Archaeological Evidence for the Bible

The following are extra-Biblical evidences supporting the Biblical account, for archaeological discoveries verifying the exact text of the Bible see Manuscript Evidence for the Bible. At least 50 figures from the Old Testament have been confirmed from archaeology.

Evidence for the Exodus

 * 1) The earliest mention of the Biblical God, Yahweh, has been discovered from two Egyptian descriptions, with the oldest, the Soleb Inscription, dating to 1400 B.C. In mentioning a list of lands campaigned against by Egypt, the Soleb Inscription refers to the "land of the Shasu of Yahweh" so it is clear Israel had become a nation by that time. This provides strong evidence that the Israelite Exodus had completed by 1400 B.C. The Merneptah Stele (1209 B.C.) provides additional early corroboration for an early establishment of the nation of Israel.
 * 2) The Shiphrah Slave List (1809-1743 B.C.) preserves the name of Moses' midwife, showing that it was in use among Egyptian slaves before Moses was born.
 * 3) The Amarna Tablets record the Israelite takeover of Canaan. Letters such as those by Abdu-Heba and Rib-Addi show Canaanite kings pleading with Egypt to send them military aid to stop the Israelites from conquering the land. Dating to the 14th century B.C., they provide strong evidence for an early date to the Exodus.
 * 4) The Ipuwer Papyrus provides evidence of the Biblical plagues.
 * 5) The distinctive 4-room Israelite house has been discovered in Tell el-Daba, Egypt dating back to 1175 A.D. What is more, found among these distinctive Israelite houses was one which may have been Joseph's containing a tomb that very unusually had the skeleton removed consistent with Exodus 13:19 and Genesis 50:25. A 3rd century B.C. Egyptian historian named Manetho wrote that the Hyksos founded their capital at Avaris, also known as Tell el-Daba, where the Israelite houses were found. As noted by Noah Wiener of the Biblical Archaeological Society, "After the Hyksos were expelled from Egypt, Manetho reports that they wandered the desert before establishing the city of Jerusalem...  The Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut (1489–1469 B.C.E.) recorded the banishment of a group of Asiatics from Avaris, the former Hyksos capital." One of the tombs was monumental in construction and totally unique in finds. Inside were found stone fragments of a colossal statue of a man who was clearly Asiatic, based on the yellow painted skin, the red-painted mushroom-shaped hairstyle and a throwstick on his right shoulder (the hieroglyph for foreigner). The statue had been intentionally broken in antiquity. While the other tombs nearby had intact skeletons, the only finds in the monumental tomb were fragments of an inscribed limestone sarcophagus and a few bone fragments. The body was gone! While it was common to plunder tombs in ancient Egypt, the bodies were usually not taken. Could this be the tomb of Joseph, from which he commanded his bones to be carried back to Canaan (Gn 50:25; Ex 13:19)?

~ Gary Byers, Associates for Biblical Research

Where Are the Graves?

 * See also Route of the Exodus

Those claiming the Exodus lacks graves evidencing the Exodus are not finding the graves because they are looking on the wrong peninsula, the Sinai Peninsula. The Exodus occurred across Saudi Arabia/the Arabian Peninsula, which does have thousands, possibly millions, of ancient graves supporting the Biblical Exodus. There are also hundreds of massive and mysterious stone structures in the Saudi Desert, which cannot be properly investigated due to restrictions by the Saudi government. In October 2017 an archaeologist, David Kennedy, was finally invited to photograph them from a helicopter for the first time, previously they could only be viewed from satellite photos.

For the location of the Biblical Mount Sinai, see Jebel al-Madhbah. The Bible makes plain that Mount Sinai is in Seir, also known as Edom (located in modern-day Jordan and parts of Israel). (Deuteronomy 33:2, Judges 5:4-5) Edom is well-established from archeology as being in Jordan, so had archaeologists just taken the Bible at face value instead of assuming a Red Sea crossing to be impossible because of their disbelief in the supernatural, they would have recognized from the beginning that the Exodus occurred on the Arabian Peninsula, not the Sinai Peninsula, given that the Bible plainly says Mount Sinai/Seir is in Edom.

