Comments on: Where Are the Royal Archives at Tel Hazor?

By: Bobby Hooks

Bobby Hooks — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 12:31:21 +0000

To Jacob: Just believe the Biblical account. The Bible is true. G_d is the G_d of Truth. (Psalm 31:5) No need for mental gyration.

By: Wes Kelly

Wes Kelly — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 01:02:34 +0000

Thanks in part to articles in BAR, recently became acquainted with the cuneiform
writings found at the Ugarit site Tel Ras Shamra further up the Levant coast. This material was largely written in the Ugaritic form of cuneiform of about 33 symbols which seems simpler to translate than say an Akkadian equivalent. In addition it seems to have acted as a medium for a host of 2nd millenium BC literature as well as legal and business transactions. Among many notable examples is the story of the son of Dan’el. Quite possibly Ezekiel refers to Dan’el rather than Daniel in Ezekiel chapter 12. That that should be the case, then it suggests as well that Ugaritic texts were either widely translated or the originals were passed to, read and transcribed at other sites besides the city for which they are named. I can’t help wondering if someday excavations at Hazor will unearth a significant Ugaritic library section.

By: Jacob D

Jacob D — Sat, 25 Mar 2017 20:45:49 +0000

It is not the case that “most scholars now believe” it was the Israelites who destroyed Hazlor. Most scholars who have voiced their opinion state that the evidence is inconclusive. Of course, it is Amnon Ben Tor’s opinion that it was the Israelites who destroyed Hazor, but Sharon Zuckerman (who is cited in this article) disagreed.

Zuckerman stated that “it turns out that there’s a 100-150 year gap between the destruction of Hatzor and the settlement of the Israelites. Whoever destroyed this city abandoned it and the Israelites settled there only later.”

She believed that the destruction of Hatzor “came at the end of a period of deterioration; some of the public buildings had been abandoned before the destruction while others were partially uprooted and in the end there was no ruler here.”

Zuckerman claimed the destruction occurred only in the public buildings, as evidenced by what she found when she excavated a private house in the lower city. It showed no signs of destruction or fire and “even looked as if the residents of the house had time to seal it before leaving it.”

“The difference between a huge conflagration that focused on the public buildings and the orderly abandonment of the city by the simple folk indicates that we’re talking about something other than conquest.”

She also cited a lack of weapons and human victims in the destruction layer.