ARCHEOLOGY, BIBLICAL:

By: Morris Jastrow, Jr., Ira Maurice Price

The branch of archeology that has for its province a scientific presentation of the domestic, civil, and religious institutions of the Hebrews, in the lands of the Bible, especially in Palestine. It deals with these for the whole stretch of Judaic history down to the fall of Jerusalem in the year 70, the end of Judaism as a power in Palestine. The term "Archeology" was usedby Josephus in his great work, 'Ιουδαϊκὴ 'Αρχαιολογία (literally "Judaic Archeology," but usually translated "Antiquities of the Jews"), to cover the entire history of his people, their life, customs, religious institutions, and literature. This comprehensive sense remained current until the time of the Reformation. Indeed, writers like Eusebius, Jerome, and Epiphanius, while they produced neither history nor archeology as such, contributed material valuable for the enrichment of both. It is safe to say that no treatise on Biblical Archeology proper made its appearance until after the Middle Ages.

First Meaning of Biblical Archeology.

It was not until the sixteenth century that Carlo Sigonius (died 1584) gathered up and presented in his "De Republica Hebræorum" a discussion of sacred places, persons, and rites. This classification seemed to furnish scholars with a clue to what should be included in the term "Archeology" as applied to the Bible; so that De Wette (in 1814), followed by Ewald (in 1844), gives the first really systematic classification of the material that, up to the present time, is regarded as belonging to the field of Biblical Archeology. Even as late as Keil's work (1875), the main divisions of the subject are treated in the following order: (1) sacred antiquities; (2) domestic antiquities; and (3) civil antiquities.

The historico-critical method of investigating Old Testament history claims to have rectified a former error. It is now generally maintained that many of the records of the history of Israel originated at a date later than was formerly supposed, and that consequently many of the religious institutions, customs, and rites current among the Jews bear the marks of later ideas, conditions, and environments. It is further claimed that religious rites and customs owe their character largely to the domestic life and surroundings of a people. The recognition of this fact necessitates a reversal of the order of the themes usually included in the term "Biblical Archeology." Accordingly the present order of treatment is: (I.) Domestic Antiquities; (II.) Civil Antiquities; and (III.) Sacred Antiquities; but, as will be seen, there is still another section to add on the land of Palestine itself.

Archeology and History.

In the treatment of this topic, as of many other topics relating to ancient times, no hard-and-fast line can be drawn. History proper should cover the entire religious and political life of a people. It should present their laws, customs, and manners. It should also, when occasion requires, include their relations to neighboring peoples, politically, socially, and commercially. Archeology has to do with but a part of this material. It concerns itself with the interrelationships of the people in domestic, civil, and religious life. It goes further, and includes in itself a consideration of the character of the land where they live, and of their social, industrial, artistic, and literary organizations and features.

Biblical Archeology depends for its material upon a mass of ancient literature and antiquities. It will be impossible for the student of archeology to utilize to advantage the literary material, especially of the Old Testament, without due regard to the literary processes by which it was prepared. Much of the available material of archeology is secured from literature, but only after it has been subjected to the most searching critical processes. In fine, archeology at large finds in literature one of its best sources of information and one the testimony of which can not be set aside. Nevertheless, at the bottom, beneath all the literary activity of the people, lie, of course, the conditions under which the Israelites produced their literature. Hence, while much that is of value to archeology is found in Israel's literature, a knowledge of archeology will include information concerning the land which nourished that literature. There is, consequently, a kind of necessary interdependence between these two branches of knowledge—literature and its native soil.

Archeology and Religion.

The religious system of the Old Testament embraces both literary and archeological material; both ancient documents and monuments. Biblical Archeology includes only so much of this material as bears upon sacred places, persons, feasts, vessels, and ritual. It does not discuss religious ideas, either in their origin or their development. It does not present a systematized religio-legal system, nor the relations of that system to civil processes. Neither does it discuss the relation of Israel's rites and ceremonies to those of surrounding nations. These themes, proper in modern scientific subdivisions of material touching the ancient Jews, fall under the head of religion or of comparative religion.

