{"id":17405,"date":"2022-03-25T22:39:17","date_gmt":"2022-03-26T02:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/?p=17405"},"modified":"2022-03-26T20:55:05","modified_gmt":"2022-03-27T00:55:05","slug":"ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2022\/03\/25\/ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw\/","title":{"rendered":"Ancient Proto-Canaanite Curse Inscription Discovered On Mt. Ebal, Containing The Divine Name YHW."},"content":{"rendered":"<hr \/>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">About the Mt. Ebal Curse Inscription<\/h2>\n<hr \/>\n<p>In 2019 a large &#8220;dump&#8221; of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jpost.com\/archaeology\/article-694662\">excavated material from the 1980s<\/a> was sifted through for discovery of any archaeological remains. That material had been sifted through already but was only dry sifted. A newer technique called wet sifting had proven to be very effective at other sites like Shiloh so in 2019 the contents from Mt. Ebal were wet sifted and to say the effort paid off is the understatement of the century.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_17405_1('footnote_plugin_reference_17405_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_17405_1('footnote_plugin_reference_17405_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_17405_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_17405_1_1\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/archaeologist-claims-to-find-oldest-hebrew-text-in-israel-including-the-name-of-god\/<\/span><\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_17405_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_17405_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Found in the wet sift was a lead tablet that might remind our readers of another metal-based ancient inscription known as the <a href=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2016\/12\/10\/biblical-archaeology-the-ketef-hinnom-scrollsamulets-kh1-kh2\/\">Ketef Hinnom<\/a> scrolls. The document was folded so the text was on the inside and unreadable. Some characters appear to be on the outside but are difficult to make out and have yet to be published. Given that the amulet was made of lead, it was thought that electron scanning, which was used to read a number of folded or curled Dead Sea scrolls, would be ineffective. However, with the modern scanning technology the text was indeed able to be read and even readable. The text of the inscription is not completely published and is still awaiting peer review but a version in English has been released by the Associates for Biblical Research. The script itself is in Proto-Canaanite (AKA Proto-Sinaitic) which was the predecessor to Paleo-Hebrew.<\/p>\n<p>The curse etched on this lead tablet reads in a chiastic form.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Cursed, cursed, cursed<br \/>\n&#8212;Cursed by the god YHW.<br \/>\n&#8212;&#8212;You will die cursed.<br \/>\n&#8212;&#8212;Cursed you will surely die.<br \/>\n&#8212;Cursed by YHW<br \/>\nCursed cursed cursed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>(An English translation of Prof. Gershon Galil)<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The text of the curse might be overlooked as being unimportant because it does not contain any biblical material. However, this piece all but confirms the curse placed on Mt. Ebal in Deuteronomy 27 and Joshua 8.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. 13 <strong>And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to pronounce curses<\/strong>: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.<\/p>\n<p>14 The Levites shall recite to all the people of Israel in a loud voice:<br \/>\n15 \u201cCursed is anyone who makes an idol\u2014a thing detestable to the Lord, the work of skilled hands\u2014and sets it up in secret.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>16 \u201cCursed is anyone who dishonors their father or mother.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>17 \u201cCursed is anyone who moves their neighbor\u2019s boundary stone.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>18 \u201cCursed is anyone who leads the blind astray on the road.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>19 \u201cCursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>20 \u201cCursed is anyone who sleeps with his father\u2019s wife, for he dishonors his father\u2019s bed.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>21 \u201cCursed is anyone who has sexual relations with any animal.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>22 \u201cCursed is anyone who sleeps with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>23 \u201cCursed is anyone who sleeps with his mother-in-law.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>24 \u201cCursed is anyone who kills their neighbor secretly.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>25 \u201cCursed is anyone who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>26 \u201cCursed is anyone who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out.\u201d<br \/>\nThen all the people shall say, \u201cAmen!\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>(Deuteronomy 27:12-26)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, 31 as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses\u2014an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings. 32 There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua wrote on stones a copy of the law of Moses. 33 All the Israelites, with their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the Lord, facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Both the foreigners living among them and the native-born were there. