EPISODE · Mar 5, 2023 · 41 MIN
How Old Was Abraham?
from A View from the Bunker · host Dr. Craig Olson
THE BIBLE tells us that father Abraham died at the age of 175. How can we reconcile that with science without losing our belief in the inerrancy of scripture?Dr. Craig Olson, Dean of Biblical Studies at Trinity Southwest University, explains that the problem is not the number, it’s the difference in the way numbers were used in the ancient Near East compared to today. In a nutshell, people 3,500 years ago simply did not record history and interpret numbers the way we do in the 21st century AD. Dr. Olson also explains why Tall el-Hammam, an archaeological site eight miles northeast of the Dead Sea, is far more likely to be ancient Sodom than the traditional location, Bab ed-Dhra, southeast of the Dead Sea.
What this episode covers
THE BIBLE tells us that father Abraham died at the age of 175. How can we reconcile that with science without losing our belief in the inerrancy of scripture?Dr. Craig Olson, Dean of Biblical Studies at Trinity Southwest University, explains that the problem is not the number, it’s the difference in the way numbers were used in the ancient Near East compared to today. In a nutshell, people 3,500 years ago simply did not record history and interpret numbers the way we do in the 21st century AD. Dr. Olson also explains why Tall el-Hammam, an archaeological site eight miles northeast of the Dead Sea, is far more likely to be ancient Sodom than the traditional location, Bab ed-Dhra, southeast of the Dead Sea.
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How Old Was Abraham?
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