Critics claim the Bible is largely a work of fiction. However, archaeological discoveries of Baalis, king of Ammon help to prove the Bible’s authenticity.
“Now Johanan, son of Kareah, and all the military leaders in the field came to Gedaliah in Mizpah and said to him, ‘Surely you are aware that Baalis, the Ammonite king has sent Ishmail, son of Nethaniah, to assassinate you?’ But Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, would not believe them”—Jeremiah 40:14 NAB
Even in minor details, the Bible proves true, when examined in the light of external evidence. “Baalis, the Ammonite king” is mentioned only once in the Bible (Jeremiah 40:14), and that in a very incidental way. A seal and a seal impression with the name of Baalis have been discovered.read more
Macro-Evolution Theory Upset by ‘Revived 46,000 Year Old Worm’
Macro-evolution theory is the gradual change from one species to another over that is asserted to take place long periods of time. But why does the the theory of Macro-evolution constantly get revised? Scientists report they have revived an ancient worm, and have discovered that, “some processes of evolution are deeply conserved,” as reported in a CNN ARTICLE, of July 28,2023. Here is the article:
“Scientists have revived a worm that was frozen 46,000 years ago — at a time when woolly mammoths, sabre-toothed tigers and giant elks still roamed the Earth.
The roundworm, of a previously unknown species, survived 40 meters (131.2 feet) below the surface in the Siberian permafrost in a dormant state known as cryptobiosis, according to Teymuras Kurzchalia, professor emeritus at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden and one of the scientists involved in the research.
Scientists have revived a ‘zombie’ virus that spent 48,500 years frozen in permafrost Organisms in a cryptobiotic state can endure the complete absence of water or oxygen and withstand high temperatures, as well as freezing or extremely salty conditions. They remain in a state “between death and life,” in which their metabolic rates decrease to an undetectable level, Kurzchalia explained.
“One can halt life and then start it from the beginning. This a major finding,” he said, adding that other organisms previously revived from this state had survived for decades rather than millennia.
Five years ago, scientists from the Institute of Physicochemical and Biological Problems in Soil Science in Russia found two roundworm species in the Siberian permafrost.
One of the researchers, Anastasia Shatilovich, revived two of the worms at the institute by simply rehydrating them with water, before taking around 100 worms to labs in Germany for further analysis, transporting them in her pocket.
After thawing the worms, the scientists used radiocarbon analysis of the plant material in the sample to establish that the deposits had not been thawed since between 45,839 and 47,769 years ago.
But still, they didn’t know whether the worm was a known species. Eventually, genetic analysis conducted by scientists in Dresden and Cologne showed that these worms belonged to a novel species, which researchers named Panagrolaimus kolymaenis.
Researchers also found that the P. kolymaenis shared with C. elegans — another organism often used in scientific studies — “a molecular toolkit” that could allow it to survive cryptobiosis. Both organisms produce a sugar called trehalose, possibly enabling them to endure freezing and dehydration.
Belching lakes, mystery craters, ‘zombie fires’: How the climate crisis is transforming the Arctic permafrost “To see that the same biochemical pathway is used in a species which is 200, 300 million years away, that’s really striking,” said Philipp Schiffer, research group leader of the Institute of Zoology at the University of Cologne and one of the scientists involved in the study. “It means that some processes in evolution are deeply conserved.”
And, Schiffer added, there are other actionable insights which can be gleaned by studying these organisms.
“By looking at and analyzing these animals, we can maybe inform conservation biology, or maybe even develop efforts to protect other species, or at least learn what to do to protect them in these extreme conditions that we have now,” he told CNN.” read more
What is the significance of the Cyrus Cylinder as it relates to the Bible, and prophecies recorded in the Bible?
“Yahweh says this: When the seventy years granted to Babylon are over, I shall intervene on your behalf and =&0=&
God had had his prophet Jeremiah, in chapters 25 and 29, to foretell that the Jews would be released from Babylonian captivity after 70 years, and be allowed to return to their homeland. Yahweh’s prophet Isaiah foretold 200 years in advance that God would use Cyrus to release the Jews from Babylonian captivity and enable them to rebuild Jerusalem and their Temple:
“Thus says Yahweh, your redeemer . . . to Cyrus, ‘My shepherd. He will perform my entire will by saying to Jerusalem, “You will be rebuilt,” and to the Temple, “You will be refunded.” Thus says Yahweh to his anointed one, to Cyrus whom, he says, I have grasped by his right hand, to make nations fall before him and to disarm kings, to open gateways before him so that their gates be closed no more . . . I shall smash the iron bars . . . Though you do not know me, I have armed you'”—Isaiah 44:24,28; 45:1-5 NJBread more