Summary: Dr. Fred Baltz argues that the simplest interpretation of the evidence favors Timna as the site where Moses and Israel crossed the sea during the Exodus from Egypt. a'-i (`ay, written always with the definite article, ha-`ay, probably meaning "the ruin," kindred root, `awah): (1) A town of … Unfortunately, she died of tuberculosis in 1936. The image below [looking south] shows the geographical relationship of the sites, with el-Bireh positioned to the right of the photo. When the men of Ai turned back and looked, behold, the smoke of the city ascended to the sky, and they had no place to flee this way or that, for the people who had been fleeing to the wilderness turned against the pursuers. Now the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear or be dismayed. All the men of Ai were called to pursue them, and they pursued Joshua and were lured away from the city. Abraham pitched his tent there when he arrived in Canaan. Indeed, a mile southeast of Beth El is a huge mound called e-Tell (“the mound” in Arabic). The sun goes down (over) Bethel, not far away. As Wood suggests, the military outpost there, visible from Jerusalem, guarded the northern border for the league of Amorites in the south (cf. It was the second Canaanite city taken by Israel ( Joshua 7:2-5; 8:1-29).It lay rebuilt and inhibited by the Benjamites ( Ezra 2:28; Nehemiah 7:32; 11:31).It lay to the east of Bethel, "beside Beth-aven." Ruins. AI (Hebrew, “the ruin”) A city east of Bethel, usually identified with modern Et-Tell. [1] W. F. Albright to David Livingston, February 23, 1970, in Khirbet Nisya: The Search for Biblical Ai, 1979-2002; Excavation of the Site with Related Studies in Biblical Archaeology, by David Livingston (Manheim, PA: Associates for Biblical Research, 2003), 263. Regardless, the geographical and archaeological indicators in Joshua 7–8 correspond to the evidence unearthed at Khirbet el-Maqatir. The Bi… So they stationed the people, all the army that was on the north side of the city, and its rear guard on the west side of the city, and Joshua spent that night in the midst of the valley. Maps Created using Biblemapper 3.0 Additional data from OpenBible.info. The Hebrews and the Philistines - … Directed by David Livingston (upper left). For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. The placement of the monastery seems deliberate in that monasteries often memorialized biblical events. Identifying Ai was no great challenge, based on the Bible, which repeatedly states that the city is in the region of Beth Aven and east of Beth El. First, the equation of Bethel and Beitin contradicts the idea that the fortress at Bethel served the Shechem alliance. The army of Ai left the city completely unprotected. SYNOPSIS:The Biblical City of Ai Located and Matches Joshua’s Story – A key dispute in biblical archaeology has surrounded the location of the Conquest site of Ai. 7:7; 10:1–6). It was the scene of Joshua's defeat, and afterwards of his victory. Set an ambush for the city behind it.”. It lay rebuilt and inhibited by the Benjamites (Ezra 2:28; Neh. Isaiah 15:1 - The burden of Moab. In a personal letter dated February 23, 1970, Albright assured Livingston that Ai belongs at et-Tell: You can take it from me, and from Callaway and others, that there just isn’t any other possibility for Ai than et-Tell and that Bethel can only have been modern Beitin. A few individuals have questioned this identification, motivated by the fact that the archaeology at et-Tell at the traditional datefor the Conquest does not fit the biblical account of the Conquest at all. The list of conquered rulers in Joshua 12 places Ai “near Bethel” (v. 9). The leading candidates for Ai, Khirbet el-Maqatir and et-Tell, both lie east of the leading candidates for Bethel, el-Bireh and Beitin. For one, local tradition in the 1800s equated the sites.2 Moreover, a monastery from the Byzantine Age once graced the locale. It lay to the east of Bethel, "beside Beth … TOP PHOTO: Khirbet Nysia excavations. (credit Michael Luddeni). You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Now there was a valley between him and Ai. [2] Edward Robinson and Eli Smith, Biblical Researches in Palestine and the Adjacent Regions: A Journal of Travels in the Years 1838 and 1852, 3rd ed., vol. The debate over the location of Ai intertwines with the excavation of Jericho. G. S. P. Freeman-Grenville, indexed by Rupert L. Chapman III, ed. Joshua held out his sword until all of the people of Ai were killed. Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” So the men went up and spied out Ai. Thus, from Livingston to Wood to Stripling, ABR has conducted excavations in search of Ai for nearly 40 years, 37 to be precise. Gird yourselves with sackcloth and lament. Kathleen Kenyon excavated Jericho from 1952 to 1956. Answer: Jericho is believed to be one of the oldest cities in the world. Jeremiah 49:3 Howl, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry, you daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth; lament, and run to and fro by the hedges; for their king shall go into captivity, and his priests and his princes together. Isaiah 10:28 He has come to Aiath. Previously, archaeologists and historians have thought that the ruins of the city were near el-Tell in the West Bank. The decision of where to divide the land was not arbitrary. Joshua stationed soldiers “north of Ai” (Jos 8:11). When Joshua and all Israel saw that the men in ambush had captured the city and that the smoke of the city ascended, they turned back and slew the men of Ai. Ai, ancient Canaanite town destroyed by the Israelites under their leader Joshua (Joshua 7–8). 