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A Biblical and Archaeological Perspective

Biblical Significance of Gezer

Gezer holds a prominent place in biblical history as a fortified city within the land of Israel. Its initial mention during the conquest under Joshua highlights its strategic importance (Joshua 10:33; 12:7, 8, 12). Despite being allocated to the tribe of Ephraim and designated as a Levitical city, the Israelites did not fully expel the Canaanite inhabitants, reflecting the ongoing struggle to claim the Promised Land in its entirety (Joshua 16:10; Judges 1:29; Joshua 21:20, 21).

‎Gezer aerial from the north. – BiblePlaces.com

The city’s association with the Philistines during King David’s reign further underscores its significance in the military conflicts of ancient Israel (2 Samuel 5:25; 1 Chronicles 14:16). The account of Sibbecai the Hushathite defeating a descendant of the Rephaim at Gezer illustrates the city’s role as a battleground against the Philistines (1 Chronicles 20:4). Moreover, Gezer’s incorporation into Israel’s kingdom through Pharaoh’s dowry to Solomon, and Solomon’s subsequent rebuilding and fortification, mark a pivotal moment in the consolidation of Israelite territory and influence (1 Kings 9:15-17).

Secular Records and Gezer

Gezer’s prominence extends beyond the biblical narrative into secular historical records. Thutmose III‘s account of capturing Gezer, inscribed on the temple walls at Karnak, along with its frequent mention in the Amarna Tablets, testifies to its importance in the broader geopolitical landscape of the ancient Near East. The boast by Pharaoh Merneptah of seizing Gezer further highlights the city’s strategic value to foreign powers, underscoring its role in the conflicts and diplomacy of the region.

Tel Gezer. – Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary

Archaeological Insights

Identified with modern Tell Jezer, the archaeological site of ancient Gezer reveals layers of history that corroborate and enrich our understanding of its biblical significance. The strategic location of Tell Jezer, commanding ancient trade and military routes between Egypt and Mesopotamia, is evident in its elevated position on a ridge of the Shephelah. This advantageous location underscores Gezer’s role as a key city in ancient times.

Excavations at Tell Jezer have uncovered significant structures, including what is believed to be the “Solomonic gate and casemate wall,” attributed to the rebuilding efforts of Solomon. The discovery of these structures, along with similar architectural findings at Hazor and Megiddo, suggests a unified plan of fortification across these cities, indicative of Solomon’s widespread building projects aimed at securing his kingdom’s borders.

The presence of Philistine pottery in earlier strata of the site reflects the cultural and military interactions between the Israelites and the Philistines. Additionally, the Gezer “calendar,” a notable archaeological find, offers invaluable insights into the agricultural practices, linguistic script, and everyday life in ancient Israel, providing a tangible link to the world of the Hebrew Bible.

Insights from Gezer: Biblical History and Archaeological Corroboration

The convergence of biblical history and archaeological evidence at Gezer provides a vivid illustration of the complex interplay between the Israelites and their neighbors. The city’s enduring significance, from its contested occupation to its role in the united monarchy of Israel, is mirrored in the archaeological record, offering a testament to the historical veracity of the biblical narrative. Through the lens of both scripture and spade, Gezer emerges as a key site in understanding the material culture, political dynamics, and spiritual heritage of ancient Israel.

Gezer was one of the cities the Israelites failed to take in their conquest of Canaan. This is the “high place” of Gezer, where idols were worshiped. The city was finally captured in Solomon’s time by the pharaoh of Egypt, who set it on fire, killed its inhabitants, and gave it as a wedding gift to Solomon, who rebuilt Gezer (1 Kings 9:16–17). — Halley’s Bible Handbook.

The High Place of Gezer: An Ancient Site of Worship

The Gezer High Place, an archaeological site of ancient worship, stands as a silent witness to the religious practices that predated, and in some cases, coexisted with Israelite culture. This array of standing stones, known as masseboth or matzevot, likely served as a ceremonial site where the city’s inhabitants engaged in rituals and offered sacrifices to their deities.

The biblical narrative recounts that Gezer was a Canaanite city that the Israelites did not capture during the initial conquest of the Promised Land. It remained a bastion of Canaanite religion and culture until the time of Solomon. According to 1 Kings 9:16–17, the city of Gezer was eventually conquered by the Egyptian Pharaoh, who then gifted it to Solomon upon his marriage to Pharaoh’s daughter. Solomon, who undertook extensive building projects throughout Israel, rebuilt Gezer, incorporating it into the united monarchy of Israel.

