Tag Archives: archaeology

Reasons to Believe – Wed – 23-01-25

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When you drive through the heart of the state of Kentucky, you drive through horse country. Large houses and attractive barns are surrounded by lush, green pastures fenced by white or black boards. Thoroughbred horses graze on the grass or exercise in private paddocks. The grandeur of some horse farms is truly amazing. The cost to own and train a horse, especially for racing, can soar into the tens of thousands of dollars per year.

Horses have long been a symbol of wealth and power. In ancient times, they were also key to military might. The richest king in the history of Israel amassed tremendous wealth, including horses. 1 Kings 10:26 says, “Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem.” (NIV)

Archaeologists have uncovered some of Solomon’s stables at Megiddo, a strategically located city along the major north-south trade route. The southern stable compound covered more ground than an American-style football field. In the center, a cistern was sunk capable of holding 2,775 gallons of water. The compound included two large storage rooms which probably housed chariots. The stables contained  stalls for 150 horses.*

Archaeology continues to provide us reasons to believe the bible. Trust what it says.

*Paul E. Little, Know Why You Believe, (Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter-Varsity Press, 1968), 52-53.

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Reasons to Believe – Sun – 23-01-22

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Did I walk past one of the most important archeological discoveries of all time? I may have. In June of 2011, my wife and I toured Israel. One stop was wading through a dark tunnel carved to divert Gihon spring water into the Siloam pool located in the ancient city of Jerusalem. The knee-deep water chilled our feet. We waded single file, using flashlights, our tennis shoes dangling by their strings draped over our necks. I cracked my head on the ceiling once. The tunnel was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It is an engineering marvel commissioned by Hezekiah over 2,700 years ago.

Although it is an archeological wonder, it is the inscriptions from the tunnel that Dr. Gershon Galil, a pro fessor at the University of Haifa, called “one of the most important archaeological discoveries in Israel of all time.”

The inscriptions echo the wording of several verses in 2 Kings summarizing Hezekiah’s accomplishments. This makes the inscriptions the earliest text of the Old Testament, hundreds of years older than the Dead Sea Scrolls. A section of the inscription were chiseled out and removed in 1880. Recently, additional lines of the inscription have been discovered on the tunnel walls.* I waded past them!

The correlation between the inscriptions and the verses in 2 Kings show the Bible reflects history, not fanciful stories. Archaeology has again given us evidence to believe the Bible.

*Judy Siegel-Itzkovich, “Was proof of biblical kings of Israel, Judah deciphered on Jerusalem rock inscriptions?” The Jerusalem Post, December 16, 2022, quoted on MSN, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/was-proof-of-biblical-kings-of-israel-judah-deciphered-on-jerusalem-rock-inscriptions/ar-AA15lzYT

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Reasons to Believe – Thu – 22-10-06

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I used to live near a Civil War battlefield in southeastern Missouri. Residents of the county were proud of their history. They pointed to the county courthouse and the patched holes caused by cannon balls from Confederate artillery.

Did you know the ancient Romans had artillery? No, they didn’t have cannons that fired projectiles which exploded. But they did use sophisticated catapults to sling round stones to batter down the city walls of their enemies. Many were about the size of a soccer ball. Recently, archaeologists unearthed these rocks, called ballista, in Jerusalem.*

Why is this important? Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem in Matthew 24:1-2, ‘Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”’ (NIV) Jesus went on to explain the terrible suffering the destruction would bring.

Did it happen? Well, the historian Josephus recorded that Rome besieged Jerusalem in 70 A.D. They focused the assault on the northwest side of the city. Do you know where they found all the ballista stones? The northwest side of the old city walls.

Once again archaeology has confirmed biblical events. But it is more interesting, than that. Archaeology confirms the account of a non-biblical historian. And both confirm the events predict by Jesus occurred.

*Ian Randall, “Archaeology: Weaponry used in the destruction of Jerusalem’s Second Temple unearthed,” Daily Express, August 14, 2022, https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1655013/archaeology-weaponry-used-destruction-jerusalem-second-temple-unearthed

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Reasons to Believe – Mon – 22-10-03

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Do you like puzzles? At our house, the puzzles come out around the winter holidays. Pieces are sorted and assembled, often over multiple hours or days.  Some puzzles are quick. Others are difficult because of the multiple shades of color used across the picture. But persistence eventually finds the place for every piece and the picture is complete.

Archaeology is much the same. Artifacts are unearthed including building foundations, pottery shards, ancient tools, and coins. They are the puzzle pieces studied to see a picture of the past. Archaeology has validated the bible’s historical accuracy on numerous occasions. And that validation continues today.

