Explaining 7 Bible “Contradictions”

Have you ever been challenged on whether the Bible is God’s inspired Word? Whether young or old in the faith, you have likely heard various arguments on why this Book cannot be trusted. They could come from family or co-workers, on social media, or anywhere people talk about religion.

A common assertion is that the Bible is full of contradictions. If we are not careful, specific claims of contradictory verses may catch us off-guard.

Could a perfect God inspire an imperfect book? The obvious answer is no. If the Bible disagrees with itself, it is not the Word of God and need not be obeyed. That is why addressing seeming contradictions is so important.

Yes, we proved the Bible’s authority when we were called into God’s Way. But I Corinthians 10:12 applies here: “Wherefore let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” We need to be armed with the truth.

Every supposed contradiction can be explained. Psalm 12:6 says, “The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” Proverbs 30:5 adds, “Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.”

The Bible tells us to “study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Tim. 2:15). If we do so, fascinating truth will emerge. Such verses are not contradictions at all. They are misunderstandings waiting to be resolved.

Why Contradictions?

Why does the Bible trip people up? A major reason is that God designed Scripture to do this. The prophet Isaiah wrote: “Whom shall He teach knowledge? And whom shall He make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts” (28:9).

It is crucial to understand just who is eligible for understanding from God: people who are “weaned from the milk” and “drawn from the breasts.”

This is obviously not referring to people who were breastfed in a literal sense by their mothers. These are people who have a childlike, teachable attitude. Read Matthew 18:4.

Such people want to understand God’s mind. They are looking for reasons to believe, not reasons to disbelieve.

Isaiah continues, “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little” (28:10). We must be willing to dig into what God says. Not every “contradiction” has an easy explanation all in the same place.

The prophet next addresses people who are not willing to believe God: “For with stammering lips and another tongue will He speak to this people. To whom He said, This is the rest wherewith you may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear” (vs. 11-12).

The result? “But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken” (vs. 13). Part of this snare can involve seeing contradictions that are not really there.

There are other reasons why people perceive a verse as contradictory. Maybe they do not know how to study the Bible. Or the misunderstanding could stem from a translation error. Certain facts or intended meanings can get obscured when translating from Hebrew or Greek to modern English. Maybe they were given the wrong explanation by a friend or pastor they trusted.

Despite these and other challenges, if we strive to have a childlike, teachable attitude and are willing to search the Scriptures line upon line and precept upon precept, we will not be confounded by any supposed contradiction. We can understand and live by every word of God (Matt. 4:4).

Let’s now examine seven common “contradictions” and how they can be properly explained. This will strengthen your faith in Scripture and arm you with knowledge for situations you encounter.

(1) Does God Care Which Day We Observe?

Exodus 20:8 says, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” The Fourth Commandment clearly establishes the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, Saturday, as the day Christians are to observe.

Yet Romans 14:5 seems to contradict this. It states: “One man esteems one day above another: another esteems every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.”

At face value, this verse appears to give us license to pick any day for worship as long as we are convinced in our own minds. Yet this “contradiction” is not difficult to explain.

Examining the context is key. The first four verses of Romans 14 are about new converts who were “weak in the faith” (vs. 1). The apostle Paul was addressing how more experienced members should receive and help these people.

Verse 2 makes clear that what is being discussed is vegetarianism: “For one believes that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eats herbs.” Some of the gentile brethren did not want to eat meat because doing so would violate their conscience. I Corinthians 8 shows this was because the meat had been offered to idols.

Romans 14:6 adds more: “He that regards the day, regards it unto the Lord; and he that regards not the day, to the Lord he does not regard it. He that eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he that eats not, to the Lord he eats not, and gives God thanks.”

Rather than verse 5 shifting over to a different subject of the weekly day of worship, verse 6 proves Paul is continuing to address the same topic: meat. The “day” being discussed had to do with fasting—abstaining from food and drink.

Some Jews of that time would hold a semi-fast twice in the week. Read Luke 18:12 for more context. Others would also fast on certain days during the fifth and seventh months (Zech. 7:4-7). They were divided on exactly when to fast, and gentile converts were also divided on what days to abstain from certain foods. Because of their differing backgrounds, they could not agree.

When understood correctly, Romans 14:5 addresses abstinence from food and drink on particular days. It does not deal with whether to keep Saturday or Sunday holy, or to observe pagan holidays as opposed to God’s annual Holy Days.

(2) How Can Genesis 22 and James 1 Both Be True?

