Biblical/Jesus errors

Michael mmcgill1@home.com
Sat, 02 Jan 1999 20:47:50 +0000 (00915331670, 368E85F2.2D86E0F2@home.com) 


>>MCGILL

>>In _Beyond Fundamendalism_ by James

>>Barr, Barr cites two

>>such cases which would be sufficient to completely undermine the

>>fundamentalist claim for both the infallibility of the scriptures as well as

>>the infallibility of Jesus himself. Both cases involve Jesus making errors

>>when referring to what are now considered OT scriptures.



>

>>The first is found

>>in Mark 2:25-26 when Jesus relates a story from 1 Sam. 21:1-6. The story

>>involves the high priest Ahimelech. But Jesus incorrectly calls the high

>>priest Abiathar (who happens to have been Ahimelech's son).

>


VONGEHOFT
There are several explanations for this:
  1)Beza says that both Abiathar and Abimelech each had two names, and that
Abiathar was frequently called Abimelech and Abimelech Abiathar (see proof of
this II Sam 8:17, I Chron 8:16, and I Chron 24:3)
  2)Whitby thinks that by "High Priest"  we are not to understand him who was
strictly so called, but rather one who was an eminent man of the order. (See
proofs Matt 2:4, Matt 26:3, Matt 27:62, John 11:47, Mark 14:10, and Mark 14:43)
  3)Some think that both Abimelech and Abiathar officiated as High Priest at
the same time.  That there was nothing altogether unusual in there being two
chief priests at once is shown by I Sam 8:17, where two names are given as "the
priests".

It is likely that two or more of these is true as evidenced by the fact that
the religious leaders of the day never made comment to Jesus knowledge of the
scriptures as anything less than excellent.

MCGILL

>> The second case

>>can be found in Matt. 23:35 where Jesus is talking about the death of

>>Zacharias as related in 2 Chron. 24:20-21. The only problem with Jesus'

>>recounting of this story is that he mistakenly refers to Zacharias as the

>>son the Barachias when he is really the son of Jehoida.


VONGEHOFT
By far the most satisfactory explination appears to be that the father of
Zacharias had two names, Jehoida and Barachias.  It was not at all uncommon for
Jews to have two names, Matthew was called Levi and Jude Thaddeus.

The only problem with people who wish to find fault with the scriptures is that
they fail, every time, to take into account the social and coultural climate of
the time that the scripture was written.  If, for instance, the author had
known that it was common for Jews to have two names, ot that tow Priests could
be Chief Priests at the same time, or that a priest of some standing could also
be called a high priest without being  *the* "High Priest", mistakes like his
would never happen.  But if people like James Barr actually did do research
they would be unable to write their books and thus they would be poor and
unknown.

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You are a kind and merciful God, and you are very patient.  You always show
love, and you don't like to punish anyone.