According to some Atheists, Jesus' prophecy in John 13:38 (“The cock shall not crow, till thou [Peter] hast denied me three times”) is false. Mark 14:66-68 shows the cock crowed after the first denial, not the third. Let’s open the prophecies up to see them as they are written.
Prophecy: Matthew 26:34 - "Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice." (KJV)
- Matthew 26:40
- Matthew 26:72
- Matthew 26:74 (cockcrows)
- Confirmation - Matthew 26:75
Prophecy: Mark 14:30 - "And Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice." (KJV)
- Mark 14:68 (cock crows)
- Mark 14:70
- Mark 14:71 (cock crows)
- Confirmation - Mark 14:72
Prophecy: Luke 22:34 - "And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me." (KJV)
- Luke 22:57
- Luke 22:58
- Luke 22:60 (cock crows)
- Confirmation - Luke 22:61
Prophecy: John 13:38 - "Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice." (KJV)
- John 18:17
- John 18:25
- John 18:27 (cock crows)
So, is there a contradiction? No, they all fulfill the prophecy that was given for each one and they do not contradict each other. The reason that Mark is different (even though the cock crows after the third time just like the others) is because the cock crows once after the first denial and then twice after the third denial; which is exactly what Jesus had said!
It could have been very well that in the Matthew, Luke, and John versions that the cock crowed once before the third denial but it was not mentioned because it wasn't the focus. The focus was the third time and that's when the cock crowed. Even if a cock crowed once in Matthew, Luke and John it still would not contradict Mark's version because Mark's version fits the Mark Prophecy. It could have very well been that the prophecy given to Peter from Jesus in Mark was the full version and the other three (Matthew, Luke and John ) versions simply failed to mention the first cock crow (not that it didn't happen).
Here's what I have to say about this issue. If your hanging on this issue as a reason to deny God's Word then you have more issues with yourself than with what the Bible says. There may be a few unanswered questions, a few mysteries and some things that may seem foreign to us in the Western world but that will detour me from believing in God. God has a personal relationship with me and I won't let a few mysteries get in the way. God's ways are not our ways and I'll let Him be God, not me.
Matthew 13:13 - "Therefore speak I to them [unbelievers] in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand."
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