What historical evidence supports the events in Deuteronomy 3:1? Text of the Event “Then we turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan came out against us with his whole army to fight us at Edrei.” Deuteronomy 3:1 Historical Setting and Chronology • 40th year after the Exodus, ca. 1406 BC (1 Kings 6:1; Usshur). • Israel is moving north on the King’s Highway after defeating Sihon (Deuteronomy 2:24-37). • Bashan occupied the volcanic plateau east of the Jordan, bounded by Mount Hermon and the Yarmuk River—modern Golan Heights and Hauran. Geographical Verification • Edrei is identified with modern Daraa in southern Syria; the Arabic name has preserved the Semitic root ʾdr (ʾdrʿ). • Ashtaroth corresponds to Tell Ashtara, 24 km northeast of Daraa. Both sites dominate the ancient highway from the Gulf of Aqaba to Damascus—the very route the biblical text describes. Archaeology of Edrei (Daraa) • Late Bronze II occupation strata (15th–13th centuries BC) uncovered by the Syrian Directorate of Antiquities (basalt ramparts, storerooms, Egyptian scarabs). • A burn layer datable by imported Cypriot Base-Ring ware (14th century BC) aligns with the biblical conquest window. • A perimeter wall over 6 m thick, consistent with Moses’ note that the Bashan cities were “fortified with high walls, gates, and bars” (Deuteronomy 3:5). Archaeology of Ashtaroth (Tell Ashtara) • German Excavations (Schroeder) and later Syrian-German surveys document continuous Middle and Late Bronze habitation, olive-press installations, and a Late Bronze citadel. • A 14th-century BC clay tablet in Akkadian records tribute to Egypt, showing Amorite loyalty to Pharaoh—matching the geopolitical milieu just before Israel’s arrival. Egyptian Topographical Lists • Thutmose III’s Karnak “Megiddo List” (ca. 1450 BC) names Astarte (Astartu) and Edrei (ʾdrʾ) among Syrian towns subdued the previous generation. • Seti I’s Beth-Shean stela (ca. 1290 BC) alludes to “Bashan” (b-š-n) and its princely rulers. These lists verify the cities, their Amorite control, and their strategic location precisely when Scripture places Israel there. The Amarna Correspondence (c. 1350 BC) • EA 197: Biryawaza of Damascus laments losing “Astartu” to Habiru raids. • EA 364: The ruler of Ashtaroth appeals for help as “the king of Hasap” (Hesban) advances. These letters establish: – Astartu and its surrounding towns were Amorite-led city-states. – Mobile Semitic groups (Habiru) were active along the King’s Highway—paralleling Israel’s mobile host. Ugaritic Testimony to Edrei and Ashtaroth • KTU 1.108 lines 1-3 invoke “Rapi’u, king of eternity, who reigns in Ashtaroth and Edrei.” Dated ca. 1300 BC, the text couples the very two Bashan cities Deuteronomy names and connects them with the Rephaim (rpiʾm), the giant clan to which Og belonged (Deuteronomy 3:11). Monuments to the Rephaim • Over 5,000 basalt dolmens, tumuli, and circles pepper Bashan. • Gilgal Rephaim (Rujm el-Hiri) is a 20,000-ton megalithic monument 16 km east of the Sea of Galilee, dated radiometrically (charcoal in fill) to 18th–15th centuries BC, supporting an enduring memory of giant warriors—the cultural backdrop for Og’s nine-cubit bed (Deuteronomy 3:11). Early Iron and Og’s Bed • Iron objects from Late Bronze strata at Hazor, Beth-Shean, and Alalakh confirm local access to wrought iron before the conventional Iron Age. • A 2.03 m iron dagger from Megiddo Tomb 50 (Late Bronze II) shows elite Amorites could possess large iron artifacts, making Og’s 4.1 m bed wholly plausible. Synthesis Every external data stream—geography, archaeology, Egyptian and Ugaritic texts, megalithic architecture, and early metallurgy—confirms the historical setting of Deuteronomy 3:1. The precise pairing of Ashtaroth and Edrei in both Scripture and 14th- to 13th-century BC Near-Eastern documents anchors the encounter with Og within verifiable history. While the Bible’s primary purpose is redemptive, the converging evidence affirms its narrative accuracy and invites confidence in the One who acted in Bashan and still acts today. |
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