The soil of the Orient is the treasure-house of one of the two great sources of Biblical Archeology. Palestinian ruins at Jerusalem, at Lachish, at Gaza, at the Dead Sea, and in the tombs on the hillsides, are all instructive teachers concerning the life and times of the ancient Jews. Fragments of documents of this people and of their neighbors are replete with information bearing upon the Archeology of the Bible. The Moabite Stone, for the ninth pre-Christian century, and the Siloam Inscription are valuable evidences of the character of the writing and of some of the customs of those early days (see Alphabet). The numerous small inscriptions from Phenician sources tell a fascinating story of tragical times contemporaneous with Israel. From Palestinian ruins, likewise, come many voices of the later periods, as the scattered and broken Greek and Latin inscriptions are deciphered and interpreted. Coins also tell their tale of the past, often with gratifying precision.

Monumental Sources.

The revelations from the mounds of Babylonia and Assyria, made within the last half-century, vitally touch the people of Israel. The close relationship existing between the social, political, and religious systems of that ancient West and East has now been clearly ascertained. The close racial kinship existing between Israel and the great powers centered on the Tigris and the Euphrates gives special significance to the antiquities exhumed from those eastern plains. The fact that Israel's ancestors migrated from Eastern centers, carrying with them the characteristics of their early home-land and people,points likewise to the essential importance of the "finds" brought from Mesopotamia.

Many items of considerable value to Biblical Archeology are discovered in the community of religious requirements and customs between Israel and her overland Eastern neighbors. The aggressiveness of Eastern political influence and power toward the West, in the later periods of Israel's history, carried with it other forces that largely affected the social and commercial fabric of the Palestinian kingdoms. Consequently, there is no land outside of Palestine whose ancient history and antiquities have a more noteworthy significance for Biblical Archeology than the great Mesopotamian region.

The imperishable character of the remains of ancient life found in the sands and tombs of Egypt, the proximity of that land to Palestine, and the association of that people and that land with Israel's history make the territory in question a fascinating field to the archeologist. The influence of Egypt's civilization upon the literature and life of the Jews is especially marked during the patriarchal, the bondage, and the wilderness periods. At intervals during the later stages of history—for example, in Isaiah's day—Egypt exercised no small influence over the life of the Israelites. While many points are still in dispute, some genuine increments of value from Egyptian monumental sources may be even now discovered.

Literary Sources.

The most fruitful sources of information germane to the subject are of course the literatures of the Old and New Testaments. As has been noted above, due regard must be had from the beginning to the assured results of Biblical criticism. The Old Testament material must be so used as to gain therefrom full advantage of the best-established results of the scholarship of to-day. It must be remembered, however, that a systematic archeology for each period of history can not yet be presented; merely the origin and growth of rites and customs through the entire stretch of time are all that have been traced. Uncertainty as to the dates of some of the books of the Bible aggravates the difficulties of the archeologist.

The New Testament material, less indefinite as to time, furnishes valuable data regarding the Jews of the first century, particularly those in Palestine. Certain rites and ceremonies prevalent among the sects of that age are relevant and instructive material. Even the circumstances that led up to the death of Jesus are full of interest for the student of archeology. The experiences undergone by Paul and other apostles in the establishment of the Christian Church often illuminate this subject.

The writings of Josephus, compiled, as they were, from many and uncertain sources, possess, nevertheless, because of their immense sweep through time, a multitude of apposite data. Josephus' partiality for his own people, and his desire to magnify their importance throughout their history, have to be guarded against; but he provides much material for the portrayal of the life of the ancient Jews.

The inter-Biblical apocryphal books, such as I and II Maccabees, III and IV Esdras, Judith, the Letter of Jeremiah, etc., abound in hints and items of importance in a systematic study of Biblical Archeology. Philo of Alexandria, though strongly influenced by Greek thought, was a serviceable chronicler of many things Jewish. This mass of literature yields much of genuine value to the archeologist of Sacred Scripture.

The early centuries of the Christian era have left several pertinent documents. The great mass of rabbinical literature (the two Talmuds and the Midrashic collections) is full of facts, statements, and hints concerning the life of the Jewish people. These are often of significant, illustrative importance in the elucidation of Old Testament conditions. The compilations of Manetho, Berosus, and Philo of Byblus yield facts that add materially to some phases of Biblical Archeology. The habits, customs, and religious characteristics of the Jews, as described in early Christian and Greek writings, are also of value. Arabic literature and antiquities reveal the common Semitic character of ancient times, and consequently some elements of Jewish life.

