The prophet Isaiah had a long ministry, serving during the reigns of at least four kings of Judah, including Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Little is known about him personally, other than the fact that he was the son of Amoz (Is 1:1) who, according to Jewish tradition, was the brother of Amaziah, King of Judah. His name means “YHWH is salvation,” which was fitting as this was a major theme in his prophecies.

Many modern scholars tend to dismiss the idea that the book of Isaiah was written by a single person, preferring the theory that multiple authors wrote the book that bears the prophet’s name: either two authors (First Isaiah – ch. 1–39 and Second Isaiah – ch. 40–66) or three (First Isaiah – ch. 1–39, Second Isaiah – ch. 40–55, and Third Isaiah ch. 56–66).¹ This theory has serious shortcomings which is beyond the scope of this blog, but seems to be based in part on the presumptive and questionable logic that one person would not write in two different styles (prophetic and historical). Moreover, it often rests upon an anti-supernatural bias which denies that predictive prophecies revealed by God are possible.

In reality, there are numerous reasons to take this book as it is presented in the Bible: a single unified work of the prophet Isaiah in the 8^th century BC. First, both the New Testament and ancient Jewish sources treat the book of Isaiah as a single entity and attribute it to the prophet himself. For example, Jesus in John 12:37-40, as well as Paul in Romans 10:16, 20-21 both quote from the beginning and ending of the book attributing it to Isaiah the prophet. Secondly, there are phrases that are distinctive to Isaiah, such as “the Holy One of Israel” and “high and lifted up” which are used in all three parts of the book, suggesting a single author.²

If the prophet Isaiah actually prophesied in the Kingdom of Judah in the 8^th century BC, and experienced the events he described first-hand, one would expect some historical evidence that it is being accurately described by an eyewitness. Is there evidence that the people and events described in the book of Isaiah are rooted in history? Is there evidence that suggests his prophecies came true? I believe there is. Here are the top ten archaeological discoveries related to the book of Isaiah.

10. The Seal Impression of Isaiah

Is 1:1 – The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw…

In February 2018, archaeologist Eilat Mazar announced that she had discovered a bulla (clay seal impression) bearing the name Isaiah and the letters “N-V-Y”, the first three letters of the Hebrew word “prophet.” Unfortunately, the bulla was damaged and the all-important letter aleph is missing letter to complete the word “prophet”. Mazar suggests that a reconstruction of the border ring would allow space for the missing aleph. The bulla itself was unearthed in the Ophel excavations south of the Temple Mount in an Iron Age structure dubbed the “Royal Building” along with a cache of other bullae and not far from where the famous bulla of King Hezekiah (see below) was discovered. Given the inscription, the dating of the object, the archaeological context, and the connection in Scripture of Isaiah with King Hezekiah (2 Kings 19-20; Is 37-39) Eilat Mazar suggested this might be the signature of Isaiah the prophet.³ Other scholars, however, have cautioned that a positive identification with Isaiah is stretching the evidence. Christopher Rollston, has pointed out that there are multiple other possibilities for the word N-V-Y, other than reading it as “prophet.”⁴ Alan Millard noted that the title “prophet” would require a definite article “the” (or ha in Hebrew), which this bulla is missing: “There are other Hebrew seals or impressions which have a profession after the owners’ names and they all have the definite article (HSPR, meaning “the scribe”, for instance).”⁵ Lawrence Mykytiuk has cautioned, “We cannot assume there is room for an aleph, because that part of the bulla is broken off, and it is difficult to draw the surrounding ring made by the bezel with exact precision. As a result, certainty eludes us. To exercise caution seems to me to be a stronger position.”⁶ At this point, the seal impression must remain a possibility only, which is why it was not ranked higher on this list.

9. Shebna’s tomb

Is 22:15-16 – Thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, “Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: What have you to do here, and whom have you here, that you have cut out here a tomb for yourself, you who cut out a tomb on the height and carve a dwelling for yourself in the rock?

Shebna was the royal steward (Hebrew:˒ăšer ˓al habbāyt) during the reign of King Hezekiah. Isaiah castigated him for building a prominent tomb for himself, prophesying that he would be demoted (Is 22:20-21) and would eventually die in a foreign land, unable to use his tomb (Is 22:18).

