Contradictions and Paradoxes in John 8:57

Check out Contradictions Catalog of John 8:57 for the comprehensive list of verses that contradicts John 8:57. Some key contradictions and paradoxes are described below.

According to John, the people were surprised and confused because Jesus said He knew Abraham, who lived a long time ago, even though Jesus wasn't old enough to have met him. They didn't understand that Jesus was saying He existed before Abraham.

John 8:57: Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?

Contradiction with 2 Peter 3:8

This verse indicates that time is perceived differently by God, suggesting a day can be like a thousand years and a thousand years like a day, conflicting with the literal understanding of age in John 8:57.

2 Peter 3:8: But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day [is] with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

Contradiction with Psalm 90:4

This verse conveys that a thousand years in God's sight are like a day, which contradicts the emphasis on physical age and time as perceived by the Jews in John 8:57.

Psalm 90:4: For a thousand years in thy sight [are but] as yesterday when it is past, and [as] a watch in the night. [when...: or, when he hath passed them]

Contradiction with Genesis 17:17

This verse shows Abraham's amazement at bearing a child at an old age, conflicting with the disbelief of the Jews at Jesus' statement about existing before Abraham.

Genesis 17:17: Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall [a child] be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?

Contradiction with Hebrews 7:3

Melchizedek is described as having no beginning or end, contradicting the physical age concerns in John 8:57 and suggesting existence beyond human years.

Hebrews 7:3: Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. [without descent: Gr. without pedigree]

Contradiction with Revelation 1:8

Jesus is described as the Alpha and Omega, implying eternal existence beyond human years, contrasting with the age-based understanding of the Jews in John 8:57.

Revelation 1:8: I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

Contradiction with Isaiah 40:28

Describes God as everlasting, which contrasts with the notion of Jesus not being old enough in John 8:57.

Isaiah 40:28: Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, [that] the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? [there is] no searching of his understanding.

Paradox #1

John 8:57 might present a contradiction regarding the age of Jesus in relation to Abraham. The people questioning Jesus imply a discrepancy in time, as they do not understand how Jesus could have seen Abraham when he is not old enough. This indicates a misunderstanding of Jesus' eternal nature, which is central to Christian theology.

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