Much has been in the news lately about the “Mount Ebal Curse Tablet”. This tiny piece of lead is about three-quarters of an inch on each side (two by two centimeters). It was found on Mount Ebal in the West Bank. Here is what it says:
You are cursed by the god yhw, cursed.
You will die, cursed—cursed, you will surely die.
Cursed you are by yhw—cursed.
Why is this important? To begin with, it was created about twelve hundred to fourteen hundred years before the birth of Jesus. It is very old, one of the oldest examples of Hebrew writing known. It may even be from the time of Joshua!
In the book of Joshua, blessings and curses were associated with an altar built on Mount Ebal. Here is what i:t says about it, in the eighth chapter of Joshua:
30 Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal, Joshua 8:30
34 Then afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law. Joshua 8:34
This shows that the inscription agrees with the biblical passage, which gives the book of Joshua great historical support. It is very clear that the people of that time took this very seriously, that it was important to them. Critics contend that this was all made up, that it was written over a thousand years after the events described in the first six books of the Bible.
This tablet is great evidence that this view is incorrect. This means that the biblical view of Yahweh as the one true God is correct!
There is more to it than just the historical accuracy of the events of Joshua. The phrase “…the god yhw…” is significant. Critics contend that this part of the Bible was stitched together haphazardly, and that “El” (translated as “god”) and Yahweh (“yhw”) are two different things from different authors, cultures, and times. If that were so, we would never see the phrase “God Yahweh”, which is what we see on this tablet.
This is one more piece of evidence that leads us to conclude that we can trust the text of the Bible; that it is an accurate record of what happened long ago. It is not a bunch of fables or stories written to support the Jewish conquest of the promised land, but that these events are real and have significance today. So much significance, in fact, that they are life-changing! We must pay attention to the Bible and its meaning for our lives!
For more information on this interesting archeological find you can read this web post: