Bible Contradiction? Where does God dwell?

For today’s post we will tackle another question from the Skeptic Annotated Bible: Where does God dwell?

This one should be filed under the category of “Too Silly.”

Here are the two answers which the skeptic believes shows a Bible contradiction:

God dwells in Zion.

“Sing praises to the Lord, who dwells in Zion; Declare among the peoples His deeds.” (Psalm 9:11)

“His tabernacle is in Salem; His dwelling place also is in Zion.” (Psalm 76:2)

“Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain. So Jerusalem will be holy, And strangers will pass through it no more….And I will avenge their blood which I have not avenged, For the Lord dwells in Zion.” (Psalm 9:11)

God dwells in the heavens.

“To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens!” (Psalm 123:1)

“Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.” (Ecclesiastes 5:2)
(All Scriptural quotation comes from the New American Standard Bible)

Here’s a closer look at whether or not there is a contradiction:

1. When dealing with skeptics’ claim of Bible contradictions it seems one can never be reminded enough of what exactly is a contradiction.  A contradiction occurs when two or more claims conflict with one another so that they cannot simultaneously be true in the same sense and at the same time.  To put it another way, a Bible contradiction exists when there are claims within the Bible that are mutually exclusive in the same sense and at the same time.
2. The verses cited by the skeptics’ as teaching that God dwells in Zion were properly interpreted by the skeptic to mean that God does dwell in Zion.
3. Likewise the verses cited by the skeptics’ as teaching that God dwells in heaven were properly interpreted by the skeptic to mean that God does dwell in heaven.
4. Still there is not a contradiction here if one understands that God is a being who is omnipresent (all present).
   1. There are many verses that teaches God’s omnipresence.
      1. “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,” 12 Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.” (Psalm 139:7-12)
         1. Verse 7 begins with two rhetorical questions:
            1. “Where can I go from Your Spirit?”
            2. “Or where can I flee from Your presence?”
            3. The answer of course is there is nowhere one can flee from God’s presence.
         2. In answering the rhetorical questions God’s omnipresence is explicitly stated in verses 8 in the form of two statements that if the Psalmist were to go to the highest and lowest point physically, God will be still be there:
            1. “If I ascend to heaven, You are there;”
            2. “If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.”
         3. One cannot outrun God’s omnipresence: “If I take the wings of the dawn…10 Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.” (9a, 10)
      2. “‘Am I a God who is near,’ declares the Lord, ‘And not a God far off? 24 Can a man hide himself in hiding places So I do not see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?’ declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 23:23-24)
         1. These two verses appear in a chapter in which God is rebuking false prophets during the time in which Jeremiah the Prophet ministered.
         2. There are three rhetorical questions asked by the Lord here.
         3. In the first question God asks rhetorically whether He is a God who “is near” or “a God far off?”(23)
         4. The last rhetorical question answers the first question: “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” (24b).  The answer of course is “yes,” God does fill the heavens and the earth.
   2. If God is present everywhere then it is not a contradiction when there are some Bible verses that mentions God dwelling in Zion while some mentions that God dwell in Heaven.

Again this is not a Bible contradiction at all.  This has got to be the weakest alleged Bible contradiction in the list that Skeptic Annotated Bible presents.