In August of this year, a team of archaeologists excavated a fifth-to-sixth century Byzantine basilica at the el Araj archaeological site on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. They uncovered a large Greek mosaic that bolsters the theory the church was built over the home of the apostles Peter and Andrew. Steven Notley, professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Nyack University and co-leader of the expedition, called the basilica’s mosaic the “most definitive archaeological connection with Peter.” According to Notley, the mosaic is more than 1,500 years old. He also believes it is compelling evidence that the excavation has discovered the town of Bethsaida. *

With a puzzle, when most of the pieces are assembled, you can tell what the picture is. Archaeology has pieced so much of the past together we can see the bible is true.

*Edie Heipel, “St. Peter’s House Believed to Have Been Found on Shore of Sea of Galilee,” National Catholic Register, August 24, 2022, https://www.ncregister.com/cna/st-peter-s-house-believed-to-have-been-found-on-shore-of-sea-of-galilee

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Reasons to Believe – Sat – 22-07-16

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Did you ever make mud pies? I can’t remember doing so, but my wife remembers making them as a child. I guess my play didn’t involve pretend baking. Oh, I played in the mud, but it wasn’t creative. I just oozed it between my fingers and toes.

Mud has been used as a building material by many cultures. Clay, water and straw were formed into bricks in ancient Egypt by the enslaved Israelites. Exodus 1:14 says the Egyptians, “made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields.” (NIV) Exodus 5:6-8 says, ‘That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and foremen in charge of the people: “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota.”’ (NIV)

Archaeologists have discovered papyri that confirm some of these details. One expresses a soldier’s complaint that no straw exists at his location to make bricks. Another mentions the use of daily quotas for brickmakers. A tomb discovered held drawings on the wall of slaves making bricks, though Hebrew slaves were not depicted. Even the practice of beating someone before interrogating them, mentioned in Exodus 5:14, has been confirmed.* Believe the bible. Even the mud brickmaking practices mentioned in it have been confirmed.

*David A. Falk, “Brick by Brick,” Biblical Archaeology Review 46:2, Spring 2020: https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/46/2/6

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Reasons to Believe – Wed – 22-07-13

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Good transportation is vital to the health, and wealth, of a city. In the horse-drawn past, rivers were the major highways. Many of the world’s premier cities, like London, Shanghai and New York, grew up along a river. Rivers made the transportation of goods easier and often faster. Boats were cheaper to build than long roads.

Today, rivers are still important, but roads have become easier to build. Vehicles have also become faster and more powerful than the wagons drawn by a team of horses. The interstate highway system in the United States, and similar systems in other countries, are vital connections between cities. We take for granted these roads and the large trucks that use them. Cities depend on highways. In fact, most large cities hold junctions of several highways.

In ancient Israel, large, navigable rivers did not exist. Trade was conducted over roads. Like today, some cities stood at the junction of major trade routes. One such city was Gezer. It sat on the junction of the road from the seaport Joppa to Jerusalem and the international trade route connecting Egypt with Mesopotamia. It is mentioned fourteen times in the bible.

Archaeologists discovered Gezer and have studied it since the early 1900s. One important find was a calendar carved into a small limestone tablet. It may be the oldest known Hebrew inscription. Again, archaeology confirms the existence of Gezer.* One more fact showing you can trust the bible.

*Nosson Shulman, “Unique Sites of Israel Blog: Biblical Gezer,” JewishPress.com, May 15, 2022, https://www.jewishpress.com/blogs/unique-sites-israel/unique-sites-of-israel-blog-biblical-gezer/2022/05/15/        

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Reasons to Believe – Sun – 22-07-10

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Have you ever played the board game Monopoly? I remember playing as a child. I always wanted the race car as my board piece. Games could take hours. Sometimes we played by the short game rules. At other times, we just played with the Monopoly money. As a parent, I also played the game with my children, although Carrom was their favorite game. Board games have been around for a long time. New ones are also invented. In the past couple of years I learned to play Catan.

Did you know that archaeologists have uncovered different board games from ancient Canaan? Gath, the hometown of Goliath the giant killed by David, is the site where scholars from Bar-Ilan University and the University of Manitoba uncovered remains of board games. One is called “30 Houses.”* Do you suppose it was similar to Monopoly?

Although finding ancient board game pieces is interesting, does it really matter? What difference does it make for faith in God? Well, the pieces are not the important thing, but where they were found is. Tell es-Safi has been identified as the location of the ancient city of Gath. Many aspects of ancient life have been confirmed, such as a diet consisting of figs, olives, wheat, barley and grapes.* Archaeology has repeatedly confirmed details of the bible’s story. It presents many reasons why you can trust what the bible says.

*”Monopoly-like board games were part of life in Goliath’s birthplace – study,” The Jerusalem Post, May 22, 2022, https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-707353        

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Reasons to Believe – Fri – 22-03-25

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Listen to 2 Samuel 5:6-7, ‘The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there. The Jebusites said to David, “You will not get in here; even the blind and the lame can ward you off.” They thought, “David cannot get in here.” Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion, the City of David.’ (NIV)

These verses summarize David’s conquest of Jerusalem. In fact, in the next verse, we’re told David told his men to use the water shaft to enter the city. A parallel passage in 1 Chronicles says Joab led the way, earning his rank as commander of David’s army.

