Archeology Sheds Light On The History Of Israel

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Archeology sheds light on the history of Israel. Overall, Archeology is almost the only method of reconstructing real-life contexts for the world from which the Bible came from (Matthews, 2014). As a result, archeology allows for a better understanding of the events that took place in the biblical world.

As the Bible is a didactic literature, it is utilized to teach and not just describe historical events and stories (Dever, 2008). Therefore, the only sustained literary source, the Hebrew Bible, is indeed the inevitable starting point for historical investigation. For instance, Genesis describes the emergence of Abraham and of the Jewish Patriarchs in the Land of Israel (Lacey, 2008). Other examples found throughout the Bible further documenting evidence of enslavement, invasions, settlements, and detailed accounts of the emergence of monarchies of the United Jewish Kingdom (Lacey, 2008). Furthermore, additional …show more content…

Now, although the message of the Torah is meant for all mankind, it was given to Israel after other countries refused it, thus resulting in Israel being considered as the “chosen” nation (Judaism: The Written Law-Torah, n.d.). Until the 19tth century, Israel’s history was coterminous with the narrative of the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible (Williamson, 2015). Both epigraphical and archaeological discoveries ranging over approximately the last two centuries, and the introduction of various new and different historical methods, resulted in a further exploration into the nature of misunderstandings and other potentially plausible solutions within Israel’s history (Williamson, 2015). Therefore, the value of the biblical written records varies considerably with historical content as new forms of evidence arise from research, writings, pottery, and other materials, resulting in the revealing of Israel’s great