The results of Joab’s census, as he presented them to King David, have been incorporated in the books 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles. The differences in the numbers have invariably been considered by interpreters as a problem. Couldn’t Joab count perhaps? Continue reading
The giant Goliath was beaten long ago, but he still seems to be wandering about playing nasty tricks on people, as becomes clear from the following questions put forward by many critics of the Bible: “Did David kill Goliath (1 Samuel), or did Elhanan (2 Samuel)?” And: “If Elhanan did, which Elhanan was it (the one of 2 Samuel or of 1 Chronicles)?” Continue reading
Did David capture 1,700 or 7,000 horsemen from Hadadezer to restore his rule at the River Euphrates? A serious discrepancy between 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles? Continue reading