THE
BIBLE
A BOOK OF FACT
AND PROPHECY
VOLUME III
Accurate History, Reliable Prophecy
Near the River Nile, the pyramids have been silent witnesses to the sun's rising for over
3,500 years.
The Colosseum in Rome stands empty. Some 1,900 years ago, it resounded to crowds
cheering gladiators in combat. (Crowd cheering)
A wall carving. A clay cylinder. An ancient warrior.
Why should artifacts and ruins interest us today?
Relics of the past are closely tied to a book that claims divine origin.
THE BIBLE — Accurate History, Reliable Prophecy
Faithful men of God began to write the Bible some 3,500 years ago. It is actually a
collection of books that gives us prophecy — history written in advance. But is it
reliable? And how can it help us today? To answer, let's examine some prophetic
statements found in the Bible. For example, 2,600 years ago, the Bible writer Daniel saw
in a dream the rise and fall of five world powers — four of them before they even
existed! These world powers would have a direct impact on God's people down to our
day. But how did Daniel and other prophets get their information?
The Bible answers at Daniel 2:28: "There exists a God in the heavens who is a Revealer
of secrets." The source of the Bible's reliable information is its author, Jehovah God.
Archaeological discoveries demonstrate the reliability of Bible prophecy and the
accuracy of Bible history. To verify this, let's consider the march of some world powers.
What was the first world power that ruled over God's people, the Israelites? Egypt,
referred to more than 700 times in the Bible. Does the Bible paint an accurate picture of
ancient Egypt? 2 Chronicles 12:2 states: "It came about in the fifth year of King
Re·ho·bo'am that Shi'shak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem." What does
history establish? The Egyptians were mighty warriors, and they left records of their
military campaigns. An inscription in the temple at Karnak, Egypt, lists the cities that
Egyptian Pharaoh Shishak captured in Israel. As the Bible indicated, the Egyptians were
truly a mighty military power.
The Nile, the earth's longest river, has always been Egypt's lifeline. The Bible books of
Genesis and Exodus accurately describe the Nile as Egypt's main source of food and
water. The book of Numbers says that the Israelites, wandering in the desert, longed for
the variety of food they left behind in Egypt. Paintings in tombs show life in ancient
Egypt just as the Bible's first writer, Moses described it — a country abounding in food.
How did the Egyptian religion differ from that of the Israelites? The rulers were viewed
as gods. Thus, haughty Pharaoh disdained the Israelite God, Jehovah. "Who is
Jehovah, so that I should obey his voice? . . . I do not know Jehovah at all!" Pharaoh
was not the only god the Egyptians worshipped. The names of 740 other gods were
found in the tomb of Pharaoh Thutmose III. Many of their gods had human bodies and
animal heads. It is easy to understand why Jehovah banned the use of images in
worship, as stated at Deut. 4:16-19: "That you may not act ruinously and . . . make for
yourselves a carved image, the form of any symbol, . . . the representation of any beast
that is in the earth, . . . any winged bird that flies in the heavens, . . . of any fish that is in
the waters under the earth; . . . and actually get seduced and bow down to them and
serve them." The Egyptians also worshipped triads, or groups of three gods. They used
the cross, or ankh, a symbol of life. And they believed in the immortality of the soul.
What became of Egypt as a world power? God's prophet foretold its destruction at Isaiah
19:3, 4: "They will be certain to resort to the valueless gods . . . And I will deliver up
Egypt into the hand of a hard master." Did this prophecy come true? A cuneiform
inscription shows the Assyrian king Esar-haddon boasting of his conquest of Egypt. "I
fought bloody battles against Tirhakah. Five times I hit him with my arrows." Thus,
Egypt's vast wealth and military might could not stop the fulfillment of God's prophecy.
The Bible, accurate and reliable!
What was the second world power in the Bible? Assyria — a cruel and ruthless nation.
The founder of its capital city, Nineveh, was Nimrod, described in Genesis as "a mighty
hunter in opposition to Jehovah." (Shooting arrows) The Assyrians loved to hunt.
