Judas-how did he die and who bought the field?

Acts 1:18-19—”How did Judas die and who bought the field?”

There are two puzzling questions related to the death of Judas when we compare Matthew 27:3-8 with Acts 1:18-19:

How did Judas Die?

Matthew says that Judas “went and hanged himself” while Acts says, “falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out.”…

Is Jesus’ testimony valid or invalid?

John 5:31—”Is Jesus’ testimony about himself valid (8:14) or invalid (5:31)?”

In the first passage (5:31), Jesus is submitting himself hypothetically to the official Jewish law that every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 19).…

Elijah or not?

John 1:21—”Was John the Baptist the Elijah (Matthew 11:14; 17:10-13) or not (John 1:21)?”

John the Baptist was not literally Elijah reincarnated, but he was the one who fulfilled the prophecies spoken by Malachi and the angel Gabriel about a future Elijah-like prophet who would come to prepare the way for the Messiah.…

Herod and Yahya

Luke 9:9—”Did Herod think Jesus was John the Baptist (Matthew 14:2; Mark 6:16) or not?”

Luke describes Herod’s initial reaction, while Matthew and Mark describe his later conclusion. In Luke he expresses his confusion, but in Matthew and Mark he concluded that Jesus must be John the Baptist raised from the dead again.…

Cainan or Arphaxad?

Luke 3:35-36—”Who was the father of Shelah; Cainan (Luke 3:35-36) or Arphaxad (Genesis 11:12)?

There are two ways to look at this. Some argue that Genesis is using the term “begot” and “father” in its wider Hebrew connotation of “grandfather,” and thus Cainan was the generation in-between.…

Jeconiah illegitimate?

Luke 1:32—”This passage indicates Jesus was David’s royal heir, but Jesus’ forefather Jeconiah (Matthew 1:11) was banished from the royal line as the last king (Jeremiah 36:30), so the line is not legitimate.”

Jesus’ biological ancestry was not through Joseph’s line but through his mother Mary (the Luke genealogy), which is also through David but apart from Jeconiah.…

Mark 16 – Falsification test?

Mark 16:14-18—”This is a falsification test—true followers of Jesus should speak all languages and drink poison according to this passage.”

Critics of the Injīl like to misinterpret these words to challenge Jesus’ followers to understand all languages and drink poison based on this passage.…

Mark 11:24 – All prayer answered?

Mark 11:24 – “Jesus says you’ll get whatever you pray for, but we know that doesn’t happen”

Jesus was not casually telling everybody that all prayers are answered, he was talking to his disciples about what was possible for those completely surrendered to God and his will.…

Which day did Jesus cleanse the temple?

Matthew 21:12—”Did Jesus cleanse the temple on the day he entered Jerusalem (Matthew 21:12) or the next day (Mark 11:1-17)? And when was the fig tree cursed (see Mark 11:12)?”

The chronology goes as follows:

Day 1: Jesus enters Jerusalem on a colt, visits the temple briefly, and returns to Bethany for the night.

Colt or colt and donkey?

Matthew 21:7—”Did Jesus ride into Jerusalem on a colt and a donkey or on just one colt as in Mark 11:7 and Luke 19:35?”

The issue is simply that Mark and Luke choose to only mention the colt Jesus actually rode, while Matthew also includes the detail that the mother donkey was brought along as well.…