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HOW DID JUDAS DIE?
(NIV) Contradiction 1: Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines
spilled out. Acts 1:18
(NIV) Contradiction 2: So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged
himself. Matthew 27:5
Under Jewish law, the handling of a dead body would make one temporarily unclean. Because Judas was said to
have hung himself during the Passover before the Sabbath, it is very likely no one wanted to handle his corpse.
Scientifically, we know if a body is not embalmed soon after death, the decomposition process will cause the
corpse to accumulate gas. If Judas was left hanging, it is likely he remained in such a state until his body
eventually bloated, causing the rope to snap and his corpse to fall and burst (notice the verse in Acts does not
say this is how Judas died but only what happened to his body).
Others speculate Matthew is using a literary technique and is not referring to a literal hanging but associating
Judas with the traitor, Ahithophel, of the Old Testament.
WHO WAS SEEN AT THE TOMB?
(NIV) Contradiction 1: An angel of the Lord came down from heaven to the tomb... Matthew 28:2
(NIV) Contradiction 2: As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe... Mark 16:5
(NIV) Contradiction 3: Suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. Luke 24:4
(NIV) Contradiction 4: Two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been... John 20:12
Several conflicts arise in the above passages: How many angels were seen at the tomb- one or two? Were the
angels seen inside or outside the tomb? Were the angels standing or sitting? In Matthew, one angel appears to
the women outside the tomb while Mark states the women were then greeted by a second angel upon
entering the tomb. We see one angel outside and one angel inside, giving us a total of two angels (with Mark
and Matthew focusing on one encounter each). Luke and John combine the two encounters by mentioning two
angels without offering the specifics given by Matthew and Mark.
WHO WAS JOSIAH'S SUCCESSOR?
(NIV) Contradiction 1: Shallum son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah... Jeremiah 22:11
(NIV) Contradiction 2: The people took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king... II Chronicles 36:1
Our lexicon states this is a reference to the same person (See: note 2a). This should come as no surprise as
several individuals (particularly males) throughout the Bible are referred to by more than one name.
CONFLICTING CREATION ACCOUNTS
As told in Genesis 1 verses Genesis 2
Many Biblical critics believe there are inconsistencies between the two creation accounts mentioned in the first
two chapters of Genesis. Call me dense but I just don't see it! The first chapter in Genesis relays the actual
events of the traditional six day creation in the true chronological order. The second chapter of Genesis
expands the creation of man and woman and their relationship to the environment in greater detail using a
topical order. Upon closer examination of Genesis 2 as compared to Genesis 1, we see different verbs being
used in the original Hebrew. To see what I am referring to, I suggest reading this article and this article by two
authors who examine the original Hebrew in depth.
WHO WAS CAIN BEING PROTECTED FROM?
(NIV) But the Lord said to him, Not so if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over. Then the
LORD put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. Genesis 4:15
In my opinion, this is somewhat of a pointless objection. Due to the longer lifespans recorded in the Bible, Cain
would have been around much longer to have come in contact with many future generations.
HOW CAN CAIN POPULATE AN ENTIRE CITY?
(NIV) Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. Genesis 4:17
This goes along with the same concept mentioned above. Furthermore, this city was not necessarily a raging
metropolis like our modern day New York City.
WHO KILLED KING SAUL?
(NIV) Contradiction 1: Saul said to his armor-bearer, Draw your sword and run me through, or these
uncircumcised fellows will come and run me through and abuse me. But his armor-bearer was terrified and would
not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it... I Samuel 31:4
(NIV) Contradiction 2: [Saul] then said to me, "Stand over me and kill me! I am in the throes of death but still
alive.' So I stood over him and killed him... II Samuel 1:9-10
Let's look at the context of both passages (I Samuel 31 and II Samuel 1). I Samuel is the actual recorded
account of the events that took place. II Samuel is the dialogue between David and an Amalekite witness who is
relating his own version of events. We can clearly see the account given by the Amalekite was his personal
testimony and that he was also lying to David! The Amalekite went before David with his false testimony of
killing Saul in the hope of seeking a reward but instead David ordered his death.
Skeptic Interjection: What about the passage in II Samuel 21:12 which mentions Paul being slain/struck down
by the Philistines?
Answer: The Hebrew word meaning slay (as in the literal sense of killing) is harag (v) and chalal (n). However,
neither of these words are used in reference to Saul's fate at the hands of the Philistines. Instead, the word used
in this passage is nakah which is an ambiguous term meaning to conquer, destroy, defeat etc. This verse does
not imply Saul was killed by the Philistines but that he was defeated by them in battle which corresponds with the
other accounts mentioned throughout the Old Testament.
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