Expert: LEBoyd - 7/4/2008

Question
Having read a large part of the Bible, it seems to me that the Old and New Testament contradict themselves greatly.  In the Old Testament, God has adulterers and people who work on the Sabbath stoned to death (such as a man who was picking up sticks on that day), and the Israelites show intolerance toward dissenting Jews such as the Samaritans.  Jesus, however, talked with Samaritans, allowed his disciples to eat and work on the Sabbath, and taught that adulterers needed to be forgiven and that no one had a right to kill them.  How do you explain this apparent contradiction within the Bible?

Answer
Chris,

The difference between the OT and the NT is related to what I refer to as the "age" of God's people, which helps define the purpose of the events and documentation (OT and NT).

Think about the times when you were a child, or if you have children think about how you discipline them.  When they are very young, discipline is almost 100% verbal with possibly some light taps.  As they get older, the discipline becomes more corporal, since you've told them everything they need to know.  Once they know everything, and that has been reinforced with corporal discipline, by the time they are mid- to late-teens, there's no need for corporal discipline.

The Bible shows a similar pattern.  Once God creates man, there's a lot of education that must occur to teach mankind who God is, how to please Him and what the expectations are if you do not.

We see the early training through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, etc.  God begins to teach and lightly disciplines early.  Then once the His delivers His people from Egypt, the full documentation occurs (I say, "full documentation" because it is obvious that there has been at least verbal teaching about things such as the Sabbath prior to Ex. 20).  This is followed by the enforcement of corporal discipline, which is immediate.

Once we get to the NT, God's people are mature enough that the immediate, corporal discipline is not appropriate.

The book of Galations is excellent in explaining the difference between the OT and the NT, and why they are different.  Gal 4:3-7 explains the difference between the people of the OT and the people of the NT.  Gal 3:23-29 explains the difference between the OT Law and the NT Law.

As you can see, I don't consider this an contradiction, as I see it related to "age" of God's people.

Hope this helps.