Early Years of Research 4/5/2011. The Use and Abuse of Archaeology for Understanding the Bible. It s like putting a puzzle together

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1 The Use and Abuse of Archaeology for Understanding the Bible Archaeology tries to discover and preserve objects of the past. Monuments, palaces, temples, houses, tools, fireplaces, cooking utensils, jewelry, art, etc. It s like putting a puzzle together bone s potter y stones texts This helps us to understand ancient people and how they lived. art tombs tools politics tras h Early Years of Research Sometimes the pieces fit well together. Sometimes the pieces don t fit or at least we don t understand enough to know how they fit yet. potter y bone s texts Treasure hunters Looking for the big finds Actually found many Other significant aspects of ancient life were overlooked. stones art tools tombs tras h politics 1

2 Rosetta Stone Napoleon Egypt Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III Jehu son of Omri From Sennacherib s palace Relief depicting siege of Lachish 24,000 cuneiform tablets Babylonian flood story (George Smith) Inscription by Sennacherib that contained the names of Hezekiah, Judah, and Jerusalem. Soon the names of 55 rulers, cities, or countries common to the Hebrew Bible and Assyrian texts were confirmed. 2

3 4/5/2011 Relief depicting Sennacharib s Invasion of Lachish Sennacharib s Invasion of Lachish Reconstruction by Judith Dekel of the ceremonial entrance to the Lachish Room of Sennacherib s Southwest Palace. (p. 70) (p. 71) 3

4 4/5/2011 Flood Story from Gilgamesh Babylon ca BCE 4

5 Clermont-Ganneau ( ) rescued the Moabite Stone from local tribal disputes with the Ottoman s. Inscription of King Mesha of Moab Refers to Omri, King of Israel. Ca 4 ft. high; 24 in. wide 34 lines of text Finally was taken to the Louvre in Paris (1875). Babylonian Creation Story William Ramsey ( ) Explored Turkey following Paul s travels. Identified many places. Recorded many inscriptions illuminating the cities and culture of Paul s work. Stela of Merneptah Earliest Reference to Israel, 1209 BCE Discovered by Petrie in Egypt,

6 Earliest mention of Israel BCE Law Code of Hammurabi King of Babylon, c BCE Discovered by French team in SW Iran, at Susa, Large stela, over 7 ft. tall Gave greater understanding of ancient law codes. Many correspondences with Old Testament laws. 6

7 Hittites Royal archives discovered at Hattusa (Turkey) & Cuneiform script, some in Akkadian script th cen. BCE A library was found containing 10,000 clay tablets - court records, receipts, contracts, official documents etc. Some contained poetry and one was a Hittite copy of a peace treaty with Egypt, with the Hittites dictating the terms of Egyptian surrender. Archaeology and the Bible Three main approaches Illustrate the Bible. Illuminate, throw light on the Bible. Substantiate the Bible s historical picture. Prove the Bible true; corroborate the Bible. Comparative approach Determines parallels, similarities, and/or borrowing between the cultures of the Ancient Near East. Shows how Israel influenced and was influenced by her neighbors. Archaeology and the Bible Primary purposes of archaeology: Improves our knowledge of the world of the Bible. Helps us understand how the people lived in biblical times. Helps us have a better understanding of the relationships between Israel and her neighbors. So it helps us have a better understanding of the Bible itself directly and indirectly. Secondary purposes/results of archaeology: Confirm location of biblical places. Bethsaida References to names of biblical people David, Ahab, Jehu, Jeremiah, Hezekiah, Pontius Pilate, etc. Confirm identity of peoples. Hittites; origin of Philistines Confirm events mentioned in the Bible. Premature confirmations Noah s ark Ark of the covenant Sodom and Gomorrah Site of the crossing of the Red Sea Location of Sinai Burial box (Ossuary) of Jesus brother Cave of John the Baptist 7

8 4/5/2011 Storehouse for Grain Beersheba Giants in the Land? Intentional Hoaxes 8

9 Archaeological Anomalies 2 In this contest you will create a hoax archaeological discovery (i.e. Atlantis, a 2,000 year-old Coca-Cola can or a giant's skull, as in IronKite's themepost). Be open minded, there are many mysteries buried beneath the earth. The rules of this game are thus: You are to create an archaeological hoax. Your job is to show a picture of an archaeological discovery that looks so real, had it not appeared at Worth1000, people might have done a double take. As always, quality is a must. We will remove poor entries no matter how much we like you. You'll have 48 hours for this contest, so make your submission count. See the first contest for an idea of what this one is about. Premature Announcements Mt. Ararat, Turkey 1960 Noah s Ark is Discovered Again! And Again!! 9

