Tel Beth-Shemesh is an important biblical site in the northeastern lowland of Judah. It was the meeting point between Canaanites, Philistines and Israelites, and was the scene of great historical events and cultural changes. It is an ideal site for the investigation of key historical and cultural issues relating to the interactions between these three peoples.
The name Beth-Shemesh (“House of the Sun”) is derived from the deity that was worshipped by the Canaanites. Identification of the 7-acre mound with biblical Beth-Shemesh is based on its geographical description in the Bible, Byzantine sources, and the name of the nearby Arab village ‘Ain Shems, which preserved the ancient name.
The Bible mentions Beth-Shemesh as a Levitical city in Judah in Joshua 21:16. Following the capture of the Ark of the Covenant by the Philistines, it was returned there (1 Samuel 6:9-18). It is listed in Solomon’s second administrative district (1 Kings 4:9), and it was here that the battle between the king of Israel and the king of Judah took place (2 Kings 14:11-13). A short time later, Beth-Shemesh passed into Philistine control. It was then restored to the Kingdom of Judah (2 Chronicles 28:18). It was destroyed in 701 BC by King Sennacherib of Assyria.
During the period of the Judges, a large village or town spread over the mound. Remains of a large two-storied structure were uncovered on the northern part of the tel. There are a few spacious rooms, one of them paved with river pebbles, and a court. Gold jewelery was found among the ruins of the house. Grindstones, clay ovens and hearths are evidence of the daily activities of the inhabitants. The architecture, as well as the pottery used during this period, is in the Canaanite tradition. But the bones of the animals they consumed attest to an Israelite diet - pigs are entirely absent.
In the southern part of the site, a large area used for industrial and commercial activity was found. An iron workshop was active during the 10th-9th centuries BC. Iron implements and slags were found in the workshop, the earliest of its kind found in Israel. Later, the function of the area changed and buildings for storage and distribution of agricultural commodities replaced the blacksmith's workshop. The buildings contained fragments of numerous pottery storage vessels destroyed at the beginning of the 8th century BC.
A stone table found in a 3,100-year-old temple, echoing Biblical narratives of a slab on which the Ark of the Covenant is said to have been placed, was found here.
Dr. Zvi Lederman says this is a case in which “we can merge the biblical narrative with an archaeological find.” Both the account and the discovery center around Beth Shemesh, both relate to about the same time period, and both feature a “great stone.”
The table structure is a huge dolmen-like rock slab resting upon two smaller rocks. In the beginning it was thought that it was a type of standing stone, commonly associated with cultic activity, that had fallen over. But archaeologists say it's unlikely that the tablet had fallen into the position.
The find is significant because it ties in with the time frame of the 'large stone' the Ark of the Covenant was said to have been placed upon when brought to Beth Shemesh after being returned by the Philistines. The ark had been captured and was taken to Ashdod in 1 Samuel 5. But the Philistines found that wherever the ark went, trouble followed, with the spread of a bubonic-type plague. They took the ark from one city to another, with the same results. Finally, they placed the ark onto a cart, hitched it to two cows, and set them free. The story picks up in 1 Samuel 6:
13 And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. 14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD. 15 And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Bethshemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD.
The era referenced in the Biblical narrative was marked by warfare between the Israelites and the Philistines. The site bears evidence of this struggle: it is seven kilometers from Tel Batash, a Philistine settlement, and the structure itself shows evidence of having fallen foul of warring between the nations.
Archaeologists identified the building as a temple because of its thick walls, it was separated from houses in the ancient village, and it had a platform likely used for religious ceremonies.
Inside, researchers found animal bones, pottery shards, cups, and carved stones that could have been used as olive presses or for pouring wine, which could have been used in religious practice.
At some point in the mid-12th century BC, the temple was desecrated and the pottery within was smashed to bits. Archaeologists had to dig through a thick black layer which they originally thought was ash, but turned out to be animal dung: the site had been turned into a cowshed after being captured. Putting animals in the space was likely an intentional desecration of the area, probably by the Philistines.
https://en-humanities.tau.ac.il/beth-shemesh
https://watchjerusalem.co.il/852-was-this-where-the-ark-of-the-covenant-sat
Genesis 11:
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar [Babylonia]; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel [Hebrew=confusion]; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta is a Sumerian story from c. 2000 BC that connects to the Tower of Babel story. Enmerkar was one of the earliest Sumerian kings known. His name appears on very early king lists, and other archaeological finds concerning him have been found.
Enmerkar was the king of Uruk, a city also mentioned Genesis 10:10 (translated in English as Erech). He was building a massive ziggurat in Eridu. He demanded materials from Aratta for its construction, and recited an incantation imploring the god Enki to restore the linguistic unity of Shubur, Hamazi, Sumer, Uri-ki (Akkad), and the Martu land, "the whole universe, the well-guarded people."