In 1870 Charles Clermont-Ganneau discovered a hewn tomb high on a cliff overlooking the Kidron Valley and Jerusalem. Over the entrance was a partial inscription that read, “This is [the sepulcher of …] -yahu who is over the house. There is no silver and gold here but [his bones] and the bones of his slave-wife with him. Cursed be the man who will open this.”⁷ Shebna was sometimes spelled with the theophoric ending – yahu in antiquity; essentially, Shebna and Shebnayahu are similar forms of the same name.⁸ Further, the title of the individual who owned the tomb was the same as that used of Shebna by Isaiah: in Hebrew it is ˒ăšer ˓al habbāyt.⁹ Nahman Avigad noted that the “script as a whole is similar in style and form to the Siloam tunnel inscription,”¹⁰ which dates it to the time of King Hezekaih, when Shebna lived. It is quite possible that the rock-cut tomb on the cliff overlooking the Kidron Valley is the very tomb the prophet Isaiah chastised Sehbna/Shebnayahu for building. At the very least, it demonstrates that the elite of Jerusalem were indeed building the types of tombs described by Isaiah in the same place and at the same time he describes.

8. Burial Inscription of King Uzziah

Is 6:1 – In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the Isa train of his robe filled the temple.

When King Uzziah died, he was buried in a field and not in the royal tombs because he was a leper (2 Chr 26:23). Later, when Jerusalem expanded in the Herodian era, Uzziah’s tomb likely had to be moved. In 1931, E.L. Sukenik, a professor of archaeology at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, came across a marble slab with an Aramaic inscription while examining items in the Russian Orthodox monastery. It reads, “Here were brought the bones of Uzziah, king of Judah. Do not open.”¹¹ To be clear, the inscription does not date to the 8^th century BC, when Uzziah reigned, but rather to sometime between the Hasmonean and early Roman periods (ca 150 BC- 50AD), when his bones were moved, likely due to the expanding city, and reinterred.¹² Uzziah’s secondary burial plaque is currently on display at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem and is a vivid reminder of the death of Uzziah and the year that Isaiah received his vision.

7. Sargon’s Attack on Ashdod – Is. 20:1

Is 20:1 – In the year that the supreme commander, sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdod and attacked and captured it – at that time the LORD spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz.

For many years the identity of Sargon II was unknown to history apart from this verse. That all changed when Sargon’s palace was discovered at Dur Sharrukin, (literally in Akkadian, “Sargon’s Fortress”), known as modern Khorsabad. It was excavated by Paul-Émile Botta in 1843 and from 1858–65, as well as by Victor Place from 1928–35. Sargon’s annals were discovered on the walls in several rooms of his palace and were inscribed there to commemorate the inauguration of his palace in 707 BC.¹³

In his annals, Sargon explains the reason for his campaign against Ashdod. Azuri, the king of Ashdod withheld his tribute and tried to rally the neighboring kings to rebel against Assyria. Sargon deposed him and appointed Ahimiti, his brother as king. The people of Ashdod did not like this arrangement and deposed Ahimiti, placing Yadna on the throne instead. Sargon writes: “In my rage, I marched to Ashdod, his royal city, with my personal chariot and my horsemen, who even in friendly areas do not leave my side. I besieged Ashdod, Gath, and Ashd[od-yam,] and captured (them).”¹⁴ Some might question the accuracy of Isaiah’s comment that it was the supreme commander (literally, Tartan, a title well-known in Assyrian writings), who captured Ashdod, not Sargon personally, as he claims. It could be that the supreme commander was the one who captured Ashdod while Sargon, who was leading the campaign in Canaan, was at nearby Gath. Or, as Mordecai Cogan notes, “Assuming the accuracy [of Isaiah]… the claim of a royal victory at Ashdod is another example of the appropriation by the king of an achievement accomplished by the army.”¹⁵

Further confirmation of Sargon’s campaign against Ashdod was discovered in 1963 when three fragments of a stele (monument), inscribed in cuneiform, were discovered at Ashdod, along with a significant destruction layer and mass graves.¹⁶ This victory stele was erected in Ashdod by Sargon to commemorate his conquest of the city.¹⁷

6. The Tribute of Ahaz to Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria

Is 7:1-2 – When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it. Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

In response to the attacks by Rezin, King of Aram, and Pekah, king of Israel, Isaiah went to meet Ahaz at aqueduct of the Upper Pool to reassure him that designs of the two kings who were attacking Judah would fail and Jerusalem would be spared if they trusted in God. Instead, Ahaz turned to Assyria for help, paying him tribute of gold and silver from the Temple and the king’s house (2 Kgs 16:7-9). Isaiah was furious and prophesied that Assyria would one day attack Judah itself and shave it clean like a razor shaving a head bald (Is 7:20).

