Biblical Archaeology
Biblical Archaeologists Discover A ‘Massive’ Giant-Sized Fortification Believed To Be The Ancient Philistine City Of Gath And Home To Goliath
Colossal ancient structures found at Gath by biblical archaeologists may explain origin of story of the giant Goliath and his fellow giants.
A Goliath of a man may have sprouted from an equally giant-sized city. Super-sized remains of “enormous” architecture and fortifications from a new, unexpected “biblical-era” layer of the Philistine city of Gath were unearthed this summer at the ongoing Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project.
Digging and excavations at the site of what is believed to be the ancient biblical city of Gath have been going on for a few years now, but archaeologists have recently found an exciting ‘new layer’ which is shedding light on Gath actually being the home of Goliath and his fellow giant brothers. Results are still being analyzed but suffice to say it is creating a buzz in the biblical archaeology community in the Middle East.
“And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.” 1 Samuel 17:23,24 (KJV)
Of course, if you’re a Bible believer, you already know that Gath was the home of the giant Goliath who was slayed by the shepherd boy David, who would grow up to be the best king Israel ever had. Your ‘dusty, old and archaic’ King James Bible with all its ‘thees and thous’ contains that truth and a thousand more just like it that science is still struggling to catch up with. Yes sir, that dime store KJV is more up-to-date than tomorrow’s headlines.
Colossal ancient structures found at Gath may explain origin of story of Goliath
FROM THE TIMES OF ISRAEL: Whereas most of the site’s previously excavated areas date to the 10th and 9th centuries BCE, this new layer dates to the 11th century, when, according to the biblical narrative in 1 Samuel 17 , the future King David slew the giant Goliath.
“For those scholars that accept that David was a historical figure — and I’m among them — the late 11th-, early 10th century BCE, the time of the earlier phase of the city of Gath, whose impressive remains were just found, is the time frame in which David existed,” Bar-Ilan University Prof. Aren Maeir, the 23-year excavation director of the Tell es-Safi/Gath dig, told The Times of Israel. The dating follows the chronology of the Kings of Israel and Judah as presented in the Bible.
“If in fact David did confront an opponent in single combat, most often identified as Goliath, this would, more or less, be the time of this early Iron Age phase of the city of Gath,” said Maeir. He emphasized that “it is hard to say whether or not there is a historical kernel to the story, and if there is in fact a kernel, what this kernel was.”
View of the Water Gate at Gath, summer 2019 (Aren Maeir/Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project)
There is still no inscription conclusively stating that “this is Gath,” however the previous two decades of excavation at Tell es-Safi/Gath have uncovered a massive Iron Age Philistine site that served as the region’s center of gravity in the 9th and 10th centuries, said Maeir. The settlement was destroyed by the Aramean King Hazael around 830 BCE, which is echoed in the account of Gath that is written in Kings II 12:18.
For years, said Maeir, he and his team had assumed that the Hazael destruction layer was the largest phase of ancient Gath. “But I kept having this niggling feeling. It was bothering me: If the city destroyed by Hazael was so important, why didn’t it have fortifications? There were some, but nothing to write home about,” said Maeir.
Digging a little deeper this year, the team found impressive remains that predate the settlement destroyed by Hazael in 830 BCE, as first reported in Haaretz.
“They show that the buildings and the fortifications were very large, built with extremely large stones,” Maeir said. The team also unearthed unusual 11th century walls constructed with very thick, well-built, burnt brick. Maeir said this type of brick is rarely used in pre-Roman times.
While beginning excavation at the 11th century site, “We got the feeling that perhaps this earlier phase is larger and dramatically more impressive than the city that was destroyed by Hazael,” he said. “It’s a surprise, but on the other hand — it explains something… The pieces fit together now much better.”
The monumental architecture is of much larger dimensions than almost anything found in the Levant during this era, said Maeir. This unexpected layer opens up the possibility that the city was a regional stronghold by the 11th century, said Maeir, as opposed to the previously assumed settlement of Ekron. As such, the find could cause a rethink of the “matrix of who were the strong powers in the region at the time,” he said.
The uncovered fortifications discovered in the lower city are 4 meters (13 feet) wide, versus the 2-2.5 meter (6.5-8 foot) wide walls discovered from later periods. Likewise, the dimensions of the building material itself are dramatically different. In later layers at the site, said Maeir, the ancient architects used half-meter-long (1.6 foot) stones. In the “Goliath layer,” the blocks measure between one and two meters (roughly 3.2-6.5 feet).
The 11th century city was outstandingly large and would have covered an area of 500 dunams (123.5 acres) — more than twice the area of most comparable cities in the Levant, said Maeir. For point of reference, when ancient Jerusalem was at its height a few hundred years later, it would have reached 400-500 dunams, he said.
“In geographical terms, Gath was a ‘primate city’ and on a larger and different scale than others,” said Maeir, comparing it to the difference between New York City versus Indianapolis.
In addition to the gigantic building discovery, Maeir and his team also uncovered several 3,000-year old rooms that appear to be fortifications created just prior to the Hazael conquest. The 9th or 10th century mudbrick rooms were filled with earth, which preserved their 2 meter-high plastered walls and doorways leading to other rooms. It is unusual to have such high walls made of intact sun-dried bricks, he said.
