Confirmation of Biblical events from written sources outside the Bible

blessed4ever Thu 25 Jun 2009, 8:50 am

Author: Bryant Wood of Associates for Biblical Research

The most documented Biblical event is the world-wide flood described in Genesis 6-9. A number of Babylonian documents have been discovered which describe the same flood.

The Sumerian King List (pictured here), for example, lists kings who reigned for long periods of time. Then a great flood came. Following the flood, Sumerian kings ruled for much shorter periods of time. This is the same pattern found in the Bible. Men had long life spans before the flood and shorter life spans after the flood. The 11th tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic speaks of an ark, animals taken on the ark, birds sent out during the course of the flood, the ark landing on a mountain, and a sacrifice offered after the ark landed.

The Story of Adapa tells of a test for immortality involving food, similar to the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Sumerian tablets record the confusion of language as we have in the Biblical account of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9). There was a golden age when all mankind spoke the same language. Speech was then confused by the god Enki, lord of wisdom. The Babylonians had a similar account in which the gods destroyed a temple tower and “scattered them abroad and made strange their speech.”
More examples of extra-Biblical confirmation of Biblical events

Campaign into Israel by Pharaoh Shishak (1 Kings 14:25-26), recorded on the walls of the Temple of Amun in Thebes, Egypt.
Revolt of Moab against Israel (2 Kings 1:1; 3:4-27), recorded on the Mesha Inscription.
Fall of Samaria (2 Kings 17:3-6, 24; 18:9-11) to Sargon II, king of Assyria, as recorded on his palace walls.
Defeat of Ashdod by Sargon II (Isaiah 20:1), as recorded on his palace walls.
Campaign of the Assyrian king Sennacherib against Judah (2 Kings 18:13-16), as recorded on the Taylor Prism.
Siege of Lachish by Sennacherib (2 Kings 18:14, 17), as recorded on the Lachish reliefs.
Assassination of Sennacherib by his own sons (2 Kings 19:37), as recorded in the annals of his son Esarhaddon.
Fall of Nineveh as predicted by the prophets Nahum and Zephaniah (2:13-15), recorded on the Tablet of Nabopolasar.
Fall of Jerusalem to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon (2 Kings 24:10-14), as recorded in the Babylonian Chronicles.
Captivity of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, in Babylon (2 Kings 24:15-16), as recorded on the Babylonian Ration Records.
Fall of Babylon to the Medes and Persians (Daniel 5:30-31), as recorded on the Cyrus Cylinder.
Freeing of captives in Babylon by Cyrus the Great (Ezra 1:1-4; 6:3-4), as recorded on the Cyrus Cylinder.
The existence of Jesus Christ as recorded by Josephus, Suetonius, Thallus, Pliny the Younger, the Talmud, and Lucian.
Forcing Jews to leave Rome during the reign of Claudius (A.D. 41-54) (Acts 18:2), as recorded by Suetonius.

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googleboy5 Thu 25 Jun 2009, 2:02 pm

SOURCE:WIKIPEDIA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_geology#Scientific_evidence_against_a_global_flood

Scientific evidence against a global flood

Modern geology, and its sub-disciplines of earth science, geochemistry, geophysics, glaciology, paleoclimatology, paleontology and other scientific disciplines utilize the scientific method
to analyze the geology of the earth. The key tenets of flood geology
are refuted by scientific analysis and do not have any standing in the scientific community. Modern geology relies on a number of established principles, one of the most important of which is Charles Lyell's principle of uniformitarianism.
In relation to geological forces it states that the shaping of the
Earth has occurred by means of mostly slow-acting forces that can be
seen in operation today. By applying this principle, geologists have
determined that the Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old. They study the lithosphere of the Earth to gain information on the history of the planet. Geologists divide Earth's history into eons, eras, periods, epochs, and faunal stages fossil record (see Geologic time scale).^[48]^[49]
In general, there is a lack of any evidence for any of the above
effects proposed by flood geologists and their claims of fossil
layering are not taken seriously by scientists

Historical records
The dates of a number of ancient cultures (such as those of Egypt and Mesopotamia) have been established by the analysis of historical documents supported by carbon dating to be older than the alleged date of the Flood.

Erosion
The flood, had it occurred, should also have produced large-scale
effects spread throughout the entire world. Erosion should be evenly
distributed, yet the levels of erosion in, for example, the
Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains differ significantly

Confirmation of Biblical events from written sources outside the Bible 180px-RainySmokies

The Appalachian Mountains show an immense level of erosion. If a flood had occurred, similar erosion should be found in the Rocky Mountains.

Confirmation of Biblical events from written sources outside the Bible 180px-Rockymountainnps

The Rocky Mountains;
The Rockies do not share erosion traits consistent with a great
flood—erosion would be expected equal to the Appalachian Mountains.

Geochronology
Geochronology is the science of determining the absolute
age of rocks, fossils, and sediments by a variety of techniques. These
methods indicate that the Earth as a whole is at least 4.5 billion
years old, and that the strata that, according to flood geology, were
laid down during the Flood 6000 years ago, were actually deposited
gradually over many millions of years.

Paleontology
If the flood were responsible for fossilization, then all the
animals now fossilized must have been living together on the Earth just
before the flood. Based on estimates of the number of remains buried in
the Karoo fossil formation in Africa, this would correspond to an abnormally high density of vertebrates worldwide, close to 2100 per acre.^[51]
In addition, carbonate hardgrounds and the fossils associated with
them show that the so-called flood sediments include evidence of long
hiatuses in deposition that are not consistent with flood dynamics or
timing

Confirmation of Biblical events from written sources outside the Bible 180px-CarmelHdgd

This Jurassic carbonate hardground with its generations of oysters and extensive bioerosion could not have formed during the conditions postulated for the Flood.

Geochemistry
Proponents of Flood Geology also have a difficult time explaining the alternation between calcite seas and aragonite seas through the Phanerozoic. The cyclical pattern of carbonate hardgrounds, calcitic and aragonitic ooids, and calcite-shelled fauna has apparently been controlled by seafloor spreading rates and the flushing of seawater through hydrothermal vents which changes its Mg/Ca ratio.

Confirmation of Biblical events from written sources outside the Bible 180px-CalciteAragonite

The alternation of calcite and aragonite seas through geologic time. characterized by well-defined breaks in the

ChristianLady Thu 25 Jun 2009, 11:50 pm

"At length, behold! There came Our Command, and the fountains of the earth gushed forth! We said: `Embark therein, of each two, male and female, and your family- except those against whom the Word has already gone forth,- and the believers.' But only a few believed with him." Koran 11:40

"Then the word went forth: `O earth! Swallow up thy water, and O sky! withhold (thy rain)! And the water abated, and the matter was ended. The Ark rested on Mount Judi, and the word went forth: `Away with those who do wrong!'" S. 11:44

Are you saying that Koran is incorrect and corrupt when it talks of global flood in the times of Noah? Why not

Koran 2:34-98 (The Cow) " … We said to the angels: 'Bow down to Adam' and they bowed down. Not so Iblis: he refused and was haughty: … Then did Satan make them slip from the (garden), … Whoever is an enemy to Gabriel - for he brings down the (revelation) to thy heart by God's will, … to Gabriel and Michael, … "

So much for Allah's power if he couldn't even make an angel obey his command.

googleboy5 Sun 28 Jun 2009, 7:20 pm

ChristianLady wrote:
Are you saying that Koran is incorrect and corrupt when it talks of global flood in the times of Noah? Why not

Qur'an also mentions the flood but never mentions that it was of a universal nature
but only affecting the rejecters of Prophet Noah's message of Monotheism,
thus a 'local' flood
No where does the Qur’an say - the full world was submerged under water.
It speaks about Noah peace be upon him and his people
Archeological evidences tell today - and the Archeologists they say, that… ‘We have no objection – it is possible that parts of the world was submerged under water - but full world, its not possible"

ChristianLady wrote:
So much for Allah's power if he couldn't even make an angel obey his command.

sorry i didn't understand your point
can you explain more please

**Waqar Daniel** Mon 29 Jun 2009, 7:41 pm

Derprinz/googleboy5 wrote:No where does the Qur’an say - the full world was submerged under water. It speaks about Noah peace be upon him and his people...

Yes it does say of Global flooding. Look at the verse that had already been quoted.

"At length, behold! There came Our Command, and the fountains of the earth gushed forth! We said: `Embark therein, of each two, male and female, and your family- except those against whom the Word has already gone forth,- and the believers.' But only a few believed with him." Koran 11:40

If global flood did not happen then why does Koran say ...the fountains of earth gushed forth...? Remember Koran talks of earth and not a place.

warrior4christ Mon 29 Jun 2009, 7:57 pm

"And Noah said: `O my Lord! Leave not of the Unbelievers, a single one on earth! For if Thou dost leave (any of them), they will but mislead Thy devotees, and they will breed none but wicked ungrateful ones.'" S. 71:26-27

Noah's plea does not fit in well with a local flood since his request was that no evildoer be left on the earth, not just locally within close proximity of his land. A local flood would entail the fact that not only did evildoers survive but that they also possibly had offspring who were "wicked ungrateful ones," something Noah prayed against. Clearly, this passage fits in better with a global event.

