Extrabiblical evidence of 83 people in the Bible

Did you know that ancient history and archaeology have confirmed the existence of 83 people mentioned in the Bible? In articles in the Biblical Archaeology Review, Purdue University scholar Lawrence Mykytiuk presented documentary evidence of this (see References).

PEOPLE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

These include Israelite kings and Mesopotamian monarchs as well as lesser-known figures. Their names appear in inscriptions written during the period described by the Bible and in most instances during or quite close to the lifetime of the person identified.

This list excludes persons in two categories. The first category includes those about whom we know so little (from the Biblical record) that we cannot identify them with anyone named in an inscription. The second category includes identifications that do not come to us from archaeology (such as the writings in the first century AD of Flavius Josephus, see Appendix).

NEW TESTAMENT POLITICAL LEADERS

These include Roman Emperors, members of the Herodian family, and Roman governors. These political figures are mentioned in extra-biblical writings and some of their names appear in inscriptions (normally on hard objects, such as potsherds) and on coins.

NEW TESTAMENT RELIGIOUS LEADERS

Conclusion

Ancient history and archaeology have confirmed the existence of 83 people mentioned in the Bible. 53 of these are from the Old Testament and 30 from the New Testament. This means we have independent sources of evidence of the existence of these people that lived over 2,000 years ago. That’s amazing! It’s consistent with the Bible being historically accurate. And it supports the claim that the places mentioned in the Bible are real, the events were real and the people actually existed.

References

1. Mykytiuk, L. (2014). Archaeology confirms 50 real people in the Bible, Biblical Archaeology Review, 40(2), 42-45, 48-50.
2. Mykytiuk, L. (2017). Archaeology confirms 3 more Bible people, Biblical Archaeology Review, 43(3), 48-52.
3. Mykytiuk, L. (2017). New Testament political figures confirmed, Biblical Archaeology Review, 43(5), 50-59, 65.
4. Mykytiuk, L. (2021). New Testament Religious Figures Confirmed, Biblical Archaeology Review, 47(2), 38–47.
5. Bible History Daily, 30 people in the New Testament confirmed, May 2021.

Appendix: Josephus Flavius on the Old Testament

Josephus was a Jewish historian who lived AD 37-100. He was born in Jerusalem and died in Rome. Formerly a Jewish commander, he defected to the Roman side during the first Jewish-Roman war in around AD 67, and his history was written in Rome. He recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the first century AD. The principal value of Josephus’s work lies in his discussion of Jewish history from 100 BC through AD 100.

“Antiquities of the Jews” recounts the history of the world (from creation to AD66) from a Jewish perspective for a Roman audience. He says that he drew from and “interpreted out of the Hebrew Scriptures”. He retold the Old Testament with the addition of traditional stories. Josephus was not an eyewitness to most events in his works. His history is only as good as his sources. The early history in The Antiquities of the Jews is far removed from his own personal experience. We can only be sure of the details that coincide with Scripture, but the others are no more trustworthy than the traditions he relied upon.

Historians now generally agree that Josephus’s Antiquities were a propagandistic history. His paraphrasing of the narratives of the Old Testament was a creative adaptation aimed at presenting Jewish history as relevant, comprehensible and attractive to the Romans. Josephus was biased in favor of Judaism and he deliberately rewrote Old Testament narratives to provide a more flattering picture of Jewish heritage. While Josephus’s writings may not always be completely reliable his works can nonetheless be trusted to recreate a dramatic image of the Jewish people and the critical events in their history.

Posted, July 2021

Also see: Extrabiblical evidence of Jesus
More extrabiblical evidence of Jesus
Ancient history confirms biblical characters
Archaeology confirms biblical characters
Extrabiblical evidence of six Jews in the New Testament