140: Stephen Whitehouse - The Silent & Exciting Witness of Bible Archaeology

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

1. 0:00

   Welcome to Good Christadelphian Talks. I'm Levi. And I'm Chris. And I'm Brian. Thank you for joining us this week. On this podcast, we select one talk a week to help us get the Bible in our daily news feed. We post a new episode at the start of each week with a short intro beforehand to kind of set the stage for the talk you're about to listen to.

2. 0:33

   And now, let's talk more about this week's talk. Welcome to the Good Christadelphian Talks podcast. This is Brother Brian. You know, I bet you love talks about reasons to believe the Bible. And you can't wait to get your hands on more content that's going to reinforce your faith. Well, you've come to the right place.

3. 1:11

   This week's talk is a class from Brother Stephen Whitehouse. And it's all about ancient archaeological finds that have been overlooked by some. But to Bible students, they jump right off the page and give credence to these accounts in scripture that we hold sacred. Now, the title of the class, I think, could go by two different names online, depending on where you find it.

4. 1:39

   I think officially the talk is called Ancient Babylon, Ziggurats, and the Tower of Babel. And this class appears to have been given multiple times in multiple places and be an evening program from Brother Stephen's series, Daniel, A Faith Under Fire, that was presumably given at the Southwest Bible School in Texas in 2017.

5. 2:04

   But you could also find it in video form on YouTube under the name The Silent and Exciting Witness of Bible Archaeology, where you can view all the slides and all the imagery that Brother Stephen references. I mention all of this because I think that in this instance, if you're not driving right now and you have the ability to watch for 50 minutes, then this would be a talk that is best absorbed by seeing all the material and the artifacts that the brother is building his talk around.

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   The link to the YouTube video is listed in the description for your easy access. But in full disclosure, I actually have only skimmed through the video and not watched it myself. And that is because initially I was just given the audio file and Brother Stephen does such a fantastic job describing what's on screen and how it connects to scripture that you can easily picture in your mind without even having to see it.

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   I fell in love with this talk over the past few weeks, and I hope you will too. So we hope this strengthens your faith and brightens your day. Brother Stephen Whitehouse, the silent and exciting witness of Bible archaeology. Well, I am really excited about this subject. This is one of the subjects that really thrills me.

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   That's why it's called exciting archaeology, according to me. And I'm hoping that you find it exciting. The reason why I find it exciting, particularly for the young people, is the more that I've looked at it, the more that I've realized that what I see with my own eyes gives me confidence in the historical accuracy of God's Word.

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   And by doing that, it has actually built my own personal faith. So this has been quite a journey for me, personally, and I hope I can share some of that excitement with you tonight. And hopefully there'll be something for the younger ones tonight, too. Well, first of all, then, what I want to talk about, because it's the theme for the week, particularly with the adult classes, is Daniel.

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    So we're going to look at Babylon tonight. Now, when we talk about the subject of Babylon, there is a gentleman on the screen that was instrumental in its discovery. It was a very special German archaeologist. His name was Robert Caldive. And he led a German team from 1899, so the end of the 19th century, right through to 1917.

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    And he discovered Babylon, the Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylon of the 6th century BC. And it was an extraordinary find. Now, you might have found in your own personal experience that archaeologists are not great personalities.

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    With the exception of Brother Lane Rittmeyer, of course. But they're not great personalities. And one thing they certainly hate doing is entertaining the media. And this was no different 100 years ago. So there was another gentleman here called Delis. He was Friedrich Delis, and he was an Assyriologist. His job was to look at Akkadian, ancient Babylonian texts, to decipher the sex, and to interpret, and to write down what he had found.

13. 5:55

    Now, he was quite a charismatic man, and he was very happy to entertain the media. So in 1902, and I want you to imagine this. You found Babylon. You found the Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar. It was a momentous find. And so, a series of lectures were conducted in 1902. And they were called Babel and the Bible.

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    And it was all about this great discovery in Babylon, and how these artifacts support the evidence of the Bible. Now, this drummed up so much excitement that, in fact, the first two lecturers were attended by the European Kaiser. Right? The European Emperor attended these. Now, I wonder if we had a great special effort at Hall Green back in Birmingham, whether we could pull in Theresa May.

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    Could you get Donald Trump? Well, they are Bible believers, aren't they? But that's the spirit of the age. A hundred years ago, people were interested. Now, also, this was quite a significant moment in the history of Germany, because if you just take your minds back at the end of the 19th century, Germany was emerging as a world power.

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    And when they discovered all these artifacts in this great city of Nebuchadnezzar, they saw that as an opportunity to demonstrate their scholarship to the world. And many history books have been written about this discovery. And many historians have concluded that this was one of the catalysts for the First World War, when Germany really flexed its muscles and took on the world.

