III. Confirmation by miracles.

A. The truthfulness of the prophets and the apostles were confirmed by supernatural miracles.

Greenleaf, Testimony of the Evangelists:

“In the fourth place, as to the conformity of their testimony with experience. The title of the evangelists to full credit for veracity would be readily conceded by the objector, if the facts they relate were such as ordinarily occur in human experience, and on this circumstance an argument is founded against their credibility. Miracles, say the objectors, are impossible; and therefore the evangelists were either deceivers or deceived; and in either case their narratives against the possibility of miracles, was founded on the broad and bold assumption that all things are governed by immutable laws, or fixed modes of motion and relation, termed the laws of nature, by which God himself is of necessity bound. This erroneous assumption is the tortoise, on which stands the elephant which upholds his system of atheism. He does not inform us who made these immutable laws, nor whence they derive their binding force and irresistible operation. The argument supposes that the creator of all things first made a code of laws, and then put it out of his own power to change them. The scheme of Mr. Hume is but another form of the same error. He deduces the existence of such immutable laws from the uniform course of human experience.

This, he affirms, is our only guide in reasoning concerning matters of fact; and whatever is contrary to human experience, he pronounces incredible. Without stopping to examine the correctness of this doctrine, as a fundamental principle in the law of evidence, it is sufficient in this place to remark, that it contains this fallacy: it excludes all knowledge derived by inference or deduction from facts, confining us to what we derive from experience alone, and thus depriving us of any knowledge, or even rational belief, or the existence or character of God. Nay more, it goes to prove that successive generations of men can make no advancement in knowledge, but each must begin de novo, and be limited to the results of his own experience. But if we may infer, from what we see and know, that there is a Supreme Being, by whom this world was created, we may certainly, and with equal reason, believe him capable of works which we have never yet known him to perform. We may fairly conclude that the power which was originally put forth to create the world is still constantly and without ceasing exerted to sustain it; and that the experienced connection between cause and effect is but the uniform and constantly active operation of the finger of God. Whether this uniformity of operation extends to things beyond the limits of our observation, is a point we cannot certainly know. Its existence in all things that ordinarily concern us may be supposed to be ordained as conducive to our happiness; and if the belief in a revelation of peace and mercy from god is conducive to the happiness of man, it is not irrational to suppose that he would depart from his ordinary course of action, in order to give it such attestations as should tend to secure that belief. “A miracle is improbable, when we can perceive no sufficient cause, in reference to his creatures, why the Deity should not vary his modes of operation; it ceases to be so, when such cause is assigned.”

But the full discussion of the subject of miracles forms no part of the present design. Their credibility has been fully established, and the objections of skeptics most satisfactorily met and overthrown, by the ablest writers of our own day, whose works are easily accessible. Thus much, however, may here be remarked; that in almost every miracle related by the evangelists, the facts, separately taken, were plain, intelligible, transpiring in public, and about which no person of ordinary observation would be like to mistake. Persons blind or cripple, who applied to Jesus for relief, were known to have been crippled or blind for many years; they came to be cured; he spoke to them; they went away whole. Lazarus had been dead and buried four days; Jesus called him to come forth from the grave; he immediately came forth, and was seen alive for a long time afterwards. In every case of healing, the previous condition of the sufferer was known to all witnessed the act of Jesus in touching him, and heard his words. All these, separately considered, were facts, plain and simple in their nature, easily seen and fully comprehended by persons of common capacity and observation. If they were separately testified to, by different witnesses of ordinary intelligence and integrity, in any court of justice, the jury would be bound to believe them; and a verdict, rendered contrary to the uncontradicted testimony of credible witnesses to any of these plain facts, separately taken, would be liable to be set aside, as a verdict against evidence. If one credible witness testified to the fact, that Bartimeus was blind, according to the uniform course of administering justice, this fact would be taken as satisfactorily proved. So also, if his subsequent restoration to sight were the sole fact in question, this also would be deemed established, by the like evidence. Nor would the rule of evidence be at all different, if the fact to be proved were the declaration of Jesus, immediately preceding his restoration to sight, that his faith had made him whole. In each of these cases, each isolated fact was capable of being accurately observed, and certainly known; and the evidence demands our assent, precisely as the like evidence upon any other indifferent subject. The connection of the word or the act of Jesus with the restoration of the blind, lame and dead, to sight, and health, and life, as cause and effect, is a conclusion which our reason is compelled to admit, from the uniformity of their concurrence, in such a multitude of instances, as well as from the universal conviction of all, whether friends or foes, who beheld the miracles which he wrought. Indeed, if the truth of one of the miracles is satisfactorily established, our belief cannot reasonably be withheld from them all. This is the issue proposed by Dr. Paley, in regard to the evidence of the death of Jesus upon the cross, and his subsequent resurrection, the truth of which he has established in an argument incapable of refutation.”

