Archaeologists dig up part of a column from the Jewish temple Jesus once stood in. They discover a Philistine cemetery. (Goliath in 1 Samuel 17 and Delilah in Judges 16 were both Philistines.) And the search for Biblical artifacts goes on . . . and on . . . and on. As people continue looking, the names of cities mentioned in the Bible turn out to be exactly right. Unearthed architecture matches structures described in the Bible. That shouldn’t surprise us. The Bible is real history!

But our faith in Jesus isn’t based on what people dig up at ancient sites. Will people ever find the Ark of the Covenant? (Exodus 25) Will they scientifically prove Jonah was swallowed by a fish? (Jonah 1:7) They might not—but God’s words will always be true. Bible events happened thousands of years ago. Many artifacts from those times no longer exist. And people have discovered only a fraction of the artifacts that do still exist. No one discovery will “prove” the Bible. And don’t be shaken when a discovery doesn’t seem to fit with the Bible story. The Bible paints a huge picture of the history of the world. When we see a few artifacts, we’re just seeing part of the big picture.  

All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you. ― 1 Peter 1:24-25