Has Archaeology Found Isaiah?

Has Archaeology Found Isaiah?

by | Apr 8, 2018 | Archaeology & the Bible

PictureThe Newly Discovered Seal – Ouria Tadmor / Eilat Mazar


Biblical archaeology is never more fascinating than when it gives us a glimpse of a person mentioned in the Bible.  This is a relatively rare event as we must remember that the number of all the people mentioned in the Bible is infinitesimally small compared to all the people who have lived –  so archaeology is statistically not likely to often find evidence of specific individuals mentioned in the Scriptures.

​Governors and Kings

Exceptions do occur, of course. Only recently, a seal impression (a small lump of clay impressed with writing and images on a carved ring or other object used for sealing or authenticating documents and other items) was found near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem bearing the title of the governor of the city. This was an important office and one such Governor of Jerusalem is mentioned in the Bible (2 Kings 23:7) during the reign of the great biblical king, Hezekiah.

Several years ago, a royal seal of King Hezekiah himself was also found in excavations in the same general location.   Hezekiah, who is mentioned in the Bible many times (2 Kings 18–20, Isaiah 36–39, 2 Chronicles 29–32, etc.), ruled Judah around 700 B.C. and was a contemporary of the prophet Isaiah.  In fact, the biblical record shows that Isaiah was an important supporter and advisor of this good king who did much to remove pagan religion from ancient Judah during his reign.  Other seal impressions of Hezekiah are known, but this was the first time one was found in context – exactly where it should be –  on an archaeological site.  This find is a major attestation of an important biblical figure.

But what about Hezekiah’s advisor, the prophet Isaiah who is even more famous to millions of readers of the Scriptures?  Perhaps no other prophet in the Hebrew Bible better symbolizes the prophetic books of the Old Testament, and it appears that archaeology may now have produced attestation for him, too.

Signed, Isaiah

Just this past month, Dr. Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem announced that the ongoing excavations in the same area of Jerusalem where the Hezekiah seal was found had unearthed another seal impression which appears to be that of the great prophet Isaiah.

The 2,700-year-old stamped clay artifact bears the identifying seal of an individual named as Yesha‘yah[u] Nvy[?].  The seal impression is divided into three bands or “registers,” with the top register containing the partial image of a grazing deer –  a symbol of blessing and protection used in ancient Judah.   The center register contains the words leyesha‘yah[u] “[belonging] to Isaiah.” The lowest register is somewhat damaged, but apparently contains part of the word nvy’ or “prophet.”

Critics of religion have been quick to stress that the damaged end of this final word may mean that it represented something else, but this seems unlikely.  It might be compared to the situation in modern English where the almost complete writing “John Smith, Ph …” most probably represents “John Smith, Ph.D.” rather than some unlikely word such as “John Smith, Phony.”  It is the opinion of Dr. Mazar and many of the archaeological specialists who have examined this artifact that its text should be read as “[Belonging] to Isaiah, [the] proph[et].”  Seals of this nature frequently abbreviated or shortened names and titles due to the limited space for writing on their small surfaces, so the absence of the implied words [belonging] and [the] in this text are entirely normal.

But as to whether this seal is the seal of Isaiah himself, the archaeological evidence of context is quite compelling.  The seal was discovered in an undisturbed area of the excavation less than ten feet from where the seal of King Hezekiah was found.  The physical proximity of the two seals lends weight to the likelihood that the Isaiah seal is that of the prophet himself.  As Dr. Mazar has pointed out, it would not be the first time that seal impressions of two individuals mentioned in the same verses of the Bible have been found together in an archaeological context.  In the City of David excavations (2005–2008), the seal impressions of two high officials in King Ẓedekiah’s court (both mentioned in Jeremiah 38:1), were found only a few feet apart. Further, the names of King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah are mentioned together 14 of the 29 times in which the name of Isaiah is mentioned.  Mazar is certainly correct that no other biblical figure was closer to King Hezekiah than the prophet Isaiah.  
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Isaiah’s life and work were of the greatest importance in the history of ancient Judah. The Scriptures indicate that the prophet may have served for as long as 64 years –  throughout the reign of Hezekiah and into the reign of his successor.  Given the close relationship between the king and his prophet-advisor, it may well be that evidence of Isaiah has now been found in an area where it might well have been expected. 

* For more background on biblical archaeology see our post “The Bible and Archaeology” here.

Running on Empty

Running on Empty

by | Apr 1, 2018 | Great Commission

Empty can be such a negative word: the empty glass, empty promises, an empty bank account, and perhaps worst of all when we are driving late at night and far from a service station and our fuel gauge shows that we are running dangerously low on fuel.  We are “running on empty.” 