Exodus 4:1-9

¹ Then Moses answered and said, “But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, “The LORD has not appeared to you.”‘
²So the LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?”
He said, “A rod.”
³And He said, “Cast it on the ground.” So he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it.⁴Then the LORD said to Moses, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail” (and he reached out his hand and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand),⁵”that they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
⁶Furthermore the LORD said to him, “Now put your hand in your bosom.” And he put his hand in his bosom, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous, like snow.⁷And He said, “Put your hand in your bosom again.” So he put his hand in his bosom again, and drew it out of his bosom, and behold, it was restored like his other flesh.⁸”Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign, that they may believe the message of the latter sign.⁹And it shall be, if they do not believe even these two signs, or listen to your voice, that you shall take water from the river [That is, the Nile] and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry land.”

Exodus 10:1-2

¹ Now the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him,²and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son’s son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD.”

Joel 1:2-4

² Hear this, you elders,
        And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
        Has anything like this happened in your days,
        Or even in the days of your fathers?
       ³Tell your children about it,
        Let your children tell their children,
        And their children another generation.
       ⁴What the chewing locust [Exact identity of these locusts is unknown] left, the swarming locust has eaten;
        What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
        And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.

Exodus 15:11
“Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?

Exodus 20:18
Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off.

Numbers 14:11
Then the LORD said to Moses: “How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them?

Numbers 14:22
because all these men who have seen My glory and the signs which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have put Me to the test now these ten times, and have not heeded My voice,

Deuteronomy 4:34
Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

Deuteronomy 6:22
and the LORD showed signs and wonders before our eyes, great and severe, against Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his household.

Deuteronomy 26:8
So the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, with great terror and with signs and wonders.

Deuteronomy 29:3
the great trials which your eyes have seen, the signs, and those great wonders.

Deuteronomy 34:11
in all the signs and wonders which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land,

Joshua 3:5
And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you.”

Joshua 24:17
for the LORD our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed.

1 Samuel 10:7
And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you.

1 Samuel 10:9
So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day.

1 Kings 18:1-46

¹ And it came to pass after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth.”
²So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; and there was a severe famine in Samaria.³And Ahab had called Obadiah, who was in charge of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly.⁴For so it was, while Jezebel massacred the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and water.)⁵And Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go into the land to all the springs of water and to all the brooks; perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses and mules alive, so that we will not have to kill any livestock.”⁶So they divided the land between them to explore it; Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
⁷Now as Obadiah was on his way, suddenly Elijah met him; and he recognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Is that you, my lord Elijah?”
⁸And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your master, “Elijah is here.”‘
⁹So he said, “How have I sinned, that you are delivering your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?¹⁰As the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to hunt for you; and when they said, “He is not here,’ he took an oath from the kingdom or nation that they could not find you.¹¹And now you say, “Go, tell your master, “Elijah is here”‘!¹²And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from you, that the Spirit of the LORD will carry you to a place I do not know; so when I go and tell Ahab, and he cannot find you, he will kill me. But I your servant have feared the LORD from my youth.¹³Was it not reported to my lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, how I hid one hundred men of the LORD’s prophets, fifty to a cave, and fed them with bread and water?¹⁴And now you say, “Go, tell your master, “Elijah is here.”‘ He will kill me!”
¹⁵Then Elijah said, “As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely present myself to him today.”
¹⁶So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
¹⁷Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?”
¹⁸And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and have followed the Baals.¹⁹Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, [A Canaanite goddess] who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
²⁰ So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel.²¹And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.²²Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.²³Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it.²⁴Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.”
So all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.”
²⁵Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.”
²⁶So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.
²⁷And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”²⁸So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them.²⁹And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.
³⁰Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down.³¹And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” [Genesis 32:28] ³²Then with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed.³³And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.”³⁴Then he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time.³⁵So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water.
³⁶And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word.³⁷Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”
³⁸Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.³⁹Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The LORD, He is God! The LORD, He is God!”
⁴⁰And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!” So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and executed them there.
⁴¹ Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.”⁴²So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees,⁴³and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.”
So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”
⁴⁴Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, “Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.”‘
⁴⁵Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel.⁴⁶Then the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

1 Chronicles 16:12
Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,

1 Chronicles 16:24
Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.

Nehemiah 9:10
You showed signs and wonders against Pharaoh, Against all his servants, And against all the people of his land. For You knew that they acted proudly against them. So You made a name for Yourself, as it is this day.

