This is an amazing question to tackle because there are so many myths about the bible as well as questions. The bible is a huge book full of many, many ideas, teachings, and information. Some evidence as to the bible's accuracy can only be revealed by the Holy Spirit but there is an absolute abundance of scientific and historical evidence affirming the accuracy of the bible as well. So much so, that I couldn't possibly mention each and every point in this post. I decided to choose some key points that help to prove the truth of the bible and we will focus, for now, on ONLY the historical evidence.
One of the main things I believe God anticipated was that people would question the bible. That scares some Christians however there are some Christians that are thrilled by that. I challenge everyone to test the truth of the bible. God gave us plenty of information that ties the historical accounts of the bible to the "secular" accounts of the Earth's history. Most Christians shutter when they get to the book of Numbers because the few few chapters explains in pain stacking detail the geneology of each tribe and many families of Israel through the generations. Again in Matthew, we see the exact line of Jesus. While these chapters aren't overly fun to read, they to give us an incredible amount of history as to the time the books were written and the accounts of historical events that can be compared to other writings of that particular time in history. In the books of the Kings and Chronicles, we read the line of the kings of Israel and the some of the kings of other nations. We read about what each king did then we read about the next king and the next king and the next king, on and on. This too gives us an immense amount of historical evidence to put to the test.
So, lets start naming some of that historical evidence:
1. First, lets tackle the myth or lack of knowledge as to the number of manuscripts. Of course, there were MANY more then just one copy or even a few copies of each book of the bible. In fact though there are manuscripts that have been destroyed through the years, the bible has more copies than any other ancient text. Here are the numbers 8000 man. in latin, 5000 in Greek, and 1000 in other languages. (Kenneth Boa)
2. The first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus made specific references to John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, and James in his Antiquities of the Jews, a "secular" work of literature.
3. The chronological details in the prologue to Jeremiah (1:1-3) and in Luke 3:1-2 illustrate this. Ezekiel 1:2 allows us to date Ezekiel's first vision of God to the day (July 31, 592 B.C.).
4. In Exodus 1:11, we are told that the children of Israel built the treasure cities of Pithom and Raamses for Pharaoh. In Exodus 5, we are informed that they made bricks first using straw, and then using stubble, because no straw was furnished them for that purpose. In 1883, Naville, and in 1908, Kyle, found at Pithom, one of the cities built by Israel, that the lower courses were built of bricks filled with good, chopped straw. The middle courses have less straw including stubble. The upper courses were made of pure clay, with no straw whatever. It is difficult to read the biblical account and not be astonished at the amazing confirmation which archaeology here has given to the Bible. (Jim Sasser)
5. Jericho - Joshua 6, tells how Israel conquered the walled city of Jericho. For six day they marched once around the city. On the seventh day they went around it seven times. The priests blew their trumpets, the people shouted, and when they did, "The wall fell down flat" (Joshua 6:20). The people then rushed strait way into the city and burned it. They took none of it to themselves. They saved Rahab who lived in a house upon the wall and who had helped them previously. (Jim Sasser)
Starting in 1929, Dr. John Garstang, excavated the ruins of ancient Jericho. His discoveries corresponded remarkably with the Biblical account. Jericho, he found, had a double wall, with houses built across the two walls. This explains how Rahab's house could have been built upon a wall. He learned that the wall was destroyed by some kind of violent convulsion such as that described in the Bible, and that when the wall feel that it fell outward, down the hillside, or as the Bible says, it fell down flat. Had the wall been destroyed by the battering rams of an enemy army, the walls would have fallen inward instead of outward. Furthermore, the city had been burned. Once again, the spade of archaeology has established the accuracy of the Bible.
6. Sargon - In Isaiah 20:1, we read, "In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him)..." This is the only mention of King Sargon in the Bible, and the only one in ancient literature. His place in history was severely questioned on this account. But in the years, 1842-1845, P.E. Botta, uncovered the tremendous royal palace of Sargon. Among the other things discovered was an account of the siege of Ashdod mentioned in Isaiah. Once more the Bible was right, the critics wrong. (Jim Sasser)
These are just a few of many examples proving the historical truth of the bible. We also know that there are many kings mentioned in the bible that agree with the external biblical information as well as major historical events like the freedom of the Israelites from Egypt. Here is a quote I absolutely love and it's a good thought provoker:
If the Bible proves to be reliable in hundreds of matters that are verifiable, why should it not be trusted in issues in the spiritual realm? - Wayne Jackson
I think it would be interesting if every person who doubted the bible as truth, non believers and believers alike, just meditated on that question.
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