An unusual and in depth study into the historical, documented and witnessed accuracy of the Bible finds that the story of Jesus of Nazareth is 99.5 percent true, more than any other ancient manuscript.
In Jesus on Trial, debuting Monday, lawyer and author David Limbaugh, writes, “There is an enormous amount of evidence that the Bible is historically reliable and that it was written by real men who were united in their commitment to truth.”
Limbaugh, a popular political author and brother of top-rated radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, said he conducted a legal investigation into the sources of the Bible to satisfy his own concerns about the book and his college-years doubt about whether Jesus really is the son of God.
His conclusion after his research for the book, which includes many of his sources, is that the Bible is more accurately documented than any other ancient manuscript. Referencing research into actual manuscripts for ancient writings, Limbaugh wrote that the Bible is tops and is “99.5 percent accurate.”
He adds, “There are still things I can’t fully explain — especially not to the stubborn doubter’s satisfaction — but by far, the most reasonable conclusion from the evidence is that the Triune God of the Bible is real, the Bible is the inspired word of God, the Bible is God’s direct, special revelation to us and informs us about God’s plan of salvation for mankind, and we ignore it at our peril.”
He notes that much of the New Testament was penned by those who witnessed Jesus and put down on parchment within 40 years of his death on a cross. He also provides evidence that churches didn’t make up the story.
In an interview, Limbaugh explained that when apostle Paul wrote about the resurrection, it was based on eyewitness accounts.
“Paul wrote about these 500 witnesses within some 20 years of the resurrection event when many of the witnesses were still alive. Had he and the other New Testament authors been fabricating these stories, these witnesses could have contradicted them, but there is no evidence that ever occurred. The evidence that Christ died an excruciating death on the cross, was buried in a tomb, that the tomb was later empty, and that he was resurrected in a physical body is powerful and overwhelming,” said Limbaugh.
The author said that he hopes his book published by Regnery gives Christians a new belief that the New Testament is accurate and inspiring. An advance copy of Jesus on Trial was provided to Secrets.
“I think many people do not take for granted the historical accuracy of the Bible. Many people, including some Christians, believe it is merely a book of allegories, great moral lessons, and fine literature, but not a reliable source of history even for the events it treats as historical,” he said.
“The short answer to why this matters is that Christianity’s truth claims depend on the accuracy of many of the historical events it describes, especially concerning the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The historical fact of the resurrection is pivotal — foundational — to the Christian faith,” he said.
“As our faith depends on the historical fact of the resurrection and the Bible is the source upon which we depend for that history it makes all the difference in the world whether it is accurate. I strongly believe, and am confident I demonstrate in my book, that compelling evidence exists that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, that its many and diverse authors were reliable witnesses and historians of what they recorded and that their words have been accurately transmitted and preserved through the years so that we are reading, in substance, what they originally wrote,” Limbaugh concluded.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
