THE ATHEIST'S COMPLAINT:
The Bible says that Simon and Andrew’s home was in Capernaum (Mark 1:21, 29). The Bible also says that their home was in the same place as Philip, Bethsaida (John 1:44). Is there a contradiction?

RESPONSE:
Let us consider what the texts in question say:

Mark 1:21, 29
Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught... Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

John 1:44
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

Mark plainly tells us that Peter and Andrew shared a house in the city of Capernaum. However, John’s gospel says nothing of a house in Bethsaida. There is a possibility that they did have a house in each, as the cities were on opposite shores of the Sea of Galilee. As fishermen working on a often tempestuous body of water, this would provide them a place of rest in which ever city was closest. However, the more likely explanation is that the statement "...the city of Andrew and Peter..." does not mean they presently lived in and owned property in Bethsaida, but rather that it was the city of their birth.

There is no contradiction.

This article is a response to Skeptic's Annotated Bible, but original article is no longer listed

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