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    Quite extraordinary. That's not our subject tonight. But this was highly, highly significant. Well, what we're going to do, we're not going to be too long tonight. We're not going to visit them in person. But we're going to have a whistle-stop tour around some museums. So, do you recognize that museum? Those just about there should.

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    Right? It's the British Museum. Who's been to the British Museum in London? Yes, a few. Well, personally, I think it's the best. A terrific amount of Bible archaeology is there. This is called the Great Court. A lot of money has been invested in the British Museum. And I try and pop in at lunchtime, because I work in London, and go around when I can.

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    Closer to home, I've mentioned this one before, I think. Do you recognize that museum? And then, has anyone been there? Yes, Peter? Yes, the Metropolitan Museum. Has anyone been to the Metropolitan Museum? A few hands. You should. It's just in New York. Right? Huh?

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    Just, yes. It's owned by a group of Jews. And if I were to say, as you go around, there's a room called the Gold Room. And as you go in, it's full of golden lions. And then, as you go to the end of the room, there's a silver room. And guess what? What's in there?

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    Silver leopards. And it goes on and on. And this is a Jewish group of financiers that are very proud that they are the Jews and God's people, and that they have survived the image of Daniel chapter 2. And it's all there on show. It's quite extraordinary. The Metropolitan Museum. I do encourage you to go.

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    And that's one of the great libraries there at the Met. Now, I've mentioned this before, so I'm just testing your memory. Do you recognize that museum? It's the Pergamon Museum. They're redeveloping that because they want to show a bigger display of the Ishtar Gate. And this is something that we went to just last year.

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    So, with that background and that introduction, I want you just to try and take your minds back, and the young people, try to take your minds back to 600 BC, 2,500 years ago. And we have Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar ruling the world. And this was a man who was obsessed in building for 70 years.

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    He put together one of the biggest building programs ever known in history. Great temples and buildings and libraries. All that was part of the great, magnificent Babylon. And this illustration here just gives you an idea. It gives you a good sense, doesn't it, as to what kind of city this was. It was one of the marvels of the world.

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    And this is Daniel, Hanani, Mishael, and Azariah. They're all going in, and their senses would truly be exercised when they saw this city. Well, this was the empire. And you can see it's an extensive empire. It's pushing over to Persia, up to Assyria in the north, and importantly, not quite down into Egypt, but it certainly occupied Jerusalem.

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    That's why Daniel and his three friends, that's why Ezekiel went a little later, went into exile. So that's the extent of this empire. And what we need to appreciate is that as Bible students and as Christadelphians, we accept slides like that. You go 100 years back, and this was really up for debate.

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    Now, one of the great things of the British Museum is that Robert Caldivet brought over a lot of the bricks that were discovered in ancient Babylon. There is a room in the British Museum that is probably twice the length of this room. And there is a cabinet up against the wall for its full length.

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    And I think from memory, there are three ledges. And in that cabinet are just hundreds of bricks with Nebuchadnezzar's inscription. Now, if you go around the Metropolitan Museum, there is one big room with one brick. And all the Americans go, oh, that's amazing. And I'm going, go to the British Museum. That is true.

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    That is true. But there is Nebuchadnezzar's imprint, his inscription. This was a man. And we're going to look at that tomorrow, God willing. This was a man who loved himself, who loved his city. This was Babylon that he had built. And until the end of the 19th century, none of these things had been discovered.

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    You imagine for the first time you're Robert Caldivet and you find hundreds of these bricks that have Nebuchadnezzar's name in. It was an extraordinary find. Well, we've mentioned this before. What is that building? Come on. It's not that late. It's the Ishtar Gate. You sound like the teenagers. It's the Ishtar Gate, right?

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    And you can see that it's in this beautiful glazed blue, okay? And there you've got the Temple of Ishtar. And we'll look at that in a moment.

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    The younger ones haven't seen this. My children hate me showing this picture. So I do apologize for the repeat, but I am missing them. You can see they took it very seriously. They have their clipboards. And we went around together as a family. And those smiles continue throughout the day, I can assure you.

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    And they made very copious notes. Now, can you remember, for the younger ones who didn't hear my talk earlier this week, what is there in the background?

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    Well, that is yes. Oh, they did? Sorry. I didn't hear that. The palm trees. So we've got 70-foot palm trees. This is actually the facade. For those who didn't hear me a little early in the week, this is actually the facade of Nebuchadnezzar's courtroom. So where my children are standing, that's exactly where Nebuchadnezzar would have sat.

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    As I'm standing now, perhaps that's where Daniel stood. That's the very facade that he would have seen. And you can well imagine I was up there touching it, putting my oily fingers everywhere. It was amazing to actually touch this kind of history. And we'll look at that in a moment. But that was the facade.

