Are There Any Contradictions in the Bible?
Are There Any Contradictions in the Bible?
No, the Bible does not contain contradictions in the proper sense of the word. It does contain difficult passages and differences in detail, but a difference is not automatically a contradiction.
Before examining any examples, we first need to ask: What exactly is a contradiction?
- What Is a Contradiction?
- The Empty Tomb: The Number of Angels and Women
- What About Differences in Numbers?
- Do the Genealogies of Jesus Contradict Each Other?
- Does Genesis Contradict Science by Placing Plants Before the Sun?
- What Common Mistakes Are Made When Claiming That the Bible Contradicts Itself?
- How Should We Examine an Alleged Biblical Contradiction?
- So, Are There Any Contradictions in the Bible?
What Is a Contradiction?
A contradiction occurs when two statements make directly opposing claims about the same subject, at the same time and in the same sense.
For example:
- One statement says that David won a particular battle.
- Another says that David lost that same battle.
Both claims cannot be true under the same circumstances. That would be a contradiction.
Now imagine two people describing the same event:
- One says, “A car stopped outside the house.”
- Another says, “A red car stopped outside the house, and two people got out.”
The accounts differ, but they do not contradict each other. The first person simply gave fewer details. A contradiction would occur if one person said that a car stopped while the other said that no car stopped.
Different details are not contradictions unless one statement directly denies the other.
The Empty Tomb: The Number of Angels and Women
The resurrection accounts are frequently presented as evidence that the Gospels contradict each other.
The Number of Angels
Matthew highlights one angel at the tomb. Mark mentions a young man dressed in white. Luke describes two men in dazzling clothing. John mentions two angels.
There would be a contradiction if one Gospel said, “Only one angel was present,” while another said that there were two. But none of the Gospel writers says that only one was there.
Mentioning one angel does not deny the presence of another. A contradictory claim would require a Gospel to state explicitly that only one angel was present or that no angel was present. None of the Gospels says that.
The Number of Women
The Gospels also name different women at the tomb. Some mention one or two, while others provide a longer list.
Matthew names Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary.” Mark also mentions Salome. Luke includes Joanna and refers to other women. John focuses mainly on Mary Magdalene.
These are selective lists, not necessarily complete lists. In John’s account, Mary says, “We do not know where they have put him,” suggesting that she was not alone even though John focuses on her.
The Central Message Remains the Same
The accounts consistently affirm that:
- Jesus had been crucified and buried.
- Women went to the tomb.
- The tomb was empty.
- Heavenly messengers announced that Jesus had risen.
- Jesus later appeared to His followers.
You see, the writers include different details, but none denies the empty tomb or the resurrection. The foundational claim remains unchanged: Jesus had risen.
What About Differences in Numbers?
Some alleged contradictions involve numbers.
One well-known example appears in 2 Samuel 8:4 and 1 Chronicles 18:4, which record the number of horsemen or charioteers David captured after winning a battle. One passage gives the number as 700, while the other gives it as 7,000.
Strictly speaking, 700 and 7,000 are not the same number, making this a genuine numerical discrepancy in the text. I acknowledge the difference and caution against the common mistake of confidently declaring that it must have resulted from a copying error. We do not know that.
Substituting one unknown explanation for another solves nothing. Even if we assumed a copying error, we would still have to ask whether 700 became 7,000 or 7,000 became 700. It is better to acknowledge the numerical difference than to invent an explanation that the text itself does not provide.
The difference in recorded counts or measurements is an unresolved textual difficulty, not a contradiction of the historical event itself. Both records agree on the core historical outcome: David fought, defeated the enemy, and captured their forces.
Do the Genealogies of Jesus Contradict Each Other?
The genealogies in Matthew and Luke contain many different names. Matthew traces the line from Abraham to Jesus, while Luke works backwards from Jesus to Adam.
A common explanation is that Matthew gives Jesus’ legal ancestry through Joseph, while Luke traces His ancestry through Mary. That may be true, but the text does not explicitly state it.
However, ask yourself this: if you traced your ancestry through your mother’s family and then through your father’s family, would the names be different? Of course they would. Would the two family lines contradict each other? No.
For two genealogies to contradict each other, they would have to trace the exact same line through the exact same parent and list different people. Having two different family trees leading to the same person is not a contradiction—it is simply two different branches of a family history.
Does Genesis Contradict Science by Placing Plants Before the Sun?
Some argue that Genesis contradicts science because vegetation appears before the sun and moon.
A common defense is that plants can survive under artificial light. I do not accept that argument because modern artificial lighting is not what Genesis describes. It imposes a modern example on an ancient account.
Within Genesis, light exists before the sun and moon. God is presented as the source of light, while the sun, moon, and stars are later appointed to govern days, seasons, and years. Genesis therefore does not say that vegetation existed in complete darkness.
More importantly, there is a big difference between a book contradicting itself and a book disagreeing with outside science. A true contradiction only happens when two statements inside the Bible deny each other. Disagreeing with modern science is a debate about how the Bible relates to science—it is not an internal contradiction within the text itself.
What Common Mistakes Are Made When Claiming That the Bible Contradicts Itself?
Two reasoning errors appear repeatedly.
1. Treating Every Difference as a Contradiction
Two accounts can differ without denying each other. Additional details, selective reporting, and differences in emphasis are not contradictions.
2. Treating an Unexplained Difficulty as a Proven Contradiction
A passage may remain difficult because we lack historical, linguistic, or cultural information. Saying, “I do not know how these passages fit together,” is not the same as proving that the passages contradict each other.
At the same time, Christians should not invent explanations merely because those explanations are theoretically possible. An unsupported defense is no stronger than an unsupported accusation.
How Should We Examine an Alleged Biblical Contradiction?
Before alleging a contradiction, ask:
- Are both passages speaking about the same person or event?
- Are they describing the same time and circumstances?
- Are the key words being used in the same sense?
- Does one passage directly deny the other?
- Do the accounts deny the event, or do they provide different details?
These questions may not produce an immediate answer to every difficulty. They do, however, prevent us from declaring a contradiction before understanding what the passages actually say.
So, Are There Any Contradictions in the Bible?
No, not in the proper logical sense of a contradiction.
The Bible contains passages that are difficult to understand and accounts that include different details. But different details, selective reporting, and unanswered questions are not the same as two statements directly denying each other.
In many cases, the alleged contradiction disappears when the passages are read carefully and in context.
A difference is not a contradiction. A contradiction exists only when one claim makes the other impossible.
