Proof Archives - Page 4 of 13 - Bible Authenticity

Did Jesus Die Before Or After The Temple Curtain Was Torn?

March 19, 2025 BibleAuthenticity Comments 1 comment

Some skeptics and critics have claimed there is a contradiction in the gospels about whether Jesus died before or after the Temple curtain was torn in two. The article will examine the question, “Did Jesus Die before or after the curtain was torn?”

Here is claimed the “contradiction”.

Did Jesus die before the curtain of the temple was torn?
(a) Yes (Matthew 27: 50-5 1;Mark 15:37-38)
(b) No. After the curtain was torn, then Jesus crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into thy hands I
commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last (Luke 23:45-46)

When we actually carefully read the scriptures that are alleged to contradict, we see there is no contradiction after all.

“When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom”—Matthew 27:50,51 NIV

“The curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’ When he had said this, he breathed his last”—Luke 23:45,46 NIV

“With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn from top to bottom”—Mark 15:37,38 NIV read more

Was Baby Jesus’ Life Threatened In Jerusalem – Contradiction?

March 18, 2025 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Was baby Jesus’ life threatened in Jerusalem?
(a) Yes, so Joseph fled with him to Egypt and stayed there until Herod died (Matthew 2:13 23)
(b) No. The family fled nowhere. They calmly presented the child at the Jerusalem temple according to
the Jewish customs and returned to Galilee ( Luke 2:21-40)

The above is a claimed contradiction in the Bible accounts of Matthew and Luke. However, by combining the gospel accounts, we get a better picture of the events in Jesus’ life.

“Eight days later when the baby was circumcised , he was named Jesus . . . Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord”—Luke 2:21,22 NLT
In Luke’s account, Jesus’ parents took him to the Temple to be presented to God after he was circumcised on the 8th day after his birth. read more

Is The Law of Moses Useful Today? – Bible Contradiction?

March 17, 2025 BibleAuthenticity Comments 3 comments

Skeptics and critics have claimed that the Bible contradicts itself regarding the Law of Moses is useful for Christians today. Here is the alleged “contradiction”:

Is the Law of Moses useful?
(a) Yes. “All scripture is… profitable…” (2 Timothy 3:16)
(b) No. “ . . . A former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness… “(Hebrews
7:18)

This is a case of the scriptures being taken out of context.

The Old Mosaic Law Covenant was”set aside”, because it was “canceled” (Ephesians 2:14 NLT) since it could not permanently remove sin. “The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, but not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they never were able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship” (Hebrews 10:1 NLT). read more

Judas’ Death and The Field of Blood

March 17, 2025 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Skeptics and critics often assert that the Bible contradicts itself about the details of Judas’ death and the “Field 0f Blood” (Matthew 27:8; Acts 1:19). Let’s first get some background information from the scriptures.

The field, known as the “Field of Blood”, or Akeldama, is traditionally located in the Hinnom Valley near Jerusalem. This purchase is indirectly attributed to Judas, as the chief priests used the returned silver to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners (Matthew 27:6-8). This act fulfills the prophecy found in Zechariah 11:12-13, which speaks of the thirty pieces of silver and the potter’s field. read more

Who Heard Jesus’ Voice On The Damascus Road?

March 17, 2025 BibleAuthenticity Comments 3 comments

Skeptics and critics frequently claim that the Bible is full of contradictions. One of them is about who heard Jesus’ voice on the Damascus road. Here it is:

When Paul was on the road to Damascus he saw a light and heard a voice, did those who were with him hear the voice?
(a) Yes (Acts 9: 7)
(b) No (Acts 22: 9)

Many Bible translations do not precisely translate the Greek, which makes it appear that there really is a contradiction as to who heard Jesus’ voice. However, this supposed “contradiction” is easily cleared up when we look at an accurate translation of the verses under examination. read more

Seventy Weeks Prophecy of Daniel — Jesus and History

September 9, 2024 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Daniel, through divine inspiration, accurately dated the coming of Christ 550 years in advance with the prophecy of the “Seventy Weeks”.

