Christian Apologetics Part 5 - How can we know the Old Testament is accurate and true?

Matthew 5:16-18 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
 
Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished."

In Part 4 of this series, we answered the question, How can we know that the New Testament is accurate and true?

In this post, we will examine the same question posed about the Old Testament.  We will apply some of the same tests and add some additional support.

The Bibliographical Test

Using the same logic as with the New Testament, the first place to start in showing the accuracy of the Old Testament text is the bibliographical test.

Method of Maintaining the Text

From the fifth century B.C a succession of Jewish scholars was charged with preserving the Biblical text:

• Between the 5^th and 3^rd centuries B.C., the Sopherim (scribes) were custodians of the text.
• Between the 2^nd and 1^st centuries B.C., it was the Zugoth (“pairs” of scholars)
• Between the 1^st century B.C. and A.D. 200, the Tannaim (“repeaters” or “teacher”) were responsible.  The Talmud was compiled between A.D. 100 and A.D. 500.
• Between A.D. 100 and A.D. 500 the Talmudists had the responsibility.
• Between A.D. 500 and A.D. 950 it was maintained by the Masorets.[1]

The science of copying the texts was exact.  If any mistake was made on a page the entire page was discarded and the scribe started with a fresh page.

This figure shows the Hebrew letter Aleph.  It is the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet (or alephbet as it is sometimes called).  The rules for drawing this letter are as follows:

Figure 3

The Letter Aleph has 3 distinct parts and 10 laws concerning its form. There is an upper Yud, a lower Yud, and a body that is similar to a Vov. There should be a clear connection from the body of the Aleph to the Yuds but none of the faces of the Yuds are allowed to touch its body. The face of the upper Yud should be slightly angled upward. The very bottom end of the Vov part should be slightly turned upwards. The size of the Aleph should be 3X3 kulmusim. The word Kulmus(im) means the width of the tip of the quill.[2]

These types of stringent guidelines were placed on every single letter that was placed on a page during copying.  Aside from the letter themselves, how they were spaced on the page and other details were also mandated.

[8] An authentic copy must be the exemplar, from which the transcriber ought not in the least deviate. [9] No word or letter, not even a yod[3], must be written from memory, the scribe not having looked at the codex before him….[10] Between every consonant the space of a hair or thread must intervene; [11] between every new …section, the breadth of nine consonants; [12] between every book, three lines.[4]

Old copies were destroyed lest it become defaced or damaged in the lapse of time.  A damaged or imperfect copy was at once condemned as unfit for use.[5]

The work was not some person wanting a new copy and doing it in his living room in his spare time.  It was painstaking and sacred work and every effort was made to eliminate mistakes.

Quantity of Manuscripts

 The earliest Old Testament manuscripts date from around the third century B.C. and the total number is somewhere around 15,000.[6]  The earliest complete manuscript is the Codex Babylonicus Petropalitanus in Leningrad and dates to A.D. 1008.  This is the version on which all modern Biblical texts are based.[7]

The more manuscripts you have the more you can compare various copies to eliminate any copy which does not match the others providing additional failsafes.

Internal Evidence Test

Literary Devices

In Psalm 119, the first letters of the first eight verses begin with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Aleph.  The second eight verses begin with the second letter in the Hebrew alphabet, Beth.  This continues on throughout the entire psalm until all letters of the alphabet are used.  There are 22 letters and 176 verses.

Much of the psalms were written in poetic style and had a certain meter and rhythm.  They also made plentiful use of alliteration and other literary devices.  These literary devices were also used in other books to a lesser degree.

These literary devices helped to ensure proper copying since a mistake would break the device.

The Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in a cave in an area known as Qumran on the shores of the Dead Sea.  Some 40,000 fragments were found which, when pieced together, constructed more than 500 books.  Among those was a complete copy of the book of Isaiah.  This discovery was of extreme importance in that it was written around 125 B.C. just over 1000 years earlier than any other copy in existence.

Of the 166 words in Isaiah 53, there are only seventeen letters in question.  Ten of these letters are simply a matter of spelling, which does not affect the sense.  Four more letters are minor stylistic changes, such as conjunctions.  The remaining three letters comprise the word “light,” which is added in verse 11, and does not affect the meaning greatly.  Furthermore, this word is supported by the LXX (Septuagent) and IQ Is (one of the Isaiah scrolls found in the Dead Sea caves).  Thus in one chapter of 166 words, there is only one word (three letters) in question after a thousand years of transmission – and this word does not significantly change the meaning of the passage.[8]

This proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that it is possible to keep accurate copies of books over many generations of copying with no appreciable deviation in the text.

Also in the Qumran caves was found 223 other fragments from various other books of the Old Testament.

