Ariana Rodriguez
BIBL 1300 – Intro to Bible
November 6, 2018, Fall 2018
Reliability of Scripture
Introduction
"I'm glad your faith works for you, but can you really know whether or not the Bible is reliable? Wasn't it written thousands of years ago? How do you know it hasn't been translated and re-translated so much that it no longer says what it used to say?" These questions or variations of them are often asked about the Bible. Rather than responding "you just have to believe," in 1 Peter 3 :15, the Bible calls us to, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” Since Christ is the cornerstone of Christianity, and since what we know about Christ and God's plan of salvation is found in the Bible, it is important that we take questions about the reliability of the Bible seriously.
There are five main sources of evidences that shed light on the reliability of the Bible: documentation, archeological findings, the life of Jesus, fulfilled prophecies, and redeemed lives. We have plentiful sources of documentation that proves that the Bible is indeed reliable. Thousands of ancient, hand-copied documents—referred to as “manuscripts”— provide proof that the New Testament and Old Testament are historically consistent. In fact, there is significantly more documentation for the books of the Bible than there are for other historically recognized authors and literature. Secondly there have been many archaeological findings that also prove the Bible’s reliability. Excavation sites and artifacts also provide evidence that many of the events, people and places mentioned in the Bible really existed—such as the city Jericho and its famous walls or the Hittites, a people group once thought by skeptics to be a myth.
It can also be noted that we can look to the life of Jesus, in regards to the reliability of the Bible. The fact that Jesus was a true, historical person is clearly documented throughout Jewish manuscripts, even before the Apostle Paul and the other writers of the Gospels provided their own eye witness accounts. The countless fulfilled prophecies can also help assist in illuminating the steadfastness of the Bible. The Bible contains hundreds, even thousands, of prophecies that have been fulfilled, including detailed descriptions of events that would later happen to the Jewish people and surrounding nations, as well as prophecies about the life and death of Christ. Finally, we can look to the innumerable redeemed lives as a result of the Bible and Christianity.. The Bible speaks to the condition of the human soul in a way that has life-changing impact on individuals from all cultures, nations and walks of life. Just to name a few: C.S Lewis, John Newton, and Norma McCorvey.
Research Findings : Documentation
There are more than 5,000 copies of the entire New Testament or extensive portions of it. In addition, we have several thousand more fragments or smaller portions of the New Testament. If these numbers don't seem like a lot, compared to other works of ancient history, the manuscript evidence and copies for the New Testament far outweigh manuscript evidence for other works. For instance, there are less than 700 copies of Homer's Iliad and only a handful of copies of any one work of Aristotle. So when it comes to manuscript evidence, the New Testament definitely has numbers on its side.
Research Findings : Archeological Findings
Discovery after discovery has established the accuracy of innumerable details, and has brought increased recognition to the value of the Bible as a source of history.
Research Findings : The Life of Jesus
There are many ancient cultural documents and leaders that reference Jesus’ existence. For instance, the Roman leader and historian Tacitus wrote: “Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. 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 …”
Research Findings : Fulfilled Prophecies
Research Findings : Redeemed Lives
Research Findings : Development of the Canon
Conclusion
Based on the evidence, it surpasses all expectations for trustworthiness.