The Jerusalem Files (Biblical Archaeology) | 8-19 min

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Need evidence for the Bible? Let’s go to Jerusalem! This video series contains short biblical archaeology lessons based around the city of Jerusalem. Join us as we travel around the city looking at some neat archaeological finds!

In this course:

Hezekiah’s Broad Wall (8 min)

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Isaiah 2:10 and Nehemiah 3:8 both make references to Jerusalem’s “Broad Wall.” It turns out you can find sections of this wall exposed in the old city of Jerusalem. Join us as we look at archaeological evidence the remains provide and how they show evidence for the Bible!

MAPS & PHOTOS:

The Assyrian empire during the time of King Hezekiah.
Assyrian Empire, Public Domain.
This mural depicts the battle of the Jewish city of Lachish conquered by the Assyrians.
Mural of the Battle of Lachish
Part of the mural of the battle of Lachish shows the Assyrians using their battering ram, the main concern of King Hezekiah when fortifying Jerusalem.
Depiction of an Assyrian battering ram
The remains of the broad wall can be found in sections around the old city of Jerusalem, evidence for the Bible from Isaiah 2:10 and Nehemiah 3:8.
Broad Wall
In the lower part of the picture you can see the remains of homes where the wall runs straight through the middle of rooms, evidence for the Bible from Isaiah 2:10 and Nehemiah 3:8.
Remains of homes under the wall

CREDITS: Assyrian Empire map by Ningyou, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=600659 | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

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David’s Tomb (18 min)

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Just outside of the old city to the south lies the city of David. Go a bit further and you will find a peculiar area that’s often ignored between the Gihon spring and the Pool of Siloam. This site has gone through many changes throughout history after being visited by plunderers, conquerors, and builders. But there is evidence that this was the royal graveyard, also known as the Tombs of the Kings in the Bible. Join us as Michael explains what this site would have looked like, where King David would have been buried, and how this relates to evidence for the Bible.

DRAWINGS & PHOTOS:

Raymond Well's excavation survey map shows where he identified the tombs, evidence for the Bible that the tomb locations described in scripture is accurate.
Weill’s s excavation, Raymond Weill & L.-H. Vincent
Raymond Well's original drawings showing the front view of the tombs with the false floor.
Front side view drawing of T1, Raymond Weill & L.-H. Vincent
Raymond Well's original drawings showing the side view of the tombs.
Top and side view drawing of T1, Raymond Weill & L.-H. Vincent
Inside the T1 tomb is a depression and a burial bench.
Inside T1, Zorn, J.R, Biblical Archaeology Review

CREDITS: Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5 | Simon Lee, James Coleman, and Tanner Mardis on Unsplash.com | Drawings of T1 tomb and original excavation from The City of David: Revisiting Early Excavations by Raymond Weill and L.-H. Vincent. | Photograph of inside of T1: Zorn, J. R. (2012). Is T1 David’s Tomb? Biblical Archaeology Review, 38(6), 45–52, 78

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Ketef Hinnom: Valley of Hinnom, the Silver Scrolls (14 min)

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Gabriel Barkay used student volunteers to help him dig in the valley of Hinnom in 1979. Not expecting to find anything, he kept sending one of the volunteer children back into a cleaned out tomb hoping to get some peace. It turns out this child’s boredom lead to one of the biggest accidental discoveries in recent history: the silver scrolls? Join us as Michael explains what makes this discovery so valuable to our faith as Christians.

PHOTOS:

biblical archaeological artifact from the 6-7 Century BC, a silver scroll, containing the priestly blessing we find in our modern Bibles in Numbers 6:24-26, evidence for the Bible that our manuscripts are accurate.
The silver scrolls at the Israel Museum
biblical archaeological artifact from the 6-7 Century BC, a silver scroll, containing the priestly blessing we find in our modern Bibles in Numbers 6:24-26, evidence for the Bible that our manuscripts are accurate.
The silver scrolls at the Israel Museum
biblical archaeological artifact from the 6-7 Century BC, a silver scroll, containing the priestly blessing we find in our modern Bibles in Numbers 6:24-26, evidence for the Bible that our manuscripts are accurate.
The silver scrolls at the Israel Museum
Detailed drawing showing the legible letters from the first silver scroll
Bible and Spade, Spring 2006 Issue, Associates for Biblical Research
Detailed drawing showing the legible letters from the second silver scroll
Bible and Spade, Spring 2006 Issue, Associates for Biblical Research
the empty tomb where the young boy fell in and found the silver scrolls.
This cavity under the burial bench had a false floor that gave way.
The original tomb in Ketef Hinnom, the hinnom valley, where the silver scrolls were found.
The boy was sent inside the hole under the burial bench.
The original tomb in Ketef Hinnom, the hinnom valley, where the silver scrolls were found. This tomb could lay 7 bodies at one time.
This tomb could lay 7 bodies at one time.
A reconstruction in the Israel museum of one of the tombs at kitef hinnom to show how they were discovered.
A reconstruction in the Israel museum of one of the tombs

CREDITS: Photograph of Gabriel Barkay by אסף אברהם – אסף אברהם, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60474671 | Detailed drawings of silver scrolls from Bible and Spade, Spring 2006 Issue, Associates for Biblical Research, https://biblearchaeology.org/research/divided-kingdom/3567-the-blessing-of-the-silver-scrolls | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

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The Trumpeting Stone (8 min)

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When visiting the old city of Jerusalem you might hear claims that there never was a Jewish Temple on the temple mount. However, there is archaeological evidence that says quite the contrary. One of these is the trumpeting stone, a place where one was instructed to blow the shofar to announce the beginning of shabbat. Join us as Michael goes through the evidence at the southwest corner of the temple mount.

