For a long time, people thought King Hezekiah built a big part of the wall in ancient Jerusalem to protect it from enemies. But now, new research suggests something different after studying it for the past ten years.
New studies show that King Uzziah, Hezekiah’s great-grandpa, actually built the wall, not Hezekiah. They figured this out by looking closely at the evidence, especially after a big earthquake. This discovery changes what we thought we knew about the wall’s history. It’s a big deal because it means we need to rethink how we understand the Bible’s stories about the city’s defenses.
Looking at things from a different angle in the Bible
The Old Testament, especially the Second Book of Chronicles, tells us a lot about how King Uzziah worked to make Jerusalem stronger. What archaeologists found matches up with what the Bible says about the city’s defenses and improvements.
Using Science to Check the Age
To figure out how old the ancient wall is, experts from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), Tel Aviv University, and the Weizmann Institute of Science worked together. They used a fancy method called carbon-14 dating. Even though it was tricky because of changes in the air’s carbon over time, they made it more accurate by studying old tree rings from Europe.
This new way of doing things has given us really accurate information and taught us a lot about what Jerusalem was like a long time ago.
Learning about How Jerusalem Grew Not only did this study help us understand when the city’s defenses were built, but it also showed us how the city and its population grew over time. It turns out that people living inside Judea had a big part in making Jerusalem bigger, which is different from what we used to think. This change in thinking shows us that what happened inside the city was just as important as what happened outside of it. It helps us see how Jerusalem became so important during important times in history.
The researchers found some buildings that match what the Bible says, which helps us understand more about Judea’s history and how important the city was.
Learning About Judah These findings don’t just teach us about Jerusalem but also help us see how Judah fits into the bigger picture of ancient history in the Middle East. Judah had to deal with a lot of tough times, like when Babylon attacked and destroyed it.
The research helps us see how strong, important, and lasting the Kingdom of Judah was.
So, figuring out who really built Jerusalem’s old wall shows how we keep talking about what the Bible says and what we find in the ground. It makes us know more about the city’s exciting past and makes sure we remember it for a long time.
