Research Articles: All posts tagged 'ai'

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Join ABR on the Dig in Israel 1/30/2012 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

The location of Joshua's Ai has been a matter of mystery and controversy since the beginnings of archaeological research in Israel. Scholars have concluded that the location of Joshua’s Ai is at et-Tell. They have also used this conclusion to discredit the Biblical account of Joshua 7-8 because there is no evidence of occupation at et-Tell during the time of Joshua. We believe they are incorrect, not the Bible.

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The Search for Joshua's Ai: Digging in Israel with ABR 10/18/2011 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

"Ai is simply an embarrassment to every view of the conquest that takes the biblical and archaeological evidence seriously." Or at least, that is what many of the critics say...

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir 2011 7/18/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

The 9th season of the Associates for Biblical Research’s (ABR) excavation at Khirbet el-Maqatir was held in May and June, 2011. All 9 seasons have been sponsored by ABR and under the direction of Dr. Bryant Wood. Located 9 miles north of Jerusalem in Israel’s West Bank, we call this dig “The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir”.

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir, 2011: Days Seven to Ten 6/6/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

On Friday June 3, we finished the 9th season of ABR’s Excavation at Khirbet el-Maqatir. Before the day was over, we had been treated to a second breakfast by the Palestinian family who has stored our tools for the last 3 dig seasons, we hosted a visit by the Master’s College IBEX study tour group, we filmed 3 YouTube videos and wrapped up our excavation.

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir, 2011: Day Six 5/30/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

We have now started our second week at Khirbet el-Maqatir. Much to Dr. Bryant Wood’s chagrin, we have not made much progress on the Late Bronze 1 fortress (the Ai of Joshua).

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir, 2011: Days Three to Five 5/28/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

I got lost in a flurry of activity this week and have missed a couple days of reporting. Today is Saturday and a bunch of us went to the Shabbat service with Jewish believers in Jesus here at Yad HaShmonah. Earlier this morning we actually experienced the latter (spring) rains frequently mentioned in the Scriptures. This one, a short but hard downpour about 9 AM, was a really later latter (spring) rain for this country. But, in all honestly, it brought no significant relief from the heat – 96 degrees yesterday!

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir, 2011: Day Two 5/24/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

For the first day of the dig, we were pretty pleased at how well we got things going. Today, we got into our squares in earnest. While pottery, tools, weapons and jewelry are interesting, my favorite find in archaeology is architecture. Walls and floors make me a happy archaeologist, and today I was really feeling it!

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir: Season 9-Day One 5/23/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

At 4:30 this morning, I believe we had the best early breakfast ready and waiting for us in the 9 years I have been digging at Khirbet el-Maqatir and staying at Yad Hashmona!

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The Search for Joshua’s Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir: Season 9-Set Up Day 5/22/2011 - by Gary Byers MA

Tomorrow we begin the first day of excavation at Khirbet el-Maqatir, 10 miles north of Jerusalem in Israel’s West Bank. Directed by Dr. Bryant Wood, this is the dig’s 9th season, all sponsored by the Associates for Biblical Research.

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Monumental Misconceptions 5/20/2011 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

Recently, we received an email from a visitor named "Jenny". Jenny made a long list of claims about the Bible. Sadly, most people hold these views because of what they read on the internet or watch on TV. Many have been lied to by their unbelieving college professors and mentors. Some even learn these erroneous views about the Bible in Christian colleges and seminaries! In providing this rather long and detailed response, it is our hope that "Jenny" and others like her will seriously reconsider the authority of the Bible and its author, Yahweh, and the claims of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Eight) 2/22/2011 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood answers questions after his presentation on Joshua's Ai and ABR's excavations at Khirbet el-Maqatir, Israel.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Seven) 2/13/2011 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Six) 2/7/2011 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Five) 2/1/2011 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Four) 1/21/2011 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Three) 12/8/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part Two) 11/29/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Finding the Lost City of Ai: Joshua 7-8 with Dr. Bryant Wood (Part One) 11/1/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood walks the audience through the archaeological evidence pertaining to the Conquest of the Biblical city of Ai, discussing the scholarly debate, the evidence he has encovered, and the case for Khirbet el-Maqatir as the Ai of Joshua.

