Steinbeck had dramatic license to make up words, use them wrong, or be intentionally deceptive.
As for Obama's staffer? He probably hates the Bible, but thought Steinbeck was cool.
But Steinbeck did **not*** get it wrong. Her essay demonstrates just this—I can’t figure out if she objects to a little imprecision, or maybe she dislikes the fast and loose Oprah-esque interpretation. But she convinced me that Steinbeck got it very close.