The Bible is thousands of years old. Different books of the Bible date back more than 3,000 years. In fact, some believe the book of Job may have been written during the time of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. That would date it around 1900 BC (about 4,000 years ago).

The Bible has been copied over and over again through those 4,000 years. Sometimes the scribes or copyists simply made sloppy errors. They may have been tired or had poor lighting or even didn’t appreciate how important it was to be very careful.

Other times, people decided to actually change the text of the Bible. They would think they could clarify ideas by adding or subtracting from God’s inspired word. That was a huge mistake. God made sure every word was exactly the way He wanted it when He inspired the writers. 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

In Daniel 7:25, God said that some who oppose Him would definitely try to change His arrangements, “And he will speak out against the Most High,…and he will intend to make alterations in time and in law…”

Finally, many translators of the Bible decide to translate the Hebrew and Greek words according to their own theology. For example, the Hebrew word ‘sheol’ is found 65 times in the Old Testament. Some translators chose to translate that same word three different ways: grave (31 times), hell (31 times), and pit (3 times). Why? Because even though the Old Testament teaches that all people go to sheol when they die, the translators didn’t like that. So, if a good man died, they translated he went to the grave. If a bad man died, they translated sheol by writing he went to hell. That gave the readers of the Bible a very wrong thought.

It is always best to be truthful and faithful to God’s inspired word. Serious Bible students try to find the textual and translation errors in the Bible and base their beliefs only on the inspired scriptures.

Additional Resource:  Christian Questions Podcast – Bible Contradictions Explained