Biblical Archaeology

[Soldier4Christ]

New Testament Archaeology

OK, that research helped me dramatically with the historical veracity of the Old Testament, but what about New Testament archaeology? The Old Testament was maintained as the historical archives for an entire nation by a well-organized system of recorders and scribes. However, wasn't the New Testament merely a collection of religious books and letters written by a few independent zealots trying to encourage followers after the death of their religious leader?

At this point, I was on fire for exploring this stuff. Nobody ever told me this material was available. I thought the Bible was a collection of moral mythology stories used to support "blind faith" in a couple of major world religions. I had no idea that the Bible was grounded in historical, geographical and archaeological evidence. As I turned to the evidence for the New Testament writings, I was reading and digesting up to four books per week...

Guess what? It was remarkable! Like the Old Testament, I found that the historical record of the New Testament was upheld again and again...

The foundations of the Jewish Temple Mount built by Herod the Great still stand in Jerusalem. The "Southern Steps" where Jesus and his followers entered the Temple are preserved in an active excavation site. The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is generally considered a credible site for the birth place of Jesus. The huge Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is also considered a reliable historical site covering the locations of the crucifixion and burial of Christ. These sites were covered over (and thus, preserved) by the Romans in the second century AD.

On the Sea of Galilee, towns such as Nazareth are still active. Capernaum and Chorazin, two sites Jesus visited often, have been excavated and preserved. Sites of famous teachings such as Kursi (the swine miracle), Tabgha (loaves and fishes), Mount of Beatitudes (Sermon on the Mount) and Caesarea Philippi (Peter's confession) are all preserved as reliable historical sites.

I was spending hours at my desk with the latest New Testament archaeology books and periodicals, cross-referencing the latest finds with the New Testament passages... It was fascinating...

The synagogue at Capernaum where Jesus cured a man with an unclean spirit and delivered the sermon on the bread of life. The house of Peter at Capernaum where Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law and others. Jacob's well where Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman. The Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem, where Jesus healed a crippled man. The Pool of Siloam in Jerusalem, where Jesus healed a blind man. The tribunal at Corinth where Paul was tried. The theater at Ephesus where the riot of silversmiths occurred. Herod's palace at Caesarea where Paul was kept under guard. 1 It went on and on...

Of course, none of this New Testament archaeology proved the underlying theology to me, but it was still powerful. The places existed and the historical events happened. I wasn't convinced of the miraculous extent of these events, but there was nothing denying their historicity...

I was ready to go one layer deeper and see who these history writers were. In my mind, I needed to further establish their credibility in order to start understanding where they were coming from with their record of such profound events...

[Soldier4Christ]

Saint Luke

I decided to start with the writer known by many as Saint Luke, because that's where the archaeologists and historians seemed to start. Also, Luke wrote about one-quarter of the New Testament (the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts), so, for me, that was a big enough chunk of text to start testing the veracity of the entire New Testament.

Starting about 150 years ago, scholars in Europe started rejecting the historical records of Saint Luke. These academics declared that there was no evidence to support the existence of several locations and leaders mentioned in Luke's writings, and therefore, they rejected the entirety of his account. However, I discovered that archaeological finds during the last century have revealed that Luke was a very accurate historian and the two books he authored were absolutely authoritative records of history!

One of the greatest archaeologists of all time was Sir William Ramsay. He studied under the famous German historical schools in the mid-nineteenth century, which taught that the New Testament was a religious treatise written in the mid-200s AD, and not an historical document recorded in the first century. Ramsay was so convinced of this teaching that he entered the field of archaeology and went to Asia Minor to specifically find the physical evidence to refute Luke's biblical record. After years of field study, Ramsay completely reversed his entire view of the Bible and first century history. He wrote:

      Luke is a historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy, he is possessed of the true historic sense...in short, this author should be placed along with the greatest of historians.1

