Archaeological Discovery Related to Biblical Ark Potentially Contradicts Ancient Texts, Media Says

The leader of the archaeological excavation in question described their efforts to determine the site’s purpose and the time of its construction as a “fascinating intellectual adventure” and a “serious riddle to decipher”.

The efforts of Israeli archaeologist Israel Finkelstein yielded an intriguing discovery at a hill in the vicinity of Jerusalem, which may possibly be related to the Ark of the Covenant, Haaretz reports.

According to the newspaper, although Professor Finkelstein’s excavation did not yield the Ark itself, it uncovered a ritual site “where it’s believed the ark was probably placed”.

As Finkelstein explained, trying to establish the “purpose of the site” and the time of its construction turned out to be a “fascinating intellectual adventure” and a “serious riddle to decipher”.

The newspaper points out, however, that these findings appear to contradict what’s written in the Hebrew Bible (specifically, in the First Book of Samuel) which states that after 20 years in which the ark was kept at Kiryat Ye’arim (the site of Finkelstein’s excavation), King David brought it to Jerusalem; the problem is, David ruled in Jerusalem in the 10th century BC, much earlier than Jeroboam (8th century BC).

In a Zoom chat with the newspaper, Finkelstein also remarked that, “to the best of his understanding”, although David and Solomon were historical figures, they “only ruled a small territory around Jerusalem” rather than a large empire.

Sourse: sputniknews.com