Can You Trust the Bible?

IF YOU picked up a Bible, would you expect to find a coin? What about this ancient silver coin?

Many think of the Bible as an old book offering quaint stories and admirable morals. Yet, they do not believe that Bible accounts are accurate history, so they deny that it is the Word of God. There is, though, ample evidence of the Bible’s accuracy. This coin (enlarged view) is a good example. What does the writing say?

The coin was made in Tarsus, a city in the southeastern part of what is now Turkey. The coin was produced during the rule of the Persian governor Mazaeus in the fourth century B.C.E. It identifies him as governor of the province “Beyond the River,” that is, the Euphrates River.

But why is that phrase interesting? Because you will find the same designation in your Bible. Ezra 5:6–6:13 sets out correspondence between the Persian king Darius and a governor named Tattenai. At issue was the Jews’ rebuilding of their temple in Jerusalem. Ezra was a skilled copyist of God’s Law, and you would expect him to be precise, accurate in what he wrote. You will see at Ezra 5:6 and 6:13 that he termed Tattenai “the governor beyond the River.”

Ezra penned that about 460 B.C.E., some 100 years before this coin was minted. Oh, some people might feel that the designation for an ancient official is a minor detail. But if you can rely on the Bible writers in even such small details, should that not increase your confidence in what else they wrote?

In the first two articles in this issue, you will find additional reasons for such confidence.

[Picture Credit Line on page 32]

Collection of Israel Dept. of Antiquities Exhibited & photographed Israel Museum