Historicity: the quality of being a real and important part of history and not a myth or legend (Cambridge Dictionary)
Recently, I wrote a post about Homeschool Curriculum and the Sovereignty of God. I specifically pointed out two prominent homeschool curriculum writers who warn their followers to be wary of history curriculum that includes providential history, and who do not teach the Bible as ancient history. And as promised, I’m sharing some more details in a series of posts: The Historicity of the Bible, The Story of God in World History, and America’s Providential History.
Friends, every good historian knows that the people and places documented in the Old and New Testaments have also been documented and verified by archaeological discoveries for over 100 years. When a historian ignores these discoveries (or outright denies them), it’s often because of their religious bias.
But I cannot pretend to understand why a Christian would ignore or deny them. Yet, that is happening more often than you know, and sadly, it’s happening among homeschool curriculum writers.
“…no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a single biblical reference. Scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible.” (Nelson Glueck, Rivers in the Desert, (New York: Farrar, Strous, and Cudahy, 1959, 136)
“To begin, we should understand the nature of the Bible. The Bible is not one book, but a compilation of writings that was assembled by the people of God in centuries past. The Bible…
- is a collection of ancient manuscripts.
- was written over in a period over ~1,500 years.
- was written in three different languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek).
- was written on three different continents (Africa, Asia, and Europe).
- was written by over 40 different authors.
- covers hundreds of subjects.” (https://truthstory.org/blog/why-you-can-believe-the-bible/)
It is a collection of historical documents, poetry, and theology. But many people, including too many Christians, believe that the stories in the Bible are myths and legends. If you’ve never learned about the historicity of the Bible, I have just a small sampling of facts for you.
The Bible is World History
When teaching my children history, I like to show them how people and events in the Bible happened at the same time (and often in the same regions) as well-known historic events. Take the Battle of Thermopylae. It happened just before the beloved story of Esther in the Old Testament. Ancient texts and archaeological finds agree with the biblical text to place a small biblical story within a much larger world history event.
One moving example of this is “Hezekiah’s Tunnel, part of Jerusalem’s water system, located under the City of David. It connects the Gihon Spring—Jerusalem’s fresh water supply—with the Siloam Pool. According to 2 Chronicles 32:2–4 and 2 Kings 20:20, this tunnel was dug during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah to prepare Jerusalem for the imminent attack of the Assyrian king, Sennacherib. In the Bible, Hezekiah redirected the water through old and newly dug Jerusalem tunnels.” (BiblicalArchaeology.org) The history of King Sennacherib and Hezekiah is also documented on the Taylor Prism of Sennacherib.
“The prism is a foundation record, intended to preserve King Sennacherib’s achievements for posterity and the gods. The record of his account of his third campaign (701 BCE) is particularly interesting to scholars. It involved the destruction of forty-six cities of the state of Judah and the deportation of 200,150 people. Hezekiah, king of Judah, is said to have sent tribute to Sennacherib.” (WorldHistory.org)
You can visit Hezekiah’s tunnel today.
These are just two examples from hundreds. Archaeology has produced hundreds of fascinating discoveries that verify biblical people, places, and events. There are several organizations devoted to documenting and publicizing these finds. A few quick articles to start with include:
- 50 People in the Bible Confirmed Archaeologically
- Josephus’ Writings and Their Relation to the New Testament and Who Was Josephus
- Archaeology and the Old Testament
- Is the Bible Syncretistic Literature? Understanding Historical Parallels
Each of these links will lead you to many, many more articles to read. Archaeology is a fascinating world, and the discoveries that confirm biblical history make it even more so to Christians!
“It must be kept in mind that the biblical writers were not writing history for history’s sake, but wrote with the purpose of glorifying God and demonstrating God’s kingdom agenda carried out through historical circumstances that involved His people and those they came in contact with.” (BiblicalArcaheology.org)
Resources for your family
(This post includes affiliate links)
The historicity of the Bible is an important part of apologetics and worldview. I highly recommend integrating this into your world history curriculum, which is the entire point of this post. Our post-modern society is packed with modern atheists and agnostics who are eager to attack the reliability of the scriptures. It is our job to equip our children with the truth. If your homeschool curriculum pretends neutrality, find a new one. There is no such thing. Genuine world history includes the ancient stories in the Old and New Testaments.
Our family uses Mystery of History, which beautifully includes the history of the Bible with the history of the world. I have shared our lesson plans that integrate archaeology and apologetics when applicable. A couple of other great options are Veritas Press and Tapestry of Grace.
Our family has watched and enjoyed this older video by Voddie Baucham entitled “Why You Can Believe the Bible.” If you’re new to seeing the Bible as a trustworthy historic document, this is a great place to start.
Answers in Genesis has a series of articles under the heading of Bible History. As I said, this is an apologetics issue, and Answers in Genesis is dedicated to equipping Christians for solid apologetics.
In that same vein, Dr. Jason Lisle of Biblical Science Institute addresses this issue in his article on the historicity of the Bible. Check out all of his posts unde the tag “Refuting the Critics.”
Two more resources (that you can purchase on Amazon) are The ESV Archaeology Study Bible and The Popular Handbook of Archaeology and the Bible: Discoveries that Confirm the Reliability of Scripture.
If you want a ready-made curriculum, How We Got the Bible is perfect for the whole family. Get it at ChristianBook.com.
How We Got The Bible – DVD Curriculum
By Timothy Jones / Rose Publishing
Have you ever wondered who wrote the books in your Bible and how they ended up together? Has anyone ever told you that some books were cut out of the Bible or that the stories of Jesus in the Gospels can’t be trusted? Through these six sessions, Dr. Timothy Paul Jones will answer your questions about how we got the Bible. Kit Components:
- DVD with six 25-35 minute sessions
- Leader Guide (printed and digital copy)
- Participant Guide (printed) with session outlines, discussion and application questions, key terms and definitions, and extra information about important topics.
- Reference handbook, How We Got the Bible
- Fold-out time line of the history of the Bible
- Ready-to-use PowerPoint ® with 100+ slides
- CD-ROM with printable PDFs of promotional posters, banners, fliers, handouts and bulletin inserts
Rose Publishing Product Code: 4064X
For parents and teens, consider the Dallas Theological Seminary’s course, “Can You Trust the Bible?” It’s a free, 8-lesson course online.
Education is not neutral
Providential history is the Biblical worldview. Don’t be deceived by negative claims against providential history. God’s hand is clearly seen throughout history–in the lives of individuals and nations. It’s documented in the Bible and other primary sources written over the course of history.
“My counsel to Christian homeschooling parents is to stay away from “secular-humanist-washed” history curriculum. God’s hand is clearly seen throughout history.” (Heather Hall)
Remember, education is discipleship and it’s not neutral. One worldview or another is taught. Christian parents, think carefully about the worldview you teach your children. (Source: Biblical Classical Homeschoolers)
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