The annals of Tiglath-Pileser III were discovered when his palace was excavated in 1873. One tablet, known as Summary Statement Seven, lists the tribute kings of the west gave to Assyria, which included . “gold, silver, tin, iron, lead, multi-colored garments, linen garments, red-purple garments, [all kinds of] costly items, the produce of the sea (and) land, the commodities of their lands, royal treasures, horses, mules”¹⁸ Among the kings listed who gave tribute is “Jehoahaz of Judah.”¹⁹ The Assyrians referred to King Ahaz using his longer name with the theophoric prefix, whereas the Bible uses his shortened name. This inscription affirms the tribute Ahaz gave Tiglath-Pileser III, although the biblical inventory lists only the most precious items of gold and silver.

5. The Cyrus cylinder – Is. 45:13

Is 45:1 – Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed…

Isaiah prophesied the coming of a Persian king named Cyrus and his declaration to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple (Is 44:28) over 150 years before it came to pass. This is problematic for those who hold an a priori anti-supernatural bias; for those who believe that a sovereign, almighty God exists and can communicate future events through His prophets, Isaiah’s prophecy is within the realm of possibility.

Cyrus the Great did indeed rise to power in 559 BC and eventually subdued the Medes, the Elamites, and the Babylonians. In 539, after the conquest of Babylon, Cyrus issued a decree allowing captured people to return to their homelands. His decree survives in an Akkadian cuneiform inscription on the Cyrus Cylinder, which was discovered in the ruins of Babylon in 1879 by Hormuzd Rassam. On it, Cyrus declares:

“I am Cyrus, king of the world, great king, mighty king, king of Babylon, king of Sumer and Akkad…From [Babylon]… as far as the region of Gutium, the sacred centers on the other side of the Tigris, whose sanctuaries had been abandoned for a long time, I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there, to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings”²⁰

Ezra 1:1-3 records that Cyrus allowed the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem and to begin rebuilding their temple, as prophesied by Isaiah and affirmed by the general decree recorded on the Cyrus Cylinder. Dr. Bryan Wood explains the difference in wording between the Cyrus Cylinder and the declaration in Ezra: “In the case of the Jews…since they had no idols, the gold and silver articles taken from the Temple were returned. The specific proclamation pertaining to the Jews is documented in Ezra”²¹

4. Hezekiah’s Bulla

Is 37:21 – Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel….

While Isaiah’s prophetic ministry spanned the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, it is the latter king who figures most prominently: Hezekiah is mentioned by name over 30 times in the book of Isaiah, mostly in connection with the Assyrian invasion.

The historicity of King Hezekiah has been firmly established through Assyrian inscriptions of Sennacherib (see below) and multiple bullae (clay seal impressions) of King Hezekiah’s seal which have come to light.  While most have come via the antiquities market, another Hezekiah bulla was announced in 2015 which had been discovered while wet-sifting material excavated from a refuse dump in a Royal Building at the Ophel. The bulla is about one centimeter in diameter bears an ancient Hebrew inscription:

“לחזקיהו [בן] אחז מלך יהדה”

“Belonging to Hezekiah [son of] Ahaz king of Judah”²²

The Hezekiah bulla affirms not only Hezekiah’s historicity, but also his lineage, affirming biblical details about his life. Moreover, Isaiah and Hezekiah were in obvious communication with each other (Is 37:2) throughout the Judahite king’s reign. Perhaps Isaiah had at times received a letter from King Hezekiah stamped with his personal seal.

3. Sennacherib’s Annals

Is 36:1 – In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.

The Assyrian invasion of Judah in 701 BC is recorded by Isaiah (chapters 36 and 37), as well as in the books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. Sennacherib’s attack on Judah was in response to Hezekiah’s refusal to serve as an Assyrian vassal, as his father had done (2 Ki 18:7). According to the biblical text, while the Assyrian king invaded the land and threatened Jerusalem, he failed to take the city (Is 37:35-36).

Sennacherib’s annals also record his campaign against Judah. They are inscribed on three nearly identical clay prisms: the Taylor Prism²³, the Oriental Institute Prism²⁴, and the Jerusalem Prism²⁵.  Sennacherib boasts of his conquest:

“As for Hezekiah, the Jew, who did not submit to my yoke, 46 of his strong cities, as well as the small cities in their neighborhood, which were without number…Himself, like a caged bird I shut up in Jerusalem his royal city.²⁶

Sennacherib’s claim to take 46 of Hezekiah’s strong cities affirms the biblical record of the Assyrian capture of the fortified cities of Judah. Sennacherib hollow boast that he shut Hezekiah up in his royal city like a caged bird, is a veiled admission that he did not capture Jerusalem, which also aligns with the testimony of Isaiah.