Ashurbanipal, known in the Bible as Asenappar, hunts lions that have been captured,
imported, and later released. (Lions growling) (Whip cracking) A British museum catalog
states: "The hunt itself was often more of a massacre than a contest." (Shooting arrows)
(Lion moaning) Animals were not their only prey. (Shooting arrows) The Assyrians also
hunted humans in ruthless warfare. (Shooting arrows) The Bible writer Nahum refers to
Nineveh as "the city of bloodshed." How true that was! (Shooting arrows)
Soldiers play catch with human heads. Musicians entertain at a peaceful garden party
held by King Ashurbanipal. But what hangs in a nearby tree? The head of Teumman,
the king of Elam. Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal boasted: "Many captives from among
them I burned with fire . . . from some I cut off their noses, their ears, and their fingers,
of many I put out the eyes. I made one pillar of the living and another of heads." A
soldier is rewarded for his pile of enemy heads. Because of Assyria's violence and
pagan religion, Nahum warned: "Nin'e·veh has been despoiled! . . . A sword will cut you
off. . . . There is no relief for your catastrophe."
Assyria plundered many cities, then in 632 B.C.E., Nineveh itself was destroyed. For
centuries its location was forgotten. Critics ridiculed the Bible's account of Nineveh. In
1847 an English archaeologist discovered Nineveh's ruins. His sketches depict
Sennacherib's palace, the same Sennacherib named thirteen times in the Bible. But
more was to come.
Isaiah mentions Sargon, a king of Assyria. Again critics claimed the Bible was wrong,
since there was no other proof of his existence. The Bible's accurate history was
confirmed when archaeologists uncovered Sargon's 200-room palace at Khorsabad. He
is now one of the best-known kings of Assyria. Archaeologists also found inscriptions
listing Sargon's claimed conquests, including the Biblical region of Samaria.
The Bible tells us Sennacherib, king of Assyria, was assassinated by his sons. Ancient
documents discovered by archaeologists support this Biblical statement. Because of
Assyria's bloodshed, Jehovah decreed its destruction. His prophet foretold at Nahum
3:13: "To your enemies the gates of your land must without fail be opened. Fire will
certainly devour your bars." Did this prophecy of fiery destruction come true? Charred
markings of raging fires on the walls of Sennacherib's palace verify the fulfillment of this
prophecy. A Babylonian clay tablet relates the words of Nineveh's conquerors: "The
great spoil of the city and temple they carried off and turned the city into a ruin-mound."
What was left of Nineveh? Two great mounds mark the site of a once proud capital.
Arrogant Assyria dared to defy Jehovah God and was reduced to rubble.
The next world power was revealed to Daniel. He saw four unusual creatures
symbolizing kingdoms that would affect God's people. What did the lion with wings
depict? The mighty Babylonian Empire. The city of Babylon was described by the
prophet Isaiah as “the decoration of kingdoms." A sprawling metropolis astride the River
Euphrates and a center of world trade, its hanging gardens were famous as a “wonder
of the ancient world.” An idea of the city's splendor can be seen from the reconstructed
Ishtar Gate at the Museum of Western Asiatic Antiquity in Berlin. Babylon's greatest king
was Nebuchadnezzar, referred to 91 times in the Bible.
What was the Babylonian religion like? They worshipped the triad of the moon-god Sin,
the sun-god Shamash, and a star symbolizing the goddess Ishtar. A model of an
animal's liver was used to foretell the future. Ezekiel 21:21 says: "The king of Babylon
has resorted to divination. He has looked into the liver."
How did Babylon relate to God's people? (Party music and laughter) The Israelites had
become disobedient to Jehovah. The prophet Jeremiah foretold captivity for them. "I
shall give [them] into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will actually take them into
exile." True to this prophecy, Jerusalem was devastated in 607 B.C.E. The Babylonian
Chronicle confirms the capture of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar. How long would
Babylon dominate Israel? Jehovah answers — 70 years. Then what would happen to
Babylon? Jeremiah predicted: “There is a devastation upon her waters, and they must
be dried up. . . . The mighty men of Babylon have ceased to fight." Did these details in
the Bible prophecy come true?