Nehemiah 9:17
They refused to obey, And they were not mindful of Your wonders That You did among them. But they hardened their necks, And in their rebellion [Following Masoretic Text and Vulgate; Septuagint reads in Egypt] They appointed a leader To return to their bondage. But You are God, Ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, Abundant in kindness, And did not forsake them.

Job 9:10
He does great things past finding out, Yes, wonders without number.

Psalm 65:8
They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs; You make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice.

Psalm 77:11
I will remember the works of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.

Psalm 77:14
You are the God who does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples.

Psalm 78:11
And forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them.

Psalm 78:43
When He worked His signs in Egypt, And His wonders in the field of Zoan;

Psalm 89:5
And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints.

Psalm 96:3
Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.

Psalm 105:5
Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,

Psalm 105:27
They performed His signs among them, And wonders in the land of Ham.

Psalm 106:7
Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders; They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies, But rebelled by the sea--the Red Sea.

Psalm 107:24
They see the works of the LORD, And His wonders in the deep.

Psalm 135:9
He sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt, Upon Pharaoh and all his servants.

Psalm 136:4
To Him who alone does great wonders, For His mercy endures forever;

Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. [Literally God-With-Us]

Isaiah 19:20
And it will be for a sign and for a witness to the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the LORD because of the oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Mighty One, and He will deliver them.

Isaiah 38:7
And this is the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing which He has spoken:

Jeremiah 32:20
You have set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, to this day, and in Israel and among other men; and You have made Yourself a name, as it is this day.

Jeremiah 32:21
You have brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror;

Jeremiah 44:29
And this shall be a sign to you,’ says the LORD, “that I will punish you in this place, that you may know that My words will surely stand against you for adversity.’

Daniel 4:2
I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me.

Daniel 4:3
How great are His signs, And how mighty His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And His dominion is from generation to generation.

Daniel 6:27
He delivers and rescues, And He works signs and wonders In heaven and on earth, Who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

Matthew 11:4-6

⁴Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see:⁵The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.⁶And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.”

Matthew 12:38-40

³⁸ Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”
³⁹But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.⁴⁰For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Luke 11:29-32

²⁹ And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, “This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. [NU-Text omits the prophet] ³⁰For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.³¹The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.³²The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

The miraculous feeding of over 5000.

Matthew 14:13-21

¹³ When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.¹⁴And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.¹⁵When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food.”
¹⁶But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
¹⁷And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.”
¹⁸He said, “Bring them here to Me.”¹⁹Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.²⁰So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.²¹Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Mark 6:30-44

³⁰ Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.³¹And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.³²So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.
³³But the multitudes [NU-Text and M-Text read they] saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him.³⁴And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.³⁵When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.³⁶Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; [NU-Text reads something to eat and omits the rest of this verse] for they have nothing to eat.”
³⁷But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.”
And they said to Him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”
³⁸But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
And when they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.”
³⁹Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.⁴⁰So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.⁴¹And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.⁴²So they all ate and were filled.⁴³And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.⁴⁴Now those who had eaten the loaves were about [NU-Text and M-Text omit about] five thousand men.

Luke 9:10-17

¹⁰ And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.¹¹But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.¹²When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.”
¹³But He said to them, “You give them something to eat.”
And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.”¹⁴For there were about five thousand men.
Then He said to His disciples, “Make them sit down in groups of fifty.”¹⁵And they did so, and made them all sit down.
¹⁶Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude.¹⁷So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them.

John 6:1-3

¹ After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias.²Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased.³And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples.

John 6:4-15
⁴Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near.⁵Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?”⁶But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
⁷Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.”
⁸One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him,⁹”There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”
¹⁰Then Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.¹¹And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples [NU-Text omits to the disciples, and the disciples] to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted.¹²So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.”¹³Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.¹⁴Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
¹⁵ Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.

Mark 9:39
But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me.

Mark 16:20
And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen. [Verses 9-20 are bracketed in NU-Text as not original. They are lacking in Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus, although nearly all other manuscripts of Mark contain them]

Luke 23:8
Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad; for he had desired for a long time to see Him, because he had heard many things about Him, and he hoped to see some miracle done by Him.

John 1:32
And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.

John 2:1-11

¹ On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.²Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.³And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”
⁴Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”
⁵His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
⁶Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.⁷Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.⁸And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it.⁹When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.¹⁰And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
¹¹This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

John 2:23
Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.

John 3:2
This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”

John 4:48
Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”

John 5:1-15

¹ After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.²Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, [NU-Text reads Bethzatha] having five porches.³In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.⁴For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had. [NU-Text omits waiting for the moving of the water at the end of verse 3, and all of verse 4] ⁵Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.⁶When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”
⁷The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.”
⁸Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”⁹And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.
And that day was the Sabbath.¹⁰The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.”
¹¹He answered them, “He who made me well said to me, “Take up your bed and walk.”‘
¹²Then they asked him, “Who is the Man who said to you, “Take up your bed and walk’?”¹³But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.¹⁴Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”
¹⁵The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

John 6:26
Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.

