Thursday, February 22, 2024

Evidence for Old Testament in 10th Century BC is Out There, but Hard to Find on Internet

 It was hard for me to dig this up. Richard Deem has it on his website but it has been put behind a "Content Warning" as if the site is going to rip off your personal data. I've been to his site many times without ill effect. 

Critics continue to insist that there is no evidence for Pentateuch before the exile despite many finds before then. This includes the Ketef  Hinnom silver amulet scrolls from the 7th century BC which quote verses from the book of Numbers. But there is more...

10th century pottery shard from Khirbet Qeiyafa discovered by Professor Yosef Garfinkel in 2008. It was translated by Professor Gershon Galil of the Department of Biblical Studies at the University of Haifa. The full translation of the inscription on the pottery shard reads:
you shall not do [it], but worship the [Lord].
Judge the sla[ve] and the wid[ow] / Judge the orph[an]
[and] the stranger. [Pl]ead for the infant / plead for the po[or and]
the widow. Rehabilitate [the poor] at the hands of the king.
Protect the po[or and] the slave / [supp]ort the stranger.1
The inscription has similar content to several Old Testament passages, including Isaiah 1:17, Psalms 72:3, Exodus 23:3.5

A report on this without the exact translation can be found ....
https://israeled.org/haifa-professor-announces.../

Conclusion: the Israelites had something very much like the Law of Moses by at least the 10th Century BC. 

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