The Authenticity of the Bible

The Bible is the divinely inspired and written Word of God. In his second letter to Timothy, St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles writes: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (II Timothy 3:16-17). When St. Paul says, “All Scripture,” he is referring primarily to the Old Testament and when he says, “inspired” he actually means, “God breathed.” It is this “God breathed” Word of God that is profitable for salvation, for eternal life and for correction of error and sins for all who read it and receive it in their heart as the truth.

It is no surprise that all who want to live their lives contrary to the Bible’s teaching have to begin the defense of their position by attacking it and attempting to cast shadows of doubt over its authenticity and authority. I recently heard part of an internet video from Skyline Church in San Diego (a wonderful and orthodox church), who hosted “A Conversation on the Definition of Marriage,” in which an Episcopal Bishop defending gay marriage does precisely this.

Then, this morning I began to read my latest Biblical Archeology Review in which an article from the magazine’s editor informs its readers of the archeological find of the Tablets of the Law which Moses broke at the foot of Mount Sinai (Exodus. 32:15-19).

“In 1969, barely two years after the 1967 Six-Day War, a team of Israeli archeologists made an exploratory excavation at the base of one of the numerous sites in the Sinai Peninsula proposed as Biblical Sinai. It was not long before a member of the team exposed a piece of rock with a single Hebrew letter on it. This naturally led to more intensive excavation in this area, as a result of which additional, larger pieces of inscribed stones were recovered.

When examined by paleographers, experts in dating inscriptions by the shape and form of the letters, they were in agreement that this inscription dated to about 1200 B.C.E.

Gradually, the pieces of stone were fitted together. In the end, a few pieces from the end and on the side were missing, but they did not appear to have contained letters. What could be read was clear. Word for word, the inscription was identical to the text of the Ten Commandments, (Deuteronomy 5).

It was difficult for the scholars to resist the obvious conclusion. These were the original Tablets of the Law that Moses destroyed when he came down from the mountain” (Biblical Archeological Review; Sept./Oct. 2012).

Obviously, once again the authenticity of the Bible we read daily is proven to be trustworthy and reliable. Once again, archeology shines a favorable light on the Bible and gives it validity. Those who ignore and purposefully disregard it do so at their own peril. 

I recommend the Biblical Archeology Review magazine for those who love these kinds of discoveries and want to keep up-to-date on them.

Keep reading your Bibles and, “be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

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