The Bible in History
The Bible is amazingly historically accurate with a range of historical figures from various ancient kingdoms being recorded in its pages. Special thanks to Scott Fellowes who kindly took the pictures that I was unable to take on my last trip.
Image 1:A stela for a child Arisham using Paleo-Phonecian script (4th -2nd centuries BCE) likely sacrificed to the Carthaginian gods Tanit and Baal Hammon. Baal worship along with child sacrifice was prohibited in Israel under pain of death but sadly this nation turned to this corrupted worship many times. Baal and various consorts were worshiped by the Sidonians and Canaanite tribes.
Image 4: Another child sacrifice dedication to Tanit and Baal Hammon.
Image 5: Babylonian Cuneiform relating to King Nabonidus of Babylon who was later overthrown by Cyrus the Great.
Image 6: Babylonian cylinder, note the background plaque written by King Nebuchadnezzar
(ܢܵܒܘܼ ܟܘܼܕܘܼܪܝܼ ܐܘܼܨܘܼܪ ).
Image 8-9: Cyrus Cylinder 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁
Lines 1–19: an introduction reviling Nabonidus, the previous king of Babylon, and associating Cyrus with the god Marduk;
Lines 20–22: detailing Cyrus's royal titles and genealogy, and his peaceful entry to Babylon;
Lines 22–34: a commendation of Cyrus's policy of restoring Babylon;
Lines 34–35: a prayer to Marduk on behalf of Cyrus and his son Cambyses ( 𐎣𐎲𐎢𐎪𐎡𐎹);
Lines 36–37: a declaration that Cyrus has enabled the people to live in peace and has increased the offerings made to the gods;
Lines 38–45: details of the building activities ordered by Cyrus in Babylon
Image 10: A sacred Egyptian cat (representing Bastet the Cat-god). This image is known as the Gayer-Anderson Cat and is from the Late Period dating to about 600 BCE.
The Israelite were forbidden from making idols after the exodus from Egypt. Leviticus 21:1 -“You must not make valueless gods for yourselves, and you must not set up a carved image or a sacred pillar for yourselves, and you must not put a stone as a showpiece in your land in order to bow down toward it.”
Image 11: The Assyrians hunted both man and beast as sport. Captured lions were often released during "hunting parties" where nobles could slay lions in relative safety.
Image 14: An image of an Eagle-headed spirit likely representing Nisroch (ܢܝܼܫܪܵܟ݂) as found in 2 Kings 19:36-37 -"36 So King Sen·nachʹer·ib of As·syrʹi·a departed and returned to Ninʹe·veh and stayed there. 37 And as he was bowing down at the house of his god Nisʹroch, his own sons A·dramʹme·lech and Shar·eʹzer struck him down with the sword and then escaped to the land of Arʹa·rat. And his son Eʹsar-hadʹdon became king in his place.
Image 15: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III- King Jehu or an emissary of King Jehu kneels at the feet of Shalmaneser III paying tribute. The inscription reads: “The tribute of Jehu, son of Omri: I received from him silver, gold, a golden bowl, a golden vase with pointed bottom, golden tumblers, golden buckets, tin, a staff for a king [and] spears."
Image 17-18: Lachish Letter Number 2
To my lord, Yaush, may Jehovah (YHWH) cause my lord to hear tiding(s) of peace today, this very day! Who is your servant, a dog, that my lord remembered his [se]rvant? May Jehovah (YHWH) make known(?) to my [lor]d a matter of which you do not know.
In Image 18 note the Paleo-Hebrew form of the Tetragrammaton rendered Jehovah/Yahweh in English which I have encircled in red.
(Translation from Aḥituv, Shmuel. Echoes from the Past. Jerusalem: CARTA Jerusalem, 2008, pg. 60, editing and edition of Jehovah by Naudé, Alaric)
Image 20: Clay model of liver (possibly a sheep) for use in divination and the interpretation of omens from the gods.
Ezekiel 21:21-22: 21 For the king of Babylon stops to use divination at the fork in the road, where the two roads branch off. He shakes the arrows. He consults his idols; he examines the liver.22 The divination in his right hand is pointed toward Jerusalem, to set up battering rams, to give the word for slaughter, to sound the battle cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to throw up a siege rampart, to build a siege wall.
Image 21: Proto-Elamite Inscriptions
This undeciphered script is Proto-Elamite, a figure on a boat apparently made of reed passes over a large fish. Elamite tribes or nations had various dealing with the Israelite and Judean Kingdoms.
Image 22: Lion Statue symbolic of Sekhmet the Goddess of War and Healing, Protector of the Pharaohs.
Sekhmet's name is derived from the root word sekhem meaning power or might. Sekhmet proved powerless against the plagues brought upon Egypt by Jehovah and was unable to protect the "divine" first born son of Pharaoh. To the Egyptians the death of a Pharaoh or his first born was the equivalent of the death of a god.
