Anyone care to explain this contradiction?

Question

I checked the verses, this is real, no typos or twists on words. These verses come from the King James Version. I was wondering if anyone cared to explain this contradiction or agree with me by saying the bible might something made up.

". . . God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man."
(James:1:13)
"And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham."
(Genesis 22:1)

". . . for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger forever."
(Jeremiah 3:12)
"Ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burn forever. Thus saith the Lord."
(Jeremiah 17:4)


"If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true."
(John 5:31, J.C. speaking)
"I am one that bear witness of myself . . ."
(John 8:18, J.C. speaking)

"I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
(Genesis 32:30)
"No man hath seen God at any time."
(John 1:18)
"And I [God] will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts . . ."
(Exodus 33:23)

Thanks for your ideas!

I didn't mean to question it, or consider this, I have my mind pretty made up about my religion, I was curious what other people thought about it. And how people could get around it...

Yeah, I'm FULLY aware of the context, the language translation, stuff like that. And I'd appreciate it if you didn't assume I was stupid for asking this, because it IS a real question, Mr. Randy.

I didn't have room to type that I read the entire thing, context and all.

And as far as the language translation goes, if you read the King James Version, or any translation, how can you possibly believe it while telling me "Well, you can't completely go with that because of the language translation.." Make sense? Its like you are half way believing it. When it comes to the contradictions, its because of the translation. But when Jesus says he loves you, it has to be true!

Niceguy: You said that was from the NIV, and I stopped reading your answer there. That is a translation from ANOTHER translation, so that is defintitely going to be off from the real version.

The KJV says God tempted Abraham. Its what it says. I read it with my own eyes.

Well, I asked for your point of view and I got it. But some of you attacked me, if you will, and it was just a question.

I never EVER tried to disprove the bible, and I never will, I just wanted to know what you thought.

Calm down.

By the way, I got this from this website if you care to look at it.

http://www.seesharppress.com/20reasons.html

Answer 1

I'll say it again: If you are looking for logic or consistancy,
do not do so in most organized religions (e.g. Christianity).
That is not religion's purpose - you're supposed to get
something else out of it: Faith, spiritual calmness,
something...

Consistancy? Nope, wrong place to look.

Answer 2

1) God does not tempt, but he does TEST (which is the more literal translation of the word in Genesis 22:1) The word in James has specifically to do with tempted BY EVIL, which God does not do. While the King James translates them both as "tempted", they are different words in the original languages.

2) In Jeremiah, God is speaking to different people in different situation. Like a parent who is sometimes angry with his children, but not forever, should be angry at a rapist who tries to harm their child and should never let that anger go. Different people in different situation can get a different response from God and it is not a contradition.

3) One of the Bible principles is that any one who claims to be speaking for God must have his claim backed up by two or more witnesses, whether they be other people, or something like miracles. When Jesus was speaking in John 5:31, he was saying if the ONLY witness to his claims was himself, then it would be a false. But he had three other witnesses, John the Baptist, his miracles, and his Father God. Therefore his witness of himself was true. Verses 32-37 detail these other witnesses.
In John 8:17 (the verse before the second one you quoted) Jesus even quotes that old testament principle of two witnesses. And there list himself and his Father as the two witnesses. So both scriptures are in agreement that Jesus needed - and had - the necessary witnesses to prove his witness was not false. The scriptures compliment each other. They make sense when read in context.


4) Genesis 32:24 records the event that Jacob is talking about when he says he saw God "face to face". Notice that it says it was "a man" who came and wrestled with Jacob. Many people have seen God when he is incarnate in the form of Jesus. But they have not seen him when he is only in spirit form. This is one of several appearances that Jesus makes "in the flesh" in the Old Testament.
In Exodus 33:23, God permits Moses to see "my back parts". So is it true that God did give Moses a half second glance of the back of him (literally "that which follows"). But He makes it clear in the rest of the verse that he did not considered that as seeing his face. So God did not consider that as "seeing" him, according to the scripture. So that leaves John 1:18 a true statement.