Genesis 22:1 says, “And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.” The next verse records God commanding the ancient patriarch to sacrifice his only son.

This appears to contradict James 1:13 in the New Testament: “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts He any man.”

Did God tempt Abraham or not? If He did, then James’ statement would be false. This too can be explained without much difficulty.

Sometimes we need to examine the original Hebrew or Greek to get to the truth of an unclear scripture. This is easier than ever with popular free resources like e-Sword and Blue Letter Bible.

Strong’s Definitions shows the Hebrew word translated “tempt” in Genesis 22 means “to test; by implication, to attempt—adventure, assay, prove, tempt, try.” The word would more accurately be translated “test” in Genesis 22. God was testing Abraham’s faith. He was not tempting Abraham with evil.

The New King James Version renders Genesis 22:1 this way: “Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham…”

This is another tactic for understanding challenging verses. Comparing different translations gives a fuller picture and helps clarify issues with the King James Version’s archaic language.

(3) Can People See God?

Jesus taught: “The Father Himself, which has sent Me, has borne witness of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape” (John 5:37).

Yet other verses seem to say otherwise. Read Genesis 32:30: “And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”

There is some nuance to this subject, but there is no contradiction. A place to start is understanding the context of John 5. Verse 18 says, “Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him [Jesus], because He not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.” Verse 19 continues, “Then answered Jesus and said unto them…”

It is a crucial distinction that Jesus’ statement in verse 37 was uttered to a group of people who wanted to murder Him. Of course God would not appear or speak to people like that. But He would, and did, manifest Himself to others, such as the faithful patriarch Jacob who was later renamed Israel. Read Exodus 24:9-11, Numbers 12:6-8 and Isaiah 6:1-5 for other examples.

Also, while the Father did show Himself to certain people, He did not appear in full glory. Our frail human senses could not handle that.

Exodus 33 makes this distinction clear: “And [Moses] said, I beseech You, show me Your glory. And He [God] said, I will make all my goodness pass before you…And He said, You cannot see My face: for there shall no man see Me, and live. And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon a rock: And it shall come to pass, while My glory passes by, that I will put You in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by: And I will take away Mine hand, and you shall see My back parts: but My face shall not be seen” (vs. 18-23).

(4) Should We Answer Fools or Not?

Proverbs 26 contains another supposed contradiction: “Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like unto him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit” (vs. 4-5).

A quick reading of the two verses makes it appear God is instructing us to do two opposite and incompatible actions. We are not to answer a fool, but we also are to answer a fool.

How is this explained?

The truth is that these verses provide two complementary principles that depend on the situation. There are circumstances in which we should answer such a person and others we should not. Let’s examine a few distinctions in the verses.

Verse 4 states, “Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like unto him.” This shows that we are not to degrade ourselves by petty bickering and arguing. We are not to debate with someone who is obviously trying to stir up contention or we will be no different from them. We should not take the bait and get sucked into a war of words.

Now look at verse 5: “Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.” In this case, one should answer according to the folly in which the question was presented. Not answering the challenge would cause the questioner to feel he has prevailed.

It is up to the discerning Christian to determine which approach to take when the time comes.

(5) Jesus Said Some Would See the Kingdom Before Death. Did They?

In Matthew 16:28, Christ told His disciples: “Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in His Kingdom.”

On its face, this looks like a massive contradiction in the Word of God. How could people who lived and died thousands of years ago have seen the Kingdom?

One look at the world today, with all of its suffering, immorality, division, chaos and other intractable problems makes plain that God’s Kingdom has not yet arrived, nor is Jesus ruling in glory. (For more on this, read “Seven Proofs God’s Kingdom Is Not Here Yet.”)

The explanation is almost shockingly simple. In the very next chapter, “some,” as Jesus put it, who had been standing there, witnessed His transfiguration.

Chapter 17 states: “And after six days Jesus takes Peter, James, and John his brother, and brings them up into an high mountain apart, and was transfigured before them: and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with Him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if You will, let us make here three tabernacles; one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah” (vs. 1-4).

This was an amazing sight. Verse 9 shows that it was a “vision”—Moses and Elijah were not really there. Peter, James and John were seeing a vision of a time to come, when Jesus’ face would “shine as the sun.”

The apostle Peter later reflected on what he saw: “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty” (II Pet. 1:16). Comparing Matthew 17:5 with II Peter 1:17 shows the same event, the transfiguration, is being referenced.

Although God’s Kingdom did not literally come in the first century, some of the disciples did witness Jesus’ “power and coming” in vision, which fulfilled Matthew 16:28.

