Bible Scholar Question

In answer to my friend's question concerning a difference between I Kings 4:26 and II Chronicles 9:25, the numbers of stalls and horses is exactly the same in my New International Version (the one I use). I doubled checked after I found them to be the same. Both accounts refer to 4,000 stalls of chariot horses and 12,000 horses. It wouldn't have bothered me a bit if the numbers had been slightly different. Who knows exactly how many horses were in each stall? There could have been some newborns with their mothers. Yesterday, a student asked me how long I have been teaching. I told him "100 years". He knew by my answer that I have been teaching for a very long time. When we start picking people's words apart, we miss the spirit of the communication. I often tell new believers who have never read the Bible in its entirety to be careful not to take verses out of context. You have to read the whole story to understand the message.

Some readers have trouble reconciling the Old Testament with the New Testament. During the Easter season, I taught a lesson on The Lord's Supper. Jesus made a point of telling his disciples that God was making a NEW covenant with those who believed. The people of the earth just didn't understand God's plan. They didn't "get it". So, God tried to help by coming to earth in the form of a human. The New plan meant that we don't have to slaughter animals and tell our sins to a priest any longer. Jesus was the sacrifice. Now, we can go directly to the King. We were even given a new rule which pre-empted The Ten Commandments. "Love your neighbor as yourself " and "Love the Lord your God with all of your heart."