Since Israel’s return to the land at the turn of the 20th century, a slew of artifacts have been unearthed that support the biblical record. The latest, announced this week, is a seal impression (bulla) that reads “Belonging to Nathan-Melech, servant of the king” (“2,600 Year Old Seal Discovered in City of David,” Jerusalem Post, Apr. 1, 2019). This name is mentioned in 2 Kings 23:11 in connection with King Josiah’s revival. “And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.” We aren’t told specifically that Nathanmelech was complicit with the worship of the sun, but it seems probable since he apparently had allowed this idolatry to be carried out by his own chamber. The Greeks and Romans worshipped the sun god Helios, whose chariot was supposedly drawn by four horses. This image has been found on the mosaic floors of two ancient synagogues in Israel (Tiberias and Zippori). “Jarchi says, that those who adored the sun had horses, which they mounted every morning, to go out to meet him at his rising. The kings of Judah had imitated these idolatrous customs, and kept the horses of the sun even at the entrance of the temple of the Lord! (Treasury of Scripture Knowledge). The prophet Jeremiah, whose ministry began in the days of Josiah, would have been a witness to these things (Jer. 1:3). The Nathanmelech seal impression, which is dated to the 7th century BC, was found on the western slope of the City of David south of the Temple Mount in a building that shows evidence of having been destroyed by the Babylonians in the 6th century. Thus it is exactly the right time and place for a direct connection with the individual named in Scripture. The seal joins others that have been discovered in the area of David’s palace bearing the names of people mentioned in the books of Jeremiah, Kings, and Chronicles who lived or worked in the palace just before it was burned by Nebuchadnezzar. These include Jehucal the son of Shelemiah (Jer. 37:3), Gedaliah, son of Pashur (Jer. 38:1), Gemariah the son of Shaphan (Jer. 36:10), and Azariah the son of Hilkiah (1 Ch. 9:11). Some of these are in the Israel Museum. (For more on this see, “Great Archaeological Discoveries in Israel,” www.wayoflife.org.) (Friday Church News Notes, April 5, 2019, www.wayoflife.org, [email protected], 866-295-4143) Comments are closed.
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