Addressing Alleged Mistakes

While many alleged contradictions in Scripture have been refuted through sound exegetical and historical analysis, critics persist in asserting that the Bible contains mistakes. Such accusations often stem from either a superficial reading of the text, a failure to harmonize passages within their contexts, or a misunderstanding of the literary and linguistic conventions of the biblical world. This article will examine several often-cited cases of supposed error and demonstrate that they are nothing of the sort when carefully examined using the Historical-Grammatical method and a high view of Scripture’s inerrancy.

Judas’ Death: Hanging or Falling Headlong?

Matthew 27:5 (UASV):

“And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.”

Acts 1:18 (UASV):

“(Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out.”

Answer:
This alleged contradiction arises only when one insists that both verses are giving identical details rather than complementary ones. In reality, Matthew recounts how Judas committed suicide—by hanging himself—while Luke in Acts reports the result of that suicide.

What likely occurred is that Judas, in his despair, hanged himself on a tree located near a cliff edge. Whether due to the branch breaking, the rope snapping, or the body being left to decay until it fell, the end result is what Luke describes: the body fell and burst open. Thus, Luke’s record complements Matthew’s by supplying further detail, not conflicting information. There is no contradiction—only two perspectives of the same tragic event.

Plague Numbers: 23,000 or 24,000?

Numbers 25:9 (UASV):

“The ones who died in the plague were twenty-four thousand.”

1 Corinthians 10:8 (UASV):

“Neither let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them committed sexual immorality, only to fall, twenty-three thousand of them in one day.”

Answer:
Paul, writing under inspiration, refers to those who died in one day—23,000. Moses, by contrast, refers to the total number who died as a result of the plague—24,000. The discrepancy is only apparent if one fails to observe the time frame specified in 1 Corinthians.

Moreover, Moses’ account includes “the chiefs of the people” who were slain by judges prior to the outbreak of the plague (Numbers 25:4–5). This could account for the extra 1,000 individuals mentioned. Paul is precise in noting that the 23,000 died “in one day,” while Moses provides a complete tally of all those who perished in the event. Both are correct within their stated scope.

Joseph’s Burial: In Abraham’s or Jacob’s Tomb?

Acts 7:15–16 (UASV):

“And Jacob went down to Egypt and died, he and our fathers. And they were brought back to Shechem and buried in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.”

Genesis 33:19 (UASV):

“And he bought the piece of land where he had pitched his tent from the hand of the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for one hundred qesitahs.”

Joshua 24:32 (UASV):

“As for the bones of Joseph, which the sons of Israel brought up from Egypt, they buried them at Shechem, in the piece of land that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for one hundred qesitahs.”

Answer:
Critics argue that Acts 7:16 attributes to Abraham a land purchase in Shechem that Genesis attributes to Jacob. However, there are reasonable explanations consistent with biblical inerrancy:

1. Oral Tradition Not Preserved in Genesis: Stephen may have been referencing an event preserved in reliable oral tradition not recorded in Genesis. Genesis 12:6–7 states that Abraham’s first stop in Canaan was Shechem, where he built an altar and received the promise from Jehovah. It is reasonable to suggest that Abraham may have secured that land, and later generations, having left the area, required Jacob to repurchase it due to lapsing local recognition of prior ownership.
2. Representative Attribution: In biblical thought, a descendant could be viewed as a representative of the patriarch. Thus, Jacob’s purchase may have been considered an extension of Abraham’s claim to the land. This form of attribution is consistent with ancient Near Eastern practices.
3. Textual Explanation: Some scholars have noted a potential syntactical construction in Acts 7:16 where the Greek allows for the interpretation that the tomb and the purchase are not being attributed directly to Abraham in the absolute sense but that Shechem is simply the site where a tomb was, connected genealogically to Abraham’s lineage.
4. Proleptic Use of “Tomb”: The word mnema (tomb) used in Acts could refer to the land that later became a tomb. Abraham bought land in Hebron (Machpelah), but it is not called a “tomb” until its later use. Similarly, the tract of land in Shechem could have been considered Abraham’s by ancestral claim and later became a tomb for Joseph.

Thus, Acts 7:16 presents no contradiction but reflects common Jewish interpretive traditions and linguistic flexibility.

David’s Census: Moved by God or Satan?

2 Samuel 24:1 (UASV):

“Now again the anger of Jehovah burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, ‘Go, number Israel and Judah.’”

1 Chronicles 21:1 (UASV):

“Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel.”

Answer:
The two texts reflect different aspects of causality. 2 Samuel attributes the census to the wrath of Jehovah—He allowed the census as a disciplinary measure against Israel’s sin. 1 Chronicles identifies Satan (or a resister) as the immediate agent provoking David to commit the act.

This is consistent with the broader Scriptural principle that God permits evil within His sovereign plan without being the author of it. Just as God permitted Satan to test Job (Job 1:12), so He allowed Satan to tempt David, not because He endorsed the act, but as a judgment upon Israel.

The language of divine causation in 2 Samuel is permissive, not deterministic. Scripture often expresses God’s permission of an action as though He directly caused it. For example, Jehovah “hardened Pharaoh’s heart” (Exodus 4:21), but the context reveals that Pharaoh’s heart was already resistant, and God merely allowed the hardening to persist for His purposes.

In the case of David’s census, Jehovah’s anger was already kindled against Israel, likely due to widespread national sin. He thus permitted Satan to act, and David, failing to rely on Jehovah, gave in to the temptation. The parallel accounts are not contradictory—they simply emphasize different agents involved in the event.

The alleged mistakes examined above are nothing more than misunderstandings or superficial readings of the text. When approached with a proper hermeneutic that respects authorial intent, grammatical context, and covenantal continuity, these so-called errors dissolve under the light of faithful exegesis. The Bible remains wholly inspired and inerrant in all that it affirms. Each example—whether concerning historical events, numerical data, or theological implications—demonstrates the internal consistency and truthfulness of Scripture.

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