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Israeli Archaeologists Again Make A Stunning Discovery In The City Of David In Jerusalem
Israeli archaeologists have again made a stunning discovery in the City of David in Jerusalem, with links to one of the most recognizable holidays in Judaism.
The Israel Antiquities Authority announced this week that during excavations in the Givati parking lot in the City of David near the Temple Mount, the ancient Greek Acra fortress had been discovered from the time of the Israelites’ Maccabean Revolt against the Greek Empire.
The discovery solves one of the greatest contemporary archaeological mysteries in Jerusalem.
The fortress was built by Greek Emperor Antiochus Epiphanes, who constructed the stronghold to control Jerusalem and to monitor Jewish religious activity on the Temple Mount. The Greeks eventually desecrated the Temple and tried to ban Jewish religious activity on the Temple Mount. This led to the so-called Maccabean Revolt, a Jewish uprising against Antiochus’ army that lasted from 167 B.C. to 160 B.C.
The Maccabean army led by Yehuda HaMacabi succeeded in defeating the Greek army and Jewish worship on the Temple Mount was restored.
To this very day, Jews all over the world commemorate the re-dedication of the Temple following Yehuda HaMacabi’s victory during the eight-day Hanukkah festival.
Jewish tradition, tells us that upon entering the Temple after the victory over the Greek army, the Maccabean army found only one jug of ritually pure olive oil to light the golden Menorah in the Temple.
Remains of the citadel and tower of the ancient Greek Acra fortress in Jerusalem. Image credit: Assaf Peretz, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority
That amount of oil was enough for only one day, but miraculously the lights of the Menorah sustained for eight days in a row. During the festival of Chanukka, Jews advertise the miracle by lighting a nine-branched candelabrum called Chanukka (dedication). Each day an additional light is kindled. The eight-day festival is generally celebrated during December and starts on the 25th day of the Hebrew month Kislev.
The location of Acra fortress has been disputed for over more than 100 years by archaeologists. But there has always been a consensus that the Acra was located within the city of David. This consensus was based on what is written in the book of Maccabees and on the work of the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Neither book is part of the Hebrew Bible.
“And they built the city of David with a great and strong wall, and with strong towers, and made it a fortress [Greek: Acra] for them: And they placed there a sinful nation, wicked men, and they fortified themselves therein.”
(1 Maccabees 1:35–38.)
“…and when he had overthrown the city walls, he built a citadel (Greek: Acra) in the lower part of the city, for the place was high, and overlooked the temple; on which account he fortified it with high walls and towers, and put into it a garrison of Macedonians.”
(Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 12:252–253.)
The directors of the excavations, Doron Ben-Ami, Yana Tchekhanovets and Salome Cohen, told reporters during a news conference that the find of the Acra is “a sensational discovery that allows us for the first time to reconstruct the layout of the settlement in the city, on the eve of the Maccabean uprising in 167 BCE.”
“The new archaeological finds indicate the establishment of a well-fortified stronghold that was constructed on the high bedrock cliff overlooking the steep slopes of the City of David hill. This stronghold controlled all means of approach to the Temple atop the Temple Mount and cut the Temple off from the southern parts of the city. The numerous coins ranging in date from the reign of Antiochus IV to that of Antiochus VII and the large number of wine jars (amphorae) that were imported from the Aegean region to Jerusalem, which were discovered at the site, provide evidence of the citadel’s chronology, as well as the non-Jewish identity of its inhabitants”.
During the excavations – which lasted for a decade – archaeologists also found lead sling shots, bronze arrowheads and ballistae stones. They are silent reminders of the battles that were waged against the Greeks during the Maccabean revolt.
The revolt was, in fact, the first religious war in human history. The war was not just a battle for religious freedom against the Greeks but a civil war as well. Observant Jews fought against Helleninized Jews who abandoned Judaism and collaborated with the Greeks.
The book of Maccabees records how the revolt began in 167 B.C. in the town of Modi’in that has been rebuilt since the founding of the State of Israel in 1948. The Greeks entered Modi’in and demanded that the Jews sacrifice a pig to their gods. A local Jewish leader by the name Mattityahu refused to obey and declared:
“Even if all the nations that live under the rule of the king obey him, and have chosen to do his commandments, departing each one from the religion of his fathers, yet I and my sons and my brothers will live by the covenant of our fathers…We will not obey the king’s word by turning aside from our religion to the right hand or the left.
(1-Maccabees 2:19-22)
However, there was one Hellenized Jew who was willing to do the unimaginable and wanted to sacrifice the pig. Mattityahu killed him and the Greek official who ordered the sacrifice. Afterward he called upon the crowd:
“Follow me, all of you who are for God’s law and stand by the covenant.” (1-Maccabees 2:27)
Mattityahu and his five sons – named Yochanan, Shimon, Judah, Eleazar, Jonathan – then fled to the hills surrounding Modi’in in the expectation that the Greeks would come back and take revenge. In the hills, Mattiyahu organized a guerilla army, led by his oldest son Yehuda, nicknamed “Maccabee” (“the Hammer”).
Maccabee in Hebrew is also an acronym for a verse taken from the Bible: “Mi komocha ba’alim Hashem ” (“Who is like you among the powers, O God?” — Shemot/Exodus 15:11).
The Jewish uprising against the Greek Empire has been an inspiration for many generations Jews and is driving contemporary Jewish communities in Israel as well. They see the current Palestinian Arab knife jihad that is inspired by denial of Jewish history in Israel as a continuation of the battle for religious rights and the ownership over the land of Israel, especially the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
Source: http://www.westernjournalism.com/israeli-archaeologists-again-make-a-stunning-discovery-in-the-city-of-david-in-jerusalem/