The high place at Gezer, therefore, represents a tangible connection to the ancient world, where the religious life of the Canaanites and the political narrative of Israel converged. It provides archaeologists and biblical scholars with valuable insights into the continuity and change of religious practices in ancient times.

Boundary inscription from Gezer. HarperCollins Bible Dictionary.

The Boundary Stones of Gezer: Markers of Ancient Property Lines

Boundary stones in the ancient Near East, such as this inscription from Gezer dating from the first century B.C.E. to the first century C.E., served a crucial role in defining property lines and asserting ownership. The inscription “The boundary of Gezer” indicates the demarcation of the city’s territorial limits. Below it, the name “Alkios” is likely the name of the landowner, signifying an individual’s claim to the land within those established boundaries.

These stones are significant as they not only marked territory but also represented legal statements of possession, often used to resolve disputes over land ownership. In the context of biblical history and archaeology, such stones offer insights into the social and economic structures of the time, indicating a system of personal property and land tenure that required clear delineation and communal recognition.

Gezer standing stones.—Z. Radovan/www.BibleLandPictures.com

The Standing Stones of Gezer: Monoliths of Ancient Rituals

These standing stones at Gezer, known as masseboth, are monumental relics from the ancient world, signifying places of worship or commemoration. Such stones were typically erected for religious purposes, possibly to mark a sacred area or to commemorate significant events or covenants. In the context of Gezer, these stones may have been associated with Canaanite religious practices, as the city was a Canaanite stronghold before it was integrated into the kingdom of Israel.

The presence of these stones provides a tangible link to the spiritual life of the region’s ancient inhabitants. Given the biblical injunctions against erecting such stones (Leviticus 26:1, Deuteronomy 16:22), their existence at Gezer also speaks to the syncretism and religious complexities of the time, especially during periods when Canaanite and Israelite cultures intersected. The standing stones of Gezer stand as silent sentinels, bearing witness to the ancient religious practices that once took place at this significant archaeological site.

Paleo-Hebrew Script: The Gezer calendar is a small limestone tablet with an early Canaanite inscription discovered in 1908 by Irish archaeologist R. A. Stewart Macalister in the ancient city of Gezer, 20 miles west of Jerusalem. It is commonly dated to the 10th century BCE,

The Gezer Calendar: An Ancient Agricultural Almanac

The Gezer Calendar is an inscribed limestone tablet that serves as a remarkable artifact from the ancient city of Gezer. Discovered by archaeologist R.A. Stewart Macalister, this tablet is one of the earliest known examples of Hebrew script and provides insight into the agricultural life of the region. The inscription on the calendar details the monthly cycles of agricultural activities, offering a glimpse into the seasonality of farming practices and the rhythm of rural life in ancient Canaan.

This artifact is not only significant for its linguistic value, contributing to the understanding of ancient Semitic languages, but also for its depiction of the agrarian culture that underpinned the economy and society of ancient Israel and its surroundings. The Gezer Calendar is a testament to the timekeeping and agricultural planning that were essential for the community’s sustenance and stability.

The Gezer Agricultural Calendar: Deciphering Israel’s Ancient Seasons

The Gezer Calendar stands as a key piece of the puzzle in understanding ancient Israel’s agricultural life. This limestone plaque, with its Phoenician or paleo-Hebrew script, is akin to an agronomist’s guidebook, detailing the farming year’s cyclical nature through its list of bi-monthly periods and associated agricultural tasks.

This calendar’s inscription, categorized as KAI 182, reads almost as an almanac, instructing when to gather, plant, sow, harvest, and perform other essential agricultural activities. Each task aligns with a specific time of the year, reflective of the agricultural practices and climatic conditions of ancient Canaan.

The transliteration of the text reveals a systematic division of labor across the year, from the gathering of crops to the planting and the late sowing, followed by specific periods for cutting flax, reaping barley, measuring grain, pruning, and finally, the harvesting of summer fruit. This detailed account underscores the meticulous planning required to manage the land’s yield effectively.

