'Two or three witnesses' - Legal documents in New Testament times
Archaeology can throw new light on the Bible story, even when it does not directly 'prove' it to be true.
For example, in the law given by Moses in the Old Testament, there was a principle that an accusation against someone could only be considered where there were at least two witnesses - see Deuteronomy chapter 17 verse 6 and chapter 19 verse 15.
In the New Testament, this principle is referred to in several places:
- Matthew's Gospel chapter 18 verse 16
- John's Gospel chapter 8 verse 17
- 2 Corinthians chapter 13 verse 1
- 1 Timothy chapter 5 verse 19
- Hebrews chapter 10 verse 28
- 1 John chapter 5 verse 7, and
- Revelation chapter 11 verse 3
By the time of Jesus, there was a clear preference for three witnesses rather than just two.
In 1951, a group of Bedouin tribesmen found some scroll manuscripts in a cave in the Wadi Murabba'at (also called Nahal Darga). These included some legal documents from the time of Christ - a promissory note, a marriage contract, and a letter of divorce. Both the promissory note and the letter of divorce are signed by three witnesses. (See p. 67-69 of 'The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Jewish origins of Christianity', by Carsten Peter Thiede.)
In 'The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Jewish origins of Christianity, Carsten Peter Thiede puts forward the interesting suggestion that this requirement for three witnesses may explain why the early Church kept the three very similar Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.