So does it?
< No. Look at the words more closely,
it says that with God, Judah took over the hill country, but it doesn't explicitly state that with God he couldn't drive out the inhabitants of the plain.
These are two different events. It's like saying "I love anti-drug and gun laws." Did I say I liked laws for guns or not?>> No, read it with the KJV Bible.
(King James Version)
19 And the LORD was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.
This verse is very clear. I don't know what you are talking about. You are trying to see something that isn't there. God is with Judah when he drove out the inhabitants of the mountain but couldn't drive out the inhabitants of the valley. It is all one sentence. All one thought. It doesn't say God was only with Judah in his mountain conquest. The point is this alleged God can make the earth in a few days but can't defeat his own creation because they had iron chariots!?! HA!...what a joke. C'mon man, let's get real for a minute.< STRONG We have to keep in mind that the Bible writers don't intend to write stuff that immediately makes no sense.
If they were fake, they'd probably write things in one book, and contradictory things in another by mistake, without it being obvious to them that they have contradicted themselves.
< No. Exodus 23:29 indicates that the Lord would not allow the Israelites to conquer the land of Israel too quickly
... because the Jews did not yet have a large enough population to occupy and maintain the whole land.
>> This creates another contradiction
EX 12:37, NU 1:45-46 The number of men of military age who take part in the Exodus is given as more than 600,000. Allowing for women, children, and older men would probably mean that a total of about 2,000,000 Israelites left Egypt. (Larger than the whole population of Egypt at the time).
Other than the fact that we know that isn't true, it is not a contradiction until we see this...
1KI 20:15 All the Israelites, including children, number only 7000 at a later time.
<STRONG Keep in mind the context of the history of the population: (Biblical)
Exo 32:26 then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, "Who is on the LORD's side? Come to me." And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
Exo 32:27 And he said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'Put your sword on your side each of you, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor.'"Things like this occurred, especially during many battles with nations. According to the Bible, they literally conquered city after city.
< No. It was because Isaelites clearly had fear that made them lose.
Another possible reason could be that the men of Judah allowed their fear to overcome their faith in the Lord. In fact, in Joshua 17:14-18, we see that Joshua is trying to convince his people that they can overcome troops that have iron chariots. In other words, Joshua 17:14-18 is showing us that indeed there was some fear and doubt among the Israelites as to whether they could defeat iron chariots. (Otherwise, Joshua would not have needed to try to convince them that they could).
We see in Deuteronomy 20:1 that the Israelites were not supposed to fear their opposing armies, but to have faith in the Lord instead: "When thou goest forth to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, [and] a people more than thou, thou shalt not be afraid of them; for Jehovah thy God is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt."
>> To say the ones who died in battle were the ones who allowed their fear to overcome their faith in the Lord is nuts.
Oh well, I guess you died because you didnt have enough faith...sorry! It's the same mentality as the salem witch trials. Dunk the witch! If she can breath underwater then she is really a witch! It's ridiculous. We can't just turn off the emotions that God gave us. If that is true then God is a sadist who gets his kicks from setting you up for failure then blaming you if you fail. Apologists are funny.
< STRONG What happens if your soldiers become afraid?
They lose strength and lose the battle. THIS IS FACT. Remember the movie 300? They said something about conquering fear. We understand the gist of fear. Have fear? You chicken out... instead of pulling up your shield to deflect the enemy's sword up front, you run away with an arrow slung unto your back.
< No. There is a difference between losing a battle and winning a war. So God let them become defeated.
For example, the Lord was with Joseph. But Joseph was sold into slavery. But the Lord later used this "defeat" to save Joseph's brothers. The Lord was certainly with Jesus. But Jesus was crucified. And that might have seemed like a defeat, initially, but instead it was the greatest victory of all time. According to Judges 1:19, the Lord was with the men of Judah. But that doesn't mean that they would immediately defeat the men of the plain with the iron chariots.
>> So where is the upshot of losing the battle against the plains people?
What good came out of losing the battle? People died needlessly. Plus, if God wanted the land for the Jews, why not smite their enemies then give them the land? Why kill off his OWN people?< One explanation is that if you fight for it, you care about it more.
If it's just given to you for free, you take it for granted. Another reason is to test the faith of people. We all know death is the ultimate test of faith.
< No. God chooses how to use His power.
If there is an all-powerful God, then he also would have the power to decide when and how and where to use that power. There is no contradiction there. And there is no contradiction in Judges 1:19.
>> There is no contradiction if this "God" were an evil maniac,
who sets people in opposition against one another, getting his kicks out of watching suffering and driving people nuts.
But if you believe in a true and loving, caring and thoughtful God who is all powerful, then yes there is a HUGE CONTRADICTION.
<> Italicized arguments are extracted from:
- http://www.aboutbibleprophecy.com/q16.htm
- discussion with a Youtuber.
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