The Daily Mail posted an intriguing article about the discovery of ancient pottery shards, that upon re-assembly displayed the name of the King of Israel, rival to King David of Judah according to the Tanakh:
“Shards of the ceramic jar, dating back some 3,000 years, were discovered in Khirbet Qeiyafa in the Valley of Elah in Israel. Inscribed in ancient Canaanite script on some of the shards were a few letters, which experts have now pieced together to read the name Eshba’al Ben Bada’…
“It is the first ancient inscription to bear the name Eshba’al and is only mentioned elsewhere in the Book of Chronicles in the Hebrew bible in reference to the King of Israel. However, archaeologists are still baffled as to who Eshba’al Ben Bada could have been, which translates as ‘man of Ba’al son of Bada’…
“In the Hebrew Bible the name Eshba’al appears in reference to the fourth son of Saul in the book of Chronicles. He was declared the king of Israel after his father Saul and brothers were killed in the battle of Gilboa againt the Philistines. Sometimes called Ishbosheth, due to a reluctance to use the name Ba’al, he ruled for two years. During this time he was at war with King David, who had been declared king of Judah. After losing the war, Ishbosheth was later assassinated and his head brought to David, who executed the killers for their crime.”
Read the entire article here:
