How Archaeologists Are Finding the Signatures of Bible Kings, Ancient Villains, and Maybe a Prophet
“Wet sifting brings us closer than ever to the world of Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Hezekiah.” - CToday
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[AndyE]
I agree. I guess the translation error is a bit less problematic for me. Of course, I am starting with the premise that 1) the Bible is wholly accurate, and 2) the number appears to be impossible. It tends to point me to a translation error of the ancient Hebrew. Of course, to be honest this isn’t the only place where numbers are a problem in ancient literature, so from a Far East perspective there is a challenge as well.
I’ve spent some time looking over this issue the past couple of days. One other thing worth mentioning is that Moses seems to acknowledge the logistical difficulty of moving such a large number through the wilderness in Numbers 11:21-23.
But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot, and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ 22 Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?” 23 And the LORD said to Moses, “Is the LORD’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.” Numbers 11:21-23 (ESV)
This verse was pretty helpful to me, because in my quest for an answer to this rather intractable problem, I started to wonder what it means if there is no solution. This verse says, regarding this very event of which I’m am wondering about, that Moses wondered about it too, and God’s answer was basically — is God able to resolve these difficulties or not? Will God’s word prove true or will it not? So, yes, I may not know the answer, but I know that God is able to do what he says and that his word will prove true in the end. That is very settling for me.
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