Luke's accuracy is demonstrated by the fact that he names key historical figures in the correct time sequence. He also uses the correct, and often obscure, government titles in various geographical areas, including the politarchs of Thessalonica, the temple wardens of Ephesus, the procouncil of Cyprus, and the "first man of the island" in Malta. In Luke's announcement of Jesus' public ministry, he mentions, "Lysanius tetrarch of Abilene". Scholars questioned Luke's credibility since the only Lysanius known for centuries was a leader of Chalcis who ruled from 40-36 BC. However, an inscription dated to the time of Tiberius (14-37 AD) was found, which records a temple dedication naming Lysanius as the "tetrarch of Abila" (Abilene near Damascus). This matched Luke's account and stunned the liberal scholarship of the day. 2

In the Book of Acts, Paul was brought before Gallio, the proconsul of Achaea. Again, archaeology confirms this account. At Delphi, an inscription from Emperor Claudius was discovered that says, "Lucius Junios Gallio, my friend, and the proconsul of Achaia . . ." Historians date the inscription to 52 AD, which supports the time of Paul's visit there in 51 AD. 3

Later in Acts, Erastus, a coworker of Paul, is appointed treasurer of Corinth. In 1928, archaeologists excavated a Corinthian theatre and discovered an inscription that reads, "Erastus in return for his aedilship laid the pavement at his own expense." The pavement was laid in 50 AD, and the term "aedile" refers to the designation of treasurer. 4

In another passage, Luke gives Plubius, the chief man on the island of Malta, the title, "first man of the island." Scholars questioned this strange title and deemed it unhistorical. Inscriptions have recently been discovered on the island that indeed give Plubius the title of "first man." 5

Elsewhere, Luke uses the Greek term "politarchs" ("rulers of the city") to refer to the leaders in Thessalonica. Although it sounds inconsequential, this was another hit against Luke's credibility for centuries, because no other Greek literature used this leadership term. However, approximately 20 inscriptions have now been discovered that bear the term "politarch," including five finds that specifically refer to the ancient leadership in Thessalonica. 6

As a final example, Saint Luke calls Iconium a city in Phyrigia. Who cares? Well, this was also a major rub against the credibility of Luke for centuries. Scholars, going all the way back to writings from historians like Cicero, maintained that Iconium was in Lycaonia, not Phyrigia. Therefore, scholars declared that the entire Book of Acts was unreliable. Guess what? In 1910, Ramsay was looking for the evidence to support this long-held claim against Luke and he uncovered a stone monument declaring that Iconium was indeed a city in Phyrigia. 7 Many archaeological discoveries since 1910 have confirmed this - Luke was right!

When reviewing the research and writings of Saint Luke, Famous historian A.N. Sherwin-White declares:

      In all, Luke names thirty-two countries, fifty-four cities, and nine islands without error. 8

      For Acts the confirmation of historicity is overwhelming. . . . Any attempt to reject its basic historicity must now appear absurd. 9

[Soldier4Christ]

Gospel of Luke

The opening to the Christmas story in the Gospel of Luke is familiar to many of us...

      And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. 1

In this passage from the Gospel of Luke, we learn of a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world will be taxed and everyone must return to their home city for a formal census. We also read that this concept of registration and taxation was first decreed when Quirinius (also known as Cyrenius) was governing Syria. Well, for centuries, this whole text was considered a fabrication, since there was no secular record of such a Roman census or that people had to return to their home cities. Also, the only record of Quirinius (Cyrenius) being "governor" of Syria was 6-7 AD (Josephus), much too late to coincide with the biblical record.

Guess what? Recent discoveries reveal that the Romans did have a regular enrollment of taxpayers and held a formal census every 14 years, beginning with the reign of Caesar Augustus. 2 In addition, an inscription and other archaeological evidence reveal that Quirinius was indeed "governing" Syria around 7 BC (although not with the official title of "governor", he was the military leader in the territory). 3 Finally, a papyrus discovered in Egypt generally discusses the system of Roman taxation, declaring the following: "Because of the approaching census it is necessary that all those residing for any cause away from their home should at once prepare to return to their own governments in order that they may complete the family registration of the enrollment..."4

I had to admit, Luke passed my notion of a "credibility test." In fact, his style was far from the religious fanaticism that I expected. Like me, his whole point for writing his accounts was to collect the evidence and present the historical "case" for Jesus and his teachings. For me, it was powerful that Luke writes his entire text as a research paper -- "an orderly account" -- for a Roman official named Theophilus. Here's the beginning of Luke's record:

      Having carefully investigated all of these accounts from the beginning, I have decided to write a careful summary for you, to reassure you of the truth of all you were taught.5

So, as an authoritative writer of history, Luke passed my test with flying colors. I wasn't ready to accept the theology of his Gospel account, but I wasn't really "testing" that yet. I was still checking out the authenticity and credibility of these guys...