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    This is Nebuchadnezzar's courtroom. The greatest king, arguably, the world has ever seen. He is the head of gold. He is making decisions on literally millions of people every single day. And that's the courtroom. And the reason why his courtroom is so pretty and beautiful and flowery is because his god was Nabu or Nebo.

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    And we've already told you that Nebo was the god of wisdom, culture, and literature. This was a highly sophisticated king. A man of education. A man of learning. And this is why. Shall we open up our Bibles? This is why. The very first thing that Nebuchadnezzar does is educate these young men, these children of the king's seed.

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    Look at this then. It's all very consistent. It's consistent now because we now know it. A hundred years ago, we didn't know. Daniel chapter 1 and then verse 4. And this is all about the type of young people Nebuchadnezzar wanted to bring into his kingdom. Children in whom was no blemish but well favored.

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    They were skillful in all wisdom and cunning in knowledge and understanding science and such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace. And whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. Okay? This is what he wanted to do because he was subject to Nebo or Nabu who was the god of wisdom and understanding.

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    And the very words are used here in verse 20. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding at the end of the ten day period that the king inquired of Daniel, Hanani, Mishael, and Azariah, he found them ten times better than anyone within the king's court. So it's all very consistent. This is what I love about Bible archaeology.

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    Well, when you look at the Ishtar gate here, you get a real feel for how impressive this was. I believe Daniel went through this gate. This was the major gate. And we're going to see a superscription that's there which you had to read and agree with before you were allowed into the city.

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    It's overwhelming, isn't it? You imagine that you're Daniel and you've just been living in Jerusalem and you're a teenager. And then suddenly you see this splendor and opulence and this grandeur all around you. And all the learning that we talked about the other day. It would have been absolutely overwhelming. The sheer beauty of its architecture.

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    Well, when you look at the Ishtar gate, and the Ishtar gate was really the jewel in the crown of ancient Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon. It had been destroyed by Sennacherib around about 100 years earlier. And he rebuilt the Ishtar gate three times. This was the jewel in the crown. This was most special.

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    And as you look at the Ishtar gate, you can see these very unusual animals. And as you look at these animals, particularly the young people, you know of Daniel's dream, his vision in Daniel chapter 7. Where you have all these unusual animals that are presented to Daniel. And they are describing nations that will come upon the earth.

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    That will come against the nation of Israel. That starts with Babylon. And runs all the way down to a terrible beast exceedingly. Remember that? With ten horns. Well, when you look at the Ishtar gate, you can see all these unusual animals. As Daniel received this vision, he would have looked around him and realized that his vision was very consistent with his surroundings.

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    So here then, you've got something called Sirush, which is a dragon. And this spoke of Marduk. Now, Marduk was the patron god of Babylon. He was the chief god. Nabu, Nebuchadnezzar's god. Was the son of Marduk. And he's represented here as this dragon. And you can see dragons everywhere. Now, please appreciate, this is a photograph.

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    And it's not a reconstruction. This is the mosaic. This was the bond that was built 2,600 years ago. And it really is that color. There is no fading. It was utterly brilliant, what Nebuchadnezzar did. The other one is Uruk, which is a young bull. And it relates to Baal, the storm god. So you've got all these unusual animals here.

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    Now, as I said, as you look at the Ishtar gate, it was one of eight gates in the perimeter of Babylon. And you would have to read this set of sentences, really. It was a statement, a long, long statement of Nebuchadnezzar. And you had to read it. And that's Lindsay and the children trying to decipher Akkadian.

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    They failed. But thankfully, there's something in English. Okay. And this is what it says. And just read this carefully. When I read this, I was a little surprised. It wasn't something I was really expecting. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, the faithful prince appointed by the will of Marduk. So Marduk, can you remember? He's the dragon.

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    He's the chief god. The highest of the princely princes. So he's the chief god. He's beloved of Nabu. That's Nebuchadnezzar's god, the god of wisdom. Of prudent counsel, who has learned to embrace wisdom, who fathom their divine being, and reveres their majesty. The wise, the humble, the caretaker of Isagula and Isida, the firstborn son of Nebupelesa, the king of Babylon.

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    Well, that's interesting, isn't it? Because I wasn't necessarily expecting that. Particularly for the young people. Well, remember, Nebuchadnezzar is portrayed in the book of Daniel as this head of gold, this autocrat. The decisions he made in his court with the big palm trees, they got done. They got executed, didn't they? But here, when you actually read how he was presented to his people, he's presented as someone who is very much subject to the gods.

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    And as I've been saying in the adult class, it again reinforces and confirms that this was a religious kingdom. It wasn't just a political force. It was a religious kingdom. What Daniel and his three friends had to face was a religious contest. And we pointed to that a little, didn't we, this morning.