The unchangeable and permanent elements of the Oriental Semitic personality are surprisingly illustrative of the ancient Jewish character of the Bible. The habits, customs, and rites of the inhabitants of the East, and their mode of existence as a whole, are a living commentary on many passages of Scripture, the thought and significance of which are wholly foreign to a modern Occidental. Such portions of the Semitic world as are least modified by the aggressions of civilization, like those in the interior of Arabia, seem to maintain in their pristine purity the traits of two or three millenniums ago. The closer one gets to the primitive Semitic man, the nearer in many cases is the approach to a true understanding of his life as it appears in Holy Writ.

Out of the material already indicated, Biblical Archeology claims for itself four general divisions, under which it may best be treated; they are (1) the land and people of Palestine; (2) domestic or individual antiquities; (3) public or civil antiquities; and (4) sacred or religious antiquities.

I. Palestine:

The character of any land is an essential element in the determination of the characteristics of its inhabitants. The mountains and plains, the valleys and ravines, and the inspiring scenery of adjacent regions made Palestine a land of pleasing variety and of ever-refreshing beauty. Her wide range of climate, her immense list of fauna and flora, satisfied every reasonable demand of her restless people. Her comparative isolation, her natural defensive strength, and her relation to the great civilizations of the East and the West, especially during Israel's national history, emphasize her importance to the people that dwelt within her borders.

The Land and Its People.

Palestine was already the home of ancient peoples when the Patriarchs first trod upon her soil. The tribes of Israel settled down to live in close proximity to several different minor peoples. So close were their relations that intermarriages resulted, and an intermingling of every element of domestic, public, and religious life. The nation of Israel, built upon such a foundation as this, was a strange conglomeration of diverse elements. Clashes with her minor neighbors, and commercialand political relations with the great empires that oppressed her, affected domestic, civil, and sacred relations.

II. Domestic Antiquities:

The every-day life of each person involves a large number of items. These embrace the food available and used, the material accessible for clothing and the method of its manufacture, as well as the usual clothing worn by the people, and the method of preparing and wearing the head-gear. The individual lived also in a dwelling of some kind; either in a hole in the rocks, a tent, a hut, a house, or in an elaborate structure in a city. How were these various dwellings prepared, and what was their internal arrangement? What led to the aggregation of such buildings, which later became cities? The replies to these questions will be of supreme moment in following the growth of individual rights and privileges.

The Jewish family has a most interesting history. The family formed the next step upward from the individual, and was probably the basis of the clan. The laws of marriage and their binding character were essentials in the perpetuity of the nation. The position and rights of the woman before and after marriage, in the condition of monogamy and of polygamy, and in case of divorce, fall under this theme. The relations of the children to the individual parents, the methods of naming them, the observance of the rite of circumcision, their training and education in and out of the home, must be noted. The constitution of the Oriental family involved slaves, with certain laws of purchase and retention, both Israelitish and foreign. Certain diseases also often attacked, and sometimes found victims in, the family. The treatment of the aged and infirm, of the helpless and unfortunate members of the household, is of especial interest. Death in the family was attended by peculiar national observances. See Family, Marriage, Patriarchate, Slavery.

Society and Amusements.

Families and individuals maintained a certain amount of social intercourse. These relations developed certain social obligations; established the respective rights and privileges of host and guest, and the methods of conversation and entertainment. Social gatherings at feasts likewise inaugurated special customs and requirements. These functions, as well as the more elaborate festivals of their heathen neighbors, were occasions for the forming of relations that to a large extent determined the character of Israel. The introduction of foreign customs gradually modified society in Israel, until, by the downfall of the northern kingdom, it assumed quite another complexion. The origin, organization, and conduct of society form an interesting theme in the department of Biblical Archeology. See Etiquette,Precedence, etc.

