Africans and Africa in the Bible

It’s time for the church in Africa to recognize its rich biblical heritage.

While many people think that Christianity is a “white man's religion,” nothing could be further from the truth. Christianity has deep roots in African soil, going all the way back to the pages of Scripture.

Africans and Africa in the Bible shows the rich presence and the deep participation of Africans in the biblical story. Tim Welch looks at everyone in the Bible’s text who can legitimately be considered as African, supporting his findings with both ancient and modern scholarship.

From the Egyptian Pharaohs, to Israel’s third high priest, to the first cross-cultural Christian missionaries, Africans can be found all over the Bible. This book provides extensive appendices to compile a complete list of the African people and places mentioned either directly or indirectly in the Christian Scriptures.

Africans and Africa in the Bible reminds us of an essential truth: Africans are not simply recipients of the gospel message – they are an integral part of it. Christianity is not a foreign faith, but has a noble African lineage. God’s plan for Africa is as ancient as the continent itself.

Through biblical scholarship and careful research, Tim Welch has done an excellent job in highlighting for us the place and role of Africans and Africa in the unfolding work of God throughout Scripture. I highly recommend this book to all those who wish to expand their understanding of the interwoven nature of God's dealings with the nations throughout biblical history and the place of Africans and Africa in it. —Joshua Bogunjoko, International Director, SIM (Serving In Mission)

Africans and Africa in the Bible by scholar and missionary Tim Welch has comprehensively surveyed all of the numerous, but often overlooked references to Africans and to Africa in the Old and the New Testament. This volume will be of special value and interest to both Christians and non-Christians on the African continent. —Edwin Yamauchi, author of “Africa and the Bible,” editor of “Africa and Africans in Antiquity”

Truly amazing....an essential read for anyone interested in knowing the place of Africans and Africa in the Bible. An inspiring, eye-opening, and stimulating book for this time when Christianity is the fastest growing religion in Africa. —Daniel Bourdanné, General Secretary, International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES)

This work is as enlightening as it is encouraging, for it is a great feeling for a people to see themselves in God's Holy Scriptures, for them to realize they are not alienated or despised but active participants in God's plan for the world. Africans and Africa in the Bible is poised to offer additional impetus that would whet African readers' appetite for God's Word. —Lawrence Darmani, Author and publisher, Step Publishers, Ghana

By simply and faithfully placing the biblical data regarding Africans and Africa before the reading public, Tim Welch has rendered a great service to the body of Christ. The many years he has spent in Africa, reading the Bible from within that context and together with Africans who love the Scriptures have yielded this wonderful and timely document which should add fresh impetus to what God is already doing in his Global Mission through the African people. Reading this has been energizing and empowering. —Mutua Mahiaini, International President, The Navigators

In this wonderful book, Tim Welch helps us to understand how Africa played a significant role in the story of God's people. It provides the foundation on which Africa continued to shape Christian thought during the first Millennium. —Mouneer Hanna Anis, former Bishop of the Episcopal/Anglican Diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa, Archbishop of Alexandria