The Historical Records

No original for any ancient writing has been found. Hand-written copies made in the centuries prior to the printing press are our only source of written knowledge about ancient people, places and events. How can we know that these copies have integrity?

1. NUMEROUS COPIES assure greater integrity
    The number of hand-copied manuscripts of other ancient literature ranges from 1 to 643. Archaeologists have found over 24,600 New Testament manuscripts!

2. EARLY COPIES assure greater integrity
     Among ancient literature, only the Gospels have manuscript copies from the author's generation. The John Rylands fragment of the Gospel of John (A.D. 120) and quotes of all four Gospels in late first-century literature prove they were written before A.D. 95. Fragments of Matthew, Mark and Luke are dated before A.D. 70, proving they were authored within years of Jesus Himself (crucified about A.D. 30).

3. ACCURATE COPIES assure greater integrity
Distortion rates due to copying errors are 5%, 10% and more in other ancient literature. The New Testament has only 1/5 of 1% (0.2%) distortion.

But did the Gospel authors record the facts-are they historically reliable?

1. EVIDENCE of ARCHAEOLOGY assures historical reliability
      People: Caiaphas, Pontius Pilate, and Tiberius Caesar
     "Those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas…" (Matthew 26:57) "Pilate then took Jesus…" (John 19:1).
      In 1990, a sculptured, first century bone box was discovered, with "Joseph Caiaphas" inscribed on the side.
      A cornerstone was uncovered in ancient Caesarea Maritima, inscribed: "Pontius Pilate, the Prefect of Judea, has dedicated to the people of Caesarea a temple in honor of Tiberius."

Roman Crucifixion of Jesus:
"And they crucified Him…" (Mark 15:24).
      A crucifixion victim was discovered in 1968, near Jerusalem, with a nail through his feet. His crucifixion was dated to A.D. 42. This confirms the Gospels: There were nails used for crucifixion at the time of Jesus!

2. EYEWITNESS AUTHORS assure historical reliability
      The facts about Jesus were proclaimed within days after his death and were accepted in Jerusalem, where people were in the best position to know whether or not they were true, and where accepting them would cost them dearly.

Conclusion: The biblical Gospels have the greatest integrity and are the most historically reliable writings of antiquity!