The inscription is in Phoenician or paleo-Hebrew script:

𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤅𐤀𐤎𐤐.𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤅𐤆
𐤓𐤏.𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤅𐤋𐤒𐤔
𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤏𐤑𐤃𐤐𐤔𐤕
𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤒𐤑𐤓𐤔𐤏𐤓𐤌
𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤒𐤑𐤓𐤅𐤊𐤋
𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤅𐤆𐤌𐤓
𐤉𐤓𐤇𐤒𐤑

𐤉𐤁𐤀

Which in equivalent square Hebrew letters is as follows:

ירחואספ ירחוז‎

רע ירחולקש‎

ירחעצדפשת‎

ירחקצרשערמ‎

ירחקצרוכל‎

ירחוזמר‎

ירחקצ‎

אבי (ה)‎

This corresponds to the following transliteration, with spaces added for word divisions:

yrḥw ʾsp yrḥw z

rʿ yrḥw lqš

yrḥ ʿṣd pšt

yrḥ qṣr šʿrm

yrḥ qṣrw kl

yrḥw zmr

yrḥ qṣ

ʾby [h]

The text has been translated as:

Two months gathering (October, November — in the Hebrew calendar Tishrei, Cheshvan)

Two months planting (December, January — Kislev, Tevet)

Two months late sowing (February, March — Shvat, Adar)

One month cutting flax (April — Nisan)

One month reaping barley (May — Iyar)

One month reaping and measuring grain (June — Sivan)

Two months pruning (July, August — Tammuz, Av)

One month summer fruit (September — Elul)

Abij [ah]

The mention of “Abijah” as the possible scribe of this calendar not only personalizes the artifact but also may hint at the usage of the name JHVH (Abijah means my father is Jehovah. Jah is short for Jehovah), offering a glimpse into the religious identity interwoven with daily life in ancient Israel. The fact that this calendar might represent a form of tax collection, a school exercise, or even a folk song speaks to the multifaceted nature of this artifact. It served not just as a functional tool but also as a cultural touchstone, reflecting the rhythms of life, education, and possibly even the spiritual expressions of the time.

The Gezer Calendar thus provides a valuable link between the scriptural references to agricultural seasons and the practical outworking of these activities in daily life. It stands as an enduring testimony to the intimate connection between the land and the people of ancient Israel, a connection that was vital for survival and prosperity.

The Solomonic Gate at Gezer: A Testament to Ancient Fortifications

The Solomonic gate at Gezer is an archaeological discovery of great significance, providing tangible evidence of the biblical account of King Solomon’s extensive building and fortification projects. This six-chambered gate complex, along with similar structures found in Hazor and Megiddo, is characteristic of the architectural style of the period attributed to Solomon’s reign, around the 10th century B.C.E.

The design of the gate is consistent with the defensive architecture of the era, featuring a casemate wall system—a double wall with chambers between them—that would have provided additional strength and storage space within the city’s fortifications. This gate would have served as a primary entrance to the city, equipped to control access and provide protection against invaders.

The discovery of this gate at Gezer aligns with the biblical description of Solomon’s works in 1 Kings 9:15, which lists Gezer alongside Hazor and Megiddo as sites where he carried out building projects. The gates at these three cities are remarkably similar in construction, suggesting a centralized plan possibly implemented across the kingdom to enhance its defense capabilities.

The significance of the Solomonic gate at Gezer lies not only in its confirmation of the biblical narrative but also in its contribution to the understanding of urban planning and military strategy in ancient Israel. This monumental gate stands as a testament to the historical reality of the United Monarchy and its endeavors to fortify its cities in a time of expansion and consolidation.

Section and plan of an Iron Age lever-and-weights press at Tel Gezer.

The Iron Age Olive Press of Tel Gezer: An Engineering Marvel of Antiquity

The Iron Age lever-and-weights press discovered at Tel Gezer represents a significant advancement in olive oil production techniques during this period. The detailed schematic from Macalister’s early 20th-century excavation report showcases the ingenious use of simple machines to optimize oil extraction from olive mash.

A is the fulcrum point, an anchored beam lever that serves as the pivot for the pressing mechanism. B illustrates the pressing area where the olives would be placed, flanked by square central collecting vats designed to gather the extracted oil. C shows the placement of weights, which, when hung from the lever arm, would apply downward pressure, squeezing the oil from the crushed olives. D denotes the rectangular crushing basin, suggesting a two-stage process beginning with crushing the olives and then pressing them.

This press is an example of the sophisticated technology employed in agricultural practices in ancient Israel. The differentiation between simple and complex presses, as well as regional variations like the northern and southern types, highlights a period of significant innovation and regional adaptation to agricultural challenges. The transition from beam presses to more advanced screw presses would come much later, but the lever-and-weights press marks a crucial period in the development of olive oil production, a staple of the economy and daily life in Iron Age Israel.

