Problem: Joel or Vashni was Samuel's firstborn
Verses: 1 Samuel 8:2, 1 Chronicles 6:28;
Status: Weak
This is 1 Samuel 8:2:
The name of his [Samuel's] firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. (
ESV)
And this is how the KJV renders 1 Chronicles 6:28:
And the sons of Samuel; the firstborn Vashni, and Abiah. (
KJV)
However, modern Bibles are united in declaring this to be a scribal error, and that the original manuscript for Chronicles probably read Joel. Even the NRSV (which seldom tries to hide contradictions) gives this:
The sons of Samuel: Joel his firstborn, the second Abijah. (
NRSV)
Updated: 2009-01-18
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