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CHAPTER 1

From Abraham to the Assyrian Conquest

In setting out to describe the history of the Jewish people there is a need to clarify the dates used. There is a train of scholarly thought that would argue the present dating system is incorrect and therefore archaeological finds and dating is a matter of dispute. British scholar Pater James is among them. He argues:

'By re-dating the beginning of the Iron Age in Palestine from the early 12th century BCE to the late 10th, a completely new interpretation of the archaeology of Israel can be offered: One which is in perfect harmony with the biblical record.'

This argument is not particularly relevant to this particular book as it focusses on events and their relevance to the story of Israel in the Middle East. However, it has to be acknowledged that some debates as to archaeological facts mentioned do refer to dating and the reader must use their own judgement, in the light of this debate, in assessing them.

The earliest attempts to establish a Jewish homeland will begin with those, both Jewish and Christian, who hold a religious belief that the land was promised to the Jews by God. It is essential that this background belief is understood as it underpins a great many attempts to establish Israel over the centuries. Therefore, with all the qualifications already set out, a man given the name 'Abraham' began a journey from Haran. Haran's ruins are close to Harran in modern Turkey, not far from the Syrian border. It is first found in the Ebla Tablets and was a city that attracted many different people. Throughout its history, Haran has been the home of the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Hittites, Persians, the Alexandrian Empire, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks, Ayyubids, and many others. It is an important place in the history of the Jews, Moslems and Christians. It was here that Abraham, a worshipper of many gods, would have made a choice of a personal god as was the custom. The tradition is that he had a vision of one particular God, Yahweh, who Abraham would come to believe was the only God. Abraham believed that his God told him to go to a land that he did not know and, with his extended family, he set out for Canaan. The area known as Canaan in ancient times covers parts of modern-day Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It also covered parts of the coastal regions and areas of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. There is no record of the exact route he took to get to Canaan. There were two, one a dangerous desert crossing or a well-travelled route which was the safest route in those days. He would have chosen the latter with such a large caravan of relatives and animals. This safer, alternative route followed what is the modern International Coastal Highway that links Egypt and Mesopotamia. It led through the ancient cities of Carchemish, Aleppo, Ebla, (home of the Ebla Tablets), Qatna, and into Damascus. From Damascus, the King's Highway led into the Transjordan (now Jordan). This was a major route for nomadic people, merchants and the military; it would be the most natural choice for Abraham. The 400-mile journey took Abraham to Shechem. This city is believed to be at Tell Balata, close to the modern city of Nablus in the modern West Bank. The descriptions in the Hebrew Bible fit well with archaeological discoveries. It is mentioned in the Amarna Letters (dated about 1400 to 1300 BCE) which were found in Upper Egypt. The letters, although later than Abraham, are still a source of intriguing statements about the Canaanites he would have found on his arrival. One document from a Canaanite reads:

'Behold this land of Jerusalem neither my father nor my mother gave it to me; the mighty hand of the king gave it to me. Behold, this deed is the deed of Milkilu, and the deed of the sons of Labaya, who have given the land of the king to the Habiru. Behold, king, my lord, I am innocent as regards the Kashi. Let the king ask the officers if the house is very mighty (f). Indeed, they have aspired to perpetrate a very wicked crime; they have taken their implements and ... sent to the land ... servant; let the king take heed to them, that they support the lands with their hand. Let the king demand for them much food, much oil, and many garments, until Pauru, the king's officer, goes up to Jerusalem.'

We find the name Habiru, believed to a West Semitic people, the Hebrews, from which Abraham came, linked to the Canaanites and it is also interesting that the dispute is about land. The enemy of the Habiru acknowledges that Jerusalem and surrounding lands had been given to them. Who is entitled to the land in that area has remained the subject of contention for millennia. A recent discovery in 2016 of a papyrus that dated back 2700 years is an extra-biblical source that mentions Jerusalem and reads, 'From the king's maidservant, from Na'arat, jars of wine to Jerusalem' thus giving evidence to an organised kingdom with Jerusalem at its centre. When Abraham arrived at Shechem it was a small unfortified town and the area was populated by many different peoples as well as the nomadic wanderers who passed through. For religious Jews this is a very important point in their tradition. It is at this point they believe that Abraham was given a promise – 'To your offspring I will give this land'. This promise is something that will be returned to later. Abraham then moved towards Luz, later known as Bethel. This is also in the modern West Bank. A famine in the area caused him to move to Egypt and eventually he returned to Bethel. Tradition states that he was a very wealthy man with great possessions and animals. He and his nephew then separated and settled in different parts of Canaan. This was the beginning of the settlement of the land by the ancestors of the Jewish people. The settlement was not allowed to live in peace and Abraham found himself involved in military conflict. The Jewish tradition believes that once more the promises were given to him of the land in which he had settled. It is here that the story and indeed the future conflicts over land begin. Abraham had a servant Hagar, who was an Egyptian, who became pregnant by Abraham and had a son, Ishmael. Ishmael became an important controversy between Jews, Moslems and Christians in later years. It is believed that he was the forefather of the Arabs. In modern times, the dispute of the right to the land centres on the Jews and the Arabs. The term Arab is used historically in many sources, but it is important to point out that the term covers a variety of peoples, from different areas and cultures; for consistency, it will be used throughout this book to identify an Arabic people. For our purposes, the story moves on and Abraham had a son, Isaac, by his wife, Sarah. In terms of future disputes over land, Isaac and Ishmael became the subject of controversy between Jews and Moslems. What is of note however is that the literature of both groups agree that God would bless both men and make them leaders of great nations. However, Jewish tradition believes that it is Isaac who was brought into covenant with God and through him the promises of the land for the Jewish people was confirmed. When Abraham died, Ishmael and Isaac were united at the tomb where they buried him. Perhaps there is a hope that two Semitic people who have become enemies may one day stand together and bury the past but still honour it as a shared tradition.

