When Jesus‘ empty tomb was discovered, the gospels all agree that an angelic message was delivered to a woman named Mary. Exactly what the angel’s words were, however, differs between the gospels. Is this a contradiction? Let’s take a look:
An angel of the Lord on the stone:
Matthew 28:1-2, “Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. 2 And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.”
Was the stone moved away before Mary arrived at Jesus’ tomb or not? Some critics of Christianity assert that there is a contradiction between the gospels of the New Testament regarding the chronology of the arrival of the women at Jesus’ tomb and when the stone was rolled away. Was the stone moved before or after the women arrived at the tomb? Let’s take a look at the four gospels that record this event:
How long was Jesus‘ body, dead in the tomb? Was it more or less than three days and nights?
Critics of the New Testament often suggest that the gospels present contradictory narratives regarding Jesus‘ resurrection. One such argument (which is honestly rather weak but comes up surprisingly often) involves the detail of who it was that discovered Jesus’ empty tomb. The claim is that each gospel lists a different set of women and that the story, therefore, cannot be trusted. This argument, however, breaks down almost immediately on even the slightest examination. The truth is that, while each of the four gospels includes unique details on the matter, they all are perfectly consistent with one another on who it was who first found the stone rolled away and the body of Jesus missing. The gospels are definitely in agreement on this. Continue reading →
Problem: Mark states that Mary was there “very early in the morning … when the sun had risen” (v. 2). But John says it was “early, while it was still dark” (John 20:1).
Problem: Were the women close or far from the cross? Matthew, Mark, and Luke all seem to say that the women at the cross watched from a distance. John, however, seems to place them close to the cross. Is this a contradiction? Let’s take a look:
Problem: The gospel accounts of Jesus’ crucifixion seem to provide different statements as the last words of Jesus from the cross. What was the last thing Jesus said? And is this a contradiction between the gospels?
Problem: What was written on the sign that was hung on the cross above the head of Jesus? How many languages was the inscription written in?
Problem: At what hour was Jesus crucified? The answer is easy when you realize that there were two different time systems being used.