THE BEHISTUN INSCRIPTION
Ancient cultures were once largely inaccessible to scholars because they didn’t know how to read their writing.
This affected biblical archaeology because the Bible describes empires hostile to the Israelites such as the Babylonian and the Assyrian.
The discovery of the Rosetta Stone in Egypt led to scholars being able to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.
But another key discovery in this area is the lesser-known Behistun Inscription.
It’s a monumental rock inscription carved high on a limestone cliff in western Iran.
The carved panel is huge: 45 feet high and 75 feet wide.
Dated to around 520 B.C., the panel depicts the Persian king Darius and proclaims his divine right to rule, sanctioned by the god Ahura Mazda.
The same account is given in 3 languages: Persian, Elamite and Babylonian Akkadian.
Since scholars knew how to read Persian, they were able to use the Behistun Inscription to crack the code of Mesopotamian writing.
The inscription helped archaeologists to unlock the whole archive of Sumerian, Babylonian, Akkadian and Assyrian literature.
How interesting that the royal boast of a Persian monarch proved so helpful in opening up whole civilizations and also their relationship to the Bible.
My new book on biblical archaeology is out October 13. Preorder here: https://a.co/d/00q56DcF
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Before debating free will, you have to start with the Calvinist view of God.
In Calvinism, God doesn’t merely permit or allow events to happen—He decrees them.
That distinction changes the entire debate over predestination.
This video illustrates how biblical archaeology works by examining a clay seal dated to the 8th century BC and attributed to the prophet Isaiah. It was produced by the Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology (http://www.armstronginstitute.org) and narrated by Stephen Flurry.
One of the great treasures of biblical archeology is the Madaba Map.
It is a mosaic floor map that was found in a Greek Orthodox Church in Madagascar, Jordan.
Dated to the 6th century A.D., the Madaba Map has a beautiful and detailed depiction of Palestine—the Roman name for Israel.
Jerusalem occupied the map’s central section, showing various sites like the Damascus Gate and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
But it also marks other ancient sites such as Jericho, Shiloh and Bethlehem.
The Madaba map has enabled archaeologists to find several ancient biblical locations that had been lost to history.
More here: https://a.co/d/01EgJy1y
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