What really happened here? The Jebusites lived in a walled city. To access water, they created a tunnel system connecting to the Gihon spring from inside the city walls. The tunnels and passages were dug through the rock. They also connected to a natural vertical shaft. Joab led the assault by entering the city through the spring. The soldiers may have climbed the vertical shaft or ascended through the tunnels. They probably then killed the guards at the gate and let the rest of the army into the city.

In the 1860s, an archaeological effort led by Charles Warren found the water shaft mentioned here. You can visit it today. It is one of the many tourist spots in Jerusalem.* The existence of the water shaft is another confirmation of the bible that archaeology has provided.

*”Warren’s Shaft,” Go Jerusalem, http://www.gojerusalem.com/items/137/Warrens-Shaft/

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Reasons to Believe – Wed – 22-03-23

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Have you ever wondered if thousands of years from now, anyone will know your name? Will our cutting edge digital technology be as out of date as clay tablets? I mean, you don’t see cassette tape players anymore. Will all the cloud storage and other technologies be just shattered remnants of a forgotten time?

It is interesting to look back at the ancient civilizations and try to understand them. Archaeologists dig and sift through the remains of the past. Because of their efforts we now know the name of an ancient official probably involved in managing the Temple’s treasury in Jerusalem at the time of Jeremiah the prophet. His name was Hisilyahu, son of Immer. His name was found on a seal that was used to close a bag of coins near the location believed to be the temple treasury. He could have been the brother of Pashhur, son of Immer who is mentioned in the bible.*

​ Jeremiah 20:1-2 says, “When the priest Pashhur son of Immer, the chief officer in the temple of the LORD, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin at the LORD’S temple.” (NIV)

The thing to note here is we have archaeological evidence for a man whose father was Immer at the time of Jeremiah. I know, a name is such a small fact. But once again we get external evidence that the bible is historically accurate.

*Rossella Tercatin, “Biblical name seals shed light on First Temple treasuries,” The Jerusalem Post, January 6, 2022, https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-691768.

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Reasons to Believe – Sun – 22-03-20

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Have you heard the term cultural appropriation? It refers to one culture adopting items from another culture. Today, the “woke” culture in western societies thinks it is a bad thing. But this has happened throughout history. Words, food, music and other things have been adopted by one culture from another. Take Arabic numerals, for instance, or Italian and Mexican food. Also, many words in the English language are derived from words in other languages.

Did you know that the bible also has evidence the ancient Hebrews adopted Egyptian sayings? Exodus 6:1 says, ‘Then the LORD said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country.”’ (NIV)

The expressions “might hand” and “outstretched arm” are used many times in the account of the Exodus. They are Egyptian expressions from the same time period. Listen to what Prof. Joshua Berman from Bar-Ilan University’s Zalman Shamir Bible Department says about the expression, “When we look at inscriptions from the period of the New Kingdom, between 1500 and 1200 BCE, roughly the period of the enslavement, these expressions are routinely used to describe Pharaohs and their victories in battle, for instance, ‘Pharaoh defeated the Lybians with a mighty hand.’”*

So, archeology shows the Hebrews used Egyptian phrases from the time period. Here again is evidence showing the Hebrews were enslaved in Egypt.

*Rossella Tercatin, “Did the Exodus happen? Israeli scholar tours Egypt to show it did,” The Jerusalem Post, January 18, 2022, https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-693872.

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Believe: Archeology – Fri – 21-11-05

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Archeology is an interesting science. People carefully dig through old ruins to find artifacts. Did you know that since 1846 archeology has repeatedly validated the historical accuracy of the Bible?

Recently, Nature Scientific Reports published information confirming the existence and destruction of ancient Sodom. Researchers used the biblical description of Sodom’s location to discover ruins at Tall el-Hammam. As they excavated, they found a five-foot layer of soot with random bits of melted bricks and burned human bones. Also, the pottery bits had a glaze similar to the sand melted by the atomic tests in the New Mexico desert in 1945.

Researchers calculate an explosion causing this destruction produced temperatures of at least 3,500 degrees and a wind of 700 miles per hour. It vaporized the city and all in it. “The Nature article concludes explicitly that what happened in 1700 BC bears inescapable parallels to what the Bible says about Sodom.”*

Here’s what Genesis 19:24-25 says, “Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah–from the LORD out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities–and also the vegetation in the land.”

Archeology again validates the historical accuracy of the Bible! You can trust what it says!

*Eric Metaxas, “Is Archaeology Proving the Bible?” Newsweek, October 4, 2021, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/is-archaeology-proving-the-bible-opinion/ar-AAP7j9p.

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