As an interesting note, Edom or Esau literally means "red" and Jebel al-Madhbah is in Petra, a city that is one of the 7 wonders of the world, renowned for its blood-red stone and architecture. The Apostle Paul said that Mount Sinai is in Arabia. (Galatians 4:25) Ancient Egyptian lists show that the Egyptians at the time of Moses controlled the Sinai Peninsula, so Moses could not have undergone the Exodus after leaving Egypt on the Sinai Peninsula, for he would have still been in Egypt! Per the Amarna Letters, the Egyptians had conquered even parts of Canaan at the time. As difficult as Biblical minimalists may find it, the Bible was entirely accurate in saying Moses and the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, not the Reed Sea--which would indeed have required divine intervention, not a naturalistic tidal explanation.

Conclusion:An Arabian Peninsula Exodus
The Exodus clearly occurred on the Arabian Peninsula, not the Sinai Peninsula for the following reasons:


 * 1) The Bible plainly states that Mount Sinai, central to the Exodus route, was also known as Mount Seir, and in Edom. Edom is in Jordan on the Arabian Peninsula. (Deuteronomy 33:2, Judges 5:4-5)
 * 2) It is now known from ancient military annals like the Military Annals of Pharaoh Thutmose III and the Moabite Stone that the Sinai Peninsula was inhabited by the Egyptians at the time of the Exodus. Indeed the Egyptians ruled all the way up to Canaan (modern-day Israel) itself, per the Amarna Letters. If the Exodus had occurred on the Sinai Peninsula then the Israelites would have never even left Egypt.
 * 3) Numerous locations along the Route of the Exodus were in or near modern-day Jordan on the Arabian Peninsula, not the Sinai Peninsula. Examples include Edrei/Daraa, Bamoth-Baal, Hebron, Rehob, and Medeba.
 * 4) There is no evidence of ancient graves for millions of Israelites in the Sinai Peninsula, where archaeologists have been futilely, incorrectly searching for the last century. There are thousands of ancient graves and landmarks in the Arabian Desert.

When Was the Exodus?

 * See also Bible Chronology

A strict, Biblically-based dating of the Exodus results in a date for the Exodus of roughly 1489 B.C. James Ussher arrived at a similar date of 1491 B.C.

Evidence for David and Solomon
Another favorite attack of atheists in recent years is the claim that David and Solomon were not historical figures, and that ancient Israel at the time was merely a collection of small villages, not the vast empire mentioned in the Bible.

David

 * 1) The credibility of critics asserting David was ahistorical was dealt a serious blow when the Mesha Stele and Tel Dan Stele were discovered, as both provide early reference to David.
 * 2) King David's Palace was discovered by Eilat Mazar using the Biblical account in 2 Samuel 5:17; archaeologically it is commonly called the Large Stone Structure. Clay bullae, royal seals for officials mentioned in the book of Jeremiah, were discovered at the site, and luxury goods were carbon dated as old as the 11th century B.C. matching the reigns of David and Solomon.
 * 3) Early evidence for Goliath can be seen from the Tell es-Safi Potsherd, and excavations at Gath show unusually massive architecture consistent with Biblical descriptions of giants.

Solomon
The Solomonic Gates at Tel Hazor, Tel Megiddo, and Tel Gezer have been excavated with dates of construction perfectly matching Solomon's reign, which I determined to be approximately from 1012-973 B.C. The construction of the Gates by Solomon is mentioned in 1 Ki. 9:15 and the association of the Gates with the Biblical account was pointed out by Yigael Yadin. Critics have attempted to cast doubt on the Gates' construction by Solomon by arguing they were constructed too early, but this is because Solomon's reign is commonly misdated too early by several decades due to scholars not taking the Biblical genealogies at face value.