Oh..and on your "translation of another translation" additon, please note that the both the King James version and the New Internation Version are translated from the same Greek manuscripts. The New Testament as NOT a translation of a translation of a translation. Does not have to be because it has been available in the original language ever since it was written.
All translations are made from the original language, not from early translations. The advantage to the newer translations is that they were translated from the originals today, rather than in the time of Shakespeare when the English language was much different then it was today.

Answer 3

You know, that must've taken a lot of time. Therefore I chose to diligently study what you are bringing up.

I should first say this: When Christians talk about the inerrancy of scripture, they often are referring to the original language manuscripts. There are a certain branch of Christians who believe in something called "double inspiration", referring specifically to the KJV, that believe those who wrote the KJV were just as inspired as those who wrote the originals. However, this is not a majority view. So it is possible that apparant "contradictions" are really different language uses, or perhaps a better choice of word could have been made at a particular time (although technically still a good translation, perhaps a bit more confusing). This can especially be true of the KJV, as the english language has changed dramatically since its 1611 origins.

Having said that, let's take a look:

Your first pair would be one of these examples: The word "test" would've perhaps been more understandable to us today, in the context of the Genesis passage, as this is referring to God telling Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, but "tempt" in 1611 would've been the word used for how we would say "test" now. It's like the word yard, could mean the grass on my property or three feet. It's a multiple definition. No contradiction there.

I'll admit, at first blush, the Jeremiah quotes caused me some concern, until I looked them up, and realized why you used ellipsies to start the first quote. Here is the full verse, in context, of Jeremiah 3:12--
"Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever."
So we see that this is actually a promise from God in return for specific behavior in this particular situation, while the second quote is a more general statement about his attributes. Very clever try.

And lookie here, you did the same thing with the quotes from John! Took a verse totally out of context. In John 5:31, Jesus is referring to the idea that his authority comes from God, and that it is because God bears witness to him that he has authority. Read it in context, verses 30-34. Then in the next passage, read it again, in context, verses 12-18. In verse 18, he refers again to the idea that his authority allows him, as God's son, to bear witness to himself, something that Jews were not allowed to do under the Law (which is what he referred to in 5:31) and God also bears witness for him, so his witness is true. Darn ellipses. They can do a lot to create apparant "contradictions".

In the final example, the use of the word "seen" is used in figurative language in John 1:18, so no contradiction there either.

Had you pulled out full verses, I would've considered this an honest question; however, you could only have done what you had done with the deliberate idea to decieve. At least be an intellectually honest skeptic.

If you're interested in contradictions, there are in fact many apparant "contradictions" in the Bible, without your shenanigans of pulling things out of context.

However, these are all easily explained as well. God's Word is true. You'll have to find a braver reason to reject it than this.

Answer 4

My texts are from the New International Version: "a completely new translation of the Holy Bible made by over a hundred scholars working directly from the best available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts."


James 1:13- When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be temped by evil, nor does he tempt anyone...."

Genesis 22:1- Some time later, God tested Abraham.


Jeremiah 3:12- Go, proclaim this message toward the north: "Return, faithless Israel, declares the Lord, "I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful," declares the Lord, "I will not be angry forever. -13- Only, acknowlege your guilt--you have rebelled against the Lord your God.."

Jeremiah 17:4--Through your own fault you will lose the inheritance I gave you. I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for you have kindled my anger, and it will burn forever.


John 5:31--"If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid. There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid. 33-You have sent to John (the Baptist) and he has testified to the truth."

John 8:17--In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. 18- I am one who testifies for myself, my other witness is the Father, who sent me."


Genesis 32:24--So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak...30--So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

John 1:17--For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18--No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

Exodus 33:20--"But", he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." 21-Then the Lord said, "There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. 22- When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 23-Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen."




