The use of archaeology is really promising. We normally know archaeology as “the scientific study of pre-historic human societies by recovering and analyzing material remains”. Yet it may seem to be just a highly-academic search for souvenirs given to us by history, there’s actually more to it. This artifact-finding field serves to look beyond the dry left behinds and dig for a deeper essence. An ancient writing and a famous object of skepticism is the Bible. Because it is a two thousand year old book, the authenticity of Biblical characters and events were greatly questioned. Truly, it was written a couple of millenniums ago; however, we do have witnesses to prove its authenticity – archaeological finds.
Archaeological excavations have unearthed several artifacts, proving the existence of objects and places mentioned in the Bible. Roman coins of Augustus Caesar, which dated from 27 A.D. to 14 A.D, were found in Samaria. This is consistent with the Biblical verses, Matthew 22:17-21, referring to coins showing the image of Caesar. Also, in 2003, the Siloam Tunnel found by the archaeologists is the same tunnel built by the Judean King Hezekiah (written in 2 Kings 20:20). Then, two years later, artifact-hunters dug an ancient potsherd with inscriptions that translates to “Goliath”. This was found in Tell es-Safi, a Palestinian village, which is the former Philistine city Gath. Gath is mentioned in the Bible as the home city of the character Goliath. In addition, the Cave of Machpela (commonly known as the Cave of the Patriarchs) was discovered to be the burial place of the Old Testament couples: Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Lea. This burial site was written a couple of times in the Bible, particularly in Genesis 23: 2-4.
In spite of numerous archaeological proofs, the Bible continued to face serious scrutiny. Consequently, critics doubted the existence of certain Biblical ancient groups – one of which are the Hittites. The Old Testament tells us about a Hittite civilization that ruled over what are now Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. But aside from the Bible, they had no recounts of Hittites in recorded history. This lead scholars to assume that the Hittite empire is just a Biblical legend. Then, at the end of the 18th century, excavations in Syria and Turkey revealed that Bagazkoy, Turkey was actually the expansive capital city of this civilization. Along with this, archaeologists discovered monuments with Hittite sculpture and pictographic writings.
The existence of the character Sargon, written in the book of Isaiah, was once forgotten by historians. Because he was not mentioned in any other historic records before the 19th century, he was thought of as a Biblical myth. “Ancient writers knew nothing of him. He was a mystery: some did not hesitate to deny that he ever existed” (James Orr, 1906). However, in 1842, french archaeologist Paul-Emile Botta discovered the palace of this forgotten king in Khorsabad, Iraq. From there on, experts have found several artifacts proving his existence. Most of these relics are now housed at the British Museum.
For a time, historians did not agree with Biblical records until the realization of certain archaeological finds. Also, other people from the academe did not readily accept the reality in the Bible – most particularly, the evolutionists.
As of now, the theory of evolution, the man-from-ape idea, has never found any successful archaeological nor paleontological support. There was never a valid evidence found showing a particular organism halfway through the so-called evolution process (say, post-ape and pre-human). Hence, there is no need to emphasize further why such paradigm is still considered as a theory, as opposed to being a fact.
According to Time magazine, the “top 3 crime of the century” is the 1912 fake ape-man; “Eoanthropus dawsoni was the scientific name of this alleged missing link, and it would have been an extremely early example of a creature showing both human and apelike qualities… Then in 1953, the fragments, including a jawbone, were tested: they did not contain enough fluorine to be the age that Dawson claimed; worse, the jawbone was that of a 10-year-old orangutan, its teeth ground down to simulate age, and a crude chemical wash applied to the bone to make it appear ancient. No one knows who perpetrated the hoax: Dawson had died in 1916.
In the discourse of Biblical belief, archaeology gives benefit to the to-see-is-to-believe thinking. And to those who appreciate the truth that is in the Scriptures, it is like stating the obvious.
