Contradiction with Numbers 14:33-34
Numbers gives a different timeline; it implies the Israelites would wander for 40 years from the time of the spying incident, which conflicts with the timeline in Deuteronomy 1:3.
Numbers 14:33-34: And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. [wander: or, feed]
Contradiction with Exodus 16:35
Exodus mentions Israel eating manna for 40 years, seeming to imply a different timeline that does not align with the 40th year mentioned in Deuteronomy 1:3.
Exodus 16:35: And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan.
Contradiction with Deuteronomy 2:14
This verse provides a clear timeline of 38 years since the rebellion, which can seem contradictory to the 40th year reference in Deuteronomy 1:3 when considering other wilderness events.
Deuteronomy 2:14: And the space in which we came from Kadeshbarnea, until we were come over the brook Zered, [was] thirty and eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were wasted out from among the host, as the LORD sware unto them. [brook: or, valley]
Paradox #1
Deuteronomy 1:3 mentions that Moses spoke to the Israelites in the fortieth year after leaving Egypt. A potential contradiction arises when comparing this with numbers in other parts of the Bible that refer to time periods or events related to the Exodus. Any perceived inconsistency might stem from different interpretations of specific timelines or events leading up to this moment.