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    So he's appointed by the will of Marduk, the highest of princes of princes. And then he says this, which is rather humble, who has learned to embrace wisdom, who fathom their divine being and reveres their majesty. So, if we think about the Bible and the scriptures, and Joe's been talking about this in terms of father and son, being a child, it's something that doesn't come naturally to us, to revere God, to appreciate his goodness.

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    That's what the scriptures talk about. But it's very similar here, isn't it? There's a real play, I believe, on the scriptural record here, that Nebuchadnezzar, through wisdom, has learned to appreciate the gods of Babylon. And he recognizes that he's the caretaker. Very interesting. Not what I was expecting.

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    Well, the most popular of all the mosaics is this lion. They are everywhere. And I'm going to show you something called the processional way in a moment, which goes as long as half a mile. So, everywhere around you, you have lion with eagle's wings. Lion with eagle's wings. And that was Ishtar. And Ishtar was the symbol of Babylon.

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    Whilst we're there in Daniel, you know this, but just let's go over, because if you discovered this, this verse would be up on your wall, wouldn't it? Daniel chapter 7 and verse 4, you found it. Here, the first was like a lion and had eagle's wings. I beheld, till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man.

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    And a man's heart was given to it. So, Babylon, as a symbol of Ishtar, is described as a lion with eagle's wings. It was the first of the four in Daniel 7. And suddenly, when they discovered Babylon in 1899, they found lions with eagle's wings everywhere. And this was written 2,500 years ago.

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    This adds to Brother Joe's talk, doesn't it? Another reason to believe in the Bible. These things weren't even known. And so, in other words then, when Daniel received this vision, I believe he knew right away what the lion with eagle's wings was. He could see them right around him. He knew it.

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    It was not an unusual dream. So, when we try and interpret Daniel 7, and we read it cold, we think, what an unusual set of animals. Not in the context. It was perfect, wasn't it? It was perfect.

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    Well, we've already seen this. This is the courtroom there. You can see this a little more close up. They're like daffodils, aren't they? Not quite. But you've got lots of flowers, flora and fauna. You've got the Ishtar gate. And then you've got these large palm trees. As I said, not what I was expecting, great Nebuchadnezzar.

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    You can imagine, you know, if it was Nebuchadnezzar's house and he was choosing his Dulux paint or whatever. I wasn't expecting that. I wasn't expecting that to be what he would have behind him as he sat and made decisions for his kingdom. Now, what we have here is something called the processional way.

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    As you go through the Ishtar gate, there's a long road. The road is half a mile long. The walls there are 15 meters high and they go into the temple of Ishtar, which is the great, great temple, which we're going to talk about in a moment. And on either side of this road, there are 60 lions.

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    And every one of them has been discovered. There's a few chips, but they're there, and they're on full show. 120 Ishtar lions leading in. And what happened, there were great processions, particularly during New Year's. And New Year, you'd have Adad, you'd have Ishtar, and you'd have Marduk, and you'd have various statues of them, and you'd go through the Ishtar gate, you'd go down the processional way, and then you would then celebrate in the temple of Ishtar.

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    That's what you would do every single year. Daniel was in Babylon for 70 years. Perhaps then he saw 70 of these. 70 of these. It helps us to appreciate the kind of life that this man had to lead. A life of separation. He saw everything, brothers and sisters, young people. Yet he still remained faithful to his God.

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    Now, as you go around this museum, and I do recommend for you to go. I'm not on commission. But it is a great, great museum. It's one of the great museums of the world. And what you find as you go around the museum, in the corner, there is a reconstruction of Babylon. And it's in a little glass box.

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    And it's built by Robert Caldivet 100 years ago. So when he discovered all these artifacts, they were brought back to Berlin, funded by the government, and they built the Pergamon Museum to house Robert Caldivet's archaeological finds. And near the end of his life, he built this little reconstruction. And it's an amazing reconstruction.

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    It's like a Lego set. It's not a Lego set. But it's like that. As you look at it, it's beautiful. And just look at that. There's Lindsay at the back there. And it really is amazing. And it's to scale. It's not random. It's to scale. And you can really see its beauty. Now, this drew my attention.

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    Because at the corner, just behind the Ishtar Gate, is this building. And it's the largest ziggurat that was discovered in Babylon. Does anyone know what the word ziggurat means? Besides Peter. He seems to be very hot tonight. All right? So anyone else? Ziggurat. It means a rising building. Okay? Just rises up. Like a pyramid.

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    But they're in blocks. Now, this was the largest ziggurat that was discovered. It's just beyond the Ishtar Gate. Very, very prominent. And as we looked at it, I noticed that everything was noted. Everything had an annotation. And by this building that you've just seen, it had the Tower of Babel. At which point, I started to jump up and down quite frequently with excitement.