John 6:30
Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?

John 7:31
And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”

John 9:16
Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.

John 10:25
Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me.

John 11:38-44

³⁸ Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.³⁹Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”
Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.”
⁴⁰Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”⁴¹Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. [NU-Text omits from the place where the dead man was lying] And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.⁴²And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”⁴³Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”⁴⁴And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”

John 11:47
Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs.

John 12:17
Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness.

John 12:36-38

³⁶While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.
³⁷ But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him,³⁸that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:
“Lord, who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?”

Isaiah 53:1

¹Who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

John 20:30
And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;

Acts 2:22
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—

Acts 2:43
Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

Acts 4:15-17

¹⁵But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,¹⁶saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.¹⁷But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

Acts 4:29-31

²⁹Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,³⁰by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”
³¹And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Acts 5:12-16

¹² And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon’s Porch.¹³Yet none of the rest dared join them, but the people esteemed them highly.¹⁴And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women,¹⁵so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them.¹⁶Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

Acts 6:8
And Stephen, full of faith [NU-Text reads grace] and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.

Acts 7:36
He brought them out, after he had shown wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

Acts 8:6
And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.

Acts 8:13
Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done.

Acts 13:1-12
¹ Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.²As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”³Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
⁴ So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.⁵And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant.
⁶Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus,⁷who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.⁸But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.⁹Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him¹⁰and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?¹¹And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time.”
And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.¹²Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.

Acts 14:3
Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.

Acts 15:12
Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles.

Acts 19:11
Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,

Romans 15:18-20

¹⁸For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient--¹⁹in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.²⁰And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation,

1 Corinthians 14:22
Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophesying is not for unbelievers but for those who believe.

2 Corinthians 12:10-12

¹⁰Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
¹¹ I have become a fool in boasting; [NU-Text omits in boasting] you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing.¹²Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds.

Hebrews 2:1-4

¹ Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.²For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward,³how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,⁴God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?

The significance of miracles is discussed at the following links:

Dr. Norman Geisler. “Miracles,”

http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/theological-dictionary/TD1002W3.htm

Dr. Norman Geisler. “Miracles: Providing Validation for the Christian Faith—Part One,”

http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/theological-dictionary/TD0103W1.htm

Dr. Norman Geisler. “Miracles: Providing Validation for the Christian Faith—Part Two,”

http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/theological-dictionary/TD0103W3.htm

Glenn Miller. “Good question--Did the NT authors invent the miracle stories in the gospels?”

http://www.christian-thinktank.com/mqx.html

“Were the Miracles of Jesus invented by the Disciples/Evangelists?”

http://www.christian-thinktank.com/mq9.html

B. The prophets and apostles warned of counterfeits, and encouraged testing.

Deuteronomy 13:1-3

¹ “If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder,²and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, “Let us go after other gods’--which you have not known--”and let us serve them,’³you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Deuteronomy 18:22
when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.

Proverbs 6:19
A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.

Psalm 27:12
Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries; For false witnesses have risen against me, And such as breathe out violence.

Psalm 35:11
Fierce witnesses rise up; They ask me things that I do not know.

Proverbs 12:17
He who speaks truth declares righteousness, But a false witness, deceit.

Proverbs 14:5
A faithful witness does not lie, But a false witness will utter lies.

Proverbs 14:25
A true witness delivers souls, But a deceitful witness speaks lies.

Proverbs 19:28
A disreputable witness scorns justice, And the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.

Matthew 7:15
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

Matthew 7:16-19
¹⁶You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?¹⁷Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.²⁰Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Matthew 12
³³ “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.

Luke 6
⁴³ “For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.⁴⁴For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.⁴⁵A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart [NU-Text omits treasure of his heart] brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Matthew 24:11
Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

Matthew 24:24
For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

Mark 13:22
For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

Mark 14:56
For many bore false witness against Him, but their testimonies did not agree.

Mark 14:57
Then some rose up and bore false witness against Him, saying,

Luke 6:26
Woe to you [NU-Text and M-Text omit to you] when all [M-Text omits all] men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets.

Acts 17:10-12

¹⁰ Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.¹¹These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.¹²Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men.

Galatians 1:6-9

⁶ I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel,⁷which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.⁸But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.⁹As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.

1 Thessalonians 5:21
Test all things; hold fast what is good.

2 Peter 2:1-2

¹ But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.²And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.

1 John 4:1
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Revelation 2:2
“I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;