Contradiction with Numbers 3:39
Numbers 3:46 deals with redemption of the surplus of the firstborn, while Numbers 3:39 details the total number of Levites, intertwined with their redemption role.
Numbers 3:39: All that were numbered of the Levites, which Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the LORD, throughout their families, all the males from a month old and upward, [were] twenty and two thousand.
Contradiction with Numbers 18:16
This verse talks about redemption but uses a valuation specific to the sanctuary, differing from the method in Numbers 3:46.
Numbers 18:16: And those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation, for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which [is] twenty gerahs.
Contradiction with Exodus 13:2
This verse commands the sanctification of the firstborn to God, whereas Numbers 3:46 refers to their redemption by the Levites, showing a practical versus spiritual dedication.
Exodus 13:2: Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, [both] of man and of beast: it [is] mine.
Contradiction with Hebrews 10:4
This verse claims that it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins, contrasting with the redemption principle found in Numbers 3:46.
Hebrews 10:4: For [it is] not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
Contradiction with 1 Peter 1:18-19
Discusses redemption through the precious blood of Christ, contrasting with the monetary redemption system in Numbers 3:46.
1 Peter 1:18-19: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, [as] silver and gold, from your vain conversation [received] by tradition from your fathers;
Paradox #1
Numbers 3:46 discusses a system of redemption where a specific group is compensated for a difference in numbers through a monetary exchange. Some might see a contradiction in valuing human lives in terms of money or treating people as interchangeable, which can be seen as conflicting with ideas of intrinsic human value and equality.