Lars Wilson
2008-02-09 18:13:01 UTC
The fall of Jericho is dated in connection with the Exodus from Egypt which
occurred at the end of the rule of Amenhotep III who died in the Red Sea,
followed by Akhenaten who after experiencing the Ten Plagues immediately
converted to a monotheistic-type national religion with an altar built to
Aten/YHWH built in the middle of Egypt, which is referenced in the Bible
(Isa 19:19). Archaeological support or harmonization with the fall of
Jericho in 1346 BCE is part of the Egyptian Exodus Story. A key factor in
the dating of the fall of Jericho by Joshua between 1350-1325 BCE are based
on the cartouches of Amenhotep III found in nearby tombs, the last pharaoh's
cartouches to be found, though others from previous dynasties were
discovered.
=================
HARMONIZING JERICHO'S FALLEN WALLS: ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE BIBLE
How do we harmonize the Bible and archaeology with respect to Jericho's
fallen walls, now that the precise date for that event is more absolute to
1346 BCE per the Bible's best timeline?
First, archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon confirms the fall of Jericho by the
Israelites around this time period, with no regard to missing wall evidence:
Kathleen Kenyon: Digging Up Jericho, Jericho and the Coming of the
Israelites, page 262:
"As concerns the date of the destruction of Jericho by the Israelites, all
that can be said is that the latest Bronze Age occupation should, in my
view, be dated to the third quarter of the fourteenth century B.C. This is a
date which suits neither the school of scholars which would date the entry
of the Israelites into Palestine to c. 1400 B.C. nor the school which
prefers a date of c. 1260 B.C."
Page 261 of her book, "Digging Up Jericho," in the Chapter called "Jericho
And Coming Of The Israelites," she says:
"It is a sad fact that of the town walls of the Late Bronze Age, within
which period the attack by the Israelites must fall by any dating, not a
trace remains."
So as far as the chronology is concerned, there is complete harmony between
archaeology (or at least this one well-known archaeologist) and the Bible's
dating.
Also a confirmation that we are looking at the correct time period is the
relative chronology we can connect to the fall of Rehov City IV c. 871 BCE
as proven by RC14 dating. When 871 BCE falls in year 39 of Solomon/Year 5
of Rehoboam then we can retrodate back to the Exodus in 1386 BCE. That in
turn dates the fall of Jericho to 1346 BCE, which is when Kenyon also dates
that event.
WHAT ABOUT JERICHO'S WALLS? WHY NO EVIDENCE OF IT? Good question. There
is no evidence of the walls! Even in the wash. It's as if that layer
completely disappeared. Per the Bible, there was definitely a high wall
around the city. So is there a real contradiction now between archaeology
and the Bible on this point? Not necessarily.
That's because the Bible is not specific as to just HOW the wall was made to
"fall down FLAT" or what the final condition of the wall was in after it was
made to fall. The fact that there is no evidence of the wall from that
layer suggests that whatever was left of the wall was either artificially
removed or naturally was displaced. I'm tending to lean toward the latter.
A natural displacement of that level of the wall would be consistent with
the walls disintegrating into dust, which then later blew away in the wind.
That would be a very impressive sight to see brick walls simply pulverized
into a flat layer of fine dust. The reference that the walls fell "flat"
certainly suggests a rather homogeneous nature of the fallen walls. If
so, then we would not expect to find a single remnant of the walls since the
dust would have long blown away. It would also explain why the erosion of
that level was so complete, with no foundation left to prevent erosion.
That scenario thus is quite consistent with the archaeological evidence
which is massive erosion and no remnants of any wall at this level in the
wash. Some have noted that there is no evidence of destruction at this
level as they found at Hazor. However, Jericho was exceptional and there is
only part of one building that's left of the Late Bronze Age Jericho.
Kathleen Kenyon, however, believes that the fact the city was abandoned for
over 400 years is enough to confirm the LBA city was indeed destroyed. Just
because the one remaining wall found wasn't burned as severely as in the
case of Hazor doesn't prove the city wasn't burned down.
So as far as harmony between the archaeological facts and what is possible
to match the loose Biblical description of what happened, there is no real
conflict, with the complete absence of this level in the wash suggesting
indeed, the walls miraculously fell down into a form that was later
displaced from the site, such as if the walls turned into dust.
Of course, there could be other scenarios as to why no wall remnants were
left from this level, but you need only one explanation that fits the facts.
The walls disintegrating into fine dust and then blowing away fits both the
Biblical description as well as the archaeological findings, which shows no
evidence of the wall left from Jericho at this level, not even in the wash,
which tends to confirm the walls turned into some form that would have been
blown away by the wind, rather than washed down the hill to become part of
the wash.
CONCLUSION: In conclusion, because of lack of specific knowledge as to the
precise state of the walls relating to the mechanism by which they
miraculously fell, there is no clear contradiction by archaeology since if
the walls disintegraded into a fine dust one would expect to find the
precise archaeological evidence we have in place, which is absolutely no
evidence of any wall from this level, but massive erosion. On the other
hand, the specific chronology of this event per the Bible that must occur in
1346 BCE is confirmed by archaeologist Kenyon who specifically dates this
event between 1350-1325 BCE. This dating, in turn is conformed by more
specific scientific dating by RC14 dating from Rehov which dates Shishak's
invasion c. 871 BCE, which would likewise date the Jericho's fall
specifically to 1346 BCE. So in reality, if the walls did disintegrate
into fine dust particles that later completely blew away, there is 100%
COMPATIBILITY WITH ARCHAEOLOGY for Jericho.