This summer’s dig has just concluded. According to the project’s well-updated website, 2021 will mark the 25th and final season. “You excavate a site so for long that you think you understand it,” said Maeir. “But every turn of the trowel can bring a new and unexpected find.” READ MORE
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Biblical Archaeology
A Hymn Dedicated To Ancient Babylon And Sung To The God Marduk Has Been Discovered After 2,100 Years Using AI In Stunning Revelation 17 Harbinger
A hymn dedicated to the ancient city of Babylon and sung to the god Marduk has been discovered after 2,100 years with the help of AI
The Bible doesn’t mention a Babylonian god named ‘Marduk’, but it does talk a lot about the gods of Babylon especially in the book of Daniel. But we know from this song ‘Hymn of Babylon’ that the god Marduk is referred to as the ‘architect of the universe’, so that would make him the main god. In Jeremiah 50:2 we read about the fall of the gods of Babylon, Bel and Merodach. In all likelihood, Merodach is Marduk, and the Strong’s reference H4781 says that Merodach is Marduk in ancient Assyrian.
“Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.” Jeremiah 50:2 (KJB)
“And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.” Revelation 18:2 (KJB)
Christian, we are living at the very tail end of the Church Age, and we will soon be removed in the Rapture. After we leave, the time of Jacob’s trouble will commence and Babylon as described in Revelation 17 and 18 will take center stage. News reports like this only strengthens my faith in the unfolding end times happening all around us. Babylon will rise, as we see in Revelation 17 and 18, and a hymn dedicated to its most-powerful god, lost for 2,100 years, and now brought back to us through AI is some crazy stuff. Think God is trying to show us something? I do.
Hymn of Babylon is pieced together after 2,100 YEARS: Scientists use AI to reconstruct ancient song
FROM THE DAILY MAIL UK: Sung to the god Marduk, patron deity of the great city, the poem describes Babylon’s flowing rivers, jeweled gates, and ‘bathed priests’ in stunning detail. Although the song was lost to time after Alexander the Great captured the city, fragments of clay tablets survived in the ruins of Sippar, a city 40 miles to the North.
In a process that would have taken ‘decades’ to complete by hand, researchers used AI to piece together 30 different tablet pieces and recover the lost hymn. Originally 250 lines long, scientists have been able to translate a third of the original cuneiform text. These lines reveal a uniquely rich and detailed description of aspects of Babylonian life that had never been recorded before.
Lead researcher Professor Enrique Jiménez, of Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU), told MailOnline that the hymn’s literary quality is ‘exceptional’.
‘It’s meticulously structured, with each section flowing seamlessly into the next,’ he said.
The hymn begins with grand praise to the god Marduk, calling him the ‘architect of the universe’. The poem’s author then turns to the city of Babylon, describing it as a rich paradise of abundance.
The hymn writes: ‘Like the sea, Babylon proffers her yield, like a garden of fruit, she flourishes in her charms, like a wave, her swell brings her bounties rolling in.’ There are also descriptions of the river Euphrates, which still runs through modern-day Iraq, and its floodplains upon which ‘herds and flocks lie on verdant pastures’. READ MORE
Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church
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When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.
But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORT…TO THE FIGHT!!!
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)
“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB
Biblical Archaeology
Biblical Archaeologists Making Stunning Discovery Under The Treasury Building At Selah Petra In Harbinger Of The Coming Time Of Jacob’s Trouble
Archeologists found an untouched tomb containing 12 human skeletons and various treasures under the Treasury room at Selah Petra in Jordan
If you believe your King James Bible, then you know that this planet we live on, and even the universe in which it sits, is very much alive and active. Some great examples of this are stones that can talk, trees that can clap their hands, the sun and the stars turning out their own lights, and the list goes on and on. A stunning new discovery at Selah Petra, the place where God will keep the remnant of Israel safe from Antichrist for three and a half years, has recently started to ‘wake up’ and begin to reveal its secrets. Why now? Great question.
“Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:” Matthew 24:16 (KJB)
“And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” Revelation 12:6 (KJB)
The Church Age is now nearly at an end, and it will formally conclude in an event we call the Pretribulation Rapture of the Church. From there there time of Jacob’s trouble begins, a 7-year time period that includes the 3.5 year great Tribulation. God will supernaturally preserve a remnant of the Jews, Isaiah 1:9, safe inside the red rock walls of Selah Petra, a place that Daniel 11:41 says Antichrist will not be able to enter. The Church is about to fly, and the Jews and the nation of Israel are about to be ‘the next man up’ on the end times roster. So it makes perfect sense that the ground at Selah Petra is starting to reveal its secrets and it gets itself ready for what’s coming next.
Archeologists find 12 hidden tombs with intact skeletons beneath the Treasury building at Selah Petra in Jordan
FROM THE JERUSALEM POST: Known locally in Jordan as Al Khazneh, the discovery of an untouched tomb under Petra’s famous Treasury room – which was featured in Spielberg’s 1989 movie “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” as the location of the Holy Grail – comes after over 20 years of finding numerous hidden tombs throughout the Treasury.