10 February Ron meets with the Governor of the Agri District, Mr. Sevket Ekinci. The December 1986 decision was positive - it was the official decision of members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, of Internal Affairs, and researchers from Ataturk University, among others, that the "boat-shaped formation" did indeed contain the remains of Noah's Ark! Noah s Ark Again Spring 2010 Plans were made for the official dedication of the site, which would include Ron as guest of honor as the "discoverer" of the fact that it was truly the remains of Noah's Ark. June 20, Ron participates in the Dedication of "Noah's Ark." This picture provided by Noah's Ark Ministries International shows racks found on a wall inside a compartment of a structure that has been linked to Noah's Ark. 27/ noahs-ark-found-not-so-fast 10

11 4/5/2011 The Turkish Government is fully apprized of this research endeavor and has verified my discovery of the ancient ark on Büyük Ağrı Dağı: Edward Crawford Cairo Museum Shows an 8-spoke wheel on a Chariot Cab Ron Wyatt claimed he had found: Noah s Ark Sodom and Gomorrah Location of Red Sea crossing The real Mt. Sinai The Ark of the Covenant With Jesus blood on it The exact stake hole for Jesus cross Cave of John the Baptist Actually a Cistern 20 ft. above the Ark of the Covenant 11

12 4/5/2011 The Talpiot Tomb Shimon Gibson Amos Kloner Jesus Family Tomb Bone box with Jesus DNA The James ossuary was on display at the Royal Ontario Museum from November 15, 2002 to January 5, Wikipedia:Copyrights 12

13 Legitimate Finds The jury is still out on this one literally. THE HOUSE OF DAVID INSCRIPTION Tel Dan 9 th -10 th Cen BC Yavneh Yam Ostracon 7 th Cen BC Israelite Inscription they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge; Amos 2:8 (Dt. 24:12-15) Please order my supervisor to return my cloak either in fulfillment of the law or as an act of mercy AMULET SCROLL Numbers 6:24-25 The Priestly Blessing Oldest Text of Scripture Caiaphas Ossuary 13

14 The Galilee Boat 1st century fishing boat Full scale model the 1 st cen. Boat Kibbutz Ginosar PONTIUS PILATE INSCRIPTION Wall Relief on the Arch of Titus Replica of Pilate Inscription on Display at Caesarea Roman soldiers carrying Temple Menorah and other things back to Rome After destroying the Temple in AD 70 14

15 Faith is not verified by archaeology, but its reliability can be enhanced. Final proof of anything ancient must be confined to such questions as how pottery was made, what rock was used, what food and fauna were present, etc. (Wright, What Archaeology Can and Cannot Do, 73.) What archaeology can do for Biblical study is to provide a physical context in time and place which was the environment of the people who produced the Bible or are mentioned in it. (Ibid.) Fundamentalist Archaeology set out to prove the Bible true by use of archaeology. Joseph P. Free (Wheaton College, 1940-) Viewed archaeology as having two purposes: Illuminate the world of the Bible A valuable part of apologetics (to prove the Bible true) (Archaeology and Bible History, 1950, p, 350) Excavated at Dothan connected with the patriarchal stories Died before results were published. Yet, Hoerth, Free s successor at Wheaton, denies the ability of archaeology to prove the Bible. (Hoerth, Archaeology and the Old Testament, 18-22; as cited by Davis, 142) New emphases within archaeology in Israel. Broader participation from other disciplines Less emphasis on proving the Bible Some want to ignore the Bible. Roland de Vaux Archaeology does not confirm the text, which is what it is; it can only confirm the interpretation we give it. (Davis, 140) Recent Developments The Maximalists versus the Minimalists A basic issue is whether the Hebrew Bible is a legitimate source for any information about the history of Israel. Maximalists say yes / Minimalists say no Maximalists do not agree on the level of accuracy of the Old Testament; ranges from very low to very high. Current Issues Israel in Egypt and the Exodus The conquest and settlement of Canaan Distinguishing early Israelites from Canaanites Development of the monarchy Israelite religion Popular religion vs the official/orthodox religion 15

16 An artist's impression shows the Siloam Pool as it might have looked in Jesus' day, based on new excavations by archaeologists. 16