Anyone who ever tells you that the Bible is the oldest known manuscript is either insane or has let faith blind them to the truth of History. Current research suggests that writing developed independently in at least three places - Egypt, Mesopotamia and Harappa between 3500 BC and 3100 BC. The oldest known object with a fragment of the Old Testament is a good luck charm, inscribed with a verse from the Book of Numbers (6:24-6:27), and dated to approximately 600 BCE. Though whole copies of the Bible were not found at Qumran, the documents of the Dead Sea scrolls contained versions of many books of the Hebrew Bible. The Scrolls have been dated from the 3rd century BCE to 68 CE.

This is not to say that the story of the Bible did not predate the writing. For we are told that

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up" (Deuteronomy 6:5-7).

From the time of Adam until the time of Moses, God's chosen did just this. They handed down the story of the Bible from generation to generation in oral tradition. Every known society has a "Great Flood" Story. The oldest written form of the story is the Epic of Gilgamesh. This is dated from somewhere between 2750 and 2500 BCE. But does this mean that it was the first recitation of this story, God Forbid! Even the American Natives have a "Great Flood" Story. Can we not see that the oral tradition was from the foundations of the Earth? The events transpired, then were told over and over again. Each society changing the tale to make it relevant to their own circumstances. And when God's message was changed so much that it was unrecognizable from the Truth, God sent Moses to rescue His people. And again after many many generations, God again sent His messengers in the form of Prophets to redirect His People. And after many more generations, He sent Christ to direct us toward righteousness. To say that the Epic of Gilgamesh is the authority on which every flood story descends is not understanding the nature of God's chosen people. It's not understanding God's message at all. To say that the message of salvation is not the oldest known ideal on Earth is denying the existence of God Himself.