But in God’s scheme of things even something empty can represent something very great.  This time of year carries a wonderful reminder of that in the message of the empty tomb of Christ.  As Christians we celebrate the empty tomb with awe at what occurred and thankfulness for what it means, but do we stop there, or does the story inspire us to do something with the news we have heard?  The Gospels can provide us with a reminder of what needs to follow the knowledge of the empty tomb in one of the details of the resurrection story. Notice what Matthew says regarding the experience of the women who came to the empty tomb and who were confronted by a messenger of God:

“The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.  Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead…’ So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples”  (Matthew 28:5-8).

Here the women who were followers of Christ ran to tell the story of the empty tomb of Jesus and of his resurrection. It was the emptiness of the tomb that gave them a message that went first to those who were already disciples, and then outward to the whole world.  And notice that they did not walk to deliver the message of the empty tomb, they ran. They were running based on the importance of the empty tomb – metaphorically they were running on empty. 

Some two thousand years later the followers of Jesus should still be running on empty –  every generation has the opportunity to run with the good news. But is that what we are doing? Is it enough to celebrate the empty tomb, then to go back to life as usual, or should we be carrying the news to others with a sense of urgency?  If we are truly inspired by the story of the empty tomb and what it means – not only for us personally, but for all humanity – we, too, should be joyfully running with that message in whatever opportunity we have been given to deliver it. 

By Water and Blood

By Water and Blood

by | Mar 25, 2018 | Difficult Scriptures

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Scripture in Focus: ​
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“This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement”  (1 John 5:6-8).

These words of the apostle John are some of the most argued over verses in the Bible. What exactly do they mean?   There have been many suggestions as to exactly what the water and blood are by which Christ came, but the most agreed upon are the following two explanations:

The Sacrifice of Jesus

The blood and  water that flowed from Jesus’ side when his body was pierced by a Roman soldier after his death on the cross (John 19:34).    Understood this way, the water and blood of which John spoke would symbolically represent the blood and water involved in some of the Old Testament sacrifices (Leviticus 14:52:  “He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn.”  Hebrews 9:19:  “he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people.” etc.). 

However, although the blood and water that flowed from Christ’s side may have symbolically fulfilled the blood and water aspect of the physical sacrifices, how would this apply to what John says in 1 John 5:6-8?  We should note that the order John gives in those verses is water and blood – not blood and water as in all the sacrificial related scriptures. Second, if this were the meaning John had in mind, why would he write that  Jesus “came” by the water and blood? In what sense could he have “arrived” after his death? And why would John add “He did not come by water only, but by water and blood.”?

The Baptism and Death of Jesus

The other major interpretation of what John wrote argues that the “water and blood” refer to the water of Jesus’ baptism in the River Jordan and the blood of his sacrifice on the cross. In this sense, the Son of God  could certainly be said to have “come” through these two events as they framed Jesus’ ministry from beginning to end. Remember that at both points Christ was declared to be the Son of God – by the heavenly voice at his baptism (Matthew 3:17), and by the testimony of the centurion at his death (Matthew 27:54).  Also, as John states, the Spirit of God testified to Jesus being the Son of God (1 John 5:7-8) a fact that applies far more to his complete ministry than to an isolated point after his death.

This understanding fits the order of words that John used – the water then the blood – and there is a historical reason why it is likely correct.  The epistle of John was written partly to combat emerging heretical ideas that taught the Son of God descended upon and entered the man Jesus at his baptism and then left him at the time of his arrest, so that it was only the physical Jesus who died.  John argues against these early gnostic teachings in many verses of his first epistle and his statement that Jesus came by water and blood makes total sense in this regard.

​John seems to argue that the work of the Son of God spanned the whole of his life from baptism to death – which is why he would stress: “He did not come by water only, but by water and blood” (vs. 6b). John’s point is that, contrary to false teachings, it was the Son of God who was baptized and who was crucified. In saying this, John counters the gnostic stress on “knowledge” of this false Jesus – which is why the apostle (stressing both knowledge and idols) concludes:

“We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Dear children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:20-21).

When Our Upset Becomes Our Downfall

When Our Upset Becomes Our Downfall

by | Mar 18, 2018 | Overcoming

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“Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart of fools” (Ecclesiastes 7:9 ESV).
 
The Scriptures have much to say about times we become upset or angry, but this verse in the Book of Ecclesiastes summarizes much of the Bible’s wisdom on the subject. It’s a verse most of us know well, but one we often fail to understand or appreciate as fully as we might. We tend to remember the admonition as simply one of not becoming angry quickly, and that’s certainly part of what it is telling us.

But we should also notice the second half of the statement – that anger “lodges” or resides in the heart of fools. We all become upset and angry at times, but this does not mean we are all “fools” –  the point Ecclesiastes is making is that we are only fools if we allow the anger to “lodge” or stay within our hearts. The verse is actually contrasting two things that are both wrong – quickness to become upset and slowness or failure to release the anger.
These are, in effect, the two sides of the “coin” of anger, but while we might give a lot of thought and effort to not becoming angry, we don’t always drop the emotion as quickly as we should.  Humanly, once someone upsets us over something and anger takes hold within us, we tend to begin to justify it –  and the longer we let it “reside” in us, the more difficult it becomes to shake the emotion out.