(6) Did Paul’s Companions Hear Jesus on the Road to Damascus?

A detail of Paul’s famous conversion story appears to be inconsistently recorded in Scripture. We need to understand what really happened.

After Paul was struck down on the road to Damascus, Acts 9:7 states, “And the men which journeyed with him [Paul] stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man.” Paul’s companions here heard the voice of God.

In Acts 22:9, when Paul recounted this story to the people of Jerusalem, he said: “And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of Him [Christ] that spoke to me.” This verse seems to say they did not hear Jesus’ voice.

Both cannot be true. How do we reconcile these two accounts?

The Greek word akouo is used in both of these passages. Like many other Hebrew and Greek words, it has different meanings that vary depending on the context in which it is used. It can mean to both understand and to hear.

This same word is used in I Corinthians 14:2, which clearly shows the intended meaning: “For he that speaks in an unknown tongue speaks not unto men, but unto God: for no man understands [akouo] him; howbeit in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” Those listening to the person speaking in tongues heard a voice, yet did not understand.

This is what happened to Paul and those with him while traveling to Damascus. While the men with him heard the audible noise of Jesus’ voice, they did not understand what was said. However, Paul both heard and understood.

Acts 22:9 should read, “And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they understood not the voice of Him that spoke to me.”

(7) Did Paul and James Disagree About Salvation?

Romans 3:28 says, “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” This seems like an explicit statement that obedience to the law is unnecessary.

Yet James 2:24 states, “You see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.”

These two apostles, Paul and James, appear to disagree about what justifies a Christian: faith without works, or faith and works?

Resolving this is important. Could the New Testament be divinely inspired if these writers gave believers different criteria for salvation? No!

Peter said Paul wrote “some things hard to be understood” in his epistles (II Pet. 3:16). Paul’s writings at times require more effort to understand than other more straightforward passages in Scripture. As with other supposed contradictions, examining context is key.

Just four verses after Paul’s statement about being justified by faith, he adds: “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yes, we establish the law” (Rom. 3:31). He certainly was not bashing God’s Law!

Reading the entirety of Romans 3 is helpful. Paul explains that we cannot become righteous by our own human effort. He explained that both the Jews, who tended to be more meticulous with outward physical obedience, as well as the gentiles (this term just means unbelievers) are “all under sin” (vs. 9) before conversion. Paul emphasized that people must have faith in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice to be saved. At the same time, he was not denigrating obedience.

James 2 is also important to read in full. This apostle painted a picture of what it would look like to believe faith is all that is needed with no good works. James showed how absurd this would be when he described someone saying, “Depart in peace, be you warmed and filled” to a person who was “naked, and destitute of daily food” (vs. 15-16). At the same time, he was clearly not putting down faith in Jesus. He explained how Abraham’s “faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect” (vs. 22).

When understood properly, Romans 3 and James 2 do not fight each other. Instead, they complement one another. Faith in Christ’s blood sacrifice is essential, but God also expects us to obey Him.

For more, you may want to review our article “What Does the New Testament Teach About Law And Grace?”

Be Prepared

While no article could cover every supposed contradiction in God’s Word, allow the seven we examined to strengthen your conviction in Scripture’s authenticity.

Jesus proclaimed in John 10:35, “The scripture cannot be broken.” God’s Word does not, and cannot, contradict itself. If we study to “prove all things” (I Thes. 5:21), God will continue to give us understanding.

When someone confronts you about whether the Bible can be trusted, be prepared with the explanations and tools we have examined.

Yet you should not seek to forcibly convert others or humiliate them with your knowledge. Make sure to “walk in wisdom toward them that are without” (Col. 4:5) and “be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (I Pet. 3:15). Do not give a sermon where a “soft answer” (Prov. 15:1) is all that is needed. Also, remember that it is only through God’s mercy that you are privileged to understand the truth.

Understanding what difficult scriptures really mean should remind us of the need for careful and consistent Bible study. Joshua wrote, “This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; but you shall meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success” (1:8).

By knowing the Book, you protect yourself from any traps that could come, whether from people you encounter or your own human nature.

Many of the tactics used in this article to explain contradictions, such as examining context, finding out what the Bible really says, using more than one translation, and more, are explained thoroughly in our article “The Rules of Effective Bible Study.” These principles are worth periodically reviewing to keep your Bible study skills sharp.

For more about the divine origin and authenticity of Scripture, read Mr. Pack’s booklet Bible Authority...Can It Be Proven?