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The Black Obelisk And Bab edh-Dhra

July 24, 2006

Sitting through class for 7 hours is not my idea of a good time but I did come away with lots to think about. Today was basically an introduction to the class. We learned each other's names and a little bit about one another. We did a historical view of Archaeology and talked a lot about where it is today. Apparently for the last 25 years Biblical Archaeology has been floundering about with not much direction. At one point it had major support and direction when some of the big names were still alive like Albright. Albright and many of his students, including Wright, had strong convictions that Archaeology was an extremely important discipline because it gives us a greater context and understanding of the history of the Biblical text. Oddly enough, within a period of about 4 years, Albright, Wright and one of Wright's younger students, Lapp, all passed away leaving the whole of Biblical Archaeology with no one to pick up where these guys left off. Some who have done so have tried to take it in a direction away from being Biblical. Archaeologists such as Davin, desired to separate the Biblical aspect of Archaeology from the discipline of Archaeology itself. His desire was to change the name all together. Whatever the case may be, it seems as though Biblical Archaeology needs a hero.

Today I also learned that one of the first images to be found of what an Israelite king actually looked like was found on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III.

It contains an image of King Jehu of Israel paying tribute to the Assyrians. The Bible references King Jehu in 2 Kings 9-10 and 2 Chronicles 22:7-9. Though the Bible doesn't mention Jehu paying tribute, it is certainly possible that this could have taken place during time that Jehu fell away from God and the enemies of Israel began to invade and conquer parts of the land.

Something else that I thought was notable was the search for Sodom and Gomorrah. In the expedition of the Dead Sea plain they found cities such as Bab edh-Dhra and Numeira that could quite possibly be Sodom and Gomorrah. These cities were found covered in a layer of ash. There was evidence of a great fire, burning bricks, roof's caving in from fire on top, unusual salt-formations, and sulfer (brimstone). Many remains were found in almost perfect condition inside homes, as if the fire was sudden. Here is a website that has a brief history of the expedition: http://www.nd.edu/~edsp/babedhdrah.html

These are just a few of many interesting artifacts and things that have been found over the years. I've been impressed with how much the use of artifacts and Archaeology as a whole can shape our view of Scripture. It certainly helps in the understanding of the context of the Old Testament.

The proper use of archaeology in relation to the Bible is to confirm, correct, clarify, and complement the Bible's theological message. - Randall Price

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