Isaac then had twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Here again both sons became fathers of great nations and both would be the source of conflict over land even in their own time Eventually Jacob came to Luz (Bethel) and there the Jewish tradition believes that God changed Jacob's name to Israel. Jacob/Israel's twelve sons were the origins of the twelve tribes of Israel who eventually settled in the land of Canaan. So far, the narrative has relied on Jewish tradition based on their Scriptures. But is there any evidence from secular research that would confirm this narrative? First of all, there is the Merneptah Stele, now in the Cairo Museum, that is dated to 1206 BCE. This is an Egyptian record and it mentions an Israelite people, 'Israel is laid waste, his seed is no more'. There is other evidence emerging that will help. One of Jacob's sons, Joseph, is recorded as being taken into Egypt and becoming a high official in the Egyptian government. Archaeology has discovered evidence that would confirm the presence of a Semitic people at the right time that is contemporary with Joseph. Furthermore, there is substantial evidence that a high-ranking Semitic individual had a house and was buried in a tomb in Egypt, with his statue also found and defaced by tomb-robbers. It has been suggested that this indeed was Joseph, particularly when it was found that the body bones were missing as described in the Jewish Scriptures, where they are reported as being taken by Moses to Canaan. Because Joseph was a high official it would be expected to find this evidence of him, however, there was no immediate evidence of any of the other sons. This was the situation until 1977 when a discovery was made of a Greek/Aramaic inscription which for the first time gave the Biblical name of Dan. This discovery brought the story of Jacob and his sons into sharp focus. Further support for the tradition came with the discovery of the Mesha Inscription. This gave the name of another son, Gad. Judah, another son, has now been found in many records in which his name is mentioned. This secular evidence does much to substantiate the traditional history of the origin of the Jewish people and their having rooted themselves in this particular part of the Middle East. The intention of this narrative, as already indicated, is not to consider the religious belief of the Jewish people, except where it is necessary for the subject matter of the Jewish homeland. That belief speaks of the many tribulations suffered in Egypt and their final entry back into Canaan. Archaeology or inscription research does not help us establish many of the actual facts. However, one thing about archaeology that is certain is that nothing in its findings is certain. The interpretation of finds has a great deal to do with the motives and attitudes of the archaeologist. There is also the issue of one discovery being followed by another that casts doubt on the former. This is particularly true of Middle East and Biblical archaeology which is strewn with controversy. All that can be done is to take the general picture that all the finds present and to stand back and view them, like a great artistic masterpiece, and in this case what we see is a people springing from a religious tradition that is set in a landscape that is now the modern Middle East.

As we move to the line of the descendants of Jacob's son Judah, we find an important king, David. He and his son, Solomon, are at the centre of much controversy. There are two questions raised in the debate. Did David exist and did he have an empire? The confirmed facts are that the Jewish people of that time had internecine conflict that caused the nation to divide into Southern Judah and Northern Israel. David from the line of Judah was in the Southern area. Firstly, evidence has been found that confirms that a House of David existed. In 1993, an inscription was found at Tel Dan. It points to the Southern area and a House of David. This at least points to a leader in Judah who was named David. As to his ruling a large kingdom, the truth is that there is little extra-Biblical evidence for it. Israel Finkelstein argues that there is no evidence for a large population that could have allowed David a large army as there were no major fortress settlements. However, this has been challenged by the discovery at Khirbet Qeiyafa. This is a fortress structure discovered in the Judean area. It is unusual in having two large gates that make it impressive for that period. Whilst there are arguments about this finding, it does provide strong evidence of an organised fortress structure and an army. Professor Yosef Garfinkel of the Humanities Faculty at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, gives a very convincing account that this is indeed a Davidic site. Despite arguments to the contrary, especially from professor Israel Finkelstein, Professor of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University, his conclusions remain forceful. Furthermore, Alan Millard, outlines a scholarly discussion on a piece of pottery with an inscription found at Khirbet Qeiyafa and concludes, 'I see no good reason to doubt the existence of a kingdom ruled by David from Jerusalem and happily associate the Khirbet Qeiyafa ostracon with that time.' However, in the modern Israel, land disputes continually cast a shadow over archaeology and none more so in the discovery of a site in Jerusalem itself – the Palace of King David.