2. The Lachish Reliefs

Is 36:2 – And the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem, with a great army.

When Sennacherib invaded Judah, his army laid waste to city after city as he advanced on Jerusalem. While the Assyrians were besieging Lachish (2 Chr 32:9-10), he sent word along with a show of force to Hezekiah that Jerusalem was next. While Sennacherib eventually took Lachish, arguably the second greatest city in Judah at that time, he failed to conquer Jerusalem, as seen above. When Sennacherib returned to Ninevah, he could not admit to failure, so he commissioned a series of reliefs to display his greatest triumph in Judah: the sacking of Lachish. These adorned the walls in his southwest palace. 

The Lachish Reliefs, as they are known, are one of the greatest finds in biblical archaeology.²⁷ They depict the capture of the city in stunning detail through successive panels of images, from the initial assault by Assyrian soldiers, to the defense of the city gate by Judahite archers, to the eventual fall of the city and the subsequent deportation of Hebrew citizens. In the final panel, Sennacherib himself is seen seated upon his throne as booty is paraded before him. The accompanying cuneiform inscription reads, “Sennacherib, king of the world, king of Assyria, set up a throne and the booty of Lachish passed before him.”²⁸ The Lachish Reliefs affirm the siege of Lachish as mentioned in the biblical text.

1. The Great Isaiah Scroll

Is 30:8 – And now, go, write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever.

The Great Isaiah Scroll (designated 1QIsa^a) was one of the original scrolls discovered in 1947 by a Bedouin goat herder in a cave at Qumran near the Dead Sea.  In all, portions of 980 scrolls were found in 11 caves between 1947 and 1956; 230 of these were sections of the Old Testament with every book represented except for Esther. The Great Isaiah Scroll is the best-preserved and most-complete biblical Dead Sea Scroll and dates to second century BC.²⁹ It is also one of the oldest biblical texts in existence.

The Great Isaiah Scroll is an important textual witness to the reliability of the transmission of the book of Isaiah. Since its discovery, scholars have studied the text and have noted that it closely reflects the Masoretic text of Isaiah in the most complete medieval manuscripts, such as the Lenangrad Codes from about 1000 AD. Simply put, in over 1000 years of transmission very little had changed apart from minor difference in spellings and insignificant scribal errors that do not affect the meaning of the text.  

Moreover, the Great Isaiah Scroll does not have a marked division between what modern scholars view as First and Second Isaiah.³⁰ While critical scholars today exaggerate perceived difference in various parts and “identify” multiple supposed authors, the scribes of the second century BC who faithfully copied the scroll viewed it as a unified book by a single author, as did (presumably) the earlier scribe who penned the manuscript which served as the exemplar for the Great Isaiah Scroll.

Conclusion

There are other discoveries not listed here that affirm historical details in the book of Isaiah, such as Mesopotamian writings that demonstrate the prophet’s accurate knowledge of contemporary idolatry (Is 44:10-20; 46:1).³¹ These ten discoveries above, in my opinion, are the most significant ones. They illuminate the prophecies of Isaiah and provide the historical background to his ministry. Moreover, they would seem to indicate that the book of Isaiah is a record of accurate prophecies attributed to this 8^th century BC prophet of Judah. If his prophecies concerning Assyria and Babylon came true as they did, I believe we can trust his prophecy about the Suffering Servant, who would be “pierced for our transgressions…crushed for our iniquities,” upon whom would fall the punishment that would bring us peace, and through whose wounds we could be healed (Is 53:5). The New Testament writers were inspired to see the fulfillment of this prophecy in the life, death, and resurrection Jesus Christ (Mt 8:14-17; Lk 22:35-38; Jn 12:37-41; 1 Pet 2:19-25; Acts 8:26-35).

Endnotes:

1 Christopher R. Seitz, “Book of Isaiah.” In The Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. D.N. Freedman. (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 3943.

2 Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. “Introduction to Isaiah” ESV Study Bible. (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008).

3 Eilat Mazar, “Is This the Prophet Isaiah’s Signature?” Biblical Archaeology Review 44:2 (March/April/May/June 2018), 70.

4 Christopher Rollston, “The Isaiah Bulla from Jerusalem: 2.0,” Rollston Epigraphy. http://www.rollstonepigraphy.com/?p=801 (Accessed July 18, 2023).

