A Nation Born - The Altar on Mount Ebal and the Birth of Israel

I first met Professor Adam Zertal in 2011 at a lecture he gave in Jerusalem. That “The first encounter made a strong impression on me, because for the first time in my life, I met a non-religious, high-ranking, scholar who admitted whole-heartedly that, or to be more accurate, the historical events described in the Books of Deuteronomy and Joshua are historically valid. Zertal’s findings stood alone in opposition to the mainline archaeological view which holds that the stories described in Deuteronomy and Joshua (concerning the birth of ancient Israel) are mere myths, or at best, very inaccurate. Adam’s discoveries, beginning in the late 1970’s until today, left the mainline “footprint structures”of Biblical Archaeology in a state of muted shock. “Gilgal” Among his discoveries are six built by ancient Israelites as worshiping centers, which Zertal identified as the multiple sites mentioned across the Bible. He also discovered evidence for an amazing influx of nomadic Israelite camps and villages, which didn’t exist in the Late Bronze Age and yet, suddenly appeared in their hundreds in the early Iron Age—in the Jordan River Valley—thus affirming a dramatic entrance into the land of Canaan as depicted in the Book of Joshua. And of course there is the discovery, excavation, and analysis of Joshua’s Altar on Mount Ebal, which he addresses in detail in the pages of this book. Adam was a very humble and optimistic man and yet his eyes always reflected a small amount of sadness. This came from the absence of recognition for his discoveries. His peers and colleagues were silent; unwilling to react to his compelling findings. To do so would cause a major earthquake in the field of Biblical Archaeology; or as Professor Lawrence E. Stager, Dorot Professor of the Archaeology of Israel, Emeritus, at Harvard reportedly stated, A few weeks before he passed away, I spoke with Adam on the phone and he asked me to help him spread his discoveries as much as I could. That last personal request became something I intend on fulfilling. May his work and his memory be a blessing! Aaron Lipkin, CEO, Lipkin Tours, Inc., Ofra, Israel Photo courtesy of Brian Vanderkley Adam Zertal (seated) being introduced by Aaron Lipkin before his lecture to the Scholar’s Insider Tour at the Dan Jerusalem Hotel in March 2015. To my family and the people of Israel — Adam Zertal