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Search for and Discovery of Joshua's Ai 6/24/2010 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

Please watch this four minute video created by ABR Volunteer Roy Crase from the 2010 Season at Khirbet el-Maqatir...

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ABR Excavation Timelapse 6/9/2010 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

Here are moving pictures from the 2010 season of The Search for Joshua's Ai at Khirbet el-Maqatir. This video and accompanying music were produced by Nathan Lundquist. Many thanks to Nathan and his wife Whitney for this excellent video and for helping ABR on the Dig.

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Researching Ai 5/14/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

After the Israelites defeated Jericho in the southern Jordan Valley, they then attacked the fortress of Ai in the highlands (Jos 7–8). Both of these sites have produced archaeological findings that have seemed to be in conflict with the Bible. Scholars have been quick to point out that these discrepancies lead to the conclusion that there was no Conquest as described in the book of Joshua. But is the problem with the Bible or with the interpretations of the archaeologists?

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Researching Jericho 4/22/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

It was not until I was doing research for my Ph.D. thesis in the early 1980s that my attention was drawn to the findings at Jericho. In reviewing all of the published pottery from the Late Bronze Age in Palestine, I came across John Garstang’s pottery from the cemetery and destruction level at Jericho. Although earlier than the focus of my thesis, I was struck by the amount of pottery he had published that dated to the Late Bronze I period (ca. 1500–1400 BC), the time of the Conquest and the very time period Kathleen Kenyon said was missing from the tell...

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A Tribute to David Livingston 4/19/2010 - by Gordon Franz MA

On May 26, 2005, ABR held its annual banquet at Calvary Church, Lancaster, PA. This night had a special focus honoring the life and ministry of Dr. Livingston, not only for his role in founding ABR, but on his influence in the lives of others. The following article was a message that night presented by Gordon Franz, giving insight into the man who began this ministry...

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ABR’s 2009 Excavation at Khirbet el-Maqatir: The Infant Jar Burial 2/9/2010 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Infant jar burials beneath the floors of domestic houses are a relatively common find at archaeological sites in Israel. They are mostly from the Middle Bronze period, less common in Late Bronze I and unknown in Late Bronze II. The infant jar burial excavated by the ABR team during the 2009 season at Kh. el-Maqatir, although similar to other known examples, is unique in that Kh. el-Maqatir is a fortress and not an urban center...

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40th Anniversary Issue of Bible and Spade 10/29/2009 - by Henry B. Smith Jr. MA

Dr. David Livingston has devoted his life to teaching the Word of God and upholding and defending the Bible. He has been an inspiration to laymen and scholars alike and to all those who love the Bible, the Word of the living God...

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The ABR Excavation at Khirbet el-Maqatir: Review of Past Work and Report on the 2009 Season 7/17/2009 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

After a hiatus of nine years, ABR has resumed work at Kh. el-Maqatir, a promising candidate for Joshua’s Ai (Joshua 7–8). The site is located approximately 9 mi north of Jerusalem and 0.6 mi west of et-Tell, the site most scholars identify as Joshua’s Ai. There is a major problem identifying et-Tell as Joshua’s Ai, however, as the site was unoccupied at the time of the Israelite Conquest of Canaan...

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Traditional Site of Bethel Questioned 7/8/2009 - by David Livingston PhD

Unfortunately, Dr. Rainey has presented little for the Beitin = Bethel case that has not already been considered. He has ably restated traditional opinions regarding the location. In spite of the evidence we present in our first article, he obviously concludes we are wrong (which, of course, he has every right to do). However, we urge the reader to look carefully at all the evidence, and lack of it, and decide for himself on the basis of evidence, not votes. We urge serious readers to become familiar with our previous article...