70. 27:14

    Not knowing why I was excited, but I knew I'd discovered something. And then I did my research afterwards. And it is really, really fascinating. So Robert Cordevei came to the conclusion that what he found in Babylon was the ancient Tower of Babel. And I'm going to show you his logic and some of his finds so that you can piece together the story.

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    Well, it began here in 1917. If you go on Google Earth, that's what you'll find. A big dig. You see it? That is the Etamananke. That is the largest ziggurat that was discovered in Babylon. Very, very exciting. Well, when Robert Cordevei discovered this temple, this ziggurat, he not only found the remains, he also discovered a plaque that was written by Nebuchadnezzar.

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    Wow. I hear you say. Quietly. And the plaque was called the Etamananke, which is rather a mouthful. That's why I didn't call the talk tonight. It was long enough. But the Etamananke, and it means the house of the platform between heaven and earth. So the very idea that this is conveying, this temple, is that it connects heaven to earth.

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    Think about the Tower of Babel. This is an amazing discovery. Not much has been written about it. I think it's a bit of an embarrassment, actually. But there you are. The Etamananke. The house of the platform between heaven and earth. And this is what he wrote. I've highlighted what I think is important.

74. 28:55

    Just look at this. Etamananke ziggurat babeli. Okay? Which means the ziggurat of Babylon. The Tower, he calls it. That's interesting, isn't it? He calls it a tower. The Eternal House. I have completed its magnificent. It's the most ancient monument of Babylon. I built and finished it. I made it the wonder of the people of the world.

75. 29:27

    I raised its top to heaven. I made doors for the gates. And covered it with bitumen and bricks. Now, what Nebuchadnezzar did, and history tells us, he rebuilt the entire city. Pulled down all the buildings and rebuilt everything. And so that's why we've got Nebuchadnezzar bricks everywhere. With the exception of the Etamananke.

76. 29:53

    And here he says, when I look at the Etamananke, I see that it's the most ancient building in Babylon, which was old enough anyway, wasn't it? And I restored it. I didn't knock it down. I restored it. And I made it into its former magnificence. So it became a wonder in the world.

77. 30:14

    Now, where was all this going on? Can you remember? Well, let's have a look at Daniel chapter 1. Where did this place happen, right? Well, it was. Yes, thank you. It was in the land of Shinar. So, with the land of Shinar, let's just go back. Just in case we need to be reminded.

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    Because it is a lovely connection. And when we go back to Genesis chapter 10, I want you to appreciate, everyone, that the word Shinar has not been used for 1,000 years.

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    I'll repeat that. The word Shinar has not been used for 1,000 years. And Daniel now, under inspiration, uses it. Why? Because we're Bible students. He's saying, go back to when this was used. And it's here in Genesis 10 and 11. It is an ancient name. It was archaic. It was never used. But Daniel uses it because he's taking us here.

80. 31:16

    Well, you know what happens. The tower of Babel is built. I don't need to tell you that. But there's a little detail here, hidden away, which I thrilled over. Look at this. Genesis chapter 11, verse 1. And the whole earth was one language and one speech. And it came to pass as they journeyed from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar.

81. 31:39

    That's Daniel 1. So it connects the thoughts. Nebuchadnezzar built his city in the land of Shinar, in the very location of the tower of Babel. We've got to determine whether the tower of Babel still existed or not. But it was in its former location, at least. And then it says, And they said one to another, Go, let us make brick and burn them throughly.

82. 32:01

    And they had brick for stone and slime they had for mortar. And they said, Go, let us build us a city and a tower. This was the first city. This was the challenge to God. God is going to disperse this people and give them different languages. This was his anger. Let us build us a city and a tower.

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    Notice. Nebuchadnezzar talks about the tower here. Whose top may reach unto heaven. The Etamananke. It's virtually the same words, isn't it? And let us make a name. Lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. Now, the little detail I want you to notice is how they built it. They had brick for stone.

84. 32:39

    And I've got, in the King James, slime. Which doesn't sound too good. What have you got? Has anyone got anything else? Bitumen. I've got there for the gym. Bitumen. Right? Bitumen. It's the word bitumen. Bitumen and bricks. Here. On the Etamananke. Nebuchadnezzar. His very words. And what we got here. Brick for stone.

85. 33:07

    And bitumen they had for mortar. Isn't that amazing? If you come back to Daniel here. Right? If you come back to Daniel. Remember what we were talking about this morning. Can you remember? We were talking about Daniel's three friends. And notice in verse 1. Where the golden image. Remember? Nebuchadnezzar. He felt that he would live forever.

86. 33:34

    So he built this golden image. He wasn't going to believe in the image of Daniel. So there we read in verse 1. Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold. Whose height was three score cubits. And breadth are of six cubits. So we've got this six, six. And then we've got the other six.