The date — October 5, 539 B.C.E. (Party music and laughter) Daniel relates that
Babylonian King Belshazzar holds a feast for a thousand prominent guests. They praise
their false gods while drinking from sacred vessels looted from Jehovah's temple 70
years earlier. Outside, Medes and Persians have diverted the waters of the Euphrates
River, which ran through Babylon. (Water sloshing) The soldiers slosh up the riverbed
and into the city. Before the sun rises, Babylon is overthrown, and Belshazzar is dead!
Babylon's mighty empire is finished — God had spoken! The Nabonidus Chronicle
describes the fall of Babylon. It happened just as Jeremiah foretold. In one night, mighty
Babylonian's golden glory had lost its luster!
Medo-Persia marched in to become the fourth world power of Bible history. As Daniel's
dream foretold, it arose to devour much flesh, like a hungry bear. Although different in
culture and dress, the Medes and Persians functioned as a united power. The Persians
were known for their archery and horsemanship. As their empire grew, so did their taste
for luxury. Persian emperors built impressive palaces. The one located in Shushan is
where Persian king Ahasuerus made the Israelite Esther his queen.
Two hundred years before the event, Isaiah foretold the name of the Persian liberator of
Israel — Cyrus. The prophet Jeremiah wrote that the holy utensils stolen from
Jerusalem by Babylon would be returned. How did this happen? The words on the
Cyrus Cylinder explain: "I am Cyrus, king of the world . . . I return to the sacred cities . . .
the images which used to live therein . . . I also gathered all their former inhabitants and
returned to them their habitations." True to his policy of religious toleration, Cyrus the
Great allowed Jewish captives to return home and rebuild the temple of Jehovah at the
end of the foretold 70-year captivity. By the fourth century B.C.E., the Medo-Persian
world power was coming to its end. According to Bible prophecy, who would take over?
Daniel 7:6 states: "I kept on beholding, and, see there! another beast, one like a leopard,
but it had four wings of a flying creature . . . and there was given to it rulership indeed."
This beast represented the rapidly moving Macedonian, or Greek, power coming from
the West. But who could move the Greek army swiftly to conquer Persia? How was his
role in history foretold 200 years in advance? In Daniel chapter 8, God's prophet sees
Medo-Persia as a two-horned ram. Next, a male goat ‘proceeds to strike down the ram
and break its two horns.’ Who is this male goat? Daniel 8:21 answers: "The hairy hegoat stands for the king of Greece." At the age of 20, Alexander had become the king of
Macedonia. Two years later, he set out on a war of revenge against the Persians. A
brilliant general, he controlled a huge empire before he was 30. Like a swift and agile
leopard — and with lightening speed — Alexander the Great conquered the world of his
day.
Thus, Greece became the fifth world power of Bible history — larger than any preceding
it! Alexander's conquest spread Greek culture and language throughout a vast area. It
was the language later used to record the Christian Greek Scriptures of the Bible. At the
age of 32, Alexander wanted to make Babylon his eastern capital, but it was not to be.
Speaking in symbolic language, Daniel prophesied: "The male of the goats, for its part,
put on great airs to an extreme; but as soon as it became mighty, the great horn was
broken, and there proceeded to come up conspicuously four instead of it." Alexander, at
the peak of his conquests, was stricken with fever and suddenly died in 323 B.C.E.
Alexander's vast empire was divided among four symbolic horns — four of his generals.
The Greek Empire eventually broke into four separate kingdoms. The last of these
kingdoms fell in 30 B.C.E. to the next world power, Rome.
Which beast would represent Rome? Daniel 7:7 describes it: "A fourth beast, fearsome
and terrible and unusually strong. It was devouring and crushing, and what was left it
was treading down with its feet." Rome became the greatest world power of Bible history
when it organized the most powerful army the world had ever seen — crushing
everything in its path. (Horses running) (Swords clashing) (Shooting arrows) Evidence of
this powerful empire can be seen in Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The glory of Rome
is echoed in the words of Augustus Caesar: "I found Rome built of bricks; I leave her
clothed in marble."
