Contradictions and Paradoxes in Numbers 21:3

Check out Contradictions Catalog of Numbers 21:3 for the comprehensive list of verses that contradicts Numbers 21:3. Some key contradictions and paradoxes are described below.

According to Moses, God listened to the people of Israel when they prayed, and He helped them defeat the Canaanites. This made the Israelites so happy that they named the place Hormah, which means "everything destroyed."

Numbers 21:3: And the LORD hearkened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities: and he called the name of the place Hormah. [Hormah: that is, Utter destruction]

Contradiction with Exodus 23:31

Promises to drive out the inhabitants gradually, whereas Numbers 21:3 depicts a sudden victory over the Canaanites.

Exodus 23:31: And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.

Contradiction with Deuteronomy 7:22

Describes a gradual process of driving out nations which contrasts the immediate destruction in Numbers 21:3.

Deuteronomy 7:22: And the LORD thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee. [put...: Heb. pluck off]

Contradiction with Judges 2:21-23

States that God did not drive out the nations quickly, unlike the quick defeat in Numbers 21:3.

Judges 2:21-23: I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations which Joshua left when he died:

Contradiction with Joshua 13:1-6

Mentions that many nations still remained, implying incomplete conquest, which contradicts Numbers 21:3's complete destruction.

Joshua 13:1-6: Now Joshua was old [and] stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him, Thou art old [and] stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed. [to...: Heb. to possess it]

Contradiction with Joshua 23:5

Promises God will drive people out "before you" whereas Numbers 21:3 is a recounting of past conquest.

Joshua 23:5: And the LORD your God, he shall expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God hath promised unto you.

Paradox #1

The contradiction in Numbers 21:3 might stem from the biblical account of God assisting the Israelites in destroying a group of people, which raises questions about the morality of divine command and the ethics of violence. This can be seen as conflicting with the broader idea of a benevolent and loving deity.

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