There is slight evidence that the Jews in early times, aside from banquets attended by musical instruments of various kinds, enjoyed any indoor amusement. Neither is there any extended description of outdoor sports, either for princes or populace. But the prevalence of many terms employed in hunting, such as the names of traps and weapons used in taking animals and birds, and the names of wild animals used for food, is evidence that this sport was commonly indulged in, and to good purpose. Several hints are also found in the Prophets, especially as to the sport (or possibly occupation) of fishing. Both of these out-door amusements, so popular in Egypt and in the East, were turned to good account elsewhere by the Israelites. See Games and Sports.

The earliest records of the patriarchs and of the Israelites show them following the life of nomads. They raised herds of large and flocks of small cattle, and moved about according to the demands for new pasturage. The character of the country and their slight tenure of the soil led to such a mode of existence. Even when they settled down as occupants of Palestine and their life was mainly devoted to other things, they nevertheless reared extensive herds and flocks, comprising cattle, asses, sheep, and goats. The hills of some parts of Palestine were best adapted for such pursuits. See Animals, Cattle.

Pasture and Agriculture.

Israel's occupation of the new territory made possible another vocation besides cattle-raising. Permanent settlement led to the cultivation of the soil, to the planting of vines and fruit-trees. Wheat, barley, and rye became staple products, and by irrigation all parts of the land yielded profitable returns to the industrious husbandman. The methods of agriculture, the influence of this mode of life on the nation, and the importance of this industry on international relations occupy no mean place in the history of the life of ancient Israel. See Agriculture.

From the earliest times there are hints at the trades that were current among the Israelites. After their settlement in the land of Canaan especially, they became acquainted with methods of producing tools for the cultivation of the soil, and weapons for warfare. Carpenters and stone-masons were numerous at the time of the construction of Solomon's public buildings. Workers in metals of different kinds are found occasionally in the course of Israel's history. The ironsmith, the goldsmith, and the worker in bronze were not uncommon in Palestine. The preparation of skins for use as bottles and for sandals, the manufacture of the bow and of the different pieces of armor for the warrior called for skilful labor. The preparation of flax and wool for clothing required a method which in later years developed into great weaving establishments. The vessels of clay in use in Palestine in ancient times indicate that the potter's art had reached a high state of perfection. These crafts doubtless received many useful suggestions from Israel's neighbors in the different periods of her history. See Artisans, Handicrafts.

Commerce and Its Methods.

Exchange of commodities is one of the oldest occupations of men. Israel's continual contact with neighbors of all kinds, whose methods of life were as varied as their peculiarities, naturally led to some commercial activity. The caravans that crossed Canaan in Israel's day traded in Canaanitish cities, and furnished markets for Palestinian products in Egypt and in Babylonia. Israel exchanged her products of the soil for the wares of Phenicia and the perfumes of the south country Commerce reached its climax in Solomon's day, whenit extended as far as the undetermined port of Ophir, and brought back for him the gold, silver, apes, peacocks, and other luxuries and curiosities of distant climes. Phenicia was Israel's great trading-mart; for thence she secured much of the material and many of the workmen that made Jerusalem what it was in Solomon's reign.

The activity of exchange during the dual kingdom is shown on several occasions. When Ahab defeated Ben-Hadad at Aphek, one of the items in the treaty was the granting to Israel of "streets" [bazaars for trading] in Damascus, as Syria had formerly had "streets" in Samaria (I Kings xx. 34). The numerous references in Hosea are evidence that Israel in that period enjoyed the products of all lands. Egypt was likewise on the most intimate commercial terms with Palestine; and some of her choicest food and clothing was purchased by Israel. But it was not until after Israel's overthrow as a nation that she seemed almost entirely to abandon husbandry and many of the crafts, and to give her whole life to the pursuit of commerce. See Commerce, Trade.

The most convenient exchange was that of commodities for gold or silver or for some other precious article. This was accomplished at first by means of certain standards of weight for the metals, standards of capacity for grains, and the like, and standards of measurement (length, breadth, or thickness) for cloth, leather, stone, etc. The same tricks of trade as are found to-day—the light weight, the small measure, and the short line—appear in the charges that follow the arraignments of the Prophets. Late in history the metals were stamped or coined, thus greatly simplifying one of the most common articles of exchange. See Coin, Money.

Art in Israel.

