What's In Your Bible: Contradiction 2 Samuel 10 18

What’s In Your Bible: Is there a Contradiction between 2 Samuel 10:18 and 1 Chronicles 19:18?

2 Samuel 10:18 "And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there."

Now let’s look at 1 Chronicles 19:18

"But the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand men which fought in chariots, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the host."

The two verses don’t contradict. 2 Samuel 10:18 describes the deaths of an unspecified number of men who were with "seven hundred chariots".

1 Chronicles 19:18 describes the deaths of "seven thousand men" who fought in an unspecified number of chariots.

In other words, 2 Samuel 10:18 gives the number of chariots and 1 Chronicles 19:18 gives the number of men.

When you put the two verses together we know that there were 700 chariots and seven thousand men with an average of 10 men to each chariot.

Study to Shew Thyself Approved Unto God!