5 Philippe Bohstrom, “Isaiah the Prophet, Man or Biblical Myth: The Archaeological Evidence.” Haaretz, March 19, 2018.  https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/2018-03-19/ty-article-magazine-ext/isaiah-the-prophet-man-or-myth/00000180-179b-db53-a3aa-179f1ff00000 (Accessed Aug. 19, 2023).

6 Lawrence Mykitiuk, personal communication, Aug. 18, 2023.

7 Nahman Avigad, “The Epitaph of a Royal Steward from Siloam Village,” Israel Exploration Journal 3, no. 3 (1953), 143. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27924525 (Accessed Aug. 21, 2023).

8 Robert Deutsch, “Tracking Down Shebnayahu, Servant of the King.” Biblical Archaeology Review 35:3, May/June 2009, 45.

9 T.R. Hobbs, “Shebna” Anchor Bible Dictionary – 8085

10 Nahman Avigad, “The Epitaph of a Royal Steward from Siloam Village,” Israel Exploration Journal 3, no. 3 (1953), 149. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27924525 (Accessed Aug. 21, 2023).

11 Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish, Lost Treasures of the Bible. (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008), 140.

12 Fant and Reddish, 140.

13 Mordecai Cogan, The Raging Torrent: Historical Inscriptions from Assyria and Babylonia Relating to Ancient Israel. (Jerusalem: Carta, 2015), 99.

14 Cogan, 101.

15 Cogan, 109.

16 David Noel Freedman, “A Second Season at Ashdod.” The Biblical Archaeologist, Dec., 1963, Vol. 26, No. 4 (Dec., 1963), 138. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3211042 (Accessed Aug. 20, 2023)

17 Hayim Tadmor, “Philistia under Assyrian Rule.”  The Biblical Archaeologist, Sep., 1966, Vol. 29, No. 3 (Sep., 1966), 95. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3211004 (Accessed Aug. 20, 2023).

18 Mordecai Cogan, The Raging Torrent: Historical Inscriptions from Assyria and Babylonia Relating to Ancient Israel. (Jerusalem: Carta, 2015), 64.

19 Cogan, 64.

20 “Cyrus Cylinder Translation.” Livius.org. https://www.livius.org/sources/content/cyrus-cylinder/cyrus-cylinder-translation/ (Accessed Aug. 22, 2023).

21 Bryan G. Wood, “The Ongoing Saga of the Cyrus Cylinder: The Internationally-Famous Grande Dame of Ancient Texts.” Associates for Biblical Research. https://biblearchaeology.org/research/divided-kingdom/2877-the-ongoing-saga-of-the-cyrus-cylinder-the-internationallyfamous-grande-dame-of-ancient-texts (Accessed Aug. 22, 2023).

22 “Impression of King Hezekiah’s Royal Seal Discovered in Ophel Excavations South of Temple Mount in Jerusalem” Hebrew University of Jerusalem Press Release, Dec. 12, 2015.
https://new.huji.ac.il/en/article/28173 (Accessed Oct. 2, 2019).

23 The Taylor Prism is on display in The British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/W_1855-1003-1

24 The Oriental Institute Prism is held by the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago: https://oi.uchicago.edu/collections/highlights/highlights-collection-assyria

25 The Jerusalem Prism is located in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem: https://www.imj.org.il/en/collections/372815

26 Daniel David Luckenbill, The Annals of Sennacherib (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1924), 11-12.  Online: https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/oip2.pdf (Accessed June 11, 2020).

27 Bryan Windle, “Top Ten Discoveries Related to the Old Testament.” Bible Archaeology Report.

28 “Relief,” The British Museum. https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/W_1856-0909-14_7 (Accessed June 30, 2020).

29 Anthony Ferguson, “How Much Can the Most Famous Dead Sea Scroll Prove?” Text and Canon. Jan. 11, 2022. https://textandcanon.org/how-much-can-the-most-famous-dead-sea-scroll-prove/ (Accessed Aug. 22, 2023.

30 “The Great Isaiah Scroll MS A (1QIsa)” The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. https://www.imj.org.il/en/collections/198208-0 (Accessed Aug. 22, 2023).

31 Steven Caesar, “The Prophet’s Knowledge of Contemporary Idolatry.” Bible and Spade. Fall 2003. https://biblearchaeology.org/research/chronological-categories/divided-monarchy/3556-the-prophets-knowledge-of-contemporary-idolatry (Accessed Aug. 23, 2023).