The Caesars were worshipped as gods. Emperor worship was a test of loyalty for early
Christians. An inscription from Asia Minor says of the emperor: "He is the paternal Zeus
and the savior of the whole race of man, who fulfills all prayers, even more than we ask."
Altars and temples were built for Caesar worship. Which Caesars are mentioned in the
Bible? Augustus Caesar was emperor when Jesus was born, as recorded by the gospel
writer Luke. He also states that Jesus came to John to be baptized in the fifteenth year
of Tiberius Caesar. Jesus' entire three-and-a-half-year ministry took place during the
reign of Tiberius.
Both Luke and the Roman historian Suetonius state that Emperor Claudius ordered all
Jews to depart from Rome. Claudius' successor was the infamous Nero. He was said to
have set fire to Rome and then blamed it on the Christians. According to the historian
Tacitus, Christians were “torn by dogs and perished” and “burnt, to serve as nightly
illumination.” During this persecution, the apostle Paul was imprisoned for a second time
and was likely executed at Nero's orders. The Arch of Titus commemorates the Roman
victory over Jerusalem in 70 C.E., a conquest foretold by Jesus thirty-seven years in
advance! Roman soldiers took the sacred utensils of the Jewish temple as spoils of war.
Those not heeding Jesus' warning to flee Jerusalem perished or were taken captive.
(Swords clashing) (Baby crying) (People screaming) (Shooting arrows)
While Rome ruled, Jesus fulfilled scores of Bible prophecies, thus proving that he was
the true Messiah. Jesus was the one spoken of at Daniel 7:14: "His rulership is an
indefinitely lasting rulership that will not pass away, and his kingdom one that will not be
brought to ruin." In contrast the Roman world power was to be brought to ruin. Moral,
social, and political decay lead to its fall.
What was to replace Rome and become the seventh great world power? Like Daniel,
the apostle John saw visions of future events. At Revelation 17:10, he tells us: "And
there are seven kings: five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet arrived." Which five
“kings,” or world powers, had fallen? Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, and
Greece. Rome existed in John's time. But which power had not yet arrived? In
Revelation 13 this world power is described as having two horns like a lamb,
symbolizing a dual world power.
Which two governments today share the same language and have had influence over all
the earth? Britain and the United States. (Cannons firing) The rise of this seventh world
power was gradual. (Cannons firing) During the 16th century, Britain became a strong
maritime nation, able to extend its empire around the world. (Cannons firing) In 1776,
part of the British Empire broke away and eventually became the United States of
America. In the 20th century, Britain and America act as a dual world power.
Revelation 17 next predicts the rise of an eighth and final king that would exercise
control for a little while. The United Nations today is this eighth king — a symbol of
authority in which world leaders put their trust to achieve peace and a “new world order.”
Can men really bring about that “new world order”? Will they beat their swords into
plowshares? What does history teach us? Ecclesiastes 8:9 states: "All this I have seen, .
. . that man has dominated man to his injury." (Speaking German) (Speaking Italian)
(Heart beating)
The prophecies given to Daniel and John have proved true for 2,500 years of man's
governments — governments that have failed to bring peace and security. We can have
confidence in what is next foretold! Daniel 2:44 describes a drastic change in the
rulership of the earth! "In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. . . . It will crush and put an end to all these
kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite." This is the kingdom government that
Jesus taught his followers to pray for at Matthew 6:10: "Let your kingdom come. Let your
will take place, as in heaven, also upon earth."
What benefits will God's Kingdom bring? God's Word at Psalm 37 foretells that righteous
people will live forever on a paradise earth. And — most beautiful of all — Jehovah tells
us at Revelation 21:4: "He will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no
more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have
passed away." (Speaking French)
There is a bright and wonderful future for all who follow God's Word, the Bible.
(Speaking Gujarati) We can be sure that the Bible is a book of accurate history and
reliable prophecy. What it promises for the near future is guaranteed to come true!