After the Gospel of Luke, what was next on my list...?

[Soldier4Christ]

Gospel of John

John also wrote a big chunk of the New Testament, including the Gospel of John, letters, and the Book of Revelation, so that's where I went next... Again, I wasn't focusing on the "theological stuff" yet -- I just wanted to test the "historical" elements first...

Well, I soon discovered that John's accuracy is also supported by recent discoveries.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus heals a man at the Pool of Bethesda. John describes the pool as having five porticoes. 1 Until recently, this site was a point of scholarly skepticism. Then, 40 feet underground, archaeologists discovered a pool with five porticoes, and a surrounding area that perfectly matches John's description. 2 Later in the text, John describes the Pool of Siloam, 3 another site of contention for hundreds of years. Well, archaeologists discovered this pool in 1897. 4

Further in John's Gospel, John describes Pontius Pilate speaking to Jesus from the judgment seat in a place called "the Pavement" ("Gabbatha" in Hebrew). 5 For hundreds of years, scholars used this "myth" to reject John's record of Jesus and the trial by Pilate, because there was no historical record of a court called Gabbatha or "The Pavement" in Jerusalem. However, famous archaeologist William Albright revealed that this place was in fact the court of the Tower of Antonia, which was destroyed by the Romans in 66-70 AD. It was left buried when Jerusalem was rebuilt in the time of Hadrian, but it was recently uncovered during excavations there. 6

OK, that's great stuff for "site support," but what about some of these "larger-than-life" characters such as Pontius Pilate, the procurator of Rome who presided over the trial of Jesus?

Well, in 1961, archaeologists discovered a plaque fragment in Caesarea, a Roman city along the Mediterranean coast of Israel. The plaque was written in Latin and imbedded in a section of steps leading to Caesarea's Amphitheatre. The inscription includes the following: "Pontius Pilatus, Prefect of Judea has dedicated to the people of Caesarea a temple in honor of Tiberius." Emperor Tiberius reigned from 14 to 37 AD, perfectly meshing with the New Testament account that records Pontius Pilate ruling as governor from 26 to 36 AD. 7

Tacitus, a well-known first century Roman historian, also mentioned Pontius Pilate:

      Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus... 8

Wait. Did I read this right? A Roman historian not only mentions a Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, but he also mentions Christus -- Christ -- and his suffering at the hands of Pilate! For me, this was huge! I was always taught that Jesus Christ and the events of the New Testament were solely contained in the Bible.

I was blown away...! Are there other ancient writings outside the Bible mentioning New Testament people and events -- even Jesus Himself?

I made a big star in my notes... I was definitely coming back to this one...!

OK, now what...?

All of this stuff happened -- historically, I mean... I still didn't accept the theological implications of these events, but they obviously happened nonetheless... They weren't myths... They weren't hoaxes... They were historical events.

So, how could I start testing the depths of these events? What drove the writers of the Bible to such passion? What compelled these men to write and defend such profound messages in connection with these historical events?

Come on! Were there really divine underpinnings to all of these books? Intellectually, I now knew something "metaphysical" was out there... More than "metaphysical" -- something with intelligence. But, could I really accept that these books were from outside our dimensions of time and space...?

I was ready to accept the Bible as a very special book. I was even ready to declare its historical trustworthiness. But the notion of "divine inspiration" still seemed a little over the edge to me. I just couldn't get my skeptical mind around that one…

If God truly delivered this book from outside our four dimensions, wouldn't he just tell us? I understand that the writers of the Bible say it's divinely inspired, but that's not enough for me. It just seems that if God truly delivered this book to mankind through a group of 40 or so authors that he would give us something to hang our hats on… Yes, I'm stunned by the Bible's historical veracity, archaeological support, internal integrity, etc. - the evidence is fantastic, and definitely sets the Bible apart -- but how could I ever be asked to jump the chasm from "really special book" to "divinely inspired letter from God"?