Expedition Bible has just released a new DVD entitled “Jericho Unearthed.” Filmed on location, the video features interviews with archaeologists who argue for and against the site’s destruction by the Israelites as described in the book of Joshua. From the website:
The battle of Jericho is one of the most enduring biblical stories. The description of the “walls falling down” is among its most well-known accounts. Yet, the most famous excavation of this ancient site, carried out in the 1950’s under the direction of Kathleen Kenyon, claims that there wasn’t even a city at Jericho—much less city walls—at the time when Joshua supposedly conquered it. What are the implications of the battle of Jericho being disproven? Wouldn’t the Bible be demonstrated untrustworthy? Couldn’t it be argued that the Jewish people have no more right to the land of Israel than anyone else? The implications really are staggering! For more than fifty years scholars have built a wall of doubt against the historical accuracy of the Bible using Jericho as one of its cornerstones. It’s time to face those challenges head on! It’s time to determine whether or not the conclusions of modern scholarship stand in light of the evidence or if those arguments don’t in fact collapse like Jericho’s walls.
You can view the trailer here, or order the DVD from Amazon for $7. I haven’t seen the video itself, but based upon the previous work of Expedition Bible, I would expect that this is the best resource available on the subject.
5 thoughts on “New DVD: Jericho Unearthed”
Todd:
Great resource for anyone teaching Joshua. Well done.
David
This could be oversimplified, but didn't Kenyon base her conclusion on pottery alone? Wasn't that her forte? I would love to see what others say, taking other evidence into account. Didn't she goof up on the size of Jerusalem in Hezekiah's day as well?
It would be interseting to hear what Dr. Bryant Wood has to say about this DVD. He has done research at Jericho and has his own DVD on it. He's with Associates for Biblical Research.
A nice video; well done and inquisitive, even though it has an a priori tilt toward the 14th cent date. It will be most interesting to see how sourceflix' team, having accepted Wood's 14th cent date, merges their other interview material on Ben-Tor at Hazor, who fully supports the Israelite Conquest as 13th century.
Nice quality. Even I, a full supporter of the 13th cent date for the Conquest and doubter of the Jericho story, plan to use the video in class….
Jeff – Kenyon's Jericho conclusions have been criticized because she did not consider all of the pottery that she excavated. There are other issues, but that is a main one. Concerning her other main excavations, she made significant errors at both Samaria and Jerusalem. Still she is highly regarded for her methodology and much of her work. The issue is not her, but her analysis of the evidence.
Anonymous – Dr. Wood is interviewed on the video. My guess is that he would view the presentation positively.
Dr. M – thanks for sharing your observations.