We often hear about how Jerusalem is holy to followers of the three major monotheistic religions. But what is less well-known is that the surrounding Judean hills were home to pagan ritual sites involving Greco-Roman gods. One such site, linked to the harvest goddess Demeter, has been identified at the Twins Cave, according to a study released by the Yad Ben-Zvi historical research institute last week. In Greek mythology, Demeter’s daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped by Hades, king of the underworld. After Zeus intervened, Hades agreed to send Persephone back aboveground – but first he convinced her to taste the seeds of the pomegranate, an underworld fruit. Once she tried them, she could not remain completely cut off from Hades’ realm, to which she had to return for three months every year. And how do you reach the underworld? In Greco-Roman thought, dark, deep pits or caves were considered gateways to hell and were often used for rituals dedicated to pagan gods, say Boaz Zissu, who teaches classical archaeology at Bar-Ilan University, and Eitan Klein, one of Zissu’s graduate students. Zissu and Klein said in the study that the Twins Cave was used for just such pagan rituals between the second and fourth century C.E. The 42 clay lamps from the late Roman period discovered in the cave were used as part of a pagan rite, apparently meant to guide Demeter’s way as she searched underground for her daughter, they said.
The full story is here. For directions to the cave located east of Beth Shemesh, see here.
Larry Hurtado brings attention to what may be the earliest Christian graffito, suggesting that the find is extraordinary but that because the author “doesn’t have a TV production company behind him, we haven’t seen this item in the daily news.”
The inscription was found in Smyrna, home of a first-century church (Rev 2:8-11), and dates to AD 125/26. The writing includes the words “Lord” and “faith,” but you’ll need to get the forthcoming book by Roger Bagnall or read Hurtado’s summary for the details.
There are enough items related to the “Jesus Discovery”/Talpiot Tombs that I am going to exclude those from today’s roundup. Perhaps I will catch up next week. In the meantime, you can take a look at new photos posted at the official website.
The City of David is the focus of this week’s Jerusalem Post column by Wayne Stiles.
I think that Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence, by Craig Evans, would be a much better use of time and money than any books about Jesus discoveries. (Two dings: it’s marketed as “provocative,” and it’s only 208 pages.)
A copy of Edward Robinson’s 3-volume Biblical Researches in Palestine just became available for $75. And a copy of Picturesque Palestine (4 vols.) was just listed for $1100. (Or pick up an electronic edition for $55.)
A Jerusalem Post article lists the Top 5 Spring Activities in Jerusalem as: Ramparts Walk, Tisch Family Zoological Gardens, Bezalel Fair, Café Itamar, Sacher Park. (The article’s introduction leaves something to be desired: “When rain let up, Spring will be upon us; here are some great outdoor activities in the capital to prepare for.”)
G. M. Grena has another riddle, but this one is so easy (he claims) that he has disqualified me from answering. So what is this great discovery that is pictured?
Congratulations to Aren Maeir for sending the final proofs off for the first double volume of the Tell es-Safi/Gath excavations.
If you’re interested in the broader world of biblical studies, you might check out the March Biblical Studies Carnival with dozens of links to the latest.
It snowed in Jerusalem on Friday. (For photos of a previous snowfall, see here.) The storm also filled Caesarea’s hippodrome with water.
In light of the current discussion concerning the so-called “Jesus Discovery” of the depiction of a Jonah/resurrection motif on a 1st century CE ossuary (see here) it is probably prudent to re-examine the typological relationship between the two prophets of Jonah and Jesus.
Besides the explicit connection of “the sign of Jonah” mentioned in Matt. 12:38-41; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32 there are several probable connections that can be derived through comparing the Gospels to the book of Jonah and 2 Kings 14:25 (i.e. the only Old Testament mention of the prophet outside of the prophetic book of Jonah).
Consider the following suggested similarities/parallels:
1. Each prophet heralded from and began his ministry in Lower Galilee. Jonah/Gath-Hepher and Jesus/Nazareth – 2 Kings 14:25; Matt. 2:23.
2. Each prophet’s ministry occurred during a time in which Israel’s hierarchical, wealthy members “trampled upon the poor.” Jonah/“cows of Bashan” during the time of Jeroboam II (8th cent. BCE); Jesus/”devourers of widow’s households” – Amos 4:1-3; 5:11-12; 8:3-7; Matt. 19:23-25; Mark 12:41-44; Luke 16:19-31; 20:46-47.
3. Each prophet preached Yahweh to Gentiles despite a desire to primarily minister to their own Israelite/Jewish population. Jonah joined Phoenicians on their way to North Africa (i.e. Tarshish) to avoid the goyim of Nineveh (Jonah 1:1-3) and Jesus stated that he was sent “only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt. 15:24). However, both eventually ministered to Gentile populations – Jonah with Nineveh and Jesus for example with the Syro-Phoenician woman (Mark 7:25-28), Legion of the tombs of Gadera (Luke 8:26-34), and the centurion’s servant at Capernaum (Matt. 8:5-13).
