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"Please explain the apparent contradiction between Mat. 27:5 and Acts 1:18.
Did Judas Iscariot, after betraying Christ, hang himself, or just swell up and burst open?"
Answer # 67
The Bible doesn't contradict itself!
Understand this. The Bible is deliberately written "here a little, and there a little" (Isa. 28:10).
In God's revelation to mankind, He promises that He will not lie, nor will Scripture be "broken" through contradiction or otherwise (Titus 1:2; John 10:35).
By putting together the two accounts of Judas' punishment, we get the whole picture. Both events are true - both happened.
In Matthew's inspired account, God states that Judas "went and hanged himself" (Mat. 27:5). Luke was inspired to explain what happened AFTER that -AFTER Judas' body began to decompose. The corpse slipped from the rope and burst when it fell.
This principle of Bible study can be applied throughout the Bible, solving many supposed contradictions.