Size of Israel

 * 1) The Timna Copper Mines provide evidence for a massive monarchy during the time of Solomon in contrast to the assertions of Biblical minimalists like Israel Finkelstein.
 * 2) The Merneptah Stele provides evidence Israel was sizable enough to merit military confrontation with Egypt in the 13th century B.C.
 * 3) The Mesha Stele shows Israel had a massive fighting force in the 9th century B.C. (2,000 chariots, 10,000 horsemen) inconsistent with minimalist claims.
 * 4) The Amarna Letters show the invading Habiru (Hebrews) were defeating the Canaanites en masse, as the Canaanite begged their Egyptian overlords for reinforcements.
 * 5) The Tower of Jericho at Tel es-Sultan remains standing as one of humanity's oldest stone monuments, with destroyed walls dating to 1400 B.C. perfectly matching the Biblical account.
 * 6) The Soleb Inscription provides evidence that Israel was already the land of Yahweh under the Israelites by 1400 B.C. and was acknowledged as such by other nations. Biblical minimalists have attempted to explain this away by suggesting Yahweh was a Canaanite deity and not just Israelite.

Tell Dan
The ancient city of Israel contains the world's oldest known gated archway and is known today as Tell el-Qadi. An inscription found on site reads "To the God who is in Dan, Zoilos made a vow." Identified in 1838, the best-known excavations began in 1966, continuing to the present day. The Tell Dan Stele was discovered here, along with an elaborate gate, a pottery shard with the name Zechariah on it, and a series of huge defensive ramparts. Settlement appears to have begun as early as 4500 B.C.

Large Stone Structure
The probable location of King David's palace and the nearby site known as Millo (City of David) are currently being excavated after their discovery in 2005 which seriously damaged the claims of Bible minimalist Israel Finkelstein who had claimed Israel at the time was little more than a "typical hill-country village." Archaeologist Eilat Mazar found the site through careful analysis of the Biblical account. It contains earthen pottery dating from the 12th-11th centuries B.C. and some clay bullae (seal impressions) with the names Jehuchal ben Shelemyahu [Shelemiah] and Gedalyahu [Gedaliah] ben Pashur, the names of King Zedekiah's royal ministers (597-587 B.C.) as mentioned in Jeremiah 37:3 and 38:1. The bullae are currently on display at Herbert W. Armstrong College.

"It has long been the case that those who read the Bible hold it to a much higher standard—it would not be unfair to call it a double standard—than other sources of information. For instance, when archaeologist Eilat Mazar discovered and identified what she considered to be the palace of David in Jerusalem based partially on her reading of the Bible (Mazar, 2006), Finkelstein and several colleagues disputed her findings (Finkelstein, et al., 2007). When the Khirbet Qeiyafa inscription was discovered, Finkelstein warned against the “revival in the belief that what’s written in the Bible is accurate like a newspaper” (Friedman, 2008). In other words, he argues that we cannot expect the Bible to report factual details with any great degree of certainty. For the last two hundred years scholars have mined ancient texts, including mythological texts, for details that might help with locating ancient sites. Finkelstein apparently believes that this cannot be done with the Bible."

-Dewayne Bryant, Apologetics Press

Biblical minimalists such as Israel Finkelstein and Ronny Reich have sought to downplay and disparage Mazar's discovery despite the dating of pottery, carved ivory utensils, pavement, and the nearby Stepped Stone Structure (a 60-foot tall terrace leading to the palace) to the time of David in the 12th-10th centuries B.C. The area contains massive boulders and the palace walls are 16 feet thick. The burnt clay bullae, arrowheads, and large amounts of ashes support the burning of the city by fire around 586 B.C. consistent with the Babylonian invasion mentioned in the Bible. An ancient escape tunnel and what may be Nehemiah's Wall have also been discovered at the site.

In 2013 a piece of pottery with a mysterious inscription discovered by Mazar, known as the Ophel Inscription, was deciphered, revealing it to be the earliest undisputed use of the Hebrew alphabet in Jerusalem. It is dated to around 950 B.C.

External Sources

 * List of artifacts significant to the Bible, Wikipedia
 * 6. Archaeological Finds: Seven Compelling Evidences, Answers in Genesis
 * Halley's Bible Handbook by Henry H. Halley
 * K.C. Hanson's Collection of Ancient Documents
 * Biblical Archaeology: Evidence of the Exodus from Egypt, Institute for Biblical and Scientific Studies
 * In What Ways Have the Discoveries of Archaeology Verified the Reliability of the Bible?, Associates for Biblical Research
 * Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries of the Twentieth Century Relating to the Biblical World by Keith N. Schoville
 * Bible and Archaeology - Online Museum by Mike Caba