MOAB DESTROYED SECULAR EVIDENCE. 37 In the year 1868 Rev. F. Klein, of the Church Missionary Society at Jerusalem, found at Dhiban (the biblical Dibon), in Moab, a remarkable stone, since called the Moabite Stone..... On this stone is the record in the Phoenician characters of the wars of Mesha, king of Moab, with Israel. 2 Kings 3:4. It speaks of King Omri and other names of places and persons mentioned in the Bible, and belongs to this exact period of Jewish and Moabite history. The names given on the Moabite Stone, engraved by one who knew them in daily life, are, in nearly every case, identical with those found in the Bible itself, and testify to the wonderful integrity with which the Scriptures have been preserved. "The inscription reads like a leaf taken out of a lost book of Chronicles. The expressions are the same; the names of gods, kings and of towns are the same. -(See Rawlinson's "Historical Illustrations;" American Cyclopedia; and Bibliotheca Sacra, Oct. 20, 1870. -Ed.) SMITH'S Bible Dictionary, Teachers' Edition, pp. 412, 413. 25. Were the prophecies of Zephaniah and Jeremiah that Moab would be destroyed fulfilled? BIBLE EVIDENCE. Zephaniah 2:9 (B. C. 630)—Therefore as I live, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation:.... Jeremiah 48:42-And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the Lord. SECULAR EVIDENCE. Josephus mentions the cities between the Arnon and Jabbok as cities of Moab. Thenceforth they were almost lost to view among the Arabians; and for many centuries little was known concerning the region in which they lived..... Seetzen, in 1806, at the risk of his life, shed a new and unexpected light upon it. He found many ruined places still bearing the old names. In 1812 Burckhardt made the same tour from Damascus to Karak, and from that point advanced to Petra. From these and subsequent travelers we learn that the plains are covered with the sites of towns on every eminence or spot suitable for one. The land is capable of rich cultivation.... Denunciations against Moab were made by Balaam, Amos, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and other prophets, who during its highest prosperity foretold that its cities should become desolate without any to dwell in them; and at the present day, while the sites, ruins, and names of many of its ancient cities can be traced, not one of them has been found inhabited by man. The International Cyclopaedia, Editor in Chief H. T. Peck, Ph.D., L.H.D., 38 JERICHO LOCATED 26. Did Jericho ever exist? BIBLE EVIDENCE. Joshua 6:2-And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour. SECULAR EVIDENCE. Jericho has now been accurately located by Sellin and the foundations of her walls laid bare; REV. M. G. KYLE, D.D., LL.D., The Fundamentals, Vol. I, p. 327. The Austrians (1902-1904) successfully excavated the Biblical town of Taanach in northern Palestine, and later than this the famous city of Megiddo was excavated by the German Palestine Society, while in 1907-1909 Jericho's marvelous fortifications were thoroughly uncovered by Dr. Ernest Sellin. CAMDEN M. COBERN, D.D., Litt.D., in The Biblical Review, p. 21. SEVEN ASSYRIAN MONARCHS CHAPTER VI. ASSYRIA. 27. Was the Assyrian a powerful empire? BIBLE EVIDENCE. II Kings 19:10, 11 (B. C. 710)-Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly: and shall thou be delivered? Sennacherib, king of Assyria, to Hezekiah, king of Judah. SECULAR EVIDENCE. There were seven great monarchs who ruled over Assyria and Babylon who were closely connected with Bible history. They wereShalmaneser II., B. C. 860-835. Tiglath-Pileser III. or Pul, B. C. 745-727. Shalmaneser IV., B. C. 727-722. Sargon, B. C. 722-705. Sennacherib, B. C. 705-681. Esarhaddon, B. C. 681-668. Ashur-bani-pal, B. C. 668-626. The monuments of these kings fill this and the Nineveh Gallery and also the Assyrian Saloon and Basement. ADA R. HABERSHON, The Bible and the British Museum, p. 19. In 745 B. C. Tiglath-Pileser III seized the throne, and established the most powerful empire the world had yet seen, and one which was well organized. Home and School Reference Work, Vol. I, p. 176. Such, in its broad and general outlines, was the empire of the Assyrians. It embodied the earliest, simplest, and most crude conception which the human mind forms of a widely extended dominion. It was a "kingdom-empire," like the empires of Solomon, of Nebuchadnezzar, of Chedor-laomer, and probably of Cyaxares, and is the best specimen of its class, being the largest, the longest in duration, and the best known of all such governments that has existed..... Architecture, the only one of the fine arts which is essentially useful, forms their chief glory; ... The careful finish, the minute detail, ... reminds us of the Dutch school of painting,... With no attempt to idealise or go beyond nature, there is a growing power of depicting things as they are—an increased grace and delicacy of execution; showing that 40 "EPONYM CANON" Assyrian art was progressive, not stationery, and giving a promise of still higher excellence, had circumstances permitted its development..... Hence we may fairly assume that the vases, jars, bronzes, glass bottles, carved ornaments in ivory and mother-of-pearl, engraved gems, bells, dishes, ear-rings, arms, working implements, etc., which have been found at Nimrud, Khorsabad, and Koyunjik, are mainly the handiwork of the Assyrians..... At any rate the bulk of the ornaments, utensils, etc., may be regarded as native products. These are almost invariably of elegant form, and indicate a considerable knowledge of metallurgy and other arts, as well as a refined taste..... Transparent glass (which, however, was known also in ancient Egypt) is one of these; but the most remarkable of all is the lens discovered at Nimrud, of the use of which as a magnifying agent there is abundant proof. RAWLINSON, Five Great Monarchies (2d ed., London, 1871), Vol. II, pp. 239, 242-244. Practically nothing was done to further the work done by Rich until 1842, when France sent a consul by the name of P. E. Botta to the city of Mosul, on the upper Tigris River..... Botta's discoveries aroused the whole archaeological and historical world with enthusiasm. A tremendous impulse was given to the study of the Orient. The French government, highly gratified at the surprising success of its consul, supplied him with ample means for further research. With enthusiastic efforts and energy Botta prosecuted his discoveries until he succeeded in revealing what afterward proved to be the palace of the great Sargon (722-705 B. C.), probably the most magnificent palace the world has ever seen, covering an area of more than twenty-five acres. .... Botta secured in these ruins and brought to Europe the first great collection of Assyrian antiquities, which form to-day one of the most highly prized treasures of the Louvre in Paris. Botta, in conjunction with Flandin, an architect, prepared, and the French government published, the results of this expedition in five great folio volumes, entitled Monument de Ninive..... To enter the British Museum in London, the Louvre in Paris, the Royal Museums of Constantinople, or Berlin, the Metropolitan Museum at New York, or the ancient treasure-house of the University of Pennsylvania, is almost equivalent to entering one of the palaces of one of the monarchs of ancient Assyria. IRA M. PRICE, Ph.D., The Monuments and the Old Testament, pp. 45, 47, 20. 48, 28. Is there any "fixed point" by which we can "accurately assign correct dates" to many "important events" in Assyrian history? SECULAR EVIDENCE. The EPONYM CANON" shown here has been of great service in connection with Assyrian chronology. The eponym was an official of high rank who held office for one year. A careful record of each name was kept, the name of the reigning king was also inscribed in another column, and any great event might be mentioned. In one list we are |