When Dina Avshalom-Gorni, an archeologist for the Israel Antiquities Authority knew they uncovered a first century synagogue recently she knew she had come across some special. She told us, "I thought to myself, Dina, are you telling me that you are standing in a synagogue of the first century A.D.? I can’t believe it.”
When Professor Gershon Galil of Haifa University in the past few weeks deciphered an inscription from the tenth century BC, he too knew he had his hands on something special, the oldest Hebrew text ever discovered.
One validated the New Covenant, the other the Old Covenant.
Why would validation be necessary? Well, you might be surprised to know that some scholars contend King David's kingdom never existed and deny the validity of the Bible itself. Professor Galil told CBN News the inscription he deciphered proves not only that King David’s kingdom existed but that books like Judges and Samuel are legitimate Biblical texts. The text he translated came from the tenth century BC, about 800 years before the Dead Sea scrolls.
The inscription itself was uncovered a year and a half ago during an archeological excavation in the Elah Valley, the same valley where David slew Goliath. Galil believes the inscription was written about a generation after David defeated the Philistine giant. It was written in ink on a small (15 cm x 16.5 cm ) (6 inches to 6 ½ inches) pottery shard. Galil told us the inscription was unique to Hebrew and linguistically and culturally different from the regional peoples from that era.
Here’s the deciphered text itself:
1' you shall not do [it], but worship the [lord].
2' judge the sla[ve] and the wid[ow] / judge the orph[an]
3' [and] the stranger. [pl]ead for the infant / plead for the po[or and]
4' the widow. rehabilitate [the poor] at the hands of the king.
5' protect the po[or and] the slave / [supp]ort the stranger.
While the text itself is not from the Bible, it expresses a very biblical theme, taking care of the orphan, the widow and the stranger. By the way, the word “judge” there is not used in a harsh way but rather a compassionate tone. He also noted that – unlike other surrounding cultures – the text exhorts the people to undertake these compassionate tasks, not just the king. This is a very Hebrew concept found in other Biblical verses like Isaiah 1:17; Psalms 72:3 and Exodus 23:3.
While this pottery shard came from the valley where David killed Goliath, up north on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Israeli archeologist Gorni is part of a team uncovering a first century synagogue that may have been used by Jesus. In fact, Gorni has no doubt. She told us: “We can say that Jesus was standing as a rabbi in the community was standing here next to this prayer table in prayer and say his words to his community. No doubt.”
Gorni referred to a prayer table she believes is what makes this synagogue so special. The prayer table rested on a stone base she uncovered. The base has places for four columns. These would have held a table or shelf on which to place the Torah scroll to be read in the synagogue. On one side of the base is a carving of a menorah. Archeologists like Gorni believe the artist copied the menorah from the one he saw in the temple in Jerusalem. It’s the first carving of a menorah ever found outside Jerusalem from the first century. It’s also the first menorah seen as a Jewish symbol and shows the group from this synagogue visited the Second Temple in Jerusalem.
The synagogue is located under the heights of mount Arbel, north of Tiberius and on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. It also sat at the edge of the ancient city of Migdal, once a thriving community of 30,000 and home to Mary Magdalene. After years of excavation in the region, it’s the first synagogue discovered in the Galilee area from the first century. Gorni says it’s amazing it lay just below the surface for two thousand years. She excitedly told us: “Just look how close to the surface we are – just a few centimeters and we stand here two thousand years waiting for us to excavate it. To find it. To put it again to the air. That everybody all over the world can see it. But nothing touched this synagogue itself, so I think (it’s a) kind of miracle. This is an archeologist’s miracle.”
Following recent discoveries like the first century synagogue uncovered on the shores of the Sea of Galilee and the oldest Hebrew text in history, it seems like the rocks themselves are crying out.