King Artaxerxes - Former Things - Biblical Archaeology and The Bible

Persepolis - Home of the Persian Kings
Persepolis is quite magnificent. Started under Darius I (the Great) in about 518 BC, and built out over 150 years, it is the greatest surviving set of ruins of ancient Near Eastern civilizations, and its scale and grandeur is magnificent. It burned down when Alexander the Great visited in 330BC because, despite being made mostly of stone, the roof had wooden timbers and when the fire raged these burned, melting the iron clamps that held the columns in place.

The remains of Persepolis include bas-reliefs and sculptures that provide an insight into the hearts and beliefs of the ancient Iranians. It can be seen that the buildings at Persepolis are divided into three areas, military quarters, the treasury and the reception and occasional houses for King of Kings. These included the Great Stairway, the Gate of Nations (Xerxes), Apadana palace of Darius, the Hall of a Hundred Columns, the Tripylon Hall and Tachara palace of Darius, the Hadish palace of Xerxes, palace of Artaxerxes, the Imperial Treasury, the Royal Stables and the Chariot house.


The Historian Herodotus - The Histories 484 B.C.
"Darius the son of Hystaspes and Xerxes the son of Darius and Artoxerxes the son of Xerxes" - Book 6 : 98

"The Argives at that time sent envoys to Susa, and these asked Artoxerxes the son of Xerxes, if the friendship still remained" - Book 7:151


The Elephantine Papyris
From Ancient Near East Texts - Volume I - ANET

"On the 21st of Chisleu, that is the 1st of Mesore, year 6 of King Artaxerxes, a Jew of Elephantine, of the detachment of Haumadata, said to Jeziniah.
- Mibtahiah's First Marriage

"On the 25th of Tishri, that is the 6th day of the month Epiphi, year.... of King Artaxerxes" - Contract of Mibahiah's Third Marriage



Scriptures
Ezra 7:12 Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest. Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.

Ezra 8:1 These are now the chief of their fathers, and this is the genealogy of them that went up with me from Babylon, in the reign of Artaxerxes the king.

Ezra 6:12 according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

Merodach Baladan | King of Babylon the Bible and Archaeology | Isaiah

Sennacherib | Sennacherib's Prism | Hezekiah Isaiah and the Bible

ible. 2nd Kings, 2nd Chronicles and Isaiah. “Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the defenced cities of Judah, and took them.” – Isaiah 36

Sennacherib’s prism also contains the name of Merodach Baladan found in the book of Isaiah.

“In my first campaign I accomplished the defeat of Merodach-Baladan”

“At that time Merodach Baladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon.”
- Isaiah 39

The prism gives a detailed account of Sennacherib’s war campaigns and he consistently brags about the many people he has killed and what nations he destroyed and forced to pay tribute to him. He describes hanging people on stakes as well as amputating hands and genitalia of his enemies. The Bible states that God sent angels to destroy his entire army for his arrogant threats against Hezekiah and Israel. Full translation of Sennacherib's Prism

“Hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he sent to reproach the living God” – Isaiah 37

Sennacherib Killed by His Sons - Confirmed
“ Sennacherib was killed by his sons.” - Isaiah 37

The Chronicle on the Reigns from Nabu-Nasir to Samas-suma-ukin (ABC 1) is one of the historiographical texts about ancient Assyria and Babylonia.

Line 35 reads: "On the twentieth day of the month Tebetu, Sennacherib, King of Assyria, was killed by his son in a rebellion.”

The historical evidence proves King Sennacherib’s existence and his palace at Nineveh. Sennacherib’s own writings and Assyrian documents testify that he did in fact lay siege to Jerusalem and was killed by his sons just as described in the book of Isaiah.

Scriptures
2Kings 19:36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.

Isaiah 37:21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent unto Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria

2 Chronicles 32:10 Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria, Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide in the siege in Jerusalem?

Pharaoh Hophra Apries - Former Things - Biblical Archaeology and The Bible

Hosea 9:6 For, lo, they are gone because of destruction: Egypt shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them: the pleasant places for their silver, nettles shall possess them: thorns shall be in their tabernacles.

Palace of Apries at Memphis
More recently, in 1909, in the course of excavations carried on by the British School of Archaeology in Egypt, the palace of King Apries, Pharaoh Hophra, has been discovered on the site of Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt. Under the gray mud hill, close to the squalid Arab village of Mitrahenny, which every tourist passes on the way to Sakkhara, had lain for centuries Hophra's magnificent palace, 400 ft. long by 200 ft., with a splendid pylon, an immense court, and stonelined halls, of which seven have been found intact. With many other objects of value there was found a fitting of a palanquin of solid silver, decorated with a bust of Hathor with a gold face. It is said to be of the finest workmanship of the time of Apries-Hophra, a relic of the fire, which, Jeremiah predicted at Tahpanhes, the Lord of Hosts was to kindle "in the houses of the gods of Egypt" (Jeremiah 43:12).

The main palace building was excavated in two seasons between 1908 and 1910. It is located on a massive artificial platform. Most of the walls of the palace are constructed in mud-brick, while important elements such as columns, pavements and wall cladding (at least to a certain height) are of limestone. Some of the capitals of the columns still bore the name of king Apries, who was therefore most likely the builder of main parts of the complex.

King Zedekiah and the Babylonian Chronicle
King Zedekiah is in this same chapter and verse of Jeremiah that the Pharaoh Apries-Hophra is mentioned. We are going to compare the record of the Babylonian chronicle clay tablet, as translated into English by scholars, with the account recorded in the Bible. This tablet resides in the British Museum.

