{"id":11211,"date":"2024-07-23T10:34:06","date_gmt":"2024-07-23T14:34:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/?p=11211"},"modified":"2024-07-23T13:10:56","modified_gmt":"2024-07-23T17:10:56","slug":"archaeologists-uncover-more-evidence-of-biblical-story-of-moses-and-the-promised-land","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2024\/07\/archaeologists-uncover-more-evidence-of-biblical-story-of-moses-and-the-promised-land.html","title":{"rendered":"Archaeologists Uncover More Evidence of Biblical Story of Moses and the Promised Land"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Israel Antiquities Authority | Inset: Adobe Stock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Archaeologists have revealed secrets of a biblical city that sat within the \u201cPromised Land,\u201d where the Israelites settled after Moses led them out of Egypt. The Israeli Antiquities Authority recently shared their findings from Zanoah, which is mentioned in the Old Testament, revealing stone walls, pottery, and other artifacts that date back more than 3,200 years. The Bible says the Israelites reached the Promised Land, also known as Canaan, around 1406 to 1407 BC after wandering 40 years in the desert. The team also uncovered a broken jar handle that featured the name of a king described in the Bible,\u00a0providing more evidence to the Biblical story of Moses.<\/p>\n

The Exodus story is spread over the biblical books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. It begins with the Israelites enslaved in Egypt before the Pharaoh, coerced by 10 terrible plagues, agrees to release them, and Moses leads them across the miraculously parted Red Sea. Once they reached the Sinai Peninsula, scripture says they traveled to Mount Sinai, where Moses received the 10 commandments. The group then headed to the southern border of Canaan, but being too scared to enter, they were condemned to spend decades in the wilderness by God.<\/p>\n

After passing the years at the oasis of Kadesh Barnea, the Israelites then traveled to the eastern border of Canaan, where Moses died and was buried on Mount Nebo. In the subsequent Book of Joshua, Joshua takes over the leadership of the Israelites, leading them into the Promised Land across the River Jordan and conquering Jericho – and Zanoah is mentioned in the Book of Joshua. Joshua 15:34,56 outlines the boundaries and cities within the tribal allotment of Judah once they entered the Promised Land, which includes Zanoah. Researchers excavated the area in 2019 but released their\u00a0findings in March.<\/p>\n

The team uncovered walls fashioned with rows of large, white rocks, which they believed were\u00a0retaining walls for farming terraces used to create level areas for planting and to protect steeper soil from erosion. Preserved pottery was also pulled from the ground, with one featuring a stamp on the handle that read \u2018of the King,\u2019 which was to honor\u00a0King Hezekiah\u2019s reign in Judah in 701 BC. The life of Hezekiah is described in the Bible book of 2 Kings, chapters 18-20.\u00a0 In 2 Chronicles, the king is said to have reopened the Temple of Solomon,\u00a0 known as \u2018the First Temple,\u2019 and built on the spot where God created Adam. Hezekiah also smashed the bronze snake statue God commanded Moses to make, which is mentioned in Numbers 21:8-9: \u2018Then the Lord said to Moses, \u2018Make a snake image and mount it on a pole.\u2019<\/p>\n