Archaeological finds confirm the reliability of the New Testament

Summary:

Numerous archaeological discoveries in the 20th century have confirmed the veracity of certain geographical and historical elements that are described in great detail in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Here are just a few of the most remarkable examples: 

– Recent archaeological research has confirmed the historical existence of Pontius Pilate, mentioned in the Gospel (Mt 27:2), thanks to a stele discovered in 1961 in a staircase near the theater at Caesarea Maritima, bearing the inscription "Pontius Pilate, Prefect of Judea".

– In 2002, a limestone ossuary dating from the middle of the 1st century was discovered. It bears the inscription "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus" ("Ya'akov bar Yosef akhui di Yeshua") and confirms existing historical sources attesting that James, mentioned in the Gospels ofMatthew (13:55) and Mark (6:3), was martyred in the year 62. Two eminent paleographers confirmed the authenticity of this inscription in 2012. 

– Luke's Gospel tells us of a certain Lysanias of Abilene during the reign of Tiberius: "In the fifteenth year of the reign of the emperor Tiberius, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod then ruling in Galilee, his brother Philip in the land of Iturea and Traconitides, Lysanias in Abilene" (Lk 3:1). Modern archaeology has found an inscription near Damascus, dating from the time of Tiberius, with the name Lysanias, showing that Luke was telling the truth.

– Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem because a census was being organized by a Syrian governor named Quirinius: "In those days an edict went out from the emperor Augustus, ordering a census of the whole land - this first census took place when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone went to be counted, each to his own town" (Lk 2:1-3). Nineteenth-century archaeological discoveries have established that a man named Quirinius was indeed the proconsul of Syria between 11BC and Herod's death in 4BC. His name was discovered on the epitaph on the tombstone of a Roman military officer from this period, showing once again that Luke had not been mistaken.

– In his Epistle to the Romans (Rom 16:23), Paul speaks of a certain "Erastus, a city treasurer". His existence was confirmed in 1929 in a theater in Corinth, when archaeologists unearthed a rectangular paving stone bearing his name.

– We now have archaeological evidence confirming the existence of the characters mentioned in the Gospel. For example, the name of Herod the Great (Mt 2:16-18) appears on an inscription found near the ancient Temple complex in Jerusalem, on the south side. Similarly, Gallion, the proconsul mentioned in Acts 18:12, actually existed, since his name was found inscribed in limestone at Delphi. Excavations around the Temple of Apollo have brought to light this official Roman inscription, which attests that the proconsul or governor of the province of Achaia at the time was a friend of the emperor named Gallion.

– In 1968, researchers unearthed the ossuary of a crucified man named "Yehohanan, son of Hagkol", who died in the first century AD. They discovered five-inch Roman nails in the heel and wrist, as well as fragments of wood from the cross, making the crucifixion of Jesus even more historically credible.

– As far as the buildings are concerned, the great synagogue of Capharnaum cited in Luke's writings (7:1-10) was found during archaeological excavations in 1968 by Father Corbo. And it turns out that the town of Capernaum is indeed "by the Sea of Galilee", as the Gospel points out (Mt 4:12)!

– The same holds true for the Siloam Pool described in John's Gospel - "Go wash in the pool of Siloam" (Jn 9:7) - which was discovered in 2004. Another pool is that of Bethesda: "Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep [Gate] a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes" (Jn 5:2). The pool was unearthed in 1888 and does indeed have the five porticoes mentioned in the Gospel!

– The Johannine reference to the existence of a garden at the crucifixion site also fits in perfectly with modern archaeological data.

– Another recent archaeological discovery (1990) is the burial cave of the family of Caiaphas, the high priest who presided over the trial of Jesus in the Gospels (Mt 26:3, 57; Lk 3:2; Jn 11:49). Construction workers were building a water park near Jerusalem when their bulldozer broke through the roof of a first-century tomb. On arrival at the site, archaeologists discovered a variety of ossuaries (bone boxes used in the 1st century). One was ornate, bearing the inscription "Joseph, son of Caiaphas". Inside were the bones of six people, including a 60-year-old man. (Cf. Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish, Lost Treasures of the Bible, 2008, B. Eerdmans Publishing).

In conclusion, modern archaeology increasingly confirms the historical reliability of the Gospels. These details could not have been invented by people writing much later, or who did not live in the places often accurately described in the Gospels. It simply wouldn't have been possible for people who had neither the Internet nor Wikipedia!

Beyond reasons to believe:

What the late biblical archeologist Nelson Glueck wrote in 1959 remains true: “It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference” and “scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible.” (quoted in Premier Christianity Magazine website on February 21, 2017,  “9 archaeology finds that confirm the New Testament”).

Going further:

John McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 2009, Baker Publishing Group.

More information:

• Peter J. Williams, Can We Trust the Gospels?, Crossway, 2018.
• See https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/.
• Shimon Gibson, The Final Days of Jesus – The Archaeological Evidence, HarperCollins Publ., 2009.
• Video by Sean McDowell: "11 Archaeological Finds for the Gospels", 2023: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vrKCMBdyq8.