In Evidence & Paul’s Journeys, Jefferson White, an independent scholar, tackles this problem head-on, providing an historical investigation into the travels of the Apostle Paul. Structuring the book around Paul’s missionary journeys, he seeks evidence that the people, places and events recounted in Scripture are genuine and historically accurate. “Most books written for the general reader tend to be superficial in their examination of that evidence. Even the best of such studies barely scratch the surface. In part, this is due to an assumption that the evidence is too technical, or too involved, for the average reader to follow. In part it is due to a bias that regards scholarly specialists as being the only people who can properly understand and weigh the evidence. Neither of these propositions is true.”
This book is founded upon two rational assumptions. First, the biblical record is assumed to be true unless it can be shown to be false. Second, if a contradiction is alleged to exist between the biblical record and other historical evidence and there is a reasonable explanation to account for it, the contradiction is not proved. In other words, we can assume that the authors of Scripture were honest, well-intentioned men who, at the very least, believed that they were accurately recording historical events.
In the end, the reader, as White did, will have to conclude that Scripture is accurate. While the purpose of the Bible is not to communicate history, but rather to communicate the story of God’s purposes in redeeming a people unto Himself, it cannot help but provide history through the larger story. And when it does so, Scripture records it accurately, both providing a fascinating glimpse into life in the first century and testifying to its own inerrancy.
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