Instead of breaking the one language into many as in Genesis, it is consolidating them all into one so they can all communicate again.
“...May they all address Enlil together in a single language! For at that time, for the ambitious lords, for the ambitious princes, for the ambitious kings. Enki, the lord of abundance and steadfast decisions, the wise and knowing lord of the land, the expert of the gods, chosen for wisdom, the lord of Eridug, had placed there, and so the speech of mankind is truly one.”
Another possible connection to the Tower of Babel is that in Eridu, which is often considered the first city in civilization, there is a massive unfinished ziggurat. Some scholars have suggested connecting Eridu to Babel.
Eridu was founded c. 5400 BC, close to the Persian Gulf near the mouth of the Euphrates River. Excavation shows the city was founded on a virgin sand-dune site with no prior occupation. In the Sumerian King List, Eridu is the city of the first kings. The opening line states, “When kingship from heaven was lowered, the kingship was in Eridu.” Sumerians are a pre-Adamic people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_of_Babel
Acts 7:8:
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.
Scarabs that are very interesting relating to the patriarch Jacob have been found in Egypt and Canaan.
Scarabs were used in ancient Egypt as a talisman or piece of jewelry. They were made in the shape of a scarab beetle, carved out of stone or made from ceramic. One of the more common types of scarabs would have an inscription on the flat side naming the king or the pharaoh who was ruling at the time that it was issued.
Many times, these scarabs were part of a ring, so the beetle's back would be exposed, and then it could be turned around and have the inscription side out to stamp in clay, like later wax seals. It could be an official ring used for the king and his administration.
Twenty seven of them mention Jacob, which could be connected to the patriarch. These are sometimes called the Yaqub-Har or Yakub-El scarabs because they all have that name or that phrase on them in hieroglyphs.There are also many scarabs that have the names of officials or some other important person rendered on them. The 27 Jacob scarabs date to c. 1800-1600 BC. There is a distribution throughout the land that Jacob and Joseph were in and familiar with during that same time period.
This doesn't mean that it was the patriarch Jacob in Genesis that this was made for or issued for, but it does show that his name was in use at that exact time, in those places. It's not a name that continued to be reused and recycled in later periods.
The Zion Gate
Bearing Jerusalem’s earliest biblical name in Hebrew and English, this gate’s Arabic name is the Gate of the Prophet David. The Tomb of King David on adjacent Mount Zion is only a few steps away. The Zion Gate leads directly to the Armenian and Jewish quarters.
The Dung Gate
Nehemiah 2:14, 3:14, 12:31. Probably the same as the Harsith Gate in Jeremiah 19:2. Sometimes rendered the Gate of Potsherds.
This unusual name derives from the refuse dumped here in antiquity, where the prevailing winds would carry odors away. It leads directly to the Western Wall and the Southern Wall Archaeological Park.
Gate of Mercy
This gate is in the eastern Temple-Mount wall. It is also called the Golden Gate or the Eastern Gate. It's been blocked for centuries, and is said to be awaiting a miraculous opening when the Messiah comes.
Lion's Gate
This gate is named after a pair of animal carvings that flank it. They are actually tigers, the symbol of the 13th-century Sultan Beybars. It is also called St. Stephen’s Gate after the first Christian martyr, who is said to have been stoned nearby. This gate became famous during the Six Day War.
Herod's Gate
Despite its name, the notorious king had nothing to do with this gate. In Arabic and Hebrew this north-facing gate is called the Flowers Gate. Some people say that the name derives from a rosette carved over it. In Arabic, a similar word means “awakened,” and may refer to a nearby cemetery and the hope of resurrection.
Damascus Gate
This is the most imposing of Jerusalem’s gates. It faces north and is named for the city from which Jerusalem’s rulers once came. It is always busy, thanks to the bustling markets within. Underneath the 16th-century gate, archaeologists have uncovered part of the entryway built by Emperor Hadrian in the second century BC.
The New Gate
This is the only entryway that was not part of the original design of the 16th-century walls. It was breached in the waning days of the Ottoman Empire to allow Christian pilgrims quicker access to their holy places inside.
The Jaffa Gate
For Jewish and Christian pilgrims disembarking at the Jaffa port. It leads directly to the Jewish and Christian quarters, and to the Tower of David Museum, once Jerusalem’s citadel and now a showcase of its history.
https://new.goisrael.com/international/posts/jerusalem/The_Gates_Of_Jerusalem
https://www.therain.org/appendixes/app59.html
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