This past month reports from the world of biblical archaeology included a study on a biblical weapon, carbon dates for a biblical gate, and more evidence for a lost biblical city. Here were the top three reports in biblical archaeology for November 2023.
3. Cache of Over 400 Slingstones Discovered in Northern Israel
In the most recent issue of the journal Atiqot, published by the Israel Antiquities Authority, researchers studied 423 slingstones discovered at Ein Zippori and Ein Esur in northern Israel. The slingstones all dated to the Chalcolithic Period (Copper Age), and were nearly identical in size and shape. They were made from dolomite limestone, had a biconical design, averaged 2 in (52 mm) in length, and weighed about 2 oz (60 g) each. The similarity of the slingstones in size and shape led the authors of the study to conclude that they are evidence of large-scale production of weapons, indicating local power centers in the region. The slingstones are, in fact, the earliest evidence of systematic weapons production yet discovered in Israel. Slings were formidable weapons in the ancient world and are attested in the Bible. David was, perhaps, the most famous biblical slinger, killing Goliath in man-to-man combat with a sling and a stone (1 Sam 17:40–50), although the men of Benjamin were also renowned for their slinging abilities: “Among all these [people of Benjamin] were 700 chosen men who were left-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss” (Jdg 20:16).
2. New Radiocarbon Study Clarifies the Dating of Gezer’s Famous Six-Chambered Gate
A new radiocarbon study was recently published in the journal PLOS ONE which analyzes 35 radiocarbon dates from seven occupation layers at Gezer. These dates were obtained during recent excavations at Gezer led by the Tandy Institute for Archaeology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and they range from the latter part of the Late Bronze Age (LB IIB) to the Iron Age II. One interesting finding is that stratum 8, which includes the famous six-chambered gate, a casemate wall, and an administrative structure dates to early in the tenth century BC. This means these structures were built within the reign of Solomon, as the Bible says (1 Kgs 9:15). These findings also contradict the view of Israel Finkelstein, who has publicly stated that he believes Gezer was built about a century later by the Omride dynasty of the Northern Kingdom. A link to the study is included below.
NEWS LINKS: https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-773513
JOURNAL ARTICLE:
1. First-Century Wall Found beneath the Apse of the Church at el-Araj (Bethsaida?)
Archaeologists excavating at el-Araj, one of the candidate sites for the lost New Testament town of Bethsaida, have carefully removed the mosaic floor of the apse of a Byzantine church and have identified two earlier walls beneath it. One of the walls appears to have been “boxed in” by the apse and dates to the second or third century AD. Nearby, the team discovered an earlier wall perpendicular to the first and dating to the first century AD. The Byzantine church is believed to be the one mentioned in the writings of Willibald, the bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria, who visited Bethsaida in AD 725 and described a church that was built over the house of Peter and Andrew. The team’s hypothesis is that the Byzantines venerated the second- or third-century wall, mistakenly believing it to belong to the house of Peter and Andrew, since the first-century wall was likely under centuries of dirt by that point. This, of course, presumes that the first-century wall belonged to the house of Peter. More research is needed to determine whether it belongs to a house.
A link to ABR’s Digging For Truth episode entitled, “Where is Biblical Bethsaida?” is included below.
BONUS: DIGGING FOR TRUTH – EPISODE 85 – WHERE IS BIBLICAL BETHSADA?
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Thank you, Bryan, for making it more widely known that “the famous six-chambered gate, a casemate wall, and an administrative structure … [date] to early in the tenth century BC. This news helps make the reality of the United Kingdom more plausible to many and helps refute the later dates proposed by Finkelstein and others. Well done! –Lawrence Mykytiuk