This week I continue looking at how the Bible proves God’s existence. One of the major reasons that the Bible must have been written by God is its truthfulness about life. Firstly, this is seen when we consider that the Bible is not just a magical fable, but a historical book. It claims to report on real historical events. But unlike other historical books, the Bible reports with astonishing accuracy. People often try and disprove the Bible’s historical claims but again and again they find that the Bible’s claims are confirmed by other historical data. Sherwin-White, a classical historian, writes that ‘for Acts the confirmation of historicity is overwhelming…any attempt to reject its basic historicity even in matters of detail must now appear absurd. Roman historians have long taken it for granted.’ Furthermore, this conclusion about the Bible is strengthened as archaeological discoveries continue to be made each year. For example in July last year it was announced that a clay seal was discovered at the ‘City of David’ bearing the name ‘Gedaliah, son of Pashur’. This confirms the record in Jeremiah 38:1 of a man called ‘Gedaliah, son of Pashur’. Another example from Jeremiah is the record that King Jehoiachin of Judah was released from prison by the Babylonian King and ate regularly at the king’s table with a daily allowance of food (Jeremiah 52:31-34). Some historians claimed that this was not true and that it was written in Jeremiah by biased Jews to make the Jewish King look good. But then cuneiform tablets were discovered that contain details of the amounts and types of food that Jehoiachin received.

Secondly, the Bible does not simply demonstrate its truthfulness in historical data, but in the way it relates to man. In the past 2,000 years mankind has witnessed the busiest and most changeful period the world has ever seen. Things that used to satisfy those of previous generations have been overturned and shunned by the next generation as old-fashioned, obsolete and useless. Books, houses, clothes, transport and computers are continually changed and improved on. But no one has ever discovered a weak point or a defect in the Bible. It stands, perfect and fresh just as it did 2,000 years ago. It is still the most printed book in the world as people continue to recognise its ability to help them. Non-Christians often suggest that interest in the Bible will cease. Voltaire the French Philosopher is reported to have predicted in the 1700s that within a 100 years the Bible would be outdated. But within a 100 years the Geneva Bible Society had moved into his former house and used his printing presses to print thousands of Bibles. The Bible clearly is a supernatural work and its presence points to the existence of God.

Joel Radford.