Friday, June 17, 2011

No contradiction

“I will spread My net for him, and he will be caught in My snare; I will bring him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die.” Ezekiel 12:13
In several places, the last king of Judah, Zedekiah, was given what seemed like conflicting prophecies. We read, “You will surely see the king of Babylon with your own eyes, and he will speak with you face to face. And you will go to Babylon” (Jer. 34:3). But here in Ezek. 12:13 we read that he won’t see Babylon. How could he see the king of Babylon, but not see Babylon? How could one prophet say he would not see Babylon, but the other said he would go there?
The answer is in the historical account, given in 2 Kin. 25:4-7 and Jer. 39:4-7. Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged it. The wall was broken through and king Zedekiah was captured. His sons were killed in front of him, then his eyes were put out and he was taken to Babylon as a captive. So he did see and talk with Nebuchadnezzar (in Jerusalem), and he did go to Babylon, but he did not see it because before he was taken, he was blinded.
This is not a contradiction. On the contrary: it is an extremely specific prophecy. In fact, there is not one contradiction in the Bible. Two passages may be complementary, but when we really delve into them, we will find that there is no contradiction. The Bible is without error, and completely trustworthy.

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