PHOTOS:

Original trumpeting stone found at the southwest corner of the temple mount with the Hebrew inscription instructing to blow the shofar (or trumpets) at this location for Shabbat, evidence for the Bible that there was at least a Jewish temple at this site.
Trumpeting stone at the Israel Museum
Model of the old city of Jerusalem and temple mount showing the south side of the temple mount wall and where Robinson's arch would have been located.
Robinson’s Arch at the Israel Museum
Model of the temple mount and Robinson's Arch at the Israel Museum.
Robinson’s Arch at the Israel Museum
Artistic reconstruction of what Robinson's Arch would have looked like during the second temple period. A street ran underneath and along the western side of the temple wall.
19th century photograph showing the top of Robinson's Arch before any excavations began. Much of what we see today was underground for a long time.
What Robinson’s Arch looked like in the 19th Century, Public Domain

CREDITS: Thumbnail photograph by Megs Harrison on Unsplash | 19th century photograph of Robinson’s Arch, unknown author, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10039534 | Artistic reconstruction of Robinson’s Arch by Водник at ru.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7560698 | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

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The Isaiah Seal (4 min)

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Dr. Eliat Mazar is a renowned archaeologist whose discoveries helped uncover the biblical record under Jerusalem. One of those discoveries was a bulla, also known as a clay seal that would have been used to seal letters. Hundreds of bullas have been found and they typically carry the symbol and name of the writer (such as a king, official, or scribe). This particular bulla was found on the south side of the Temple Mount and provides evidence of one of the most famous old testament prophets.

PHOTOS:

Seal & Bullas displayed at the Israel Museum
Drawing of Hezekiah’s Seal
Hezekiah’s Seal
Isaiah’s Seal (Dr. Mazar)
Missing letters on the Isaiah seal (Dr. Mazar)

CREDITS: Photograph of Dr. Eliat Mazar by Alexander Schick via Biblical Archaeology Society: https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/remembering-eilat-mazar/ | Isaiah Seal images and Dr Mazar’s publication of her findings: Mazar, E. (2018). Is This the Prophet Isaiah’s Signature? Biblical Archaeology Review, 44(2), 64–73,92. https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/44/2/7 | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

The Beautiful Gate (13 min)

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In Acts 3 Peter and John meet a lame man at the Beautiful Gate. You can still see where this gate stood today. Join us as Michael takes the opportunity to dig a little deeper into the story of the lame man, and how this location provides some interesting considerations for this story in Acts 3.

SEE ALSO: Hope turns to Joy! A theatrical presentation on Acts 3 & 4.

CREDITS: Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

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The Baptisms Of Pentecost (7 min)

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Acts 2:41 tells us that three thousand people were baptized following Peter’s sermon at the Temple Mount. That’s a lot of people! The traditional theory is that these new believers travelled a ways from the Temple Mount to get baptized in the river. However, archaeology reveals to us some very interesting facilities located on the south side of the Temple Mount that would have accommodated such a number of baptisms.

CREDITS: Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5 | Thumbnail photo by zhang kaiyv on Unsplash

Hadrian’s Inscription at the Double Gate (7 min)

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Before the Dome of the Rock we see today, there was another temple built on the Temple Mount aside from the Jewish Temple. This temple was built by the romans and for a long time there was no archaeological evidence besides a few historical records. However the modern walls of the Temple mount give us a clue.

PHOTOS:

Hadrian’s Inscription in the wall
Roman History translated by Loeb Classical Library, Public Domain.
Excerpt from St Jerome’s Commentary on Matthew (24.15), Copyright © 2008, The Catholic University of American Press

SOURCE LINKS:

CREDITS: Statue of Jupiter photographed by Biser Todorov, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73898497 | Manuscript background photograph by Mark Rasmuson on Unsplash | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5

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Garden of Gethsemane (10 min)

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The Garden of Gethsemane lies outside of the old city towards the lower side of the Mount of Olives. The modern garden you can visit today is much smaller than it was in the first century but the olive industry is still alive and well. There are a few trees in this garden that might have been saplings at the time of Jesus 2,000 years ago! Join us as Michael explains the historical and spiritual significance of the garden.

PHOTOS:

The trench collects the oil to the hole
A grinding stone
A grinding stone with an olive press
Diagram of an olive press with lever, by  פרנקל רפי – פרנקל ר., בית בד קדום, ספריית אדם ועמלו, מוזיאון ישראל, תל-אביב, 1986, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Working screw press, by a.froese – alte Olivenpresse, CC BY-SA 2.0.
An olive disk or “pancake” that would be stacked and pressed, by Giancarlo Dessì, CC BY-SA 3.0

CREDITS: Olive press diagram by פרנקל רפי – פרנקל ר., בית בד קדום, ספריית אדם ועמלו, מוזיאון ישראל, תל-אביב, 1986, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18576259 | Screw olive presses by a.froese – alte Olivenpresse, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58368912 & Alain Muller – https://www.flickr.com/photos/alainmuller/10850185236/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=36077848 | Modern olive press by I, China Crisis, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4528510 | Olive press disk by Giancarlo Dessì, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1416627 | Hematidrosis by Saugato Biswas, Trupti Surana, Abhishek De, Falguni Nag – CC licence]the image hematidrosis case report, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33584837 | Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5