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the Lord had formerly commanded when he gave instructions to bless the people of Israel.<\/p>\n<p>34 Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law\u2014the blessings and the curses\u2014just as it is written in the Book of the Law.<\/p>\n<p><strong>(Joshua 8:30-34)<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Perhaps the most important aspect of this discovery is the oldest known (presumably Israelite) occurrence of the divine name of YHW\/YHWH. The name occurs twice. If the artifact is confirmed to be dated from the Late Bronze Age (c. 1550\u20131200 BC), then it would be competing as the oldest known YHW inscription, alongside the Shasu of Yhw (nomads of YHW) inscription. Besides these two, the next oldest is hundreds of years later. These two inscriptions prove that the cult worship of YHW was in both the southern Levant and northern Levantine regions. Mt. Ebal is in the center of northern Canaanite territory and the Shasu of Yhw inscription is a hieroglyph from Egypt but refers most likely to southern dwelling Canaanites such as Moses&#8217; father-in-law who was from Midian. The Shasu are also found in the Moabite regions. Thus, the newly discovered inscription is the oldest one in a language that was used in Israel or Canaan.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_17417\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17417\" style=\"width: 477px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2022\/03\/25\/ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw\/the-divine-name-yhw-from-mt-ebal-with-hebrew-parallel-2\/#main\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-17417\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17417\" src=\"http:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-divine-name-YHW-from-Mt.-Ebal-with-Hebrew-Parallel-2.png\" alt=\"The divine name YHW from Mt. Ebal with Hebrew Parallel\" width=\"487\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-divine-name-YHW-from-Mt.-Ebal-with-Hebrew-Parallel-2.png 487w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-divine-name-YHW-from-Mt.-Ebal-with-Hebrew-Parallel-2-150x134.png 150w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-divine-name-YHW-from-Mt.-Ebal-with-Hebrew-Parallel-2-300x268.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 487px) 100vw, 487px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-17417\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The divine name YHW from Mt. Ebal with Hebrew Parallel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Why this is such a big deal<\/h2>\n<hr \/>\n<p>It has been believed by modern archaeology that any kind of cohesive Israelite identity was a late development that emerged locally (not from an exodus) and that any Israelites that might have existed in the Levant during the LBA lacked the writing ability to comprehensively document the laws given to Moses or the biblical stories. This script at Ebal seems to alleviate both concerns. The Ebal inscription appears to demonstrate that the Israelites had a written language that was both sophisticated and Semitic. To what extent the literacy rates allowed people to read this language is unknown. The fact that the discovered text appears to be satisfying the commands in the biblical narrative means that it&#8217;s likely an Israelite inscription and not a Canaanite one.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Does this prove that early Israelites were in the land or that a YHW cult existed there before the Israelite identity formed?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is easy to assume that since there is an inscription located in an Israelite territory that is written in a presumed Israelite language and mentions the Israelite god, that this must mean that Israelites were in the land. However, it is also possible that this artifact demonstrates a widespread cult of YHW that predates the exodus event. Archaeology has already demonstrated that the cult of YHW had noticeable cross-over with Canaanite religion (see: <a class=\"oa ob oc od ge oe of og oh oi oj ok kn cb gr gs\" href=\"https:\/\/www.haaretz.com\/israel-news\/.premium.MAGAZINE-a-strange-drawing-could-undermine-our-entire-idea-of-judaism-1.5973328\" data-test=\"link\">Kuntillat Ajrud<\/a>). However, instances of Yahwism mixing with Canaanite religion is all over the Old Testament. Archaeological evidence of such syncretism is also from a later period, long after the Exodus. This would point towards Yahwism slowly supplanting Canaanite religion, not that the two share an ancient past together.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Does this confirm an early Exodus?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The dating of this piece will determine the question to the answer. Proto-Sinaitic script was thought to be used between the 17th-15th centuries. If true, then it would be strange to see it still in use in the 13th or even 12th centuries. Moreover, we know that other languages were in use during the 13th and 12th centuries. A recent pot shard discovered in Lachish that dates from the 12th century clearly shows a Canaanite script in use that was <a href=\"https:\/\/omniglot.com\/writing\/phoenician.htm\">Phoenician<\/a>\/Canaanite which is far removed from the semi-pictographic letters of the Proto-Sinaitic script. The Phoenician script was developed during the 14th\/13th century and became the primary script in Canaan from c. 1200-800 BCE.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_17421\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17421\" style=\"width: 856px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2022\/03\/25\/ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw\/lachis-pot-shard-t-rogovski\/#main\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-17421\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17421\" src=\"http:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachis-Pot-Shard-T.