87. 33:48

    With the introduction of the instruments there. So we've got the number of man. Which we looked at this morning. He set it up in the plain of Dura. Have a look in your margin. Where's the plain of Dura? It's the plain of Shinar. It will take you back to Genesis chapter 11 and verse 2.

88. 34:04

    So can you imagine? Young people. There was the golden image. There was the fiery furnace. Daniel's friends were commanded to. Well it wasn't bow down. It was to fall down. And I believe. They could see. Not only the golden image. And not only the fiery furnace. I also believe. Quite strongly actually. I believe.

89. 34:30

    They could see the Tower of Babel. And the Tower of Babel was the curse of God. When man tried to defy God. When they tried to make a name for themselves. And so God. He intervened. And he spread them. And he changed their languages. So when they were there. And they could see.

90. 34:51

    The Tower of Babel. This would be something that would give them a lot of confidence. Wouldn't it? God was going to do it again. Nebuchadnezzar was trying to reverse everything that was going on there. They would have had a lot of confidence. So I think that was going on. Now let me just tell you a bit about this Etamananke.

91. 35:07

    Well the first thing. As we've said before. Daniel's name was Belteshazzar. And one of the names there. Or the meanings of his name. Is the keeper of the hidden treasures of Bel.

92. 35:21

    There are a number of translations for that name. Belteshazzar. But particularly for the young ones. One of the translations of the name Belteshazzar. Is the keeper of the hidden treasures of Bel.

93. 35:35

    And we know. Because we can read it here. In Daniel chapter 1. Can we just read together. Verses 1 and 2. Of Daniel chapter 1. What was going on? How does this book begin? In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah. Came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem besieged.

94. 35:55

    So he comes down. And takes Jerusalem. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand. With part of the vessels. Of the house or the temple of God. Which was in Jerusalem. Which he carried into the land of Shinar. To the house or the temple of his God. And he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his God.

95. 36:12

    Isn't it interesting that the name Belteshazzar. Could well mean. The keeper of the hidden treasures of Bel. Daniel could well have been given the responsibility. Of looking after these vessels.

96. 36:22

    And here. It's in the house of his God. This was the prime temple in Babylon. And the prime temple in Babylon is the Etamanan king. So therefore. By deduction. It could well have been. The Tower of Babel. That the vessels of Jerusalem. Were placed in the Tower of Babel. Can you imagine that?

97. 36:46

    And Daniel. And his three friends there. Would have gone and seen it. And Daniel had the personal responsibility. And we know that Nebuchadnezzar. Whatever kingdom he invaded. He brought in slaves. He brought in their vessels. He brought in their treasures. And no doubt. The Tower of Babel was just filling up. With all the treasures of the world.

98. 37:03

    And I believe Daniel. Not only had the responsibility. Of the treasures of Israel. But he had the treasures of all the world. I'm just trying to bring this to life for you. This is not a theoretical book. Where we read about this lovely Daniel. This really happened. In these conditions. And it's marvelous.

99. 37:23

    No wonder. It says about Daniel. He had an excellent spirit. Well. I want to draw your attention. To something I found very fascinating. So I told you. Didn't I? That Nebuchadnezzar restored the Etamananke. The Tower of Babel.

100. 37:40

     But what did he do with it? If he restored it? Well he put that blue top on it. That's what he did. The color of the Ishtar Gate. That's what he did. That's what archaeologists have concluded. That is the very model. In Calderwey's case. Right? And you know what that is? What do you think it is?

101. 38:07

     What do you think? Closer up. What do you think the blue top is? It's a tower. Yes? What did you say? Sorry Jim? Legos. No. No. What do you think it is? What do you think that is?

102. 38:28

     A two? Starts with a T. Close. Temple. Yes. Yes. It's a temple. That's what he did. He put a blue temple on the top. With these beautiful blue glazed bricks. Now count the levels. There are seven levels. And each level had a staircase. And the staircase went to heaven. I want you to imagine.

103. 38:50

     As you're standing there. And this was 90 meters high. It was the largest building in the world. Other than the two pyramids of Giza. It was the tallest building. Right up to the Iron Age. Right? This is massive. Staircase to heaven. Seven levels. And there was a temple. Now the temple there was the temple of Maduk and his wife.

104. 39:16

     A lady called Sarpanutu. Right? And that's the temple. And they found a little inscription in that temple. And guess what they called that temple? And bear in mind that Daniel and his three friends were in Babylon when this was built. Guess what the temple was called? At the top. Of possibly the Tower of Babel.

105. 39:43

     That's another talk. That's another talk. Can I tell you this? Just have a hush here because when I found this it was amazing. You know what it was called? The Holy of Holies.

106. 39:59

     The Holy of Holies. And I've already showed you in the class that Nebuchadnezzar knew everything about the history of Israel. He even knew bits of the law. And he calls the temple the Etamananke. The temple of the Etamananke. He calls it the Holy of Holies. And I could not even tell you from the platform the kind of things that took place in that.