Duplicate Passages

Many passages in the Old Testament are exact copies of other passages (i.e. Psalm 14 and 53).  Many of these books were written thousands of years apart and the agreement between them is also a testament to their accuracy in transmission.[9]

External Evidence Test

Archeological Evidence
As was stated in the last post, archeological evidence cannot prove that a text is true, but it can certainly prove a text is not true.  If archeological evidence contradicts the text (as it does with the Book of Mormon) then that calls the entire text into question.  If no archeological evidence contradicts the text which was written over thousands of years by many different authors who didn't know each other, then that lends credence to the text.


The following archaeological finds all support the Biblical historical account.

Sodom and Gomorrah
              Jebel Usdum aka Mount Sodom

Jericho
             The walls fell out and not in

Saul, David and Solomon

            Saul’s fortress at Gibeah

            Pool of Siloam

            Dome of the Rock (Solomon’s Temple)

           

In every period of Old Testament history, we find that there is good evidence from archaeology that the Scriptures speak the truth.  In many instances, the Scriptures even reflect firsthand knowledge of the times and customs it describes.  While many have doubted the accuracy of the Bible, time and continued research have consistently demonstrated that the Word of God is better informed than its critics.

In fact, while thousands of finds from the ancient world support in broad outline and often in detail the Biblical picture, not one incontrovertible find has ever contradicted the Bible.[10]

As per Archeologist Nelson Glueck: “It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.  Scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible.”[11]

The bottom line is:  The Bible is a human document.  It was written by humans (as they were inspired by the Holy Spirit) in a human way that would be meaningful to humans.  Much of it was written at a time when such documents would last only a finite amount of time and as such we have a few issues of differences of manuscripts which have no significant effect on the content nor doctrines of the scriptures.

We also have the occasional copyist error which again has no material effect on the content nor doctrines of the scriptures.

Based on this information the Christian should understand the nature and history of the Old Testament  and be assured that the doctrines set out by the Holy Bible in its current form is accurate and true to such a degree that, in the New Testament, Jesus and His Apostles quoted from it extensively and explicitly proclaim its authenticity and truth.[12]

If we have provided ample evidence in the previous post to show that the New Testament can be trusted, then we can also use the New Testament in support of the Old Testament.

Some would claim this is circular logic and that may be so depending on how it is used, but the New Testament and Old Testament books are separate works separated by 500 years (more for the older Old Testament books) and there are many who believe that the New Testament is true but the Old Testament is outdated and is no longer valid.

In fact, Christ quotes or references Old Testament scripture at least 21 times as recorded by Matthew alone: Matt 4:4,7,10 (temptation); Matt 9:13; Matt 10:35-36; Matt 11:10; Matt 12:3-5; Matt 12:38-41; Matt 13:13,14-15; Matt 15:7-9; Matt 19:17; Matt 21:13,16; Matt 21:42; Matt 22:31-32; Matt 22:44; Matt 14:29; Matt 26:31; Matt 26:54; and Matt 27:46.

In Matthew 5:18, Christ Himself says, "I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." (NIV)

 In addition, 2 Timothy 3:16,17 says that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

So, for those who believe in the truth of the New Testament, the New Testament precludes the notion that the Old Testament is no longer valid.

How can we know the Old Testament is true?

As with the New Testament, belief in the truth of the Bible comes through faith to those who are called by God and accept His free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Our objective is not to prove that the text is true, that is a feat which may be impossible absent divine intervention and is left to the work of the Holy Spirit in a person's life.  Our objective is to show that the text is not false.

If the text is shown to be accurately transmitted down through the ages, and if the text which is falsifiable cannot be falsified, then there is no obstacle to belief that the scriptures are true.

One of the key principles we have discussed in the Internal Evidence Test is, "Does the text contradict itself?"  If it does, then it cannot be trusted.

Rather than answer that problem twice (once for the New Testament and one for the Old Testament) I will devote an entire posting to that subject and that is coming up next week.

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[1] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Thomas Nelson Publishers.  Pp73-74.

[2] http://www.geocities.com/Athens/9587/alephbet.html

[3] The smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

[4] [4] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Thomas Nelson Publishers.  P74

[5] Our Bible and the Ancient Manuscripts, Frederic Kenyon, as quoted in The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Nelson Publishers, P 75.

[6] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Nelson Publishers, Pp71-73.

[7] In the Beginning: A Short History of the Hebrew Language, Joel M. Hoffman, NYU Press, Page 121.

[8] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Nelson Publishers, Pp79.

[9] For other duplicates see Isaiah 36-39 compared to 2 Kings 18-20; Isaiah 2:24 compared to Micah 4:1-3; Jeremiah 52 compared to 2 Kings 25; as well as large portions of Chronicles reproduced in 1&2 Samuel and 1&2 Kings.

[10] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Nelson Publishers, p98

[11] The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, McDowell, Nelson Publishers, p89.

[12] 2 Ti 3:14-17