King Joash

Digging Up The Past: Biblical Archaeological Discoveries

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Bible Rebel keeps a watchdog’s eye on discoveries and news from the world of biblical archaeology and brings it to our readers.

Monumental Dam Wall in the City of David (Jerusalem)

Archaeologists in Jerusalem’s City of David uncovered a massive dam wall dating to around 805–795 BCE — the era of the kings of Judah, possibly King Joash or King Amaziah. The structure measures about 12 meters high, 8 meters wide, and over 20 meters long, making it the largest such dam ever found in ancient Israel.

This discovery supports Biblical references to Jerusalem’s advanced water systems during the First Temple period, including those mentioned in 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles relating to royal construction and fortification near the Gihon Spring and the Pool of Siloam.

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5,500-Year-Old Flint Blade Workshop at Nahal Qomem (near Kiryat Gat, Israel)

A large flint-blade manufacturing workshop dating to the Early Bronze Age (~3500 BCE) was discovered near Kiryat Gat in southern Israel. The site includes hundreds of underground pits, large flint cores, and finished blades — evidence of full-scale organized production.

Although the workshop predates Israelite settlement, it reflects the advanced culture of the early Canaanite inhabitants of the land. The Bible frequently references the Canaanites as the people living in the land before the Israelites (Genesis 10:15–19; Exodus 13:5), making this discovery relevant background to the Biblical setting.

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Excavations at Sebastia (Ancient Samaria)

In 2025, archaeologists resumed excavations at Sebastia — the ancient capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. They uncovered remains including a paved street leading to the main city gate, decorative columns, and a monumental base structure, marking the first major dig there in a century

Sebastia (Samaria) became the capital of the Northern Kingdom under King Omri (1 Kings 16:23–24) and is mentioned throughout the Old Testament in accounts involving later kings and prophets such as Elijah and Elisha.

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Watchdog Alert: The Bible As History

Rick TryonLeave a comment
Photo via Виктор Соломоник at pexels.com

Bible Rebel keeps a watchdog’s eye on discoveries in biblical archaeology and brings the information to our readers. Here are some key discoveries and why they support the biblical record.

Dam Wall from the Time of King Joash at the Pool of Siloam (~805-795 BCE)

A large dam wall in the City of David, near the Pool of Siloam, has been excavated and dated via carbon-14 to about 805-795 BCE. The walls are substantial: ~21 meters long, ~12 meters high, ~8 meters thick. Bible Archaeology Report

Why it supports biblical history:

  • The Bible describes several construction/repair projects by Judahite kings; a major water-infrastructure project fits in with what one might expect of a centralized Judah in that era.
  • The dam would have helped manage water supply in times of dryness and flooding, which matches other environmental/climate evidence from the region showing arid conditions with occasional flash floods. Bible Archaeology Report
  • It gives physical confirmation of large scale civic/royal activity in Jerusalem in the early 8th century BCE.

Clay Seal (“Bulla”) Inscribed with “Yeda‘yah son of Asayahu” (7th-6th century BCE)

A clay seal impression, or bulla, reading “Belonging to Yed[a‛]yah, son of Asayahu”, from the late 7th / early 6th century BCE. Found via the Temple Mount Sifting Project in soil removed from the Temple Mount area. Bible Archaeology Report

Why it supports biblical history:

  • The names “Asayahu” (and variations) appear in the Hebrew Bible, particularly in connection with King Josiah: 2 Kings 22:12; 2 Chronicles 34:20. Bible Archaeology Report
  • The bulla confirms that these names (and presumably persons with these names or offices) were in use in Judah at the appropriate period.
  • The preservation of writing/sealing activity supports the idea that Judah had administrative bureaucracies with literacy in the late monarchic period.

Olive and Grape Traces Beneath the Church of the Holy Sepulchre / Mount Calvary (1st Century AD Garden Context)

Under the floor of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, archaeologists found about 2,000-year-old olive pits (stones), grape pips, pollen evidence, and remains of stone walls or features consistent with cultivation. These lie beneath a basilica, in an area associated with Golgotha / Mount Calvary, part of Jerusalem’s ancient quarter. The Times+1

Why it supports biblical history:

  • The Gospel of John (and other Gospels) mention that Jesus was crucified at a place called Golgotha, “place of a skull,” outside / near a garden and tomb. The presence of a garden (olive and grape cultivation) at that location in the 1st century AD gives archaeological plausibility to that Gospel description. The Times
  • It shows that agricultural use was present in that area just before or around the time of Jesus, rather than all being occupied by other structures.

Identification of Widespread Literacy / Use of Seals in Jerusalem ca. 2,700 Years Ago

An ancient seal discovered in the City of David area (Jerusalem), dating to the First Temple period (approx 700-600 BCE), evidences artistic craftsmanship and inscription. It is taken as evidence that reading, writing, and use of official seals were more widespread than some earlier models of Judahite society assumed. GB News

Why it supports biblical history:

  • The Hebrew Bible presumes certain levels of bureaucratic administration — e.g. prophets, kings, scribes, royal decrees, temple officials, etc. Widespread literacy or at least administrative writing (seals) is a necessary component for those functions.
  • It helps move faceless administrative structures from being purely literary imagination to part of the archaeological record.