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Due to the very nature of words, the same word in the Bible can have different meanings, because the word itself could have a variety of meanings. The technical term for this is ‘semantic range’. Using an everyday example, the word, ‘will’ can mean the ‘faculty of conscious and deliberate action’ e.g. ‘free will’, or ‘disposed and willing to’ e.g. ‘I will do it’, or the ‘legal declaration of a person’s last intentions’ e.g. ‘last will and testament’. Just because this word is used in these 3 different ways in a document, or even a sentence does not make the document inconsistent e.g. “I will be willing to look at my fathers will tomorrow afternoon”. To determine the meaning of the word, one should have some understanding of the range of meanings of the word itself, but more importantly understand the context in which it is written.

Practical wisdom in reading, applies when reading the Bible. A word should be read in the context of the sentence, that sentence in the context of the paragraph, that paragraph in the context of the chapter, and that chapter in the context of the book that it is written. Hence, the use of the same word carrying different meanings in the Bible does not make the Bible inconsistent. Additionally, what Christians mean when they say that the Bible is consistent is that the Bible does not contradict itself in terms of its overall message – God created the world and humans perfect; humans sinned against God and incurred his wrath; God acts in history to redeem His people, which culminates at the Cross of Jesus; and Jesus is coming again to judge sin and bring the earth back to God’s original intention. This message is consistent from Genesis to Revelation.

For further reference, we would recommend the book, “God’s Big Picture” by Vaughn Roberts.