The inscription — the name “Jerubbaal” — on a small jug from 1,100 BCE, which the archaeologists uncovered from a storage pit in the Judean foothills, could be the first hard evidence of a name from the biblical stories of the judges that is on an artifact contemporary to the period.
Archaeologists said in a press release, – “The name of the Judge Gideon Ben Yoash was Jerubbaal, but we cannot tell whether he owned the vessel on which the inscription is written in ink.”
“According to the Bible, Gideon organized a small army of 300 soldiers and attacked the Midianites by night near Ma’ayan Harod.”
The story of Gideon is found in Chapters 6, 7 and 8 in the book of Judges.
Archeologists said the inscription may refer to another Jerubbaal and not the Gideon of biblical tradition, although the possibility cannot be ruled out that the jug belonged to the judge Gideon.
In any case, the discovery, which was published in the open-access Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology, is significant because of the “debate as to whether biblical tradition reflects reality and whether it is faithful to historical memories from the days of the Judges and the days of David.”
In an earlier interview with CBN News, lead archaeologist Yossef Garfinkel said he believes pottery dating back to the time of King David, geography and biblical history all suggest this is the Philistine town of Ziklag where David escaped King Saul.