COMPLAINT:
Were Anak’s sons slain by Judah (Judges 1:10) or expelled by Caleb (Judges 1:20; Joshua 15:14)?
RESPONSE:
Judges 1:10 reads,
…Judah went against the Canaanites who dwelt in Hebron. (Now the name of Hebron was formerly Kirjath Arba.) And they killed Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.
These three are the sons of Anak (Joshua 15:14). Caleb drove them out from Hebron, which had been given to him as an inheritance (Judges 1:20).
So, what happened? Did the men of Judah kill these three sons of Anak, or did Caleb drive them out of Hebron? Is there some reason why both could not have occurred?
Obviously, Caleb could not expel the sons of Anak from his land after they were killed by the men of Judah. However, it is entirely possible and plausible that they were put out of Caleb’s territory, and killed in battle thereafter by the men of Judah. The details in Judges 1 are not chronological. The writer addresses the work that is done by each of the tribes throughout the chapter. The details begin with what Judah did as a tribe (v 2-11), and then before going on to the house of Joseph, the writer discusses the work of the oldest man in Judah, Caleb (v 12-20).
There is no contradiction.
A response to 1001 Bible Contradictions.
