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Why Do Biblical Accounts Sometimes Differ?
CALLER: I've always been curious. In comparing passages in the Old Testament and the New Testament, they don't come out exactly the same. For example, in Psalm 45, which is speaking about Christ as well as David, it says in verse 6: "Your divine throne endures forever. Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity." Then we're told by Paul in Hebrews (if Paul was the author, and I believe he was) that "Thy throne, Oh God, is forever and ever. The righteous scepter is the scepter of Thy Kingdom." It's the same type of statement, but it seems as if the New Testament author writes it down differently.
Well now, there are two reasons for this. One is that the job of the translator is to take the most authentic copy that he can find and translate it as carefully as he can. But sometimes he doesn't do a perfect job of translation. More probable, however, is the fact that God frequently says something in the Old Testament, and then He further develops it when it is quoted in the New Testament.
Now a clear case of this is the prophecy of Joel 2, where God prophesied through Joel that "Afterwards I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh." And then Peter, when he quotes this, doesn't use the word afterwards. He uses the words "in the last days." Now this simply means that God the Holy Spirit has given us a further commentary or interpretation of what He intended by the words in Joel's prophecy.
Both the Old Testament, therefore, and the New Testament are to be read, and the new information in the New Testament helps us to further understand.