Tests for the Reliability of Ancient Literature - Part 5 by Dr. Joe L. Mott on Feb. 16, 2026

References: (1) A Visual Guide to Biblical Apologetics by Joseph M. Holden and Sarah R. Enterline. (2) The third historiographical test for the Bible’s historical reliability is the external test. Recall that this test compares the text with external sources of historical or archaeological facts. The question is: Does the text align or not with data OUTSIDE ITSELF? If so, it is considered reliable; if not, it is NOT reliable. (3) There are thousands of artifacts that directly or indirectly CONFIRM the historicity of the Bible. I have said before that when I was in college in the late 1950s there were skeptics that questioned the Bible’s reference to the Hittites. But at that very same time there was an established museum at the University of Chicago that had artifacts from the Hittite dynasty that was discovered some 50 years before. I think the skeptics knew that basic fact but hoped that the people to whom they were talking DID NOT KNOW it. I have said many times that atheists will DO ANYTHING to win an argument even going SO FAR as to purposely MISQUOTE historical and archaeological facts. (4) “I Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist” by Norman Geisler and Frank Turek. (5) The first century historian Flavius Josephus made specific references to John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, and James in his “Antiquities of the Jews.” In this work, Josephus gave us many background details about the Herods, the Sadducees and Pharisees, the high priests Annas and Caiaphas, and the Roman emperors mentioned in the Gospels and Acts. (6) Higher criticism in the 19th century, for example, made many DAMAGING CLAIMS that would completely OVERTHROW the INTEGRITY of the Bible, but the explosion of archaeological knowledge in the 20th century REVERSED almost all of these higher criticism claims. Notably archaeologists William F. Albright, Nelson Gluek, and Ernest Wright developed great respect for the HISTORICAL ACCURACY of the Scriptures as a result of their work. No archaeological evidence has ever REFUTED any Biblical claim. (7) Dr. Rick Cornish’s book “5 Minute Apologist” p. 66, says “In a court of law the BURDEN OF PROOF lies with the accuser, namely, one is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The same approach should dictate how we evaluate sources of information which have a long track record of being right. Claims of the Bible being proven wrong falls short of that boast. What many critics mean is that the Bible includes passages they can’t figure out. So what? Christians know that better than the skeptics do.” (8) What sets the Bible apart from other religious writings? The Bible stands out not only in its CONTENT, but in its power to SPEAK, CONVICT, and TRANSFORM. It is unique due to its acknowledgement of divine inspiration (2 Tim. 3:16). Christians hold the belief that the Bible is not merely a record of human thoughts about God, but instead the very Word of God about humanity, BREATHED OUT by His Spirit and ALIVE with His presence. (9) Not only is His word living and powerful; He speaks in the present time. This is episode 263.