Israel's growth as a nation was accompanied by a corresponding cultivation of the arts. The first notable exhibition is that seen in the elaborate architecture of the Solomonic era. Whether it was borrowed wholly from one nation or jointly from the leading nations of that day is immaterial. Israel adopted and executed some of the choicest specimens of ancient architecture. The pillars and their ornamentation, though executed by Phenicians, were according to the tastes and desires of Israel's king. Plastic art likewise received attention from the leaders in Israel, as is seen in the numerous fragments exhumed from Palestinian soil. Sculpture and fine stone-cutting added their part to the beautifying of the great Temple of the Lord. Painting is scarcely mentioned in the Old Testament (Ezek. viii. 10, xxiii. 14), in strange contrast with the evidence seen in Egyptian tombs. Music, on the contrary, received much attention from the leaders, and even from the common people. The shepherds in the mountains, the prophets on the hills, the singers in the Temple, made frequent and extensive use of many kinds of musical instruments. See Music, Temple.

Writing is almost as old as the race. Every nation around Israel had its method. The people of Israel, kin of these people by blood and language, had their own particular system of writing. The letters of the Hebrew alphabet had each a significance that helped to hold it in mind. The Israelites wrote on skins and clay, and carefully preserved their records for later generations. This work was done, however, by a particular class of men, who were later on designated as scribes. The different kinds of writing materials, and the tools wherewith this art was executed, were not unlike those of the great contemporaneous nations. See Alphabet; Manuscripts; Scribes.

III. Civil Antiquities:

The earliest show of authority is seen in the constitution of the family, with the father as head and chief. Several heads made up the body of elders, by whose decision affairs affecting several families were administered. Gradually these elders became a regularly established order, by or through whom the entire civil business of the community was conducted. In the time of the Egyptian bondage a class of men is found termed "officers," who though apparently scribes, were likewise underlings of their Egyptian taskmasters. The appointment of seventy elders in the wilderness was an extension of the earlier and possibly of the bondage scheme on a more elaborate scale. The method of government in vogue during the period of the judges was a modification of the same general plan under which Israel lived in the wilderness. The details of these systems are brought out with due faithfulness in the records of these periods.

See Elder.

The system of government current among the great and small nations of Israel's day was that of monarchy. Every foreign influence that touched this people emanated from the environment of regal administration. These powerful tendencies finally crystallized into a demand by Israel for a king. A king, with all the paraphernalia of a monarchy, was finally established. The prerogatives of the ruler, the law of succession, and the whole administration of government henceforth accorded substantially with those of other nations. Sufficient events and items of the king's conduct are narrated to give a good picture of Israel's monarch.

See King.Post-exilian Government.

On the return of a body of Jews from the various lands into which they had been scattered, a new method of government was adopted. The province of which Judea was a part was ruled by a Persian satrap. Israel's new territory was ruled by a governor, Zerubbabel, and later by Ezra and Nehemiah, etc. These subrulers paid tribute to Persia; and only on especial appointments were they granted extraordinary prerogatives, for example, Ezra. How far down into the so-called inter-Biblical period these conditions prevailed, it is not yet possible to affirm. The Maccabean revolt against the Hellenizing edicts of the Seleucid rulers was a forcible protest against a violation of the favorable treatment accorded the Jews by Alexander the Great. Nearly one hundred years of practical independence resulted in the downfall of Jewish authority, brought about by Pompey in 63 B.C. Thenceforth Palestine as part of a province became subordinate to a Roman governor. Information as to the line of demarcation between the rights of the Jews and Roman authority, the methods of administration adopted by Roman appointees, and a multitude of other questions of local interest is abundantlysupplied in the documents of this period.

See Government, Procurators, Rome, Sanhedrin.Public Administration of Justice.

References to law and its administration are found even in the patriarchal period, when the head of one family and his associates were supreme in authority. Legal processes were simple and effective. In the period of the judges, the so-called judge was the court of final appeal. But after the establishment of the kingdom the king occupied the supreme bench. In postexilian times the people elected their own judges. Numerous statements distributed in different periods of history are found as to the purpose, the method, and the results of various penalties inflicted by authority. The laws concerning all of these specifications are codified in the Pentateuch.

