Saturday, January 13, 2007

Beth Shemesh

Old Testament Professor Lawson Stone is currently blogging from a study tour class in Israel/Palestine. He has detailed posts and some neat photos related to the various sites they are visiting and studying. For his recent trip to the Shephelah and "Samson Country," click here.

Beth Shemesh was a Philistine town that fell into the hands of the Israelites in the pre-state, village period. It is mentioned in the early narratives of Samuel about the ark.


Beth Shemesh
Here is a brief excerpt from Lawson's post:

Today we stood on the mound of Beth Shemesh. The Philistines controlled the city about 1200 BC, but another group took it around 1100 BC in a destruction that left what archaeologists call the “red burnt stratum” on top of ashes. We think they were Israelites. The new tenants built houses using squared stone pillars, characteristic of Israel, and, in contrast to the Philistines and Canaanites, apparently didn't eat pork!

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