The third and final area where Biblical contradictions can be found is that of the human mind. My former pastor once said that if you think you have found a contradiction in the Bible, it is between your left ear and your right ear. The first mistake people make when they approach God’s word is that they do so as though God was their equal. Modern Bible translation tends to make the same mistake, treating the Bible just as they would any other ancient book or manuscript. But the Bible is clear that we are not God’s equal, neither is any other book equal to the word of God. Isaiah 55 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

The second mistake people tend to make is that they no longer study God’s word. While modern academic scholarship has been on the decline for the past 25 years, modern Biblical scholarship is not far behind. But no wonder:  While the King James Bible tells us to study God’s word, most other modern versions simply tell us to do the best we can. Folks, the difference between “study” and “do the best you can” is the same as that between a teacher and a student, and between a master and a novice. The difference is that while one looks carefully at the details, the other makes assumptions from a limited field of knowledge.

And when it comes to supposed Biblical contradictions, we must pay attention to the details. Take for instance the story of Keturah. For those familiar with the story of Abraham in the book of Genesis, you will recall that after the death of Sarah in chapter 23, and the marriage of Isaac to Rebekah in chapter 24, that Abraham took a new wife, Keturah, in chapter 25, by whom he sired six additional sons. The question has been raised as to whether Keturah was really Abraham’s wife, or was she really his concubine, as is alleged in I Chronicles chapter 1, verse 32. It is contended that she cannot be both a wife and a concubine at the same time, and therefore, we have a  contradiction in the Bible. But is this true?

The first thing we need to do is ask, “What does the Bible say?” Remember, the difference is in the details. And true enough, if we read far enough in Genesis 25, we find out that not only does Moses call Keturah Abraham’s wife in verse 1, but he also calls her one of his concubines in verse 6: “But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country.”

The problem here is twofold, with one being that someone just has not read far enough. But two, it is also a problem because of the definition of the word “concubine” in that it is being looked at through American eyes. In America, concubinage, as defined by Noah Webster in 1828, is “the act or practice of cohabitating, as man and woman, in sexual commerce, without the authority of law, or a legal marriage.”  However, he goes on to say that “in some countries, concubinage is a marriage of an inferior kind or with a woman of inferior condition, to whom the husband does not convey his rank or quality.”

Thus, when Abraham gave only gifts to the sons of the concubines, though these were undoubtedly very generous, legally his sole heir was that son, Isaac, born of that wife who was by rank and quality his equal, Sarah. Keturah, therefore, was both a wife and a concubine.

Before I close, let me just ask, “Aren’t you glad you live in America?” Particularly you ladies, aren’t you glad that your husband will never be introducing you as his “concubine”? Two things are evident here in Webster’s definition of concubinage, the first being what a man is really saying when he just wants to live with a woman but not marry her: She is beneath me. Second, and despite what modern feminism alleges, womankind has always been equal to mankind in America, though it is not always appreciated.

What needs to be noted here is not so much whether Keturah was a wife or a concubine, but the profound impact New Testament Christianity has had on the station of womankind for her benefit, as seen through American marriage law and custom.

Ron Hamman is pastor of Independent Baptist Church of Wasilla. Contact him at 357-4229 or rghamman@mtaonline.net.