Despite our best efforts, the truth is we cannot simply “bury” our feelings of anger or resentment. We can try, but feelings that are “buried alive” never really die.   Left within us, they take hold and begin to poison our attitudes and relationships.  Remaining upset at others usually ends up hurting them in some way, and always ends up hurting us.  The Bible contains many examples of this –  beginning with Cain who was upset with his brother (Genesis 4:5, 8) through Saul who was upset with David (1 Samuel 19:9) to Nabal (whose name, not coincidentally, means “fool”) who seems to have become upset with many people and his  wife in particular (1 Samuel 25:2-38).  In all these cases and many others, we see a pattern of individuals becoming upset in a way that led to their permanent downfall.

So it is not surprising that the Scriptures contain many commands and admonitions urging us not to allow ourselves to continue to be upset with someone.  It’s a command made in the Old Testament and reiterated in the New. The Book of Leviticus ties the command directly to the principle of love: “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself…”(Leviticus 19:18). We cannot love someone if we allow ourselves to remain upset with them. From a biblical perspective, remaining upset is sin.  That is why the apostle Paul wrote “In your anger do not sin” before stressing “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry” (Ephesians 4:26). People sometimes joke that not allowing the sun to go down on our anger allows individuals living at the North Pole a full six months to remain angry, but Paul’s point is clear, and it would be foolish to ignore it.
 
The Bible acknowledges that we may become angry – sometimes for very legitimate reasons –  but it continually stresses that we should never hold on to that anger, and that if we do, it inevitably leads to a spirit of unforgiveness that hurts us as much as others. That is also why we find the principle in Ecclesiastes 7:9 with which we began this post repeatedly echoed elsewhere in the Bible – as in the Book of Proverbs where we read: “Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense” (Proverbs 19:11 ESV). Here, we see the two necessary sides of our response to anger –  we must be slow to anger, but also quick to drop it.  Failing to follow the second of these biblical principles is as dangerous as ignoring the first. If we do not want our upset to become our downfall, we must always put anger away quickly. 

* For more on anger management, see our post “When Your Fuse Burns Down” here.   

Does God Expect You to Be Perfect?

Does God Expect You to Be Perfect?

by | Mar 11, 2018 | Growth

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“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

One of the greatest misconceptions about God, even among many Christians, is that God expects us to be perfect – as he is – and is continually unhappy with us when we are not.  Jesus’ words “Be perfect…” from the Sermon on the Mount are so well-known that it is sometimes hard to see past what they are commonly thought to say to what they really mean.

To get a proper perspective on what God does expect of us, we must first look at Jesus’ words in context. In Matthew, Jesus clearly tells us to be perfect as God is perfect, but if we read the same account in the Gospel of Luke his words are recorded as “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36).   Why the difference?  Both Gospels show in context that Jesus was talking about love (see Matthew 5:43-47 and Luke 6:27-35). Matthew’s Gospel stresses that our love should be perfect and Luke’s Gospel stresses that our love should be merciful – doubtless Jesus talked about both aspects of love. 
 
But when we look closely at the expression “Be perfect,” we see the situation even more clearly. The Greek word translated “perfect” in Matthew is a form of teleios which does mean “perfect,” but in the sense of being mature or complete.  Notice 1 Corinthians 14:20, for example, where we find: “Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults”– and the word “adults” is the word teleios.  In Hebrews 5:14 we find the same word translated mature: “… solid food is for the mature…”

In the context of love we find in Matthew 5:48 that Christ urged his followers to be mature and complete in their love – like God who is himself Love.  Only a few verses before saying “be perfect” Jesus had said: “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:44-45), once again showing we should be like God in our love.

Jesus’ statement in the Sermon on the Mount does not mean that God expects us to always be perfect. In fact, the New Testament shows repeatedly that God knows we cannot be perfect in every way (1 John 1:8-10). That is why God accepts Christ’s perfect life in place of ours, just as he accepts Christ’s death on our behalf (Romans 5:10).  But that does not mean that we need not strive in our own lives toward the goal of perfection (John 14:23-24) – as long as we realize that our efforts will never gain our salvation.  Our motivation for trying to be as perfect as possible must be our love of God.

This fact brings us full circle.  When we realize that God knows we cannot be perfect in this life, but that he does encourage us to grow up in him – to become more like him as we live each day –  we see God in better perspective. We see that the God of love has made a way for us to be perfect in his sight through Christ’s life in our stead.  But the God of love also offers to give us his love to enable us to continually grow to be more like him.
 
God does desire to see perfection in us, but he looks beyond us for that perfection.  God does not expect continued perfection in our own daily lives – just continued progress. The statement that we must “be perfect” is not a command to do the impossible, it is an encouragement to become mature in fulfilling God’s law of love (Romans 13:10, Galatians 5:14).