12. Archaeology
Archaeology is a fascinating field of study that can help us better understand the Bible in a number of ways. Nevertheless, it is an area in which we should exercise caution, because a great deal of what appears on the internet and in print regarding the "archaeology" of the Bible is unsubstantiated and not based on the actual findings of archaeology at all. Each year stories surface on the internet, in newspapers, and eventually in books of the remains of Pharaoh's army found in the Red Sea, parts of Noah's Ark found on Mount Ararat and other, similar stories which claim to substantiate some story in the Scriptures. Most of these spectacular claims are not based on fact, however, and are often unsuspectingly spread by those who would like to believe them, but do not know how to confirm or disprove the stories for themselves.
On the other hand, much has been found in the course of archaeological research that has not only confirmed aspects of many of the Bible's accounts, but also has greatly enriched our understanding of its details. Consider the following examples of some of the many discoveries made in the past few years.
Recently, news media reported the discovery of a seal imprint of the famous biblical king Hezekiah that had been found near the wall surrounding Jerusalem's "Old City." The seal imprint was actually found several years ago along with other inscriptions, but it was only recently, when these seal impressions were studied, that it was discovered that one was inscribed "Belonging to Hezekiah [the son of] Ahaz king of Judah." This find has been widely publicized as proving the existence of the biblical Hezekiah, which it certainly does, but the find also has even broader significance.
A number of objects have been found in excavations in Israel bearing the names of individuals and groups mentioned in the
Bible. Skeptics are often quick to dismiss these objects when the names are not clearly associated with the individuals to whom they might refer, but in the case of this seal, Hezekiah is said to be the son of Ahaz (2 Kings 18:1), removing any doubt that this Hezekiah is the Hezekiah of the Bible. This irrefutable connection helps show that other biblical names found in archaeological contexts very possibly also attest actual biblical characters. Biblical individuals who are very probably or certainly attested in archaeological finds include King David (on a ninth century BC stele from northern Israel which mentions the "House of David") and King Jehu (in an inscription of the Assyrian king Shalmanesar III which mentions tribute paid by "Jehu, the son of Omri"), as well as the Prophet Isaiah (on an inscribed ring), and others.
The findings of archaeology have, in fact, silenced skepticism about the Bible in a number of areas. If we go back a little over a hundred years, doubters regarded the Hittite people mentioned in the Old Testament as a fiction because, apart from references to them in the Bible, there was no evidence they actually existed. Today, Hittitology is an important part of Ancient Near Eastern studies, the palaces and cities of these people have been excavated, and many thousands of Hittite texts have been found and translated. Far from not existing, the Hittites were, in fact, a dominant power in their part of the world until around 1200 BC.
There are many such instances where archaeology has shown the Bible record is set in reality. Skeptics once claimed that Moses (c. 1300-1400 BC) could not have written the first five books of the Bible because it was presumed that Semitic peoples did not have writing until long after his time. Because of archaeology, we know now that phonetic writing in Semitic languages existed from well before the time of Moses – perhaps as early as 1800-1900 BC.
Consider one more example of something the Bible clearly records which is still rejected by many today. Leviticus 18 tells us that God planned to cast the Canaanites and related peoples out of the Promised Land due to their extreme depravity. That chapter accuses the Canaanites of many evil practices, including child sacrifice. Some modern doubters have challenged the likelihood that this practice actually existed in ancient Canaan and claimed that there is no actual historical proof for it. Archaeological evidence of child sacrifice by the Canaanites has been found, however. Ancient reliefs carved around the time of the Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II, in the temples of Karnak and Luxor, actually depict this abominable Canaanite practice. The reliefs depict Egyptian soldiers attacking Canaanite fortified cities of the type described in the book of Joshua. In these scenes, the kings of the cities are shown with braziers making fiery offerings to their gods over the dead bodies of children on the city walls (exactly as is described of the king of Moab in 2 Kings 3:27). That these representations unquestionably depict Canaanite child sacrifice is the conclusion of the scholarly publication of the Egyptian scenes (A. Spalinger, "A Canaanite Ritual Found in Egyptian Reliefs," Journal of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities 8 [1978]:47-60).
But the importance of archaeology for biblical study goes far beyond the fact that it confirms many aspects of the biblical record. Equally important for believers is the better understanding of the Scriptures that archaeology can provide in giving us a detailed picture of what life was like in Old and New Testament times and sometimes even helping us to gain a better understanding of specific things the Bible says.
Case Study: The Dead Sea Scrolls
No archaeological discovery pertaining to the Bible is more famous than the Dead Sea Scrolls. In 1947, shepherds stumbled on a cave at Qumran in a remote and dry mountainous area on the western side of the Dead Sea. Over the next few years, a number of similar caves were found in the same area. In the caves, archaeologists discovered hundreds of ancient Hebrew documents including fragments of 190 biblical scrolls dating from as early as the third century BC to around the time of Jesus.
Although a complete scroll of the book of Isaiah was found among the manuscripts, most of them were fragmentary – containing only parts of biblical books. Nevertheless, almost every book in the Old Testament was represented. This biblical material from over two thousand years ago has proven to be of immense value to biblical scholars. Perhaps its greatest contribution has been to our understanding of the transmission of the biblical text. In most cases the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit minimal differences between their wording and that of the Hebrew Masoretic Text produced a thousand years later and used as the basis of our Old Testament today. Even where there are differences, they are usually very minor and do not affect the meaning of what is said.
On the other hand, in a number of cases the scrolls have helped clarify difficult scriptures. This is because they sometimes record words that were lost or changed over time in the versions of the Hebrew Bible available to us. An example of this is found in Isaiah 53:11. Speaking of a messianic figure, the Masoretic Text of this verse reads: "After the suffering of his soul, he will see and be satisfied." In reading this verse we can only wonder "What will he see?" as the word "see" has no object. However, in this section of Isaiah preserved in several scrolls found at Qumran, verse 11 contains the missing information: "After the suffering of his soul, he will see light." As it happens, the ancient Greek Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible also has the word "light" – showing that this is very likely the original reading of this verse.
When it comes to the New Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls contain no references to Jesus or the early Christians, but they help us understand the world in which Jesus lived, and in some cases they show how Jesus and Christianity fit into that world. For example, a similar list of miracles appears in both the New Testament Gospels and the Dead Sea Scroll known as the Messianic Apocalypse (4Q521). These lists of miracles are both doubtless based on Isaiah chapters 35 and 61. But in Luke 7:21–22 and Matthew 11:4-5, Jesus mentions these miracles to the disciples of John the Baptist as evidence that he (Jesus) is the Messiah, and in the Dead Sea Messianic Apocalypse (written some 150 years before the Gospel of Luke), in a context speaking of the Messiah, the Lord is said to be the one who will perform these miracles. Clearly, Jesus was offering evidence of his messiahship that the Jewish world of his time was expecting.
In ways like these, the Dead Sea Scrolls provide examples of how archaeology has helped us better understand difficult sections of the Bible and throw additional light on others. Using a good modern translation of the Bible like the English Standard Version or the New International Version or a modern revision of the King James Bible (such as the New King James Version, or King James 2000 Version) often allows us to profit from information from the Dead Sea Scrolls that is given in their footnotes to biblical verses.