Critics and skeptics of the Bible claim that Daniel’s prophecy of the seventy weeks (Daniel 9:24-27) was written during the 160’s BCE, rather than the Biblically historically accurate date of “the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede” (Daniel 9:1 NLT) [539-538 BCE], and assert that the prophecy does not predict anything about the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The oldest extant manuscript of anything in Daniel 9:24-27 is the Dead Sea Scrolls manuscript 11Q13, dated to circa 100 BCE, which partially quotes Daniel 9:25, “until an anointed one, a prince”. This fact alone that that manuscript predates Jesus’ baptism by about 125 years, is powerful evidence of its prophetic accuracy. (For more facts and information about dating the entire book of Daniel, please see the article, “When Was the Book of Daniel Written?”, on this website). In the meantime, however, this present article investigates the Biblical and historical facts relating to the prophecy of the seventy weeks in Daniel 9:24-27, and its fulfillment. read more

When, and By Whom, Was the Gospel of John Written?

August 9, 2024 BibleAuthenticity Comments 11 comments

John and the Synoptic Gospels (Differences)

Today, critics often assert that the Gospel of John was written in the 100’s CE, not by the apostle John, but by someone, or even multiple writers, who weren’t even born until long after Jesus’ death. These critics, of course, deny the inspiration by God’s holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16), “as they do also the rest of the scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16 NKJV). Although the Gospel of John was written anonymously, it is important for us to know when, and by whom, was the gospel of John written, if possible. Every extant manuscript that includes the beginning of the book names John as the writer. Was this “John” someone other than the apostle John? This article investigates and analyzes the facts.

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN WAS WRITTEN AFTER THE OTHER GOSPELS

The writer of John apparently had the other three Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, before him as he wrote, and he tried to fill in some of the gaps, because about 92% of the book of John contains unique material. Clement of Alexandria, who lived in the late 100’s to early 200’s, reported that John wrote to supplement the accounts found in the other Gospels. “Last of all, John, perceiving that the external facts had been made plain [in the other canonical gospels] . . . composed a spiritual gospel” (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 6.14.7). This, of course, means that the Gospel of John was written after Matthew, Mark, and Luke. read more

Who Wrote the Book of Zechariah, and When?

June 11, 2024 BibleAuthenticity Comments 6 comments

Who wrote the book of Zechariah? And When was it written? Before the sixteenth century, the writership of the book of Zechariah was unanimously believed to have been written by “the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo,” beginning “in the eighth month, in the second year of Darius” king of Persia, in 520 BCE (Zechariah 1:1 ESV).

Theories of Different Writers

So, who wrote the book of Zechariah? And when was it written? Let’s look at some of the viewpoints about this. read more

Gallio Inscription & the Bema Confirm Historical Accuracy of Acts

May 11, 2024 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Is the Bible reliable? — The historical accuracy of Acts has been confirmed

The historical accuracy of Acts has been questioned, and asserted to be inaccurate. Many discoveries have confirmed the historical accuracy of Acts, two of which are the Gallio Inscription and the Bema in ancient Corinth.

“Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God. While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews of Corinth made a united attack on Paul and brought him to the place of judgment”—Acts 18:11,12 NIV

The Gallio Inscription, consists of nine fragments found near the Temple of Apollo in Delphi, Greece, in 1908, mentions “Lucius Junius Gallio, my friend, and the proconsul of Achaia.” It is a copy of a letter from Roman Emperor Claudius and indicates that Gallio was the proconsul of Achaia at the time. The inscription further states that Claudius was confirmed Emperor for the 26th time, which dates it to late April/early May of the year 52 CE. read more

Did an Eclipse Cause Three Hour Darkness at Jesus’ Execution?

April 6, 2024 BibleAuthenticity Comments 1 comment

Did a Total Eclipse cause the three hour darkness at Jesus’ execution?

There was a mysterious three hour darkness during the time when Jesus was being executed. What caused this three hour darkness?

“It was now about noon and darkness came over the land until three in the afternoon because of an eclipse of the sun”—Luke 23:44,45 NAB

The way the New American Bible (NAB) renders it,as above, one would think that the cause of the three hour midday total darkness was “an eclipse of the sun.” If the possibility of the supernatural is excluded, an eclipse would naturally be the only possibility. Could this have been an actual eclipse? Let’s examine the gospels very carefully regarding this d event: read more