107. 40:19

     So I won't. It was an absolute abomination. Babylon the Great. The mother of harlots. No wonder. Isn't that amazing? The Etamananke. Not much has been written about it. Absolutely fascinating. And here's an illustrator's view. It was magnificent. It was one of the wonders of the world. No wonder. Nebuchadnezzar took great pride in that which he built.

108. 40:48

     There's a view of looking up. Can you imagine that? Can you remember how many temples there were in Babylon? Hold on. Yes. The boomer over there. 1197. 1,197 temples. Extraordinary. And this was the most magnificent one. Right? Isn't that thrilling? I think it is. That's what it looked like. Well. That was the Etamananke.

109. 41:23

     What I want to do just very quickly now is just show you a few of the interesting Bible archaeological discoveries of Babylon that I found that I thrilled over. So this is something else that's discovered in the British Museum. It's called the Babylonian Chronicle. And what it does, it records Nebuchadnezzar coming down and removing King Jehoikin and replacing that king with King Zedekiah.

110. 41:45

     What's so exciting about that? Well, I'll show the young people after. The text on this tablet is exactly the same as 2 Kings 24 verses 8 to 17. There is not any anomaly with the correlation there with what's in the text on the tablet and what we find in our scriptures.

111. 42:11

     Absolutely accurate. Remember what I said at the outset? It made me believe in the historical accuracy of God's word. This was one of the most significant moments in the history of Israel when the king comes and removes the king of Judah. I shall overturn, overturn, overturn.

112. 42:31

     It tells us also something that's not in the scriptures. It tells us that Nebuchadnezzar came down on the night of the 15th of March, 597 BC. Isn't that amazing? It tells us the very night. We don't get that in scripture. The 15th of March. You can put that in your diary. The 15th of March, 597 BC.

113. 42:49

     On that night, King Nebuchadnezzar came down and removed King Jehoikin and replaced it with King Zedekiah. Isn't that wonderful? Well, this is the cylinder of Nebuchadnezzar. This was discovered in the 1800s. It's very difficult to ascertain how it was discovered, but there you have it. It was found in one of the ziggurats in Ur of the Chordes, where Abraham came from in Genesis chapter 11.

114. 43:13

     Why is this so interesting? Well, this cylinder mentions a man that until this discovery was found, there had been no other discovery of that name outside the Bible. So classically, scholars, historians, academics have challenged the authority of God's word because they're saying, well, if he was so important, well, why have we not discovered his name anywhere?

115. 43:41

     Well, we did. I didn't. But it was found in 1854, and it's called the Cylinder of Nabunidas, and the name Belshazzar is mentioned. Belshazzar. Who was Belshazzar? Can you remember? Can I say that? Can I say that? He was the idiot. Right? He was the idiot. So let's go to Daniel chapter 5, and let's remind ourselves of this idiot.

116. 44:02

     Right? Daniel chapter 5. So this was discovered in 1854, this cylinder. And I want to remind us of this man, the most foolish of all the kings of Babylon, who should have known better. He should have followed the ways of his grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar. And this is what it says here in Daniel chapter 5.

117. 44:24

     Belshazzar, the king, made a great feast to a thousand of his lords and drank wine before the thousand. Belshazzar, while he tasted the wine, he commanded to bring the gold and silver vessels, which his father, it should be grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple, which was in Jerusalem, that the king and his princes and wives and his concumis might drink therein.

118. 44:44

     So they brought in the golden vessels. So I want you to imagine this picture here. This scene. There was Belshazzar. He had no regard for the God of Israel. He says, go in, get those vessels, the vessels that Daniel was overseeing. But perhaps he wasn't overseeing them now, because this man knows nothing about Daniel.

119. 45:03

     He says, bring them all in. We're going to fill them with wine, and we're going to become totally intoxicated. And they get drunk. But as soon as those vessels touch their lips, the curtains of Babylon are drawn. The city is going to come to an end that night. The foolish, foolish, foolish king.

120. 45:24

     Now, this was discovered in 1854. It's called the Cylinder of Nabinidus. Nabinidus was the father. He was the son-in-law of Nebuchadnezzar. And he writes a little prayer to Marduk about his son. Right? And it's a private prayer. Now, parents, we have private conversations, don't we, about our children.

121. 45:49

     Right? A few smiles. This king's no different. Look what he writes. He says, There's a real sense in those words that Nabinidus is very concerned about Belshazzar. That he's going off track a little. Maybe he knew that he liked extravagant banquets. And he's concerned. This is real concern of a father about his son, isn't it?

