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The Discovery Channel program is focused around the work of Kent Weeks. He's the one excavating the tomb of the princes of Rameses, which was discovered around 10 to 12 years ago. I know Weeks is a very cautious scholar, so I don't expect him to go out on a limb and make some preposterous claim.Because he lives and works in Egypt, he's probably not going to say something that's is too pro-Bible. Egyptians get a little nervous about that kind of thing, so I don't expect anything stunning to come out.

But obviously these are tantalizing headlines. They've got evidence that something might tell us about the death of the firstborn. I'm anxious to see what it is.

How much weight should a Christian place on archeological evidence?

It depends. Often there are disputed interpretations of data. Reading texts, there can be disputes in the meanings of words. Interpretations can change as our interpretation of the Bible can change as we get a better knowledge of Greek or Hebrew or things that we thought we understood in the days of the King James Bible, we now in the light of new linguistic evidence have clearer understanding. I think that's true of any academic discipline.

So the sun can rise and set on archeology, but it certainly can help us.

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More about the Discovery Channel's Rameses: Wrath of God or Man? is available from their website, including previews, a Rameses user guide, Rameses reconstructed, the tomb, and much more. The program is Sunday, Dec. 5, 9-11 p.m., eastern time.

Hoffmeier is also quoted in a Christianity Today article from 1998, Did the Exodus Never Happen? | How two Egyptologists are countering scholars who want to turn the Old Testament into myth. (The article is now available through our Christianity Today Library.)

News elsewhere about Amun-her-khepeshef includes:

Pharaoh's legacy lives on | Archaeologists believe they have found the remains of four of those sons during the excavation of a tomb called KV5, the largest in Egypt's famed pharaonic burial ground, the Valley of the Kings, outside Thebes. (USA Today, Nov. 30, 2004)

Tomb may shed light on 10th plague | This is the skull of a man who the Hebrew Bible says was killed by the 10th of the horrible plagues God sent to convince pharaoh to free the Hebrew slaves. And if so, it contains an important new piece of forensic evidence: The skull has a depressed fracture on the left hand side which pathologists say clearly occurred at the time of death. (Boston Globe, Nov. 23, 2004)

Christianity Today's earlier coverage of archaeology includes:

CT Classic: Why We Dig the Holy Land | If biblical archaeology is not reinvigorated, Scripture-illuminating evidence will remain buried in the Middle East. (Sept. 26, 2003)

CT Classic: Listening to the Fifth Gospel | The sun-baked ruins of the Holy Land have a story to tell. (Sept. 25, 2003)

What Do the Stones Cry Out? | Beware of claims that archaeology disproves—or proves—the Bible is true. (Sept. 24, 2003)

Top Ten New Testament Archaeological Finds of the Past 150 Years | How do shrouds, boats, inscriptions, and other artifacts better help us understand the Christ of the Ages? (Sept. 23, 2003)

Bones of Contention | Why I still think the James bone box is likely to be authentic. (Sept. 22, 2003)

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November (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48