"In the days of old), Noah cried to Us, and We are the best to hear prayer. And We delivered him and his people from the Great Calamity, And made his progeny to endure (on this earth); S. 37:75-77

Friend this also talks of global flood. I hope that you are able to understand your scripture better.

googleboy5 Tue 30 Jun 2009, 6:25 pm

The word 'Earth' recurs in the Glorious Qur'an and in the Prophet's Ahadith
referring to three other meanings according to the context. Sometimes
it refers to the whole planet and at other times, to the dry mass on
which we live, while at some other times, it indicates the topsoil
covering the dry land rocks. (Dr. Zaghloul El-Naggar)
For instance, we know that the Arabic word used for Earth الْأَرْضِ is
used in Surah 2:61 to refer to land mass and not the entire planet. Or
in Surah 2:71 we see that the cow being described to the Israelites is
one that wonders on the Earth الْأَرْضِ, but
the context obviously shows that the cow is wondering in a specific
area close by and not that it could be wondering anywhere on planet
Earth. Or in Surah 4:97 where the oppressed believers tell the angels
that they were oppressed on Earth الْأَرْضِ, but the context denotes that they were referring to the specific land that they were residing in.
There are many other examples that I can provide, but I believe that the
above examples suffice to show that context is important when wanting
to know the meaning of a word. So the Arabic word الْأَرْضِ does not only refer to the entire planet Earth, it could also refer to a certain area or piece of land.
If we look at the verses
Surah 11:40 could easily be interpreted as the fountains of the earth gushing in the specific land of Noahs people.
Surah 11:44 could easily be interpreted as the specific land of Noah's people being told to "swallow up thy water".
Surah 71:26-27 could be interpreted as Noah was praying against the disbelievers in his land.

Those who were destroyed in the flood were the people who rejected the message
of Prophet Nuh (pbuh) and persisted in their denial. There is no
indication in the Qur'an that the flood was universal. The verses on
the subject read:

We sent Nuh to his people: "I am a clear warner to you. Worship
none but Allah. I fear for you the punishment of a painful day."
(Qur'an, 11:25-26)

But they denied him so We rescued him and those with him in the
ark. And We drowned the people who denied Our signs. They were a blind
people. (Qur'an, 7:64)

So We rescued him and those with him by mercy from Us, and We cut
off the last remnant of those who denied Our signs and were not
believers. (Qur'an, 7:72)

As we have seen, we are told in the Qur'an that only the people of
Prophet Nuh (pbuh) were destroyed, not the whole world. The corrected
states of the corrupted accounts in Christian and Jewish scriptures in
the Qur'an prove that it is, in its entirety, a book sent down by Allah.

**Waqar Daniel** Wed 01 Jul 2009, 10:13 am

Derprinz/googleboy5 wrote:As we have seen, we are told in the Qur'an that only the people of
Prophet Nuh (pbuh) were destroyed, not the whole world. The corrected
states of the corrupted accounts in Christian and Jewish scriptures in
the Qur'an prove that it is, in its entirety, a book sent down by Allah.

Oh! it is so convenient, you can change the meaning of Arabic word to your point of view. Interesting! Well I think that "earth" is referred to as dry land and not to oceans and rivers.

Sin of the People at the time Noah's flood
And to Ad (We sent) their brother Hud. He said: O my people! serve Allah, you have no god other than Him; will you not then guard (against evil)? Koran 7:65

They were worshiping other gods than Allah. In other words they rejected Allah to be their god.

Koran 11:25-26
And certainly We sent Nuh to his people: Surely I am a plain warner for you: That you shall not serve any but Allah, surely I fear for you the punishment of a painful day.

If Noah flood only happened in the area he lived in then what about others? Were the surrounding nations worshiping Allah and following his commands? If not then why the punishment was limited to that place?

ChristianLady Wed 01 Jul 2009, 10:33 am

I have the following questions for you and Allah:

If the Flood was local, why did Noah have to build an Ark? He could have walked to the other side of the mountains and missed it?
If the Flood was local, why did God send the animals to the Ark so they would escape death? There would have been other animals to reproduce that kind if these particular ones had died?
If the Flood was local, people who did not happen to be living in the vicinity would not be affected by it. They would have escaped God’s judgment on sin.
If the Flood was local, why did Allah ask Noah to carry "pair of each kind"?

Reference to Questions 1-3
Koran 11:37 "Build the ark under our watchful eyes, and with our inspiration, and do not implore Me on behalf of those who have transgressed; they are destined to drown."

Koran11:43 He said, "I will take refuge on top of a hill, to protect me from the water." He said, "Nothing can protect anyone today from GOD's judgment; only those worthy of His mercy (will be saved)." The waves separated them, and he was among those who drowned.

Reference to Question 4
Koran 11:40 When our judgment came, and the atmosphere boiled over, we said, "Carry on it a pair of each kind,* together with your family, except those who are condemned. Carry with you those who have believed," and only a few have believed with him.