Need evidence for the Bible? Let’s go to Jerusalem!
This video series contains short biblical archaeology lessons based around the city of Jerusalem that we filmed on one of our Biblical Archaeology tours (Join us for the next one here). Join us as we travel around the city looking at some neat archaeological finds!
Table of Contents
EPISODE 1: Hezekiah’s Broad Wall | 8 Minutes
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 compare to scripture.
Credits
MUSIC CREDITS: Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5
EPISODE 2: King David’s Tomb | 18 Minutes
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 takes us back in time and explains what this site would have looked like and where King David would have been buried.
Credits
Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5 • Thumbnail 3D photograph render by Simon Lee on Unsplash.com • Background photos by 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. https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/king-davids-tomb-a-closer-look/ • Photograph of inside of T1: Zorn, J. R. (2012). Is T1 David’s Tomb? Biblical Archaeology Review, 38(6), 45–52, 78. https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/38/6/6
EPISODE 3: Ketef Hinnom “Valley of Hinnom” (Silver Scrolls) | 13 Minutes
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.
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
EPISODE 4: The Trumpeting Stone | 8 Minutes
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.
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
EPISODE 5: The Seal of the prophet Isaiah | 4 Minutes
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.
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
EPISODE 6: The Beautiful (or Triple) Gate | 13 Minutes
In Acts 3 Peter and John meet a lame man at the Beautiful Gate (or Triple Gate) on the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. You can still see where this gate stood today and the three arches that give it the name “Triple Gate”. 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.
Credits
CREDITS: Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5
EPISODE 7: The Baptisms of Pentecost | 7 Minutes
Pentecost marks the explosion of the faith among the Jews in Jerusalem. 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
Thumbnail photo by zhang kaiyv on Unsplash • Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5
EPISODE 8: Hadrian’s Inscription at the Double Gate | 6 Minutes
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 roman Hadrian 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. During periods of war and conquest, the walls around Jerusalem were often destroyed and rebuilt with the materials available, often from previous fortifications. If you look up at the Double Gate, you will find one of these reused stones with a peculiar inscription.
Additional Sources
Copy of Dio Cassius’ Roman History from the John Adams Library at the Boston Public Library, Public Domain, https://archive.org/details/tondionostoukass00cass/page/n15/mode/2up
Translation of Dio Cassius’ Roman History from volume 8 (books 61-70) from Loeb Classical Library in 9 volumes, Public Domain, https://archive.org/details/DioCassiusRomanHistory9books7180WithIndices/Dio%20Cassius%20Roman%20History%208%20%28books%2061-70%29/page/446/mode/2up
Translation of Bordeaux Pilgrim by Andrew S. Jacobs, CC-BY NC 4.0, http://andrewjacobs.org/translations/bordeaux.html
Commentary on Matthew by St Jerome, translated by Thomas P. Scheck, Copyright © 2008, The Catholic University of American Press, https://docslib.org/doc/1791356/st-jerome-commentary-on-matthew or https://archive.org/details/commentaryonmatt0000jero/page/n7/mode/2up
Credits
Copy of Dio Cassius’ Roman History from the John Adams Library at the Boston Public Library, Public Domain, https://archive.org/details/tondionostoukass00cass/page/n15/mode/2up • Translation of Dio Cassius’ Roman History from volume 8 (books 61-70) from Loeb Classical Library in 9 volumes, Public Domain, https://archive.org/details/DioCassiusRomanHistory9books7180WithIndices/Dio%20Cassius%20Roman%20History%208%20%28books%2061-70%29/page/446/mode/2up • Translation of Bordeaux Pilgrim by Andrew S. Jacobs, CC-BY NC 4.0, http://andrewjacobs.org/translations/bordeaux.html • 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 • Commentary on Matthew by St Jerome, translated by Thomas P. Scheck, Copyright © 2008, The Catholic University of American Press, https://docslib.org/doc/1791356/st-jerome-commentary-on-matthew or https://archive.org/details/commentaryonmatt0000jero/page/n7/mode/2up • Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5
EPISODE 9: Garden of Gethsemane | 10 Minutes
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.
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
EPISODE 10: Solomonic Gates | 47 Minutes
Solomonic gates refers to the gates rebuilt by Solomon during his reign. Our modern ideas of gates are simple barriers to separate property, but gates served as much more in Old Testament times. City gates were very important points of communication, government, justice, and marketplaces. Biblical descriptions of these gates indicate that they were fairly large structures. Solomon is recorded rebuilding the gates of Jerusalem, Megiddo, Hazor, and Gezer. Archaeologists have found these gates, examined their structures, and gathered significant insights on their designs. Listen in to find out how these gates confirm the Biblical record and why you can trust God’s Word, even in the small details.
Canaanite Gate
Solomonic Gate
Credits
Photograph of Dr. Eliat Mazar by Alexander Schick via Biblical Archaeology Society: https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/remembering-eilat-mazar/ • Akkadian Tablet Fragment: o Photo by Eliat Mazar via Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology, https://armstronginstitute.org/626-ophel-excavation-2009-ndash-2010 o Photo by Ouria Tadmor for the Estate of Dr.Eilat Mazar via the Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology, https://armstronginstitute.org/53-discoveries-of-eilat-mazar-the-ophel • Eilat Mazar by the Ophel Gate via Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology, https://armstronginstitute.org/626-ophel-excavation-2009-ndash-2010 • Original art on photographed archaeological park plaques and signs managed by Israel Nature and Parks Authority: https://en.parks.org.il/ • Stock Music provided by mv_production, from Pond5
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