hallq

I'm looking for people's opinions on the top Biblical contradictions. Not just ones that lack plausible harmonizations, but ones which no amount of weasling will solve. The best one I know is Mark v. the other gospels on whether the women told anyone about the tomb. Anything where apologists invoke scribal error is also good. What else do people know of?

DanBZ

There's the one about Judas' death. In Matthew it says he hanged himself. In Acts it says he fell headlong and burst open. He could not have fallen headlong after being hanged, because of the way the body is positioned.

gstafleu

The top one is no doubt that Matthew places Jesus' birth during Herod, meaning at or before 4BC, while Luke places it during the census of Quirinius, 6CE.

EarlOfLade

Here is a nice list:
http://faithskeptic.50megs.com/contradictions.htm

fromdownunder

Any Biblical contridiction can be refuted (read: rationalised). I have even seen the pi = 3, the rabbit chewing it's cud and the clearly stated Joseph "who was Joseph's father?" refuted (read: rationalised).

For anybody who accepts the Bible as the literal unalterable word of God, a reason can be found. For any Christian who does not believe that a literal interpretation is essential, it does not matter, and for the rest of us...except for an intellectual mind game, does it really matter?

Norm

Roland

The two biggest ones for me:

1). In Matthew, Mary Magdalene first learns of Jesus' resurrection from an angel; in John, she learns of it from Jesus himself.

2). In Luke, it clearly states that the risen Jesus appeared to "the eleven" on Easter evening. John claims Thomas (thus making it "ten") was absent.

jjramsey

That one should be on the bottom of the list, since it is pretty clear that the women were shocked into silence on account of seeing the angel, but that sort of shock tends to fade. There is also the matter that if the women never told anyone at all, then it is rather odd that Mark heard their story at all. (Of course, Mark really didn't, but the reader thinks he did, and would have reasoned thus.) Not to mention that Mark ends so abruptly (and on a conjunction at that, IIRC) that a lost ending is a viable possibility even if one isn't an apologist.

There are some viable contradiction, but this isn't one of them. It is strictly at the level of the SAB.

gregor

um, sounds like an apologist argument for why it might not be a contradiction under the right circumstances.

EarlOfLade

Quick example of how impotent your god is:

So the omnipotent god have problems with chariots of iron?
Wonder how he feels about tanks....

RED DAVE

http://Dennis McKinnsy's Bible Errancy Site - Exhaustive

RED DAVE