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Archaeological Finds and
Ancient Documents that Verify the Bible |
Last updated: 19-Apr-2019 at 15:40 (See History.) © Richard P. Aschmann
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Contents
1. The
Berlin Statue Pedestal Relief
4. First
mention of the Philistines
5. The Battle
of Qarqar and the Battle of Ramoth Gilead
6. The
Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III
7. The
Founding of Carthage and its Relation to the Construction of Solomon’s Temple
8. Tiglath-Pileser
III Attacks Israel, Menahem Pays Tribute
9. Temporary
Independence of Babylon under Merodach-Baladan
(biblechronology.net/ArchaeologicalFindsThatVerifyTheBible.html)
All dates are B.C. There do not seem to be any archaeological finds prior to the time of the Judges that verify events or people mentioned in the Bible (see Bible Characters Mentioned Outside the Bible in Contemporary Sources for more on this), and towards the end of the period of the Israelite kings there are so many finds that it is not practical to list them. I have listed here a number of key finds that are dated before then. (This is not a complete list, and if you notice one that I have left out, please let me know.)
Those events which are not mentioned in the Bible and which have no direct implications for biblical dating are in pink here, and are also indicated in pink on my Bible chronology main page (these are only provided for historical context). All other events here are either mentioned in the Bible or have implications for biblical dating, and are indicated in lavender on my Bible chronology main page. I have also colored the archaeological finds and ancient documents lavender on this page to highlight them. (Sometimes the specific archaeological finds will only be indicated in the links provided.)
1406-1349— According to research only made available in
English in 2010, the name “Israel” has been found to occur far earlier than
previously known (see Merneptah Stele
below), on the Berlin Statue Pedestal
Relief, a grey granite slab containing Egyptian hieroglyphics. It
has been dated based on writing style to no later than the reign of Amenhotep
III (1386-1349), or even earlier, placing it shortly after the Biblical date of
the entry into Canaan in 1406. The other names on the slab are “Ashkelon” and
“Canaan”, making it clear that Israel was already in Canaan by this time. See
also this
page.
1274— The Battle of
Kadesh was fought between pharaoh Ramesses II
of Egypt and the Hittite Empire at Kadesh on the Orontes River, north of
Damascus near the current Syrian-Lebanese border. It was apparently the largest
chariot battle ever fought. This battle is not mentioned in the Bible, since in
spite of its historical significance (though it was essentially a draw) it
apparently had little or no effect on the Israelites in the early part of the
period of the Judges. (No, Ramesses II was not the pharaoh of the Exodus, in
spite of what the movies show.)
1213-1203— The Merneptah Stele, an inscription by Egyptian pharaoh Merneptah (reign: 1213-1203 B.C.), contains the first broadly accepted reference to the nation of Israel in any archaeological find: “Israel is laid waste and his seed is not”. (However, see “Berlin Statue Pedestal Relief” above for a probable older one.)
Around 1175— The first known reference to the name “Peleset” or “PRST” appears in several inscriptions, evidently a reference to the Philistines, and subsequent inscriptions indicate that they settle the five cities on the coast. There is some strong evidence that they were originally Greeks. See this page.
853— Ahab fights in the Battle of Qarqar (in modern-day northwest Syria near the Turkish border) as an ally of Ben-Hadad II of Aram-Damascus (Syria) against Shalmaneser III of Assyria, according to the Kurkh Stela. This was one of the largest battles of that era, and does not seem to have had a clear winner. (This battle is not mentioned in the Bible, and is evidently earlier in 853 than the battle of Ramoth Gilead described in 1 Kings 22:29-36, a much more local and thus biblically significant affair, where Ahab fights against Ben-Hadad and is killed.) Go to this page and search for “Ahab”. Also go to the link in the next section and search for “Black Obelisk” and other references to Qarqar. Even though the Bible does not mention it, this battle is important because if fixes the end of Ahab’s reign.
841— The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III mentions Jehu paying tribute this year. Go to this page, then search for “Black Obelisk”. This is not mentioned in the Bible, but helps to fix the beginning of Jehu’s reign.
825— King Pygmalion’s sister Dido flees Tyre and subsequently founds Carthage in North Africa. According to this site, Josephus said that 143 years passed between the start of construction of Solomon’s Temple and Dido’s flight. On the other side, this site provides good evidence that Carthage was founded 72 years before the foundation of Rome in 753, putting it at 825. This fixes the construction of Solomon’s Temple between 967 and 969, which matches Thiele and McFall’s dating for it.
745-742— Tiglath-Pileser III (a.k.a. Pul) king of Assyria attacks Israel, and King Menahem pays tribute to him. (2 Kings 15:19-20)
737— The Iran Stela of Tiglath-Pileser III states that King Menahem had paid tribute to him at some time during his reign, which fixes the tribute to 745-742, the last four years of Menahem’s reign and the first four of Tiglath-Pileser, as I have indicated above. Go to this page, then search for “Iran Stela”. (It states that Thiele’s date for the tribute was in the last two years of Menahem’s reign, in 743 or 742, but does not give reasons.)
722-710, 703-702, 700— Prior to 626 B.C. and the Chaldean dynasty, Babylon was mostly not an independent nation, but part of the Assyrian Empire. Merodach-Baladan (Marduk-apla-iddina II) at least twice threw off the yoke of the Assyrians, and apparently rebelled again in 700 (see here and here), which is probably when he wrote to Hezekiah. He sent envoys to King Hezekiah on his recovery, and Isaiah gave his famous prophecy about Babylon. (2 Kings 20:12-19, Isaiah 39)
Additional finds are mentioned in my articles Harmony of the Life of Hezekiah and Kings of Aram and Damascus.