I don't know what source you are using to search for contradictions in the Bible, but surely you realize that if you read the whole text there in absolutely nothing contradictory about any of the ones you chose. I believe there are none ANYWHERE in the Bible.

Answer 5

Most of these problems are from the Kind James version. It is not a very good translation of the Greek.

The stuff in the old testament was written to an audience of Jewish people. If they wrote other words that would have been more truthful, people wouldn't have believed them, (genesis 32:30) or they work persecute them for blasphemy (Jeremiah 17:4)

I would look into it with other believers with more experiance, they can give better proof than I can, but these are the general ideas.

Answer 6

God tested Abraham's faith... Abraham Tested
1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.

That is a quote directly from the NIV translation from biblegateway.com God was testing Abraham for Abraham to prove his faithfulness to God, God did not tempt Abraham to commit a sin, which is what James is referring to. James is saying that God does not tempt men to sin, but men are dragged into temptation by their own evil desires. God is 100 percent Holy and does not entice men to sin, we do that on our own or God allows satan to tempt man.

In the Jeremiah reference, in Jeremiah 3:12 God is addressing the nation of Israel. In Jeremiah 17:4, God is referencing the southern nation of Judah, which was eventually destroyed. God can indeed be angry over sin forever, but at the same time forgive that sin and be merciful. These are two totally seperate instances which are heavily dependent on CONTEXT.

In John 5, Jesus is explaining that as a man, if he testifies of Himself that testimony is not to be considered true. In John 8 Jesus is saying that because He is God, and the Father is in agreement wit Him, his testimony is true (implied.. God cannot lie, and is 3 persons in one: Father, Son, Holy Spirit).

In John 1:18, the original greek language means having seen God "completely." The scripture in no way implies that no person has ever seen part of God or had a "face to face" experience with Him, which could be more symbolic in its language than literal.

Answer 7

You need to understand that all different kinds of people cataloged the life of Christ. Of about 500 scholars, only 4 were selected to be included in the Holy of Holiest books to be written at that time. Therefore there are indeed contradictions on the part of those who bear witness to Christ's teachings have often been misinterpreted by the many scholars and theologians trying to decipher the many dialects of the writers.

Bottom line: If you are looking for faith to guide you in life, open your mind, your eyes and your heart and you will see, hear and feel it. If you are searching for a "guide" to get you through life, just "do the right thing" and "do unto others as you would have them do to you".

If you are truly trying to understand the bible check out a local church group and join their bible study group. This is a great way to ask your questions and get helpful feedback.

Answer 8

The King James Version always turns up quirky.

But if you are going to analyze, then you need to learn Hebrew and Greek, going back to as much of the original text as possible. The Bible wasn't written in English, and there are a lot of things that can be misunderstood in translation.

Answer 9

As you study religion (not just christianity) you will find that it is absolutely rife with contradictions and, lets face it, impossibilities.

A house divided against itself cannot stand, as they say, and these contradictions is a huge part of why many people can't bring themselves to believe in the stories and parables.

Its best not to take religion at word but to rather look at the overall themes.

Also, the writings were written by different people, who obviously have different viewpoints. Especially in early christianity, there was wide dissention between groups and their opinions. If im not mistaken, the council of trent was undertaken to bring together a single message the church would espouse, and they tried their best despite such differences.

Answer 10

Who was God talking to?
What was God talking about?
How does it relate to me?

Ask yourself those questions while interpreting the scriptures.

Also, you seem to look at the Old testament, and find contradictions in the New testament. The old and new testaments talk about the same thing, but different ways. Jesus wasn't present in the old testament, so God handled the people in a different way...Without Jesus, there was no mercy, no real love, no one to save the people from their sins, so God had to use His judgement and wrath on them when they did things wrong.

You have to rightly divide (interpret) the Word of God. (2 Timothy 2:15)

Answer 11

". . . God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man."
(James:1:13)
"And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham."
(Genesis 22:1)
I say:
GOD allowed the devil to tempt abraham