How to Make Sense of Contradictions in the Bible

The Bible has two creation accounts/narratives as seen in the book of Genesis. Gen. 1 is thought to be written after Gen. 2 (scholars believe it was written around the Babylonian Exile ca. 587–530 B.C.) while Gen. 2 is likely to be an oral tradition that circled around the Levant and eventually was adapted and kept by the ancient Israelites possibly as early as 1000 B.C.

Despite the radical differences between the two narratives, both versions of the creation are left in the completed text. We see passages like these scattered throughout the Bible, for instance, the twin accounts of the conquest of Canaan in Joshua and Judges or the two David accounts in 1 Samuel 16 and 17: King Saul either met David for the first time in his court or on the battlefield, but he did not meet him first twice.

All of these seeming sloppy contradictions and duplications are part of a framework which biblical scholar Robert Alter calls the “Composite Artistry” (referring only to the Hebrew Bible). Alter claims that all contradictions or multiple accounts in the Bible are deliberate and shows the intricacies and beauty of the Bibles’ literary art form.

In other words, because the final redactors and editors did not cut out obvious contradictions in the Bible, they hold supreme significance. They show the development of tradition passed down from previous authors and how stories are formulated and expanded over time to show a more complete story.

Take the two David accounts. Although the logic of David’s first meeting and rise to kingship are not sound, both accounts are written in a way that show two parts of David’s character. In 1 Sam. 16 we see his how David is uniquely appointed by God and is shown as a person who comforts, loves, and heals those around him. In 1 Sam. 17 we see a David who is “ratified rather than initiated by God”, who uses his own resourcefulness to establish authority. As Alter argues, both of these frameworks of history and kingship are needed as introduction to the complete character of David.

Most often, the duplicity of stories and accounts in the Bible shows not only the legitimacy of stories but also the unobservable truths that otherwise would not have appeared from just one account. We can never know what exactly the editors and redactors chose to leave out but we can decipher and realize the importance of the passages they did choose to leave in.

Once one realizes the reality of the construction of the Bible, one can gain more insights and knowledge into the history and developing narratives in the Bible. One is also able to explore why certain passages are constructed the way they are and question why contradictions seem to appear throughout stories.

All of these acknowledgments are not to ridicule or swear falsely against the Bible, but in truth, face the book with a realist view and an open mind. This serves one to be transformed by the beauty, truth, and art of this sacred text and tradition.

This is a short perspective on how to approach the Bible as you continue (or start) your journey through the various books and passages of the Bible and hopefully be captured by the truth, wisdom, knowledge, and beauty carefully shown throughout.

As Alter writes, the Bible should be viewed less so a “text” than “a constant stitching together of earlier texts drawn from divergent literary and sometimes oral tradition.”

Especially when you encounter a contradiction, know that this collection of stories is part of millenia long literary art form of the greatest and most influential book ever to be written. To start your journey is to be captured and transformed when you who knock upon its enlightened words.

*A future post regarding contradictions in the New Testament requires further exploration.

Sources:

Alter, Robert. The Art of Biblical Narrative. Basic Books, 2011.