-Rogovski.jpg\" alt=\"Lachis Pot Shard T. Rogovski\" width=\"866\" height=\"656\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachis-Pot-Shard-T.-Rogovski.jpg 866w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachis-Pot-Shard-T.-Rogovski-150x114.jpg 150w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachis-Pot-Shard-T.-Rogovski-300x227.jpg 300w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachis-Pot-Shard-T.-Rogovski-768x582.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 866px) 100vw, 866px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-17421\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lachis Pot Shard T. Rogovski<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_17423\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17423\" style=\"width: 1014px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2022\/03\/25\/ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw\/lachish-canaanite-pot-script-samek\/#main\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-17423\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-17423\" src=\"http:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek-1024x535.png\" alt=\"Lachish Canaanite Pot Script Samek\" width=\"1024\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek-1024x535.png 1024w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek-150x78.png 150w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek-768x402.png 768w, https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Lachish-Canaanite-Pot-Script-Samek.png 1117w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-17423\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lachish Canaanite Pot Script (12th century Samek identification)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>If we accept that the curse inscription at Mt. Ebal is both Israelite and 14th century then it will be very difficult to hold a late date for the Exodus. Of course, it&#8217;s possible that this was not done by an Israelite and that the biblical story was tapping into an older Canaanite tradition whereby Mt. Ebal was used to cast curses. Thus, the command to use the mount to curse may not have been a novel command to Joshua and the people.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Full Presentation<\/h3>\n<hr \/>\n<p>For those wishing for more detailed information and some visuals, I recommend you check out the unveiling by Associated for Biblical Research (ABR).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Major Finds from Mount Ebal! Featuring Archaeologist Dr. Scott Stripling\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/o8Xlnx-LODc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><p><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_17405_1();\">References<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_17405_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_17405_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/p><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_17405_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">References<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_17405_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_17405_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_17405_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/archaeologist-claims-to-find-oldest-hebrew-text-in-israel-including-the-name-of-god\/<\/span><\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_17405_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_17405_1').show(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_17405_1').text('\u2212'); } function footnote_collapse_reference_container_17405_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_17405_1').hide(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_17405_1').text('+'); } function footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_17405_1() { if (jQuery('#footnote_references_container_17405_1').is(':hidden')) { footnote_expand_reference_container_17405_1(); } else { footnote_collapse_reference_container_17405_1(); } } function footnote_moveToReference_17405_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_17405_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } } function footnote_moveToAnchor_17405_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_17405_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } }<\/script>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>About the Mt. Ebal Curse Inscription In 2019 a large &#8220;dump&#8221; of excavated material from the 1980s was sifted through for discovery of any archaeological remains. That material had been sifted through already but was only dry sifted. A newer technique called wet sifting had proven to be very effective at other sites like Shiloh &#8230; <a title=\"Ancient Proto-Canaanite Curse Inscription Discovered On Mt. Ebal, Containing The Divine Name YHW.\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2022\/03\/25\/ancient-proto-canaanite-curse-inscription-discovered-on-mt-ebal-containing-the-divine-name-yhw\/\" aria-label=\"More on Ancient Proto-Canaanite Curse Inscription Discovered On Mt. Ebal, Containing The Divine Name YHW.\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17413,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1258,5809],"tags":[8059,8060,8058,8054,8055,8056,8057],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17405"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17405"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17405\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17413"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}