Bible Reliability Uncovered

By Kyle Blackwell

Christianity is on the decline and I’m not surprised. As children are forced to attend church from birth, they are taught the Bible is Truth, which it is. However, rarely do they hear concrete evidence proving the inerrancy of the Bible, they are just expected to blind believe, as of later of a cult. While attending schools of “higher learning” they are faced with the question of why they believe in the Bible. I have mentioned many times that I believe in the Bible because of the Old Testament, and how it predicts events that happened within the New Testament. Truthfully, the Bible does not need anyone to come to its defense, as it is more than capable of defending itself. The problem lies in the fact that most “Christians” have never read the Bible cover to cover. Quite frankly, it is extremely hard to continue a lasting faith in something you know little about, which is the reason Moses adamantly wrote in Deuteronomy chapter 4 and 6 regarding the importance of detailing Yahweh’s teachings to your children and people you meet in the streets. Sure, your faith may start on a high, and some incredible events may take place when you first believe in Jesus, but what happens when the ride gets a little bumpy? Sometimes faith becomes difficult. Just look at how John the Baptist, Jesus’s cousin, doubted for a time in Matthew 11. Knowing why you believe the Bible as truth is just as important, and sometimes more important, than knowing the Bible is truth.

Since I have written many articles defending the Bible by means of Old Testament scripture, I figure it is about time I explain the reasons the Bible can be trusted through archeology. I’ve been constantly researching apologetics for the last three years. Each year there are many Biblical discoveries coming to light in the archeological world. And I love how little tid-bits of information continue to arise little by little, almost as if they are erected by design by the Almighty.

Dead Sea Scrolls

In my opinion, the most important archeological finds were the Dead Sea Scrolls. This 1947 discovery consisted of fragments from every Old Testament book (excluding Esther) and the complete book of Isaiah, found within 11 caves clustered around the Dead Sea, with most artifacts dating to the second century BC. This is important because Isaiah is considered by many scholars as the fifth Gospel. Prior to this discovery, the oldest copy of Isaiah was dated around 900 AD. Critics loathed the fact that the oldest copy of Isaiah 53, the chapter predicting a Messiah who had to suffer in order to account for our iniquities, was written almost 900 years after Jesus died on the cross. Now, we have records of this prophecy predating both Jesus and the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John

Cyrus’s Cylinder

My second favorite find proving the validity of the Bible is King Cyrus’s Cylinder. This 9 in x 4 in clay cylinder proves the mentioning in Ezra 4, which states that King Cyrus allowed the exiled Jews to flee Babylon so they could rebuild their conquered city and temple. The significance of this lies in the reality that ancient kings never allowed their captives to be set free, especially to serve their own gods. Obviously, this was big for the critics. However, I do want to go back to Isaiah and mention the fact that he prophesied God’s anointing of King Cyrus by using his actual name in Isaiah 45, a couple hundred years prior to Cyrus’s existence. I know this is the Bible proving itself through scripture, even though this article is about the Bible being proved through archeology, but I could not help myself.

Tel Dan Inscription

This next one is really unbelievable to me. Apparently, before 1993, there was no proof, outside the Bible, that there ever was a king David in Jewish history. When I first learned of this last year I was floored. Skeptics loved using this to disprove the Bible. Essentially, how could the Bible be correct if such a great king, as the great king David, who was known to be the greatest king of Israel, was never mentioned anywhere else in Jewish antiquities? Well, we now have proof of his existence. During an excavation in 1993, researchers discovered the famous BYTDWD inscription, which translates to House of David, which refers to the lineage of David, on a piece of stone in Tel Dan. There you go. Not only did king David exist, but there were also many kings that came behind him who bore his name.

Hezekiah’s Tunnel

This next subject is really an engineering masterpiece, not just for ancient times when they did not have laser levels and GPS , but also in todays standard. Hezekiah’s tunnel was constructed to draw fresh water from the Gihon Springs (outside city walls) to the Siloam Pool, which was located inside the walls of the City of David. The tunnel was built in order to keep the Assyrians from stopping fresh water flow to the city, because king Hezekiah got wind of rumors stating the Assyrians would be attacking. The tunnel is 1,750 feet long with only a 30 centimeter drop from start to finish, and only .06 degrees of slope. This is a huge feet in today’s standard, but this was all constructed in ancient times. Oh, I forgot to mention, in order to speed the building process, there were two teams building the tunnel at the same time, one on the north end, one on the south, and they miraculously met in the middle according to an inscription found at the meeting place inside the tunnel. Truly, an engineering marvel. With all that being said, the skeptics called the texts found in the Bible, where the credit for the tunnel is given to king Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 32:2-4, 32:30, 2 Kings 20:20), completely bogus. They stated the tunnel was built during a different time period. However, not only did carbon dating prove the tunnel was constructed during Hezekiah’s reign, but there have since been not one, but two discovered artifacts which have ancient inscriptions giving credit to Hezekiah. One inscription, which invisible to the naked eye, has the kings name inscribed on it and mentions both the tunnel and pool . However, the other piece of evidence, which was discovered in 2007, and is a lot more clear to read, states “Hezekiah built the pool in Jerusalem”. The verdict is in.

Jehohanan’s Heel Bone

For my last argument proving the Bible’s validity, I want to take you to 1968, and introduce you to a man named Jehohanan. Givat Hamivtar is located in northern East Jerusalem, and it is the site where the first of only two discoveries  that are able to prove Romans crucified their prisoners by use of nails. Before the discovery of Jehohanan’s nail pierced heel bone, there was no proof, outside the Bible and the Jewish historian Josephus’s written accounts, that people who were crucified actually suffered through nails being driven through their body parts. The second discovery was found in Italy in 2017.

There are many other archeological discoveries which prove the inerrancy of the Bible, like the almost 6,000 manuscripts that have been located from the New Testament alone (which is more than any other antiquity), but the above 5 are my favorite. Also, while this article is unlike any of my other articles where I utilize many verses from the Bible, I believe studying these archeological finds is extremely important to teaching today’s Christians, especially the youth. Technology is great but it is also very harmful. For every study found on the internet proving the validity of the Holy Bible, there are thousands of articles attempting to “prove” the falsehoods of the Bible. The truth is, as time goes on there are more and more discoveries being made daily, and I believe it is all due to God’s perfect timing, which all are being used to prove just how timeless and binding the Bible truly is. And again, it is just as important to know why you believe the Bible, as it is to know the Bible is Truth.  Yes, Christianity is by Faith, but by God’s design, we do not have to carry a blind faith.

-My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge - Hosea 4:6