As a subject of the state, each individual had certain property rights. When the tribes settled as husbandmen on their newly won territory, each family occupied its own land. This was its permanent possession. It could lease the same; but in the year of jubilee the land reverted to its first owners. The forfeiture of property rights for political offenses, such as is mentioned in Ezra, was unusual. Marriage also carried with it certain rights, carefully specified in the law. Personal property, the rights to buy and sell, regulations concerning debts, restitution, inheritance, etc., were amply protected or prescribed in the legal provisions of Israel. See Procedure, dure, Chattels, Sale.

Warfare.

This condition met Israel very early in her history. The division of the host in the wilderness into companies of different numbers for internal civil convenience was doubtless the basis of army divisions. The military equipment of the armies of Palestine, east and west of the Jordan, and their power of resistance to Israel's aggression, are meagerly set forth in the Old Testament. Israel's method of levying and supplying troops, and almost uniform success in Joshua's day, add importance to the study of her military organization. The perfection of army methods in the regal period, and the great amount of money and energy devoted to the maintenance of the army, give added impetus to the investigation of military science among the great nations of Egypt and Mesopotamia. This investigation covers the kinds of armor and weapons used, methods of drilling and marching, encampments, movements for attack and battle, methods of sieges and defenses of fortresses and cities, and the treatment accorded to prisoners of war.

See War.IV. Sacred Antiquities:

The earliest records of Israelitish ancestors refer to special places devoted to worship. While the Israelites were on the march through the wilderness, they were accompanied by a sacred tent. As soon as they had settled in the land of Canaan they adopted numerous sacred high places. There were also sacred trees, stones, fountains, etc. Altars, obelisks, and the Asherah were accompaniments of these places. At these shrines Israelites met to do homage to their Preserver and God. Solomon's Temple was a partial centralization of worship, which, however, did not become complete until the reign of Josiah. The captivity and the exile of the Israelites divorced them from such shrines. On the return, Zerubbabel's Temple once again made Jerusalem the actual center of worship.

See Altar, Asherah, Bamah, Temple, etc.Sacred Persons, Places, and Offerings.

The original purpose of the priest is not absolutely settled. He was probably the attendant on a heathen image, who uttered oracles on occasion, to instruct the worshipers. Gradually he became the offerer of the sacrifice, and therein stood as a kind of mediator between God and the person seeking a message. The functions of priest were apportioned between the priests proper, who stood nearest God, and the Levites, who were practically their servants. Later still, the priestly duties were narrowed down to sacrifice only, leaving to the Prophets the matter of oracular speaking and teaching. The various steps to these different functions, and the special devotees in service about these places, are found in numerous cases mentioned in the Old Testament. See Levites, Priests.

The original purpose of the sacred offerings is wrapped in obscurity. For the non-bloody offering, the peace-offering, the burnt offering, the sin-offering, and the trespass-offering there are specific regulations and significance. The condition of the offering itself, the process of offering, and the result of the same upon the giver are all laid down in the codified rules of the Pentateuch. Few if any of the things connected with the life of Israel are so fully treated in the Old Testament as the subject of "offering."

See Sacrifice.

Like their neighbors, the Israelites had sacred feasttimes. These are seen very early in the history. Hints and more are found of the feasts of the new moon and the Sabbaths. The yearly feasts were the Passover, the First-Fruits, and the Tabernacles or Ingathering. Each of these had its special regulations as to time, duration, and attendants. Upon the centralization of worship at Jerusalem, certain modifications took place both in the accompaniments of the festival days and in the places where they were formerly held. As time went by the number of such days increased.

See Festivals.

Israel was put under strict discipline in the matter of personal cleanliness, both in reference to worship and to every-day life Obedience to these demands secured immunity from certain diseases and prevented the spread of others. Such discipline attached a wholesome sacredness to worship and enhanced the value of human life and health. It prepared the nation to conceive of a holy God, and to render Him a clean service.

The preceding sections have indicated merely in outline the main subdivisions of Biblical Archeology on the basis of the latest investigators. They point the reader to certain skeleton facts, which may be clothed with flesh and blood by careful painstaking research on the Old Testament.

For archeology in post-Biblical times, see Badge, Bath, Ceremonies, Costume, Numismatics, Music, Synagogue, etc.

J. Jr. I. M. P.