"He installed in his place a king Zedekiah of his own choice, and after he had received rich tribute, he sent them forth to Babylon." - Babylonian Chronicle

I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon - Jeremiah 44:30

This chronicle names all of the following people and all of them are in the bible! - Jehoiachin - Zedekiah - Pharaoh Necho - Nebuchadnezzar

Lachish Letters City of Lachish

Old Testament. Three appear only during the time of Jeremiah. In Letter IV

Hoshaiah writes:
And let my lord know that we are watching for the signals of Lachish according to all the indications which my lord hath given, for we cannot see Azekah.

Jeremiah mentions “fire” signals (Jeremiah 6:1), and tells how the king of Babylon “fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah” (Jeremiah 34:7). - More information on the Letters

Lachish Under Siege
Of further interest is the fact that archaeological digs at the city of Lachish bear out the details of Sennacherib’s wall relief. Extensive archaeological digs at Lachish from 1935 to 1938 by the British, and again from 1973 to 1987 under Israeli archaeologist David Ussishkin and others, have revealed a treasure trove of artifacts, each of which fits the events depicted by Sennacherib. Concerning the Assyrian siege of Lachish, William Dever noted:

"The evidence of it is all there: the enormous sloping siege ramp thrown up against the city walls south of the gate; the double line of defense walls, upslope and downslope; the iron-shod Assyrian battering rams that breached the city wall at its highest point; the massive destruction within the fallen city.... Virtually all the details of the Assyrian reliefs have been confirmed by archaeology.... Also brought to light by the excavators were the double city walls; the complex siege ramp, embedded with hundreds of iron arrowheads and stone ballistae; the counter-ramp inside the city; the destroyed gate, covered by up to 6 ft. of destruction debris; huge boulders from the city wall, burned almost to lime and fallen far down the slope."
(2001, pp. 168-169).

The Assyrian monarch’s siege of Lachish is documented by the biblical text, and the destruction of the city is corroborated by the massive carving dedicated to the event in Sennacherib’s palace at Nineveh, as well as the actual artifacts found in stratum III at Lachish

The Amarna Letters
The town of Lachish is also mentioned in the Amarna letters.
Letter from Pabi, Prince of Lachish, to Akhenaton

Scriptures
Joshua 10:31 And Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it:

2 Kings 18:14 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish.

Tirhakah Pharaoh Egypt | Bible and Egypt | Archaeology

Statuette of Taharqa and the Falcon God
The statue represents King Taharqa, the third sovereign of the 25th Dynasty (ruled by Nubian kings). He reigned over Egypt for nearly half a century until the country was invaded and conquered by the Assyrians. The kneeling pharaoh offers two round vases to a falcon god holding a rearing cobra. This sculpture in the round depicts a traditional scene: an offering of wine to a deity.

The small bronze statuette in this group is a magnificent portrait of King Taharqa, born in the Sudan but crowned in Memphis. His power and dual reign over Egypt and Nubia is affirmed by the two uraeus cobras on his forehead. His birth name is engraved on his belt: "The perfect god, Taharqa alive for eternity." Taharqa was the most famous pharaoh of the 25th Dynasty, also known as the reign of the Kushites. He renovated old temples, constructed new shrines, and had official inscriptions written throughout his large empire. A monumental column in the first court of Karnak marks his architectural participation in the great temple of Amun. He is kneeling and clad in the traditional Egyptian kilt. He is much smaller than the majestic falcon, which is covered in gold leaf; the king is offering vases of wines to the animal.

Tirhakah’s Name Appears on Ancient Documents
The ANET is a collection of ancient inscriptions from various civilizations written by James Pritchard an American archaeologist with a PHD from the University of Pennsylvania. The volume provides reliable translations of documents from Ancient Near Eastern history in relation to the Hebrew Bible. The following inscriptions come from Esarhaddon an Assyrian King that is also named in the Bible:

“Balu, king of Tyre who had put his trust upon his friend Tirhakah, king of Nubia, and therefore had thrown off the yoke of Ashur, my lord” - ANET 292

“I fought daily, without interruption, very bloody battles against Tirhakah, king of Egypt and Ethiopia.”- ANET 293

“From the town of Ishhupri as far as Memphis, his royal residence, a distance of 15 days march, I fought daily, without interruption, very bloody battles against Tirhakah, king of Egypt and Ethiopia” – ANET 293

Scriptures
2Kingd 19:9 And when he heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, Behold, he is come out to fight against thee: he sent messengers again unto Hezekiah, saying,

Isaiah 37:9 And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, He is come forth to make war with thee. And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,

City of Shechem - Former Things - Biblical Archaeology and The Bible

Joseph's Tomb in Shechem

Joshua 24:32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.

The palestinians destroyed Joseph's Tomb and immediately rebuilt it as a mosque and now claim that it was never Joseph's Tomb at all but rather the grave of a Muslim clergyman of note. They now claim that it is a Muslim holy place and assert exclusive rights to it.

Following the 1967 War, Israel gained control of the site and a small settlement citation needed, including a Jewish seminary and military outpost, was built there in the 1980s. The settlement was handed over to the Palestinian Authority in 1995, but the Israeli Defence Forces retained control over the site since the Oslo accords granted it free Israeli access.

For Israelis, the destruction of a Jewish shrine raised serious doubts as to whether the Palestinian Authority would protect religious sites belonging to Jews and Christians and guarantee access to them as agreed in the Oslo accords.

Since the October 7th, 2000 retreat, Israelis have been forbidden to visit the site. Only in the last couple of years, due to very high demand, has the Israeli Army infrequently allowed pilgrims to visit the site under armoured army escort.

Scriptures
Joshua 24:32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.

Judges 9:6 And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem.

1 Kings 12:1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.