Lars Wilson
occurred at the end of the rule of Amenhotep III who died in the Red Sea,
followed by Akhenaten who after experiencing the Ten Plagues immediately
converted to a monotheistic-type national religion with an altar built to
Aten/YHWH built in the middle of Egypt, which is referenced in the Bible
(Isa 19:19). Archaeological support or harmonization with the fall of
Jericho in 1346 BCE is part of the Egyptian Exodus Story. A key factor in
the dating of the fall of Jericho by Joshua between 1350-1325 BCE are based
on the cartouches of Amenhotep III found in nearby tombs, the last pharaoh's
cartouches to be found, though others from previous dynasties were
discovered.
=================
HARMONIZING JERICHO'S FALLEN WALLS: ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE BIBLE
How do we harmonize the Bible and archaeology with respect to Jericho's
fallen walls, now that the precise date for that event is more absolute to
1346 BCE per the Bible's best timeline?
First, archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon confirms the fall of Jericho by the
Israelites around this time period, with no regard to missing wall evidence:
Kathleen Kenyon: Digging Up Jericho, Jericho and the Coming of the
Israelites, page 262:
"As concerns the date of the destruction of Jericho by the Israelites, all
that can be said is that the latest Bronze Age occupation should, in my
view, be dated to the third quarter of the fourteenth century B.C. This is a
date which suits neither the school of scholars which would date the entry
of the Israelites into Palestine to c. 1400 B.C. nor the school which
prefers a date of c. 1260 B.C."
Page 261 of her book, "Digging Up Jericho," in the Chapter called "Jericho
And Coming Of The Israelites," she says:
"It is a sad fact that of the town walls of the Late Bronze Age, within
which period the attack by the Israelites must fall by any dating, not a
trace remains."
So as far as the chronology is concerned, there is complete harmony between
archaeology (or at least this one well-known archaeologist) and the Bible's
dating.
Also a confirmation that we are looking at the correct time period is the
relative chronology we can connect to the fall of Rehov City IV c. 871 BCE
as proven by RC14 dating. When 871 BCE falls in year 39 of Solomon/Year 5
of Rehoboam then we can retrodate back to the Exodus in 1386 BCE. That in
turn dates the fall of Jericho to 1346 BCE, which is when Kenyon also dates
that event.
WHAT ABOUT JERICHO'S WALLS? WHY NO EVIDENCE OF IT? Good question. There
is no evidence of the walls! Even in the wash. It's as if that layer
completely disappeared. Per the Bible, there was definitely a high wall
around the city. So is there a real contradiction now between archaeology
and the Bible on this point? Not necessarily.
That's because the Bible is not specific as to just HOW the wall was made to
"fall down FLAT" or what the final condition of the wall was in after it was
made to fall. The fact that there is no evidence of the wall from that
layer suggests that whatever was left of the wall was either artificially
removed or naturally was displaced. I'm tending to lean toward the latter.
A natural displacement of that level of the wall would be consistent with
the walls disintegrating into dust, which then later blew away in the wind.
That would be a very impressive sight to see brick walls simply pulverized
into a flat layer of fine dust. The reference that the walls fell "flat"
certainly suggests a rather homogeneous nature of the fallen walls. If
so, then we would not expect to find a single remnant of the walls since the
dust would have long blown away. It would also explain why the erosion of
that level was so complete, with no foundation left to prevent erosion.
That scenario thus is quite consistent with the archaeological evidence
which is massive erosion and no remnants of any wall at this level in the
wash. Some have noted that there is no evidence of destruction at this
level as they found at Hazor. However, Jericho was exceptional and there is
only part of one building that's left of the Late Bronze Age Jericho.
Kathleen Kenyon, however, believes that the fact the city was abandoned for
over 400 years is enough to confirm the LBA city was indeed destroyed. Just
because the one remaining wall found wasn't burned as severely as in the
case of Hazor doesn't prove the city wasn't burned down.
So as far as harmony between the archaeological facts and what is possible
to match the loose Biblical description of what happened, there is no real
conflict, with the complete absence of this level in the wash suggesting
indeed, the walls miraculously fell down into a form that was later
displaced from the site, such as if the walls turned into dust.
Of course, there could be other scenarios as to why no wall remnants were
left from this level, but you need only one explanation that fits the facts.
The walls disintegrating into fine dust and then blowing away fits both the
Biblical description as well as the archaeological findings, which shows no
evidence of the wall left from Jericho at this level, not even in the wash,
which tends to confirm the walls turned into some form that would have been
blown away by the wind, rather than washed down the hill to become part of
the wash.
CONCLUSION: In conclusion, because of lack of specific knowledge as to the
precise state of the walls relating to the mechanism by which they
miraculously fell, there is no clear contradiction by archaeology since if
the walls disintegraded into a fine dust one would expect to find the
precise archaeological evidence we have in place, which is absolutely no
evidence of any wall from this level, but massive erosion. On the other
hand, the specific chronology of this event per the Bible that must occur in
1346 BCE is confirmed by archaeologist Kenyon who specifically dates this
event between 1350-1325 BCE. This dating, in turn is conformed by more
specific scientific dating by RC14 dating from Rehov which dates Shishak's
invasion c. 871 BCE, which would likewise date the Jericho's fall
specifically to 1346 BCE. So in reality, if the walls did disintegrate
into fine dust particles that later completely blew away, there is 100%
COMPATIBILITY WITH ARCHAEOLOGY for Jericho.
Lars Wilson