Image 1:A stela for a child Arisham using Paleo-Phonecian script (4th -2nd centuries BCE) likely sacrificed to the Carthaginian gods Tanit and Baal Hammon. Baal worship along with child sacrifice was prohibited in Israel under pain of death but sadly this nation turned to this corrupted worship many times. Baal and various consorts were worshiped by the Sidonians and Canaanite tribes.
Image 4: Another child sacrifice dedication to Tanit and Baal Hammon.
Image 5: Babylonian Cuneiform relating to King Nabonidus of Babylon who was later overthrown by Cyrus the Great.
Image 6: Babylonian cylinder, note the background plaque written by King Nebuchadnezzar
(ܢܵܒܘܼ ܟܘܼܕܘܼܪܝܼ ܐܘܼܨܘܼܪ ).
Image 8-9: Cyrus Cylinder 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁
Lines 1–19: an introduction reviling Nabonidus, the previous king of Babylon, and associating Cyrus with the god Marduk;
Lines 20–22: detailing Cyrus's royal titles and genealogy, and his peaceful entry to Babylon;
Lines 22–34: a commendation of Cyrus's policy of restoring Babylon;
Lines 34–35: a prayer to Marduk on behalf of Cyrus and his son Cambyses ( 𐎣𐎲𐎢𐎪𐎡𐎹);
Lines 36–37: a declaration that Cyrus has enabled the people to live in peace and has increased the offerings made to the gods;
Lines 38–45: details of the building activities ordered by Cyrus in Babylon
Image 10: A sacred Egyptian cat (representing Bastet the Cat-god). This image is known as the Gayer-Anderson Cat and is from the Late Period dating to about 600 BCE.
The Israelite were forbidden from making idols after the exodus from Egypt. Leviticus 21:1 -“You must not make valueless gods for yourselves, and you must not set up a carved image or a sacred pillar for yourselves, and you must not put a stone as a showpiece in your land in order to bow down toward it.”
Image 11: The Assyrians hunted both man and beast as sport. Captured lions were often released during "hunting parties" where nobles could slay lions in relative safety.
Image 14: An image of an Eagle-headed spirit likely representing Nisroch (ܢܝܼܫܪܵܟ݂) as found in 2 Kings 19:36-37 -"36 So King Sen·nachʹer·ib of As·syrʹi·a departed and returned to Ninʹe·veh and stayed there. 37 And as he was bowing down at the house of his god Nisʹroch, his own sons A·dramʹme·lech and Shar·eʹzer struck him down with the sword and then escaped to the land of Arʹa·rat. And his son Eʹsar-hadʹdon became king in his place.
Image 15: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III- King Jehu or an emissary of King Jehu kneels at the feet of Shalmaneser III paying tribute. The inscription reads: “The tribute of Jehu, son of Omri: I received from him silver, gold, a golden bowl, a golden vase with pointed bottom, golden tumblers, golden buckets, tin, a staff for a king [and] spears."
Image 17-18: Lachish Letter Number 2
To my lord, Yaush, may Jehovah (YHWH) cause my lord to hear tiding(s) of peace today, this very day! Who is your servant, a dog, that my lord remembered his [se]rvant? May Jehovah (YHWH) make known(?) to my [lor]d a matter of which you do not know.
In Image 18 note the Paleo-Hebrew form of the Tetragrammaton rendered Jehovah/Yahweh in English which I have encircled in red.
(Translation from Aḥituv, Shmuel. Echoes from the Past. Jerusalem: CARTA Jerusalem, 2008, pg. 60, editing and edition of Jehovah by Naudé, Alaric)
Image 20: Clay model of liver (possibly a sheep) for use in divination and the interpretation of omens from the gods.
Ezekiel 21:21-22: 21 For the king of Babylon stops to use divination at the fork in the road, where the two roads branch off. He shakes the arrows. He consults his idols; he examines the liver.22 The divination in his right hand is pointed toward Jerusalem, to set up battering rams, to give the word for slaughter, to sound the battle cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to throw up a siege rampart, to build a siege wall.
Image 21: Proto-Elamite Inscriptions
This undeciphered script is Proto-Elamite, a figure on a boat apparently made of reed passes over a large fish. Elamite tribes or nations had various dealing with the Israelite and Judean Kingdoms.
Image 22: Lion Statue symbolic of Sekhmet the Goddess of War and Healing, Protector of the Pharaohs.
Sekhmet's name is derived from the root word sekhem meaning power or might. Sekhmet proved powerless against the plagues brought upon Egypt by Jehovah and was unable to protect the "divine" first born son of Pharaoh. To the Egyptians the death of a Pharaoh or his first born was the equivalent of the death of a god.
