A California woman wanted to surprise her boyfriend with a Sony PlayStation 4 for Christmas but found herself surprised instead when he opened her gift.

Sandra Ortiz, who bought the item from the US retail chain Target, said she was shocked when her boyfriend Josh showed her that the contents of the cardboard box was not the expensive gaming console but two Bibles instead, reports Bakersfield Now.

"We have a problem," Josh said after opening the present.

While the rest of the family laughed, thinking it was a joke, Ortiz felt embarrassed.

"I felt like, you know, I just ruined Christmas for him and everybody else," she said. "He said he didn't want the Bibles unless they were signed by Jesus himself."

Ortiz was unsure if and how she could return the item and get her money back.

"They're probably going to think I'm lying," she said.

But apparently, switched items are nothing new in the local Target store where she made the purchase.

"They said they had another case, similar, except they didn't have Bibles," Ortiz said. "They had paper."

Last year, a man claimed that he bought two iPods from two different Target stores but got erasers instead.

About Ortiz's case, a Target spokeswoman told CNET's Chris Matyszczyk, "As soon as the guest brought the package back, we immediately apologised for any inconvenience and exchanged it for a new one."

A manager in the retail chain also told Eyewitness News that the store had a security measure in place and that it backed up Ortiz's claim when she asked for an exchange.

Ortiz now recommends checking the box first before buying an item.

She is also looking at the incident in a different light now that the matter is settled. She said she and her boyfriend now have another motivation to attend church.

"I'm taking it as a good message," she said. "Maybe I will be blessed this new year!"