|
lesson 2 EXTERNAL EVIDENCES FOR THE INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE I. WHAT HISTORY AND ARCHEOLOGY SHOW US A. The Moabites And The Moabite Stone 1. The stone was discovered by a German missionary in 1868 near the Dead Sea. 2. The stone tells of the wars between the Moabites and the Israelites. 3. 2 Kings 3 tells of the same wars. 4. In that way what the Bible says about the Moabites is confirmed by historical, external evidence: the Moabite Stone. B. The Fall Of Jericho: John Garstang and Catherine Kenyon revealed the following from their excavations: 1. The city was destroyed around 1400 B.C. This would agree with the destruction mentioned by Joshua. 2. The walls fell - compare this discovery with Joshua 6:20. 3. They found a lot of ashes and carbon there - compare this with Joshua 6:24. 4. Many treasures were found still in the city - note what Joshua 6:18 says. 5. This shows that the Fall of Jericho was not just a myth but rather something that did occur in history. II. WHAT SCIENCE SHOWS US THE BIBLE IS NOT A SCIENCE BOOK AS SUCH. NEVERTHELESS IT MENTIONS IN VARIOUS PLACES FACTS THAT THE PEOPLE OF THAT TIME DID NOT ACCEPT BUT THAT HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED BY SCIENCE IN RECENT TIMES. A. The Roundness Of The Earth During the time of the writing of the Bible people believed that the earth was flat, but the Bible speaks of the circle of the Earth. B. The Earth Is Not Sustained By Anyone Or Anything. 1. The people of that time (and even some "primitive" tribes today) believed that the Earth is sustained by a giant rock, and animal, or even a "god" or giant. 2. Some 3,000 years ago the Bible said that the Earth is sustained by nothing - Job 26:7 3. By means of photographs taken from space it has now been shown that indeed the Earth is sustained by nothing. C. How To Build A Large Ship 1. For men the building of a very large ship was impossible until the 19th century. The ships before that time were not very large. 2. With the advances in mathematics and engineering during the 19th century, people began to construct large ships. 3. Nevertheless, the ark of Noah's day was very big and constructed according to the same dimensions that are used today. How did Noah know to do that? This shows God's inspiration of the scriptures. D. The Paths of the Sea 1. Ancient mariners knew nothing of the paths (currents) of the sea. 2. During modern times these sea currents have been discovered, and now there are maps of these currents to guide sailors. 3. Nevertheless, David spoke of the "paths of the sea" in Psalm 8:8. 4. How would a shepherd not living near the sea know of such paths? Once more is seen the inspiration of the scriptures. QUESTIONS 1. T F History and archeology show that the inspiration of scripture is very doubtful. 2. T F The Moabite Stone tells of wars with Israel. 3. Why is the excavation of Jericho and the fact that science has now discovered currents in the sea important to biblical inspiration? |