122. 46:31

     And look at Daniel chapter 5. This is a king that is behaving completely differently to any of his forefathers. Isn't that interesting? Don't you find that interesting? Are you a hard audience to impress? You're just looking at me in, like, silence. Right? I found that really fascinating because we're getting into the characters of people here.

123. 46:58

     Right? 1854. And until this was discovered, as I said, it was refuted that Belshazzar ever existed. Such an important person there who hosted this great banquet. But then suddenly we know all about him. And he is accepted. Now, my final archaeological piece is something that I found quite fascinating. The Dead Sea Scrolls.

124. 47:23

     The Dead Sea Scrolls. We all know about the Dead Sea Scrolls. Well, something we might not be aware of is that there was an Aramaic script that was found. It was a fragment of a scroll that was found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Did you know anything about that? Nope. Nope. Okay. Well, a little bit of fragment was found in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

125. 47:46

     And this is what was written on them. It concerns the same king that we were talking about just a moment ago. And he says there, it's about, I'll read the full text. It's the prayer here of Nabionidus. You've got the summary on the screen. The words of the prayer which Nabionidus, king of Assyria and Babylon, the great king, prayed.

126. 48:13

     So he's the son-in-law of Nebuchadnezzar. He's the father of Belshazzar. So it's another prayer. Found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Prayed when he was infected with a nasty skin disease by the ordinance of God, most high in the city of Temer. And then we get to this section. Look at this.

127. 48:34

     Nabionidus says these words, I was infected with a nasty skin disease for many years. But when I confessed my sins and my faults, he granted me. This person is totally unidentified. He granted me a verdict. And there was a Jew. And he wrote and told me to give honor to the name of God most high.

128. 48:59

     Now, the vast majority of authorities believe that this is genuine. There are just a few. That's why I mention it, because I want to be absolutely transparent with you tonight. There are a few that refute it. But the vast majority say that this text is genuine. So with those thoughts, can you, again, have a look at Daniel with me.

129. 49:19

     Daniel chapter 3. Is there a message that Daniel had in every king he went to? What was he saying? You know what he was saying. Daniel chapter 3. Verse 26.

130. 49:33

     Well, this is the account of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spake and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Neger, ye servants of the most high God. Where'd Nebuchadnezzar got that from? Well, we go over a chapter or a page to chapter 5 now.

131. 49:54

     And verse 18. O thou king. Now he's talking to the son of the person who wrote this text on the screen. O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom and majesty and glory and honor. And then finally in verse 21. And he was driven from the sons of many.

132. 50:17

     His heart was made like the beasts. This is Nebuchadnezzar who was made into a beast for seven times. And his dwelling was with the wild asses. They fed him with grass like oxen. And his body was wet with the dew of heaven. Till he knew that the most high God ruled. It was a repeated message.

133. 50:35

     It was known by the courts. And here Nebuchadnezzar, the father of Belshazzar, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, he says, When I had this skin infection, there was a Jew who told me all about the name of God most high. Well, young people, hopefully I've conveyed some of the enthusiasm I have for this subject.

134. 51:02

     But if you're still wondering whether you can believe in the Bible, so talking to the teens particularly, some of you may well be thinking, Can I believe in the Bible? Can I trust it? Well, hopefully tonight we have shown you that from a historical perspective, it is absolutely true. It confirms everything that you have in your Bible.

135. 51:30

     And bear in mind, the Bible, we believe, is inspired. And the things that have been discovered in just the last hundred years confirms everything. People, civilizations, empires, Bible characters, the lot. And I'm not going to finish with my quote. I'm going to finish with an archaeologist who was arguably one of the most famous archaeologists over the last hundred years.

136. 51:55

     A man called Nelson Glueck. How many archaeologists get to the front of Time magazine? He lived from 1900 to 1971. And near the end of his life, 1960, when he finished his work in archaeology, and he was overseeing all the archaeology of the Holy Land, Syria, all the Bible places, this is what he said.

137. 52:23

     And these words are for you, young people. You who are thinking about this Bible, this book on your lap, whether you can trust it. This man completed 1,500 individual digs in his life. And this is what he said. As a matter of fact, however, it may be clearly stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted or contradicted a single biblical reference.

138. 52:57

     That's amazing, isn't it? That's amazing. Scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible.

139. 53:15

     That could be a Christodalphia. But it's not. It's a leading authority in archaeology. So I put it to you, young people. I can ask you the question, can you believe the Bible? Yes, you can trust it. And I'll go further than that. You can trust it with your life. Thank you. Thank you for listening to the Good Christodalphian Talks podcast.

140. 53:54

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141. 54:12

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142. 54:36

     If you know of a great talk, we want to know about it too. Send a suggestion to our email at goodchristodelphiantalks at gmail.com or message us on any of our social media accounts. Thank you for listening. God bless and talk to you next week. Thank you.

143. 55:02

     Thank you.