johnson, in the 1970 Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs, wrote, “You may have a reason why two and two should make five, but they will still make four” (pg. 849).

But belief in 2+2=5 is not always accepted. In George Orwell’s prophetic parable, 1984, 2+2=5 is a formula which the party enforced to demonstrate how the Party depended on their ability to make the people believe a lie in order to remain in power. If they rejected obvious truths, then they, the Party feared, would be able to reject the Party.

In Fyodor Dostoevsky’s, The Notes From the Underground, the underground man acknowledged that some think the world and all of life can be understood according to reason and logic of the kind exemplified by two-times-two-equals-four. The underground man disagreed and argued that if life were nothing but a series of equations and logical laws to be figured out, mankind would have no free will; life would simply be dictated by reason and logic, and man would be nothing but an “organ stop,” acted upon by natural forces.

The equation two-times-two-equals-four, to the underground man, symbolizes the oppressive reason and logic which he struggles against. He insists that two times two equals four is “no longer life,” and claims that mankind’s freedom lies in its ability to believe illogically that “two times two makes five.” Here is a quote: “Two times two makes four—why, in my opinion, it’s mere insolence. Two times two makes four stands there brazenly with its hands on its hips, blocking your path and spitting at you. I agree that two times two makes four is a splendid thing; but if we’re going to lavish praise, then two times two makes five is sometimes also a very charming little thing.”

Rene Descarte, in Meditations, first confessed that whether he was awake or asleep that 2 and 3 would be 5 and that a square has but four sides. However, in the next paragraph he went on to question whether or not God had deceived him into thinking that there is a earth, sky, or any other such thing. In his First Meditation, he wrote:

I will suppose that the sky, the air, the earth, colors, figures, sounds, and all external things, are nothing better than the illusions of dreams, by means of which this being has laid snares for my credulity; I will consider myself as without hands, eyes, flesh, blood, or any of the senses, and as falsely believing that I am possessed of these; I will continue resolutely fixed in this belief, and if indeed by this means it be not in my power to arrive at the knowledge of truth, I shall at least do what is in my power, viz, [ suspend my judgment ], and guard with settled purpose against giving my assent to what is false, and being imposed upon by this deceiver, whatever be his power and artifice.

Descarte never fully denied that he had hands and eyes, but he did question whether anyone could ever really know if they had hands and eyes. Descarte went on to say:

But when I considered any matter in arithmetic and geometry, that was very simple and easy, as, for example, that two and three added together make five, and things of this sort, did I not view them with at least sufficient clearness to warrant me in affirming their truth? Indeed, if I afterward judged that we ought to doubt of these things, it was for no other reason than because it occurred to me that a God might perhaps have given me such a nature as that I should be deceived, even respecting the matters that appeared to me the most evidently true. But as often as this preconceived opinion of the sovereign power of a God presents itself to my mind, I am constrained to admit that it is easy for him, if he wishes it, to cause me to err, even in matters where I think I possess the highest evidence

Descarte’s influence continues today. Can anything be known for certain? Is every truth claim simply the result of an external construct from those in power? Today there are some educators and philosophers arguing that 2 and 2 can equal 5, 6, 7, 8 or 4. The word or symbol “2,” they say, just has a meaning assigned to it and that meaning can change. Circumstances can change so that the number 2 represents 3 or 1 or 4 objects. 2 and 2 can be anything.

Perhaps there is an appeal to believing in 2 and 2 being 5. It seems all of us would like things to be different than they are. If we can believe 2 and 2 equals 5, then we can believe we can change reality—we can make things the way we want them to be rather than the way they are.

You Shall Know?

John 8:32 ESV

and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

“You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free” (Jn. 8:32). Jesus promised that we can be free from the bondage to ignorance, deceit, and sin. There are a few implications from this promise that we need to explore. 1) You are able to know the truth; 2) there is truth; and 3) knowing the truth sets us free. We can further note from this that knowing truth is a gift of God, and that truth is rooted in God. Since truth is rooted in God, then we must reject the absence of truth if we accept the reality of God and we must accept that truth is knowable since God has communicated his truth through his Son and through propositions in his Word.

The first truth we observe from this promise is that we are able to know truth. Jesus promised that we can know truth. If we cannot know truth, then either God is a liar, mistaken, or unable to communicate with us.

You Can Know

If we are to accept Christ, then we must believe what he has said. If we do not believe in Christ, then we must continue our search for the cause of all creation and for that which gives creation value and for that which gives creation purpose. If we reject Christ, then we must also adequately explain him away, disprove Christianity, and explain the empty tomb of Christ. If you do accept Jesus as the Son of God, then you must accept what he has said. Jesus said, “You shall know” (Jn. 8:32).

There is Truth

Again, Jesus did not make an empty promise, he said, “You shall know the truth” (Jn. 8:32). We understand that we can never fully know anything. Only God can fully know anything. He also fully knows everything. At the same time, we can know what God would have us know. If God is not able to communicate with us, then either he is now powerful enough to communicate with us, or he does not know how to communicate to us, or his transcendence is a gap too far from us.

That God is able to communicate with us is taught in Scripture. Paul wrote, “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness of men...for what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divinity nature have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world” (Rom. 1:18-20). Here Paul affirmed the place of natural theology (learning about God from his creation). The nature of God has also been displayed in Jesus (Jn. 1:1-14). The will of God has been recorded in Scripture for us (2 Tim. 3:15-17). Now, we cannot claim to know God fully. Perhaps, as Calvin said, God speaks to us as we speak to infants.

We Can Trust What God Has Said

Can we trust what God has said? Does God create us to deceive us? We have already established that God is not silent. God has communicated to his image bearers in Scripture, nature, and in Christ. We can trust what God has said because we can trust God.

God is not a liar—“It is impossible for God to lie” (Heb. 6:18). If God were able to lie, he would not be perfect, but he is perfect (Matt. 5:48). If God were able to lie, He would not be good, but he is the One who is good (Mk. 10:18). If God were able to lie, He would not be righteous, but he is “righteous in all his ways” (Ps. 145:17). If God were able to lie, He would not be holy, but he is the definition of holiness (Rev. 4:8).

God cannot be mistaken. God “declares the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose” (Is. 46:10). Psalm 147:5 says, “His understanding is beyond measure.” Psalm 139:4, “Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it all together.” The disciples said, “Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God” (Jn. 16:30).

God is righteous—he can do no wrong. “The LORD our God is righteous in everything he does” (Dan. 9:14). Revelation 15:3 says, “righteous and true are his ways.” Ezra 9:15 says, “O LORD, God of Israel, righteous art thou.” Psalm 7:11 says, “God is a righteous judge.”

All these perfections are included with the declaration that God is holy. “Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.” Psalm 99:9 says, “Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain in Jerusalem, for the LORD our God is holy!”

The Truth Shall Set You Free

Being able to know the truth and knowing that there is truth is not without its privileges and responsibilities. Jesus said, “you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free” (Jn. 8:32). Knowing the truth has real effects on our lives. It is through knowing the truth, that we can be free. What is it we are freed from? If knowing truth leads to freedom, then not knowing truth must lead to enslavement.

We are enslaved through bondage. Knowledge is power. Ignorance is bliss in sinfulness. God places sin with deception, hard heartedness, darkness, and corruption.