‎The Amarna Letters (c. 1400 B.C.) mention Gezer’s alliance with Ashkelon, Lachish, and Jerusalem. Joshua allotted Gezer to the Ephraimites but gave it to the Levites. The Hebrews never conquered it (Judg 1:29). Solomon’s father-in-law, the pharaoh (either Siamun, Psusennes II, or Shishak), killed the Canaanites living there, including it in his daughter’s dowry (1 Kgs 9:16). Inscribed boundary stones found at Tell Gezer, Israel identify it as the biblical Gezer. The Palestine Exploration Fund, a British biblical archeology society, first published this map in 1907.
‎Josh 10:33, Josh 21:20–21, Judg 1:29, 2 Sam 5:25, 1 Kgs 9:15–16, 1 Chr 6:67

Gezer’s Archaeological Legacy and Textual Corroboration

Textual Evidence from Ancient Near East

The rich tapestry of Gezer’s history is further illuminated by its appearance in various ancient Near Eastern records, underscoring its geopolitical significance throughout the biblical period. The victory inscriptions of Thutmose III, alongside the Amarna letters, offer a glimpse into the complex political landscape of Canaan under Egyptian influence. The letters reveal Gezer’s role as a key player in the intricate web of alliances, loyalty, and intrigue that characterized the region’s relations with Egypt. These texts not only attest to Gezer’s prominence but also to its diplomatic engagements, highlighting the city’s strategic importance as “the maidservant of the king.”

The references to Gezer in the Merneptah Stela further affirm the city’s significance, capturing a moment of conquest and subjugation that echoes the biblical narratives of conflict and conquest. These external accounts corroborate the biblical depiction of Gezer as a pivotal city within the geopolitical dynamics of the ancient Near East.

Archaeological Discoveries at Gezer

The archaeological strata of Gezer paint a vivid picture of a city that rose to prominence, was destroyed, and then reborn from its ashes, mirroring the historical fluctuations recorded in biblical and extrabiblical texts. The discovery of distinctive Philistine pottery dating back to the early twelfth century BC provides concrete evidence of the Philistine presence and influence in Gezer, aligning with the biblical account of Philistine interactions with Israel.

The significant fortifications, including the casemate walls and the gate complex discovered at Gezer, are monumental attestations to the city’s strategic importance and its role in the defense and administration of the region. These findings, particularly the gate complex likened to those found at Hazor and Megiddo, suggest a unified architectural and defensive strategy possibly implemented during Solomon’s reign, supporting the biblical narrative of Solomon’s extensive building projects aimed at fortifying his kingdom.

The image portrays the archaeological remains of the ancient city of Gezer’s multichambered gateway, a structural testament to the city’s strategic importance and its sophisticated defense mechanisms. This gateway, believed to date back to the era of King Solomon in the 10th century B.C.E., features a complex design that was typical of the period’s urban fortifications.

The Multichambered Gate of Gezer: A Portal to the Past

This image captures the remains of the multichambered gate at the ancient city of Gezer, a significant archaeological find that provides insight into the city’s defense mechanisms and urban planning during the Iron Age. This type of gate structure, characterized by several partitioned spaces or chambers along the entryway, was a common feature in the fortified cities of the ancient Near East, designed for enhanced security and control of traffic in and out of the city.

The chambers within the gate likely served various functions, including guardrooms, meeting spaces, or storage areas, and would have been crucial in times of siege or attack. The presence of such an intricate gate system suggests that Gezer was a city of considerable importance, warranting advanced fortifications to protect its inhabitants and resources.

These remains align with the biblical narrative describing the extensive building projects undertaken by King Solomon, including fortifications at key cities such as Gezer (1 Kings 9:15). The discovery of the Gezer gate, along with similar structures at Hazor and Megiddo, points to a standardized architectural style that may have been indicative of centralized planning during the United Monarchy of Israel.

As an archaeological site, the gate at Gezer offers a physical connection to the world of the Hebrew Bible, allowing us to step through a portal into the ancient past and explore the daily realities of a city that stood at the crossroads of history.

Integration of Textual and Archaeological Evidence

The convergence of textual and archaeological evidence provides a robust framework for understanding Gezer’s role in the biblical narrative. The agricultural calendar and the estate sale contract discovered at Gezer offer unique insights into the daily life and economic transactions of the city’s inhabitants, bridging the gap between the grand narratives of kings and conquests and the lived experiences of the common people.

The synthesis of these diverse strands of evidence underscores Gezer’s importance as a fortified city that played a crucial role in the historical and political landscape of ancient Israel. Through the lens of archaeology and ancient texts, Gezer emerges not just as a backdrop to biblical stories but as a vibrant city with a rich history that resonates with the complexities of ancient Near Eastern politics, culture, and economy. This multidimensional understanding of Gezer enriches our appreciation of the biblical narrative, grounding it in the tangible reality of the ancient world.

About the Author

EDWARD D. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House. He has authored over 220+ books. In addition, Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV).