The Bible as History (1956)

A great little book offering many archaeological proofs that the bible is actual true history. ( )

Originally in German; standard mid-20th c. text on biblical investigation from archeology and science viewpoints

Werner Keller, a German journalist, shares his fascination with the links between archaeology and the Biblical record. This work, translated and published in English in 1956, is a classic in the effort to popularize the connection. Beginning with stories found in Genesis, he garners the evidence for the Flood, and Abraham’s journeys. He moves on to the period in Egypt from Joseph to Moses and the exodus. Following Biblical chronology, he traces the period from Joshua to Saul and David to Solomon and finds exciting support for Biblical narratives in the excavations of Albright, Glueck, and Kenyon, as well as a number of German and French archaeologists. The evidence offers proof that the accounts in the Bible cannot be dismissed as “mere pious tales.”
In a later chapter we read of the remarkable overlap of Biblical texts in Kings with cuneiform documents of the Assyrians. The Babylonian captivity receives close attention and Werner fleshes out Biblical references and the life of the times based on excavations carried out in the 1930’s and museum collections in Berlin. Werner bridges to the New Testament using the work of Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian and other contemporary Greek historians, with final references from Maccabees.
The New Testament section of the book deals with questions surrounding the dates and circumstances of Jesus’ birth, the appearance of the Star, and touches briefly on his sojourns near Nazareth and Capernaum. Werner asserts “archaeology cannot produce extensive evidence from the world of the New Testament”. He ends the book with a chapter on the discovery of the Dead Sea scrolls and their importance in validating the accuracy of the translations of Old Testament scriptures. RMB,CSBS

BFYAA

For an interesting look into the history of the bible as proven by archaeology this book should be on your short list. The majority of the book deals with the Old Testament, but there is a decent sized section on the New Testament. Some of the finds really make the words of the bible much more understandable. I recommend it to everybody who asks me about history and the bible, and desire a good introduction to the subject. ( )