Top Ten Discoveries in Biblical Archaeology Relating to the New Testament

Simply put, there have been too many discoveries over the past 150 years of archaeological investigation that confirm the historical reliability of Scripture to settle on just the top ten of all-time. This list focuses on discoveries and inscriptions that are largely accepted by the academic world and avoids ones that are highly debatable. My criteria for choosing the top ten discoveries are as follows:

It must be directly related to biblical people (or people groups), places or events;
It must be related to the composition of the Bible itself.

10) Sergius Paulus Inscriptions

In Acts 13, we read of how Saul and Barnabas set off on a missionary journey to the Island of Cyprus. Upon arriving at Paphos, they meet the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, leading him to faith in Christ. Luke describes him as “a man of intelligence” (Acts 13:7). This is true as Sergius Paulus was also a first-century author and is one of the authorities referenced by Pliny the Elder in his classic, Naturalis Historia.

Numerous inscriptions have been discovered that may refer to Sergius Paulus, and the Sergii Paulii’s seem to have bene a prominent family in the Roman Empire. Archaeological findings include:

In 1877, an inscription was discovered at Soli, not far from Paphos that references, “the proconsul Paulus.”
Another inscription from Rome, dating to the mid-40’s, names Lucius Sergius Paulus as one of the curators of the Tiber River under the Emperor Claudius.
Finally, numerous inscriptions, most famous of which names a “L. Sergius Paulus,” have been discovered near Pisidian Antioch, the site of the family estate.

These inscriptions intersect with the biblical account in very interesting ways. The Soli inscription confirms the Paulus family on Cyprus and that one of them was a proconsul. The inscriptions from Pisidian Antioch indicate that the Paulus family estate was located nearby, and the Tiber River Inscription from Rome suggests that Sergius Paulus held other roles within the Roman Empire. Furthermore, in Acts 13, Saul’s name is changed to Paul immediately after leading Sergius Paulus to the Lord. Immediately after leaving Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas make their way to Pisidian Antioch, suggesting Paul made his way there to share the gospel with the rest of Sergius Paulus’ family. Regardless of how one interprets the data, the numerous Sergius Paulus inscriptions confirm the historicity of the Sergius Paulus family and may reference the very Sergius Paulus mentioned in the Bible.

9) Pool of Siloam

In John 9, Jesus heals a blind many by making a mud poultice and applying it to his eyes, and then telling him to go and wash in the Pool of Siloam. Visitors to Jerusalem have long visited a 5th-century Byzantine “Pool of Siloam” that had been built by Empress Eudocia to commemorate this miracle. However, the exact location of the Pool of Siloam of Jesus’ day remained a mystery until its discovery in 2004.

In the summer of that year, repairs were being made to a drainage system when two ancient steps were uncovered. Archaeologists were called in and when the excavations were complete, a large pool was uncovered. In all at least 20 steps leading down from the street level into the pool were revealed. Pottery from one end of the pool was used to date it to the First-Century AD, while at the southern end, a large wall and section of the pool dating to the Old Testament period was discovered. This discovery confirmed the location was exactly where scholars had long believed the actual Pool of Siloam was situated.