Evidence of the Earthquake Cited in the Bible is Found in Jerusalem
A team of scientists from the Israel Antiquities Authority found evidence of a massive earthquake in the city of Jerusalem dating back to approximately 2,800 years ago.
Previous research had uncovered evidence of a significant earthquake in Israel in the mid-eighth century BC at places such as Hatzor and Tell es-Safi/Gath, but no evidence was found in Jerusalem. In this new attempt, the researchers found evidence of damage from an excavation in the City of David National Park, alongside references to the earthquake in the Hebrew Bible.
Researchers point out that the earthquake was mentioned in both the book of Zechariah and the book of Amos. Both described the damage that resulted in Jerusalem many years after the event, suggesting that it probably had a great impact on the people living there at the time. Furthermore, they discovered physical evidence in the form of broken pottery, lamps, kitchen utensils, furniture, and crumbling walls. They also unveiled what they describe as a “row of broken vessels,” reminiscent of damage seen in other earthquakes. The artifacts were covered by earthquake survivors, who built structures on top of them, forming what the team refers to as a layer of destruction. When looking at the damaged products, they could find no evidence of fire or intentional damage, such as intruders, making an earthquake the best candidate. They also mention that the buried depth of the artifacts helped locate them at the time of the earthquake.
The things found at the excavation site surprised the researchers because previous research showed that Jerusalem continued to exist as a city even after the earthquake until the time of Babylon’s destruction, which occurred approximately 200 years later. They suggest that it seems likely that while the earthquake heavily impacted Jerusalem, it was not the epicenter. The team is supposed to make a presentation describing their work at this year’s City of David Research Conference.
Check out the Israel Antiquities Authority video about the discovery:
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