Is This A Contradiction?

Mary Anoints Jesus
at Simon the Leper's House in Bethany

Years ago my wife and I attended the Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology from Friday through Sunday. Friends later reported we spent the entire weekend with them in Pittsburgh.

Aren’t the reports obviously contradictory? Nevertheless, both accounts are entirely correct.

Similarly, Biblical accounts of the same event by different authors sometimes appear contradictory.

This is the case with the dinner at which Mary poured perfume over Jesus. Critics point to this dinner as an obvious example of contradictions in the Bible because Matthew, Mark, and John seem to give conflicting accounts.

Critics claim,

• Matthew and Mark put the dinner at Simon’s house, but John places it at the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
• Matthew and Mark place the dinner 2 days before the Passover, but John puts it 6 days before the Passover.
• Matthew and Mark say the woman poured the perfume over Jesus’ head, but John says she anointed His feet with it.

Aren’t these 3 clear contradictions between what Matthew and Mark say and what John says? Can the seeming discrepancies be explained?

Click Is This A Contradiction? to read my April 2010 Bible-Science newspaper column that explains this.

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©William T. Pelletier, Ph.D.
“contending earnestly for the faith”
“destroying speculations against the knowledge of God”
(Jude 1:3; 2 Cor 10:4)
Monday April 5, 2010 A.D.

The unfolding of Thy words gives light. It gives understanding to the simple.
The sum of Thy word is truth, and every one of Thy righteous ordinances is everlasting.
(Psalm 119:130,160)