Errors and Contradictions

This gospel states that Jesus was born while Pilate was a governor in Palestine. According to history, however, Pilate did not become a governor until 26 CE. Also, in chapter 3, the birth of Jesus is placed during the time of the high priesthood of Annas (6-15 CE) and Caiaphas (18-36 CE), which contradicts not only history but the gospel itself. Neither of them was in power when Jesus was born. The Barnabas gospel is wrong by about ten years with Annas, by twenty-two years with Caiaphas and by thirty years with Pilate.

Herod (Antipas) is mentioned as having power and many soldiers at his command in Jerusalem and Judea (Barnabas, chapter 214). This is a blunder because he ruled only in Galilee some sixty miles away. This gospel calls him a Gentile (Barnabas, chapter 217), although he was a practising Jew. He was only in Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of the Passover, which is why he was able to be consulted during Jesus' trial.

In chapter 80 it is stated that Daniel was only two years old when he was captured by Nebuchadnezzar. This conflicts with the account in the Bible (Daniel chapter 2), which says that Nebuchadnezzar consulted Daniel in the second year of his reign concerning his dream. He was so impressed by Daniel's wisdom that he appointed him a ruler over the province of Babylon. If the testimony of this gospel is accepted then Daniel would have to be three years old at this point.

Chapter 91 relates the account of the amassing of three armies, each of 200,000 armed men in a battle over the question of Christ's deity. Under Roman rule at that time both the possession of arms and the manufacture of arms were strictly controlled. Also, according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the whole Roman regular army only numbered 300,000 at this time and half of these were reserves. There was only a small garrison in Judea until the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 68-70 CE.

In chapter 127 of this gospel, Jesus is mentioned as preaching from the pinnacle of the Temple. This was hardly a suitable place from which to preach as it was about two hundred meters above the ground and so he would not have been heard.

Nazareth is described as a coastal city on the sea of Galilee, in chapter 20 and 21. This town still exists but is thirteen hundred feet above sea level and twenty kilometers from the sea. In chapter 99 Tiro (Tyre/Tyrus) is presented as being close to the Jordan, which is not correct. Tyrus is fifty kilometers away on the shore of the Mediterranean sea in present day Lebanon. If the writer walked these areas with Jesus, why does he confuse such facts? Zacchaeus is said to have encountered Jesus in Nazareth, while the gospel according to Luke says this happened in or near Jericho (Luke 19).

Chapter 169 of this gospel portrays a European summer. This contrasts with the Palestinian summer where rain falls in winter and fields are parched in summer, it is anything but green as portrayed in the text. According to the context, Jesus was in the wilderness of Jordan where he certainly would not be enjoying beautiful European-type summer scenery.

Haggai and Hosea are two separate prophets whose revelations are separately recorded in two books in the Old Testament but this gospel says that their story is related in the book of Daniel (Barnabas, chapter 185). His confusion concerning Bible references is further demonstrated in chapters 165 and 169 where he mixes quotations together.

The writer claims that Jesus is not the Messiah and yet uses the messianic title "Son Of David" for him (Barnabas, chapters 11,19,21 and so on). In chapter 19 the primacy of Jesus is taught but refuted in chapters 54 and 55, where Muhammad is stated as having the primacy at the last judgement.