Biblical archaeology

Biblical archaeology is an important apologetics discipline that substantiates the Bible as a valid historical document, and the Biblical chronology as accurate timeline. Each year new discoveries are made, and creationists are encouraged to keep themselves informed of progress in this field. The study of Biblical Archaeology is also an important aid to the correct understanding of the Bible, since it gives a description of the lands of the Bible and of social customs, civil and religious, of the biblical characters. At least 50 major figures from the Old Testament have been confirmed from archaeology.

Dead Sea Scrolls

 * Main Article: Dead Sea Scrolls

The finding of the Dead Sea Scrolls is considered by many to be the most important archaeological find of the last century. Besides confirming the reliability of the Old Testament and its prophecies as untainted by later church leaders, they have also allowed us a glimpse into the era Jesus was born into, and the society that existed at the beginnings of Christianity.

Temple of Jerusalem

 * Main Article: Temple of Jerusalem

Not until the time of King Solomon did God permit the construction of a permanent building to be his temple. The first temple was built in Jerusalem in the 10th or 11th century BC by King Solomon. The site was the one purchased for the purpose by King David, the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, on which he built an altar to the Lord. King David’s Altar, Solomon’s Temple, and Herod’s Temple all stood in the same location.

Jericho

 * Main Article: Jericho

In the 1950's, archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon supervised the excavation of the ruins of the once great city. Her lack of faith in the Biblical account of Jericho was evident in her statement that she believed the 'folk tale' of Joshua's encounter with the city was merely fabricated after the destruction. However, later digs have prompted other archaeologists to come to a bold conclusion: the walls really did fall as told in.

James Ossuary

 * Main Article: James Ossuary

A 2,000-year-old box was discovered in October of 2002 that might be the ossuary (“Bone Box”) of James, the brother of Jesus. On the side of the bone box is inscribed in Aramaic: “Ya'akov bar Yosef akhui di Yeshua”, which is translated “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus”. As the inscription was the first historic record found of Jesus apart from manuscripts, its authentication could prove to be the most significant New Testament find in modern times.

Synagogue and House of Peter

 * Main Article: Capernaum

Capernaum was a village inhabited from approximately 150 BC to 1100 AD. The ancient ruins of Capernaum have been thoroughly investigated by archaeologists revealing, most notably, an ancient Jewish synagogue and Christian church located at the site of the house of Simon Peter. Although tradition held that the ruins of Capernaum were there on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, it wasn't until 1838 that remains of a synagogue were correctly identified.

King David's Palace
Archaeologist Eilat Mazar has found strong evidence that the foundations of a structure in old Jerusalem, confirmed to date to the 10th-9th centuries B.C., are very likely the remains of the palace of King David. Furthermore, the remains match perfectly with the geographic and architectural description of the palace given in the Bible.

Tell Dan
The ancient city of Israel contains the world's oldest known gated archway and is known today as Tell el-Qadi. An inscription found on site reads "To the God who is in Dan, Zoilos made a vow." Identified in 1838, the best-known excavations began in 1966, continuing to the present day. The Tell Dan Stele was discovered here, along with an elaborate gate, a pottery shard with the name Zechariah on it, and a series of huge defensive ramparts. Settlement appears to have begun as early as 4500 B.C.

Evidence for the Exodus

 * See also Evidence for the Israelite Sojourn in Egypt

The earliest mention of the Biblical God, Yahweh, has been discovered from two Egyptian descriptions, with the oldest, the Soleb Inscription, dating to 1400 B.C. In mentioning a list of lands campaigned against by Egypt, the Soleb Inscription refers to the "land of the Shasu of Yahweh" so it is clear Israel had become a nation by that time. This provides strong evidence that the Israelite Exodus had completed by 1400 B.C. The Ipuwer Papyrus provides evidence of the Biblical plagues. The ancient Egyptian document records events similar to the plagues of the Exodus.

The distinctive 4-room Israelite house has been discovered in Tell el-Daba, Egypt dating back to 1175 A.D. What is more, found among these distinctive Israelite houses was one which may have been Joseph's containing a tomb that very unusually had the skeleton removed consistent with Exodus 13:19 and Genesis 50:25.

One of the tombs was monumental in construction and totally unique in finds. Inside were found stone fragments of a colossal statue of a man who was clearly Asiatic, based on the yellow painted skin, the red-painted mushroom-shaped hairstyle and a throwstick on his right shoulder (the hieroglyph for foreigner). The statue had been intentionally broken in antiquity. While the other tombs nearby had intact skeletons, the only finds in the monumental tomb were fragments of an inscribed limestone sarcophagus and a few bone fragments. The body was gone! While it was common to plunder tombs in ancient Egypt, the bodies were usually not taken. Could this be the tomb of Joseph, from which he commanded his bones to be carried back to Canaan (Gn 50:25; Ex 13:19)?

~ Gary Byers, Associates for Biblical Research

A 3rd century B.C. Egyptian historian named Manetho wrote that the Hyksos founded their capital at Avaris, also known as Tell el-Daba, where the Israelite houses were found. As noted by Noah Wiener of the Biblical Archaeological Society, "After the Hyksos were expelled from Egypt, Manetho reports that they wandered the desert before establishing the city of Jerusalem... The Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut (1489–1469 B.C.E.) recorded the banishment of a group of Asiatics from Avaris, the former Hyksos capital."

Furthermore, the Amarna Tablets record the Israelite takeover of Canaan. Letters such as those by Abdu-Heba and Rib-Addi show Canaanite kings pleading with Egypt to send them military aid to stop the Israelites from conquering the land. Dating to the 14th century B.C., they provide strong evidence for an early date to the Exodus.

Those claiming the Exodus lacks graves evidencing the Exodus are not finding the graves because they are looking on the wrong peninsula, the Sinai Peninsula. The Exodus occurred across Saudi Arabia/the Arabian Peninsula, which does have thousands, possibly millions, of ancient graves supporting the Biblical Exodus.

For the location of the Biblical Mount Sinai, see Jebel al-Madhbah. The Bible makes plain the Mount Sinai is in Seir or Edom. (Deuteronomy 33:2, Judges 5:4-5) As an interesting note, Edom or Esau literally means "red" and Jebel al-Madhbah is in Petra, a city that is one of the 7 wonders of the world, renowned for its blood-red stone and architecture.