God’s thoughts, or Man’s?
Tag Archives: Bible contradictions
Bible contradictions #08: Is God love and light?
1 John 1:5:
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 4:8:
Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.
The author of John appears not to have been aware of Isaiah 45:5-7:
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Bible contradictions #07: What caused the Babylonian exile?
According to 2 Kings 24:3, the Babylonian Exile was God’s punishment upon the nation for the sins of Manasseh. In the thinking of ancient times, the righteousness or sin of a king was attributed also to the nation as a whole. See also 2 Kings 21:10-15 and 2 Kings 23:26-27.
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Bible contradictions #06: When did Saul first meet David?
Samuel anoints David as king over Israel in 1 Samuel 16:1-13. It is notable that this comes before David kills Goliath and before he first starts playing the lyre for Saul. In other words, David was already king over Israel before either of those other things happened.
The story of David playing the lyre for Saul comes at 1 Samuel 16:14-23. Now, it is very clear from this passage that Saul had never heard of David ever before.
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Bible contradictions #02: What is God’s basic nature?
Psalm 145.8: The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
Psalm 2:11-12: Serve the LORD with fear, with trembling kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Originally posted 2015-10-07.
Bible contradictions #05: Jesus’ genealogies
The New Testament provides two genealogies of Jesus, one in Matthew and one in Luke. Matthew’s genealogy begins with Abraham and moves forward in time: “A was the father of B, B the father of C,” and so on. Luke’s genealogy begins with Jesus and moves backwards in time all the way to Adam: “C the son of B, the son of A.”
Let’s compare only the portions from Abraham forward.
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Bible contradictions #04: The problem of Luke 1:5 and Luke 2:2
Luke 1:5:
5In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
This, and the story following it, imply that Jesus was born during the reign of Herod the Great. He died in 4 B.C.E.
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Bible contradictions #03: Who killed Goliath?
1 Samuel 17:4-7:
And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. … The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam …
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Bible contradictions #01: For us, or against us?
Luke 9:50 (also Mark 9.40): Whoever is not against us is for us.
Luke 11:23 (also Matthew 12:30): Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
Originally posted 2015-09-30.
Bible contradictions #09: Righteousness v. poverty
Psalm 37.25:
yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.”
I see it all the time.