Connelly - Amazing Discoveries That Unlock the Bible: A Visual Experience

OTHER TITLES AVAILABLE IN THIS SERIES

Incredible Mysteries of the Bible
Stephen M. Miller
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25594-9
ISBN-10: 0-310-25594-5

How We Got the Bible
Clinton E. Arnold
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25306-8
ISBN-10: 0-310-25306-3

ZONDERVAN

AMAZING DISCOVERIES THAT UNLOCK THE BIBLE
Copyright 2008 by Douglas Connelly

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Zondervan.

ePub Edition August 2009 ISBN: 978-0-310-86567-4

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Connelly, Douglas, 1949
Amazing discoveries that unlock the Bible : a visual experience / Douglas Connelly.
p. cm. (Zondervan visual reference series)
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25799-8
1. BibleAntiquities 2. Middle EastAntiquities 3. Middle EastCivilization. 4. EuropeAntiquites. 5. EuropeCivilization. I. Title.
BS621.C625 2007
220.93 dc22

2007000424

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New International Version . NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

THE PLACE overlooking the Sea of Galilee where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 7).

The events of the Bible took place in history in real places with real people. But the nations, armies, and rulers of the Bible along with the musicians, carpenters, and school teachers passed off the scene long ago. What was their world like?

Archaeology helps us reconstruct the biblical world. The study of ancient things (which is what the word archaeology means) involves knowledge of history, geography, language, money, warfare, biology, ceramics, and even medicine. Scholars may sift carefully through the ruins of a city or a burial site or even a garbage dump. They use highly sophisticated methods of excavation, soil analysis, carbon dating, and photography. Its a very detailed, difficult job! But once in a while, the diggers and discoverers come upon an object or building or piece of writing so startling, so amazing that it makes all the hard work seem like nothing.

In this book, we will look at some of the most amazing discoveries about the Bible ever made and we will see how those discoveries unlock Gods Word. Its a journey you wont forget!

BUST OF AUGUSTUS CAESAR , ruler of the Roman Empire when Jesus was born.

GOLDEN BOWL from the Canaanite city of Ugarit.

A snapshot in stone of the Persian king, Xerxes, the royal husband of Esther. Xerxes ruled a a vast empire that stretched from India to Ethiopia.

A SCROLL of the Psalms found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.

An image of the Caananite god, Baal.

Inscriptions on ancient memorial stones and long forgotten coins will never prove or disprove the Bible. Even if every historical fact was proven beyond question, the heart of the Bibles message must be accepted by faith. The discoveries of archaeology help us in other ways.

Archaeological discoveries demonstrate the accuracy of the biblical writers. As new documents are found or as new artifacts are uncovered, the reliability of the biblical record is confirmed over and over.

Evidence from the ancient world helps us better understand the cultural and historical context of the Bible. We learn how people lived and worked and thought. We can enter into their world and understand Gods message more clearly.

Archaeology helps us unravel some of the riddles of the Bible. Political or historical questions are often resolved by examining related documents or surprising discoveries from the biblical world.

The people of the Bible come alive in our thinking. When we see the ankle of a crucified man or the prison where Paul was in chains or an object from Herods magnificent temple, the biblical accounts take on new life.

Archaeology affirms our confidence in the Bibles truthfulness but, in the end, we trust in the living God as the source of truth, not in some relic from the past.

THE SEAL READS , Belonging to Jehoahaz, son of the king, and pictures a fighting rooster. Scholars arent sure who Jehoahaz was probably a lesser son of one of Israels kings.

A carved ivory box found at Megiddo.

Carefully sifting through the dirt, destruction, and debris of an ancient siterequires patience and tedious labor. Every significant artifact is photographed, catalogued, and meticulously preserved for further study.