Finding Validity in the Bible

The Bible is Not Acknowledged By Most People

The Bible is a gift from God to lead all humankind to enter life. However, countless people find it hard to believe the Bible as factual. Rather, people find it easier to believe science and history, which have already been proven true through research.  Knowing how humans determine what is true, God gave many convincing proofs that the Bible is fact through science and history. The Bible is filled with scientific facts that were written down long before mankind had the means and technology to prove them as facts. Additionally, there are many prophecies that accurately foretold future events ages before they took place.

First, let’s find records in the Bible that precede science research.

Scientific Facts in The Bible

Job 26:7 He spreads out the northern skies over empty space; He suspends the earth over nothing.

The writer, Job, is explaining that the earth is hanging in space without anything holding it up. This is a clear fact that is commonly known by all people today. However, was this an obvious fact at the time when Job recorded this? The book of Job was written during the Bronze Age, 3,500 years ago. People back then had no idea that the earth was hanging in space. Rather, many ancient civilizations such as the Sumerians, Egyptians, and Greeks postulated that the earth was held up by some massive creatures or mythological figures.

In fact, it wasn’t until the 17^th Century – about 350 years ago – that Isaac Newton published his theory of Universal Gravitation.

And “[t]he first ever picture of the earth was taken 70 years ago on October, 24th, 1946 with a camera installed on a rocket that launched from White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico” (Buczkowski).

Finally, we have substantial evidence to prove that what was written long ago in the Bible, was fact.

The book of Job accurately describes the water cycle, too.

Job 36:27-28 “He draws up the drops of water,
which distill as rain to the streams; the clouds pour down their moisture and abundant showers fall on mankind”

The verse above is explaining the evaporation, condensation and precipitation of water on the earth, which is now commonly known as the water cycle. During the time of Job, there was no one who knew this since there were no tools that could be used to research it at that time. The water cycle was not discovered nor was it ever proven true until about 350 years ago by the two French scientists, Edme Marriotte and Pierre Perrault, “[who] showed conclusively that precipitation was more than adequate to sustain the flow of rivers” (Brittanica).

This conclusion was later supported by a more rigorous quantitative analysis published by Edme Marriotte (Hubbart).  As science is developed, it did not contradict the preexisting records in the Bible. Instead, the development of science only confirmed and proved that the Bible is true because the Bible is a record of God the Creator, and it is fact.

Evidence For The Bible Through Prophecy

Another evidence that proves the Bible is fact is prophecy and its fulfillment. The prophecy of Cyrus, King of Persia, is one that addresses a political phenomenon that previously baffled historians for centuries.

In History, King Cyrus is known for conquering the powerful nation of Babylon where the Israelites were living as captives for 70 years. In 537 B.C., he set the captives free and made a very surprising proclamation which we find recorded in the Bible.

Ezra 1:1-5 “In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:
“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:
“‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. And in any locality where survivors may now be living, the people are to provide them with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’”

The nation of Persia is a pagan nation that practiced the sun-god religion called Mithraism. King Cyrus was a pagan himself yet, surprisingly, he gave praise to God Jehovah, and set all of God’s people, the Israelites, free to go build the temple for God in Jerusalem. Historians wonder why the Persian King Cyrus would do this rather than hold them as captives for free labor. Cyrus’ decision was not economically or socially beneficial for his kingdom. It appears to be an irrational decision. We can find the reason is because he found the prophecy written about himself in the Bible, which accurately foretold his name and his achievements before he was born.

Isaiah 45:1-3, 13 “This is what the Lord says to his anointed to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains…I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name[…]I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: […]He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the Lord Almighty.”

About 170 years before Cyrus conquered Babylon, God let it be recorded through the Prophet Isaiah that Cyrus would subdue nations and that he would rebuild Jerusalem and set the Israelites free. This detailed prophecy moved the heart of Cyrus that he gave glory to God and carried out the work of rebuilding the temple for God in Jerusalem. The Bible is full of amazing prophecies just like this one.

In the book of Daniel, the Bible accurately foretold that Greece would conquer Media-Persia approximately 250 years before it took place in history.

Daniel 8:5-7, 20-21 “…suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west,…it came toward the two-horned ram… and charged at it in great rage. I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. …the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it, and none could rescue the ram from its power. …The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia. The shaggy goat is the king of Greece…”

The Bible also foretold that Greece would be divided into four kingdoms after the death of the first King, Alexander the Great.

Daniel 8:21-22 “The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king. The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.”

Looking back in history, we can confirm that everything written in the Bible is fulfilled exactly. The “large horn that was broken off” shows that Alexander the Great would die at the height of his power and the “four horns that replaced the one” was fulfilled when the kingdom of Greece was divided into four kingdoms among Alexander’s four generals: Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus.

The prophecy of Daniel 8 was written during the last King of Babylon’s reign, King Belshazzar. Even before the destruction of Babylon, the Bible accurately foretold that four kingdoms would arise from Greece after Media-Persia fell to it. The prophecies of the Bible are fulfilled in precise detail because they are inspired by the living God, who leads and governs history from the spiritual dimension above time and space.

The Last Prophecy

Human beings cannot know what the future holds, not even will happen in the next minute. Nevertheless, the Bible shows us what will happen 250 years later. God’s earnestness to let all mankind come to trust the bible is contained in all these prophecies and scientific facts we can find in the Bible.

God, who exists outside the limits of space and time eagerly desires all mankind to acknowledge the truth set forth in the Bible, to follow it and, to lead us to heaven, where there is no more pain or sorrow or death but, only eternal life.

Revelation 21:1, 4 “Then I saw ‘a new heaven and a new earth,’ for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea…‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain,…”

The Bible is a precious gift given to mankind to let us confirm that God surely exists through so much scientific and historical evidence.  As humans regard science and history as indisputable facts, so we should also regard God’s words in the Bible and the Kingdom of Heaven as factual as well. When we trust the Bible, we can know God who is sparing no effort to lead us to the Kingdom of Heaven.