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Location of Biblical Bethel and Ai Reconsidered 6/25/2009 - by David Livingston PhD

For over a century most scholars have been agreed that the village of Beitin, north of Jerusalem, is the site of biblical Bethel. A large quantity of literature has been published based on this assumption. With such careful and painstaking work, much of it basic to an understanding of Palestinian archaeology and history, it hardly seems possible that Beitin may not actually be Bethel after all. Nevertheless, that is what we purpose...

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Update from Khirbet el-Maqatir Week Two 6/7/2009 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood describes some of the work from the second week of the 2009 season at Khirbet el-Maqatir...

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Update from Khirbet el-Maqatir Week One 5/29/2009 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Dr. Bryant Wood describes some of the work from the first week at Khirbet el-Maqatir...

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The Search for Joshua's Ai 4/28/2009 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

The sites of Joshua’s Ai, Beth Aven and Bethel, are chronologically and geographically linked by Josh 7:2 and related passages. Joshua’s Ai is commonly thought to be located at et-Tell and Bethel at Beitin. Assuming these two identifications to be correct, no viable location for Beth Aven has been suggested. A detailed review of the geographical and archaeological data pertaining to et-Tell and Beitin reveals that et-Tell does not meet the biblical requirements for Joshua’s Ai, and Beitin does not meet the biblical and extrabiblical requirements for Bethel. Based on present evidence, the only combination that meets the complex matrix of biblical and extrabiblical requirements for the three sites is to locate Bethel at el-Bira, Beth Aven at Beitin, and Joshua’s Ai at the newly excavated site of Khirbet el-Maqatir...

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From the Mailbag 4/20/2008 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

How should Christians react to the "consensus of experts" that there was no Exodus or Conquest as recorded in the Old Testament?

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The Rise and Fall of the 13th Century Exodus-Conquest Theory 4/17/2008 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

The 13th century exodus-conquest theory was formulated by William F. Albright in the 1930s, based largely on Palestinian archaeological evidence, and promoted by him throughout his career. In spite of the fact that the theory runs counter to Scripture, a number of evangelicals continue to hold to this view...

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From Ramesses to Shiloh: Archaeological Discoveries Bearing on the Exodus-Judges Period 4/2/2008 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Attempts to correlate the findings of archaeology with the biblical record for the period under review have seemingly met with insurmountable ob­stacles. Much of the scholarly community today has despaired of making any valid connections and has dismissed biblical history prior to the king­dom period as nothing more than myth and legend...

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Beth Aven: A Scholarly Conundrum 4/1/2008 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

Scholars have been unable to come up with a viable site for Beth Aven. The reason is clear. Since the inception of historical-geographical research in Palestine, Bethel and Ai have been incorrectly located, thus obscuring the location of Beth Aven...

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Israel's Origins 10/10/2007 - by David Livingston PhD

For some time now many archaeologists, based on certain interpretations of the available evidence, have become convinced that there was no violent military assault on the land by Israel. They believe the entire account is myth...

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Extra-Biblical Evidence for the Conquest 5/30/2007 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

One of the challenges facing those who hold to a historical Conquest as presented in the book of Joshua is that there is alleged to be no other documentation for this event outside the Bible...

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Let the Evidence Speak 3/28/2007 - by Bryant G. Wood PhD

As one schooled in the scientific method, it disturbs me that, in addition to the say-so of esteemed authority figures, many times opinions are driven by preconceived notions, received knowledge, arguments from silence or majority opinion...

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"The Cites are Great and Walled Up to Heaven" 1/30/2006 - by Col. (Ret.) David G. Hansen PhD

One of the most vociferously attacked historical accounts in the Bible is the Old Testament description of the Israelite Conquest of Canaan as recorded in the book of Joshua. According to many critics, the archaeological evidence does not support either the Biblical version or date of the Conquest events...

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