Dr. Richard Bates, a geophysicist from the University of St. Andrews, led the recent excavation after receiving permission to use advanced ground-penetrating radar at the site. “We were quite shocked that they did give us permission to go in and survey,” the NYT cited Bates.
Bates emphasized that “this was stunning data,” as the radar showed clear signs of voids and structures beneath the Treasury, prompting a joint excavation effort between Jordanian and American teams.
The newly found tombs are believed to be older than the Treasury itself and feature walls that haven’t been seen in the region before. “People think they know Petra. They recognize the Treasury,” said Dr. Pearce Paul Creasman, an archaeologist involved in the dig. “But all these people walk by, and there’s so much more under our feet.”
The skeletal remains found under the Treasury room date from 400 B.C. to A.D. 106 and offer some clues about the Nabatean civilization, which made Petra its capital around the fourth century B.C., according to the NYT. The intact dozen skeletons were within a hidden tomb and were discovered within a chamber divided by a set of walls, something that had not been seen before in the ancient city of Al Khazneh. READ MORE
Archeologists uncover skeletons at Selah Petra in Jordan
Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church
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When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.
But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORT…TO THE FIGHT!!!
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)
“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB
Biblical Archaeology
The Infancy Gospel of Thomas Is An Egyptian Forgery And Is Once Again Back In The Headlines With An ‘Amazing Discovery’ Designed To Deceive You
The unbiblical Infancy Gospel of Thomas (IGT) describes Jesus’ life from the ages of five to 12 and was written during the 2nd century in Egypt
Back in 2021, I wrote an article that was purely speculative, just a feeling I had at the time, that we should prepare ourselves for the day when they would ‘discover the bones of Jesus’, thus rendering the entire New Testament impotent. While that still has not happened, yet, still plenty of deception abounds to try and get you to lose your faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. One of these pieces of fakery is known as the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, and they just discovered ‘exciting news’ about a lost manuscript recently discovered that you need to know. (insert eye-roll here)
“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.” 1 Corinthians 15:18,19 (KJB)
There is an excellent book called ‘Did The Catholic Church Give Us The Bible?’ from Chick Publications we sell at the Bookstore, and I highly recommend you get yourself a copy. It shows that there are two lines of manuscripts that produces two lines of Bibles. The first is the line of the preserved text, the Textus Receptus, where our King James Bible comes from. The second line comes from Alexandria in Egypt, and this is where the NIV, ESV, NLT, LSB and the Douay-Rheims used by the Roman Catholic Church comes from. The Infancy Gospel of Thomas comes from Egypt, is not scripture, does not belong in the Bible, and is not to be trusted with its silly stories like having the young Jesus making clay pigeons and then turning them into real birds. Don’t fall for it, that’s the memo.
Experts discover earliest record of Jesus’ childhood after deciphering 2,000-year-old Egyptian manuscript
FROM THE DAILY MAIL UK: The earliest known copy of an incredible story about Jesus performing a miracle as a child has been discovered scrawled on an ancient Egyptian manuscript. The 2,000-year-old papyrus – a material that predates paper – tells the lesser-known story of the ‘vivification of the sparrows,’ when the five-year-old Messiah is said to have turned clay pigeons into live birds, a tale also referred to as the ‘second miracle’.
The clumsiness of the handwriting led the researchers to believe it was likely written as part of a class exercise in a school or religious community in 4th or 5th Century Egypt, which was a Christian society in those times. The original story of Jesus’ miracle is thought to have been written around the 2nd Century as part of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, a book detailing Jesus of Nazareth’s youth that was ultimately excluded from the Bible.
But until this discovery, the earliest written example of the gospel was from the 11th Century.
Until now, the papyrus had lay unnoticed at the Hamburg State and University Library in Hamburg, Germany. Experts told DailyMail.com they stumbled upon the papyri while analyzing manuscripts and noticed Jesus’ name in the text.
‘It was thought to be part of an everyday document, such as a private letter or a shopping list, because the handwriting seems so clumsy,’ Dr Lajos Berkes, a co-researcher and lecturer at the Faculty of Theology at Humboldt-Universität said in a press release.
‘We first noticed the word “Jesus” in the text. Then, by comparing it with numerous other digitized papyri, we deciphered it letter by letter and quickly realized that it could not be an everyday document,’ he added.
But this gospel was omitted from the Bible because it was thought to be inauthentic. The Bible was also intended to focus solely on Jesus’ ministry, miracles and what led up to his dying on the cross. In the IGT story, Jesus is just five years old playing in a stream while molding 12 sparrows out of soft clay in the riverbed mud.
The papyrus fragment measured four by two inches and contained a total of 13 lines of a popular religious story from the IGT. Researchers said the story was likely written as part of a writing exercise in a school or monastery because of the clumsy handwriting, irregular lines and other signifiers.
‘Apart from what can be deduced from the general history of the collection, there is no evidence of how or when the papyrus was discovered,’ the researchers wrote in their article. READ MORE
Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church
- HOW TO DONATE: Click here to view our WayGiver Funding page
When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.
But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORT…TO THE FIGHT!!!
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)
“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB
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