In a women’s Bible study, I wanted to know more than what we were discussing about Sarah and Abraham and the time they lived, so I began to research. What I found out from HALLEY’S BIBLE HANDBOOK was some facts I’d never heard in the 50-plus years of being a Christian.

In the Christian movies I’ve seen, I never saw early Bible stories showing that there were schools and libraries. Usually built structures were small homes, kings’ palaces, temples, and marketplaces. But according to archeological excavations in the last 200 years or so, in the area of the Euphrates Valley, they have uncovered, deep in the sands, schools with thousands of books, dictionaries, reference works, encyclopedias, official historical records, works on math, astronomy, geography, religions, and politics.

A school in Ur was uncovered with 150 school exercise tablets with math, medical, historical texts, and even a large tablet with columns showing a conjugation of a Sumerian verb. Many of the were chiseled on stone or written on baked clay tablets, parchment paper, and leather.

Some are believed to have been buried by Noah before the Flood. It is believed the Flood occurred about 2,000 years after Creation. By the way, estimated years from Adam to Abraham appear to be 2,083. Abraham is believed to have lived 2,000 years before Christ (Halley, p.32).

The oldest document yet was unearthed in 1923. It’s called Annypadda’s Foundation.

Annypadda was a king of Ur who had chiseled this 3x4-inch marble slab for his lady, with the inscription, ‘Annapadda, king of Ur, son of Messanipadda, has built this for his lady Nin-Kharag.’ It is stored in a British museum. It is said to mark the dividing line between ‘historic’ and ‘prehistoric’ periods.

But, one of the most important archaeological discoveries ever made was called the Hammurabi’s Code which was engraved on all four sides of an 8 foot high, 2 feet wide and 1 ½ inches thick black diorite stone. The cuneiform writing in Semitic Babylonian language, has about 4,000 lines—equal to the subject matter of an average Bible. It’s now stored in the Louvre in Paris.

The writing represents Hammurabi as receiving laws dealing with the worship of Gods, administration of justice, taxes, wages, interest, moneylending, property, disputes, marriage, partnership, public works, canal building, care of canals, regulations regarding passenger and freight service by canal and caravan, international commerce, and many other subjects. This was done in Abraham’s day where this information is proof that literary skill had reached a remarkably advanced stage.

Curious readers may research online The Rosetta Stone and Hatshepsut’s Obelisk for more similar history of findings from the earliest times.

People used to believe the Bible stories were legends told from generation to generation, possibly changing from storytellers through the years. But now, the proof has been found of writings from Ur, Kish, and Fara, dating back before Noah’s time. And with Moses being raised in a king’s palace, it is now believed he was taught by reading ancient documents, and because it is believed he later wrote the Pentateuch (the first 5 books in the Bible); if not by those documents, it surely would be by divine revelation.

The writings from all the excavations match up with events written from the oldest part of the Bible, the Old Testament. I read that these archeological digs are continuing to this day.

After the time of Christ, early Christians began traveling the known world, preaching the life of Christ, to believe in Him, and be like Him in order to receive salvation and to live a more meaningful life.

After seeing this column, I hope readers will begin to be more curious to do online research about the book that is being used by most churches all over the world. The more it’s proving to be true, the more many people are threatened who want to do their own thing. That’s why around the world, the book is continuing to be banned. They recognize there is Power in this precious Book!

Abraham Lincoln said it best that he believed the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man, and that all the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book.

George Washington wrote that it is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.

Patrick Henry wrote that the Bible is worth all other books which have ever been printed.

Napoleon wrote that the Bible is no mere book, but a Living Creature, with a power that conquers all that oppose it.

And the last: Henry Van Dyke wrote that the Bible was born in the East and clothed in Oriental form and walks the ways of all the world with familiar feet and enters land after land to find its own everywhere.

Have a blessed day by blessing someone!

X