Posted on 11/10/2005 4:37:28 AM PST by SJackson
CONTACT: Elana Oberlander, Office of the Spokesman, Bar-Ilan University
Has the Biblical Goliath Been Found?
Bar-Ilan University Archaeologists Unearth Earliest Philistine Inscription in Which Names Similar to Goliath Appear
Ramat Gan - A very small ceramic sherd unearthed by Bar-Ilan University archaeologists digging at Tell es-Safi, the biblical city "Gath of the Philistines", may hold a very large clue into the history of the well-known biblical figure Goliath. The sherd, which contains the earliest known Philistine inscription ever to be discovered, mentions two names that are remarkably similar to the name "Goliath". Tell es-Safi/Gath is located in the southern coastal plain of Israel, approximately halfway between Ashkelon and Jerusalem.
The discovery is of particular importance since the Bible attributes Gath as the home town of Goliath. "Gath of the Philistines," was one of the major cities of the Philistines, the well-known arch-enemies of the Israelites in the biblical text. The archaeological find may also be seen as the first clear extra-biblical evidence that the well-known biblical story of the battle between David and Goliath (and, in particular, the very existence of a figure such as Goliath during the biblical period) may be more than just a legend, according to Prof. Aren Maeir, Chairman of Bar-Ilan University's Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, who has been directing the excavations since they began in 1996. Prof. Maeir will present his findings next week at the conference of the American Schools of Oriental Research in the U.S. city of Philadelphia.
Other recent findings uncovered at the recent excavations at Tell es-Safi include a large assortment of objects of various types which are linked to Philistine culture. Additional remains relating to the siege system constructed by Hazael, King of Aram Damascus around 800 BCE, were revealed, along with extensive evidence of the subsequent capture and destruction of the city by Hazael, as mentioned in Second Kings 12:18. Remains of the Crusader period fortress, Blanche Garde, built after the first Crusade in the mid-twelfth century CE, were also discovered.
Written in archaic "Proto-Canaanite" letters, the inscription found on the sherd, dating to the 10th or early 9th century BCE, contains two non-Semitic names: Alwt and Wlt. Most scholars believe the name Goliath, of non-Semitic origin, is etymologically related to various Indo-European names, such as the Lydian name Aylattes. Following intense examination of the inscription, Prof. Maeir (along with his colleagues Prof. Aaron Demsky, an expert in epigraphy at Bar-Ilan University, and Dr. Stefan Wimmer, of Munich University) has concluded that the two names which appear in the inscription are remarkably similar to the etymological parallels of Goliath.
"It can be suggested that in 10th-9th century Philistine Gath, names quite similar, and possibly identical, to Goliath were in use," says Prof. Maeir. "This chronological context from which the inscription was found is only about 100 years after the time of David according to the standard biblical chronology. Thus, this appears to provide evidence that the biblical story of Goliath is, in fact, based on a clear cultural realia from, more or less, the time which is depicted in the biblical text, and recent attempts to claim that Goliath can only be understood in the context of later phases of the Iron Age are unwarranted."
While the letters are Semitic, the names appearing in the inscription are Indo-European (the linguistic family of ancient Greek and related languages). It is assumed by most scholars that the Philistines migrated to the Levant from somewhere in the Aegean region. On their arrival, they brought with them assorted Aegean cultural facets. With time, their culture became more and more effected by the local cultures, slowly incorporating local elements. This inscription, with Semitic script and Indo-European names, is among the earliest hard evidence showing this process.
The Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project is a long-term investigation aimed at studying the archaeology and history of one of the most important sites in Israel. Tell es-Safi is one of the largest tells (ancient ruin mounds) in Israel and was settled almost continuously from the 5th millennium BCE until modern times.
Continuous excavations of the site are planned for at least the next decade.
That is supposed to convince skeptics that a giant named Goliath actually existed and that a boy named David pegged him in the head with a rock?
"Since the research is done by an Israeli University, I'd say there's a good chance ther report was originally written in Hebrew. A good chance the dating followed the Hebrew calendar. If so, I wonder if dropping the Hebrew dating is anti-Jewish?"
Probably not. Scientific publications almost always use standard measurements, whether it's dates or other measurements. That's why the metric system is universally used in the sciences, too.
The brouhaha about BCE and CE is just silly. It's an academic usage, brought about by the fact that 2/3 of the world's population is non-Christian. Science is international, not exclusive to the Christian West.
AD doesn't count from Jesus' death.
Thank you for reminding confused posters of that.
Personally I view AD/BC as generic terms, but if the usage of AD implys agreement with the literal meaning it should be clear to anyone why a non-Christian wouldn't use it.
"You'd think that the christian variety of supernaturalist would be honored that the scientific community uses a version of their dating system rather than another of the thousands of arbitrary and temporary dating systems available."
Maybe, maybe not, however you'll find numerous Hebrew documents which bear Hebrew dating. My point was that if it did, and the date was changed, so what, it's not anti-Jewish. You're right, it's a silly arguement. And the insistance that they're some particular religous significance to AD argues against it's use by non Christians. Which isn't anti-Christian either.
So call it what you want, as long as it is the Gregorian calendar.. who cares.. -Smile-.
No, what it does is lend further support to the accuracy of Biblical descriptions of people, places, and cultures and languages.
Never mind all of this, where's Andre the Giant buried???
AU informed me that David cut off Goliath's head.
So it was the Joos who started this Middle Eastern head chopping thing? :-)
No, but it does confirm the name “Goliath” existed. The use of a sling and rock wasn’t uncommon - slingers were a major part of most military formations for a long, long time.
Andre the Giant was cremated and his ashes spread over his farm in the Sand Hills of NC.
Which brings me to one of my hobbt horses:
We already agree that our calendar is wrong, off by anywhere from 2 to 16 years, depending on who's doing the reckoning, and further in error because of the absence of a year zero.
The more fundamental point is that God did not intend us to mark His years by the birth of Jesus.
If He had intended this we would have a Biblical fixing of the date.
Further, the day of Jesus' birth is unremarkable as all men are born.
However, very few return from the dead, that event is remarkable, and it is the defining moment of Christianity, the very moment of proof that his sacrifice was not in vain. And the Bible gives a precise reference for when this happened!
Clearly this was the date the calender was supposed to start!
For extra points, this makes our calender off by ~ 33 years. That makes this Holy Year 1972, giving us about 28 years to get our affairs in order before the real end of the millennium...
A. D. stands for Anno Donomoni or "in the year of our Lord" in reference to Christ's birth not death.
*sigh* Hobby horse! Preview is my friend....
On second thought, it is most likely the Socialist/Communist/Liberals trying to wipe GOD and any reference to Jesus out of our culture.
That's exactly what it is.
The Drs. Lerner are scientists don't you see? And in order to be a "respected" scientist these days, one is required to discount anything religious. They now refer to it as "superstition" to further remove any residual credibility. In other words, it is just more PC BS.
Another clash in the culture war.
The atheist, leftists want to erase "Before Christ" and AD from our lexicon.
>>>On second thought, it is most likely the Socialist/Communist/Liberals trying to wipe GOD and any reference to Jesus out of our culture.
>>That's exactly what it is.
Of course the Drs. Lerner might also view AD and BC as attempts to attmept wipe out their 5,700 year old culture with this relatively new fangled Jesus concept.
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