LSCC 7/22/12 Greg Rhodea

greg@rhodea.net

Are the Scriptures Reliable?

—Seven Reasons for Confidence—

IV. Contradictions in the Gospels

Six Principles:
1. Differences are not contradictions.
E.g., the number of angels/young men at the tomb in resurrection accounts.

2. Any record of history is necessarily Selective.

E.g., the prologue to Shakespeare’s Henry V; Plutarch’s intro to his Life of Alexander; John
21:25.

3. The Gospels are often imprecise about chronology.

Compare: Mark 2:1-3:6//Matt 8-12; Mark 6:1-6//Luke 4:16-30; Matt 4:1-11//Luke 4:1-13

4. The Gospels often paraphrase.

Compare:
Matt 16:16//Mark 8:29//Luke 9:20
Mark 1:11//Matt 3:17
Luke 11:20//Matt 12:28

Ipsissima Verba: The very words of Jesus

Ipsissima Vox: The very voice of Jesus

Analogy: The NT writer’s use of the OT

Compare:
Isaiah 40:3-5//Luke 3:4-6
2 Cor 6:18//2 Sam 7:14//Isa 43:5-6

5. The Gospels can record events in light of later understanding.

Mark 6:45-52//Matt 14:22-33

6. Thus, the Gospels are interpreted history, not video recordings.

Bottom Line: The Gospels hold up very well when read according to how they actually function, and their
flexibility helps us resolve apparent contradiction.
 Cursing of the Fig Tree in Matthew and Mark
MATTHEW 21:1-23 (across 2 days, temple cleansing on day 1, one day before cursing on day 2)
Day 1
Triumphal entry
Cleanses temple

Lodges in Bethany

Day 2
In morning returning to city
Curses tree

Withers immediately.
Teaches in temple

MARK 11:1-27 (across 3 days, temple cleansing on day 2, same day as cursing on day 2)
Day 1
Triumphal entry
Looks at temple
Lodges in Bethany

Day 2
In morning returning to city
Curses tree

Cleanses temple

Goes out of city (presumably to Bethany)

Day 3
In morning returning to city
Tree has withered
Teaches in temple

FURTHER READING ON THE GOSPELS:

Blomberg, Craig, The Historical Reliability of the Gospels (1987).
Bock, Darrell L. and Daniel B. Wallace, Dethroning Jesus: Exposing Popular Culture’s Quest to Unseat the
Biblical Christ (2007).
Bock, Darrell L., Studying the Historical Jesus (2002).
Bock, Darrell L., Jesus According to the Scripture (2002).
Bock, Darrell L., The Missing Gospels: Unearthing the Truth Behind Alternative Christianities (2006).
Bock, Darrell L. and Robert L. Webb, eds, Key Events in the Life of the Historical Jesus (2009).
Bock, Darrell L. Who is Jesus? (forthcoming, September 2012).
Bruce, F. F. The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? (1981).
Carson, D. A. and Douglas J. Moo, An Introduction to the New Testament (2005).
Komoszewski, J. Ed; M. James Sawyer, and Daniel B. Wallace. Reinventing Jesus: How Contemporary
Skeptics Miss the Real Jesus and Mislead Popular Culture (2006)
Stein, Robert H. Studying the Synoptic Gospels (2001).