Lachish Letters
Did the Lachish letters
reveal the turmoil in Judah just before the Babylonian captivity?
The discovery of the Lachish Letters in 1935 of eighteen ostraca (clay tablets with writing in ink) written in an ancient Hebrew script, from the 7th century BC reveal important information concerning the last days of the southern kingdom of Judah.�
They were discovered at Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) among the ruins of an ancient guard room just outside the Lachish city gate.
Then a few years later three inscribed potsherds were also found at the site, and like the others, they contained names and lists from the period just before the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.�
Most of the letters were dispatches from a Jewish commander named Hoshaiah who was stationed at an outpost north of Lachish, who apparently was responsible for interpreting the signals from Azekah and Lachish during the time when the Babylonians came against Jerusalem:�
Jer 34:7 "when the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and Azekah; for only these fortified cities remained of the cities of Judah."
The ostraca read: "To my lord Ya'osh. May Yahweh cause my lord to hear the news of peace, even now, even now. Who is your servant but a dog that my lord should remember his servant?'"
These final communications which mentioned the political and religious turmoil of the last days of Judah reveal the intensity of this time period and confirm that which was written in the Bible by the prophet Jeremiah.
The Lachish Letters are an important discovery in the study of Biblical Archaeology and shed much light on the last days of Judah.
British Museum Excerpt
Lachish Letter II
Israelite, 586 BC
From Lachish (modern Tell ed-Duweir), Israel
A letter written on a piece of pottery
This is one of a group of letters written on ostraka (pot sherds) found near the main gate of ancient Lachish in a burnt layer which archaeologists have associated with the destruction of the city by the Babylonians in 586 BC. It is written in ink in alphabetic Hebrew. The letters are a poignant record of the city's last days.
In 598 BC Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, invaded Judah after it had rebelled against him. He captured Jerusalem and took the royal family captive. He installed Zedekiah, the former king's uncle, as his choice of ruler. However, rebellion broke out again. Nebuchadnezzar showed no mercy this time and in 587 BC he beseiged and then destroyed Jerusalem.
This was the period at which this letter was written. It came from an officer named Hosha'yahu who was in charge of a military outpost. He was writing to Ya'osh, military commander at Lachish, as the situation worsened.
'To my lord Ya'osh. May Yahweh cause my lord to hear the news of peace, even now, even now. Who is your servant but a dog that my lord should remember his servant?'
Peace was not to be. Nebuchadnezzar moved on to Lachish and nearby Azekah, the last two major cities of Judah to be subdued by the Babylonians. There followed a large-scale deportation of a part of Judah's population. Thus began the exile, a period of great significance for the Jews spiritually, and one which would profoundly influence later religious ideology and teaching.
Height: 9 cm
Width: 10 cm
Excavated by J. L. Starkey, Wellcome-Marston Research Expedition.
ANE 125702
Room 57, The Ancient Levant
The British Museum
The Kings of Israel (all wicked)
Jeroboam I (933-911 BC) twenty-two years
Nadab (911-910) two years
Baasha (910-887) twenty-four years
Elah (887-886) two years
Zimri (886) seven days
Omri (886-875) twelve years
Ahab (875-854) twenty-two years
Ahaziah (855-854) two years
Jehoram (Joram) (854-843) twelve years
Jehu (843-816) twenty-eight years
Jehoahaz (820-804) seventeen years
Jehoash (Joash) (806-790) sixteen years
Jeroboam II (790-749) forty-one years
Zechariah' (748) six months
Shallum (748) one month
Menahem (748-738) ten years
Pekahiah (738-736) two years
Pekah (748-730) twenty years
Hoshea (730-721) nine years
The Kings of Judah (8 were good)
Rehoboam (933-916 BC) seventeen years
Abijam (915-913) three years
Asa (Good) (912-872) forty-one years
Jehoshaphat (Good) (874-850) twenty-five years
Jehoram (850-843) eight years
Ahaziah (843) one year
Athaliah (843-837) six years
Joash (Good) (843-803) forty years
Amaziah (Good) (803-775) 29 years
Azariah (Uzziah) (Good) (787-735) fifty-two years
Jotham (Good) (749-734) sixteen years
Ahaz (741-726) sixteen years
Hezekiah (Good) (726-697) 29 years
Manasseh (697-642) fifty-five years
Amon (641-640) two years
Josiah (Good) (639-608) thirty-one years
Jehoahaz (608) three months
Jehoiachim (608-597) eleven years
Jehoiachin (597) three months
Zedekiah (597-586) eleven years
Related Pages:
Lachish in Fausset's Bible Dictionary
Lachish in the ISBE Bible Encyclopedia
Lachish in Smith's Bible Dictionary
The Babylonian Captivity and Archaeology
The Babylonian Captivity in the ISBE Bible Encyclopedia
David in Easton's Bible Dictionary
Map of the Kingdom of David and Solomon
Solomon in Smith's Bible Dictionary
Solomon's Temple in Easton's Bible Dictionary
Beersheba in the ISBE Bible Encyclopedia
Biblical Definition of Beersheba
Altar - Background Bible Study
Altar in Smith's Bible Dictionary
Altar in the ISBE Bible Encyclopedia
Israel - The Center of the Ancient World
Israel - Archaeology Links and Resources
The Destruction of Israel in the Old Testament
Archaeological Resources - Israel
Free Bible - Fallen Empires (Biblical Archaeology)
Bible History Links - Ancient Near East : Art & Images
Free Bible - Ancient Art
The Destruction of Israel - Kings of Israel, Judah and Assyria
Timeline 800 - 700 BC
The Assyrians
The Captivity of Israel
The Impregnable Strength of Jerusalem
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