Between Text and Artifact: Integrating Archaeology in Biblical Studies Teaching (Archaeology and Biblical Studies)

110 BI:TWEENTEXTANDARTIFACT

ritualappurtenancesusuallyassociatedwithcullorsacrifices(e.g.altars),

aswellasiLSarchitecturalplan,itmayhavebeena waysideshrine.A

journeysouthalongtheDarbGhazzafromQadesh-Darneamighthave

includedsloppingatthiSwellsideStation 10 makededicationstoISr.tel's

godinthebenchroomofthemainbuilding.2Z

AmihaiMazarnotesthatthesitealteSLSliestobothnorthernIsraeland
southernjudah.^23 Ontheonehand,thelargepilhoiaretypicallyJudean
(whichcorresponds 10 theneutronactivationanalysis).Ontheotherhand,
theinscribed names,mentionof"YahwehofSamaria,·andPhoenician
motifsallsuggesttiestonorthernIsrael.FromthelackofNegevite(local)
pottery,onemightinferthatrelationswithlocalnomadswereunderdevel-
opedoravoided.
ConsistentwiththeChalcedonianhermeneutic,thesummaryofrealia
atKuntillel<AjrfJdwasreponedwithoutreferencetothebiblicaltext,bibli-
calstudies,ortheologicalreflection.Thearchaeologicaldisciplinehasbeen
allowed tostandon its own. Assuch, thedata are suggestive. Atthis
eighth-centuryB.C.E.waysideshrine,Yahweh,El,Baal,Yahweh'sAsherah,
andpossiblythegodBeswereworshiped.Worshipersmostlikelyincluded
IsraelitesandJudeans(andperhapsEdomites).SomeoftheYahwehwor-
shipersalsoworshiped "hisAsherah,"theexact identificationofwhich
remainsdebated.Forthepurposesofthisessay,wewillassumethat"his
Asherah"referstoadivineconsort.ApparentlyBaalandEIwerealsoven-
erated bysome in tandem. Most important is the constellationofthe
worshipofallthesedeitiesunderthesameroof.Byanalogyandextrapo-
lation,onemightpositthatKuntillet<Ajrudpresentsa windowintopopular
worshipwithinIsraelandJudahintheeighthandseventhcenturiesB.C.E.
Whenbroughtintocomparisonwiththebiblicaltext,thearchaeologi-
calrealiaofKuntillet<AjrfJcl rendereachofthefouroutcomes.According
to 2 Kgs23:4-6(NR.W),

Uosiahlcommandedthe highpriestHilkiah,thepriestsofthesecond

order,andtheguardiansofthethreshold, 10 bringoutofthetempleof

theLoRDall thevesselsmadeforBaal,forAsherah,andforallthehost

ofheaven;heburnedthemoutsideJenlsaleminthefieldsofIheKidron,

andcarriedtheirashesto Bethel. He deposed the idolatrouspriests

whomthekingsofJudahhadordainedtomakeofferingsinthehigh

placesatthecitiesofJudahlindaroundJenlsalem;thosealsowhomade

offeringstoBaal,tothesun,themoon,theconstellations,andall the

22 Mcshd,"Kuntillct<Ajrud:3:312.
23 AmihaiMa7"lr.Archlll.!O{OgyoftbeLtmdoftbeBible,1O.(j()()...586IJ.C.H(ABRL;New
York:Doubleday,1990),449.