In 2005, Eilat Mazar announced to the world that she had found David's Palace. What she had found was a large 'fortress structure' and from a Jewish Scripture verse that spoke of King David 'going down' into his fortress, then the palace must be above the area she had discovered. She gave a number of evidences of her claim that indeed supported the finding to be from the date of King David. However, the arguments began and others suggested a different interpretation of her finds. Once more the search for archaeological evidence is shrouded in controversy.

However, can we say that there is any non-Biblical evidence of a powerful Israelite nation in the Middle East? For this we can turn again to the Mishna Stone already mentioned. This was written in the Phoenician alphabet. The stone was discovered intact by Frederick Augustus Klein, at the site of ancient Dibon (in modern Jordan), in August 1868. It was later smashed during a local village dispute about ownership. However, the inscription was preserved and later the fragments put together to confirm the record. This is a very important archaeological discovery as it does much to confirm the Jewish Scriptural record and its wording is important:

'Omri was king of Israel, and oppressed Moab during many days, and Chemosh was angry with his aggressions. His son succeeded him, and he also said, "I will oppress Moab". In my days he said, "Let us go, and I will see my desire upon him and his house", and Israel said, "I shall destroy it for ever". Now Omri took the land of Medeba, and occupied it in his day, and in the days of his son, forty years ... I took from it the vessels of Yahweh [Israel's God], and offered them before Chemosh. And the king of Israel fortified Jahaz, and occupied it.'

After all the disputes about the Jewish Scriptures and the archaeological evidence we have at last an undisputed account that places Israel's king Omri into an historical context. There is a very small group who wish to deny Israel any historical foothold in the Middle East and who would claim it is a forgery or not a true historical record. Albright is clear, 'The Moabite Stone remains a corner-stone of Semitic epigraphy and Palestinian history'. Omri comes from the line of Judah/Israel, and whilst his heritage is unclear, he may have been of the tribe of Issachar or Manasseh. My own studies suggest his origin is Issachar which had tribal lands in what became Samaria. An Omri is mentioned as an earlier leader of the Issachar tribe and may well be that his descendent was King Omri and Samaria was also where king Omri based his centre of power. Here he ruled over the Northern State of Israel. The date of his reign has been dated to the mid to late eighteen hundreds BCE. At this time, the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom of Judah were at war with one another. The historical presence of the ancient Jewish people in this area is strongly confirmed with non-Biblical evidence also available.

In 1861, John G. Taylor discovered the Kurkh Monoliths (879-853 BCE) in what is now Turkey. These were an amazing find as they gave the battle boasts of Shalmaneser III over his enemies. A portion on the stone reads:

'I destroyed, devastated, and set fire to Karkar, his royal city. Irhulêni brought twelve kings to his support; they came against me to offer battle and fight: 1,200 chariots, 1,200 cavalry, and 20,000 soldiers belonging to Hadad-ezer of Damascus; 700 chariots, 700 cavalry, and 10,000 [or 20,000] soldiers belonging to Irhuleni of Hama; 2,000 chariots, and 10,000 soldiers belonging to Ahab, the Israelite [A-haab-bu Sir-ila-a-a].'

Here is another undisputed non-Biblical reference to a powerful Israel ruler. With such a large army he can only have had rule over a sizeable area. As Susan Ackerman says:

'The size of Ahab's contribution to the anti-Shalmaneser fighting force at Qarqar indicates, for example, that Israel was still a major military power in Syria-Palestine at the end of the first half of the ninth century B.C.E.'

The Israelite people were not able to rest easy in their lands. A major group became dominant in the Middle/Near East; the Assyrians. They are traceable as a state from the 2400s BCE. Shalmaneser III, TiglathPileser III and Shalmaneser V were involved in the conquering of Israel in the mid-700s BCE, eventually occupying both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms. Sargon II and his son Sennacherib would complete their work. Lachish, a great centre of Israel was taken, burned and destroyed. Sennacherib's palace would have a room decorated with the scenes of its destruction. A great number of the Israelites were removed from the land and the Assyrians settled many people from other nations there, particularly in Samaria. The Samaritans grew from this settlement and took on the practice of a form of Judaism. Indeed, the long historic enmity between Jews and Samaritans began from here. It was Sennacherib who came and besieged Jerusalem, the Judean centre, attempting to occupy and despoil it. The historical records confirm that due to the distractions of battles with Egypt and Babylon, he had to abandon the siege, but he still extracted huge treasure from king Hezekiah and to all intent and purpose made him his vassal. The point to be made here is that the evidence demonstrates the presence in the area of the Israelite people and their forced removal and displacement by others. This denial of the right to remain in their own homeland and their deportations would not be the last they would experience.

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Excerpted from "The Founding of Israel"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Martin Connolly.
Excerpted by permission of Pen and Sword Books Ltd.
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