4. Each prophet slept in the bottom of a ship in the midst of a raging storm while the ship’s sailors were wracked with fear and bewilderment due to the prophet’s slumber (Jonah 1:4-6; Mark 4:35-38). Additionally, each prophet was the reason for the ceasing of the storm (Jonah 1:7-16; Mark 4:39-41).
5. Explicit connection (see above) Each prophet spent “three days and three nights” in the “heart” of the earth before being “brought up from the pit.” Compare Jonah’s prayer (Jonah 2) and Jesus’ “sign of Jonah” (Matt. 12:38-41; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32) to Jonah’s expulsion (Jonah 3:1) and Jesus’ resurrection (e.g. Matt. 28:1-6).
6. Each prophet, despite being from northern Israel (i.e. Israel in the 8th cent. BCE and Galilee in the 1st cent CE), were obedient to the Law of Moses in worshipping Yahweh at his chosen location of Jerusalem (Deut. 12:5-7; 2 Sam. 7:13; 1 Kings 5:5). Compare Jonah’s “worship in the temple” (Jonah 2:4, 7), despite the enduring presence of the syncrestic temples of Dan and Bethel, to Jesus going up to Jerusalem for various feasts (e.g. Luke 2:41; 22:1).
7. Each prophet proclaimed coming destruction upon his audience’s capital city. Compare Jonah’s proclamation to Nineveh (Jonah 3) and subsequent, vengeful grief over their repentance (Jonah 4:1-4) to Jesus’ prophecy of doom to Jerusalem (e.g. Matt. 24) and subsequent, knowing grief over their rejection (Matt. 23:37; and especially Luke 19:41-44). As an aside, I find Jonah’s statement in Jonah 4:3 to be an ironic double entendre in the vein of Caiaphas’ statement in John 11:49-50.
8. Each prophet left the city that they had just preached in and went to the east of the city and prayed. Compare Jonah’s selfish, languishing prayer concerning the loss of his shade east of Nineveh and Yahweh’s response (Jonah 4:5-11) to Jesus’ selfless, anguish-filled plea to “let this cup pass” in Gethsemane and Yahweh’s silence (e.g. Luke 22:39-44).
More could be said about the typology of Jonah in relation to Jesus, especially with regards to the notable differences between the two. Nevertheless, in my opinion the above similarities undergird the connection between Jonah and early Christian motifs (see for example Jensen’s post which mentions 4th cent. CE depictions in Rome). Whether, the Talpiot ossuary is the first known example of this connection is an open, debatable question, but in either case it seems clear that the motifs derive from a clear typology that is rooted in the Gospels.
And I thought the days of archaeological treasures was long past…
The Megiddo Expedition have recently discovered a collection of gold, silver and bronze jewelry, wrapped in fabric, hidden in a vessel at Tel Megiddo. The vessel was found in a domestic context that was dated to the Iron Age I (around 1100 B.C.). This vessel was actually excavated during the 2010 season, but remained uncleaned while awaiting for a molecular analysis of it’s [sic] content (soil). When it was finally emptied during the summer of 2011, the pieces of jewelry appeared.
Both the textile and the jewelry itself were sent to analysis that should tell us more about the origins of this exceptional collection.
According to the biblical record, Megiddo was held by the Canaanites during the period of the judges (Judg 1:27).
The official website for “The Jesus Discovery” is now up. And down (bandwidth limit exceeded). An interview with the authors is here, when the site is back up.
The Jesus Discovery book by James Tabor has skyrocketed to #1 in all of its categories at Amazon and an overall rank of #174.
More than a dozen photos from the press conference are online. (HT: Joseph Lauer). Apparently
James Charlesworth, lead academic consultant to the team, skipped the show.
In a comment on Eric Meyers’ post, Tabor advances the view that Jesus’ body was first buried at the Holy Sepulcher site and then moved to the Talpiot tomb.
Robert Cargill suggests that the “fish” is a tomb nephesh and he claims (in the comments) that two photos supplied by the authors have been doctored or of different “fish.” (I’m not convinced.)
James Tabor confirms Gordon Franz’s observation that everyone has the fish turned the wrong way. If so, why were all of the photos released as horizontal shots?
Jodi Magness is chagrined to see archaeology “hijacked in the service of non-scientific interests.” In a comment, Tabor disagrees that such is the case and he writes of the fish etching that “at least half a dozen art historians have agreed with the Jonah interpretation.” Stephen Goranson notes that none of them have been quoted and he wonders if “signed non-disclosure agreements help scholarship.”
Michael Heiser explains why the process of using the “clueless archaeo-media” is rejected by scholars as a pursuit for cash and not for accuracy. “It’s the methodological equivalent to using mainstream media connections to announce a cure for cancer without clinical trials, or presenting one’s off-the-radar conspiratorial theory (the academic word would be avant garde) about Zionism instead of getting critical feedback from field experts first. But that’s boring and doesn’t generate sales.”
James Davila is pleased with the scholarly response to the announcement and that the media appears to be heeding it (unlike in times past).
The BiblePlaces Blog provides updates and analysis of the latest in biblical archaeology, history, and geography. Unless otherwise noted, the posts are written by Todd Bolen, PhD, Professor of Biblical Studies at The Master’s University.