1 Et-Tell, however, fails to meet the biblical criteria for the city. Pronunciation of Ai in the bible with 2 audio pronunciations and more for Ai in the bible. 57, 63, 73 Y6 town of Moab, Deut. It provides excellent visibility and a west-east ridgeline. The findings at Khirbet Nisya illuminated the background of the Old and New Testaments, but a positive correlation with Ai proved allusive. The ambush site rested “behind” or “west” (ʾahar) of the fortress (vv. It came about when the king of Ai saw it, that the men of the city hurried and rose up early and went out to meet Israel in battle, he and all his people at the appointed place before the desert plain. But he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. Eusebius: “’Aggai (Genesis 12:8). Prior to the battle, Joshua positioned his troops at an ambush site “not…very far from the fortress” (Jos 8:4). And all the people who were in the city were called together to pursue them, and they pursued Joshua and were drawn away from the city. Ruins. So about three thousand men from the people went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai. When Israel attacked Ai, the Lord appeared the have withdrawn his support and … Aiath (Ai) and surrounding area. 2, 4, 14), that is, “between Bethel and Ai, west of Ai” (vv. One of the royal cities of the Canaanites ( Joshua 10:1; Genesis 12:8; 13:3).It was the scene of Joshua's defeat, and afterwards of his victory. Excavations continued at Khirbet el-Maqatir through 2016, with the final three years under the direction of Scott Stripling. Only the king was taken alive, and he was hanged a short time later. One of the royal cities of the Canaanites ( Joshua 10:1 ; Genesis 12:8 ; 13:3 ). AI. Pronunciation of Ai in the bible with 2 audio pronunciations and more for Ai in the bible. So they stationed the people, all the army that was on the north side of the city, and its rear guard on the west side of the city, and Joshua spent that night in the midst of the valley. When the men of Ai turned back and looked, behold, the smoke of the city ascended to the sky, and they had no place to flee this way or that, for the people who had been fleeing to the wilderness turned against the pursuers. According to the Bible, the Israelites were commanded to destroy all inhabitants of Canaan. Patterns of Evidence: The Moses Controversy. After the destruction of Jericho and Ai, the Hivite people of Gibeon sent ambassadors to trick Joshua and the Israelites into making a treaty with them. Second, the equation contradicts the work of Eusebius. Ai [N] [H] [S] ruins. Now when Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the field in the wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them were fallen by the edge of the sword until they were destroyed, then all Israel returned to Ai and struck it with the edge of the sword. 2 You will do to Ai and its king the same thing you did to Jericho and its king. Now Joshua rose early in the morning and mustered the people, and he went up with the elders of Israel before the people to Ai. Richard S. Hess, Gerald A. Klingbeil, and Paul J. Ray Jr. (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2008), 237–38. However, the geography and topography of et-Tell closely match the biblical description of Ai. They will come out after us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are fleeing before us as at the first.’ So we will flee before them. Ai. How to say Ai in the bible in English? Et Tell has been accepted as the default site of Ai since W.F. The preposition ʿim designates general proximity, whereas the synonym ʾēt (near) signals immediate proximity. Ai was originally a Canaanite royal city and is associated with the modern-day et-Tell. When Abram reached Ai, he built an altar and “called upon the name of the Lord.” The name Ai means “heap of ruins” (Joshua 8:28). Bible > Atlas > Aiath (Ai) Aiath (Ai) Atlas. Excavations have revealed a strongly fortified city situated there. Joshua and all Israel pretended to be beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness. You shall do to Ai and its king just as you did to Jericho and its king; you shall take only its spoil and its cattle as plunder for yourselves. He commanded them, saying, “See, you are going to ambush the city from behind it. Now there was a valley between him and Ai. It was the second Canaanite city taken by Israel (Josh. They will come out after us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are fleeing before us as at the first.’ So we will flee before them. Joshua and all Israel pretended to be beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness. The Bethel equals Beitin formula has its drawbacks, two of which shall receive brief mention. The wadi formed a natural and political boundary between the southern territory governed by the city-state of Jerusalem and the central territory governed by the city-state of Shechem.3 Even after the conquest, the wadi functioned as the border between Benjamin and Ephraim (Jos 18:12–13). 2. There he built an altar to Yahweh and called on the name of Yahweh. Take all the people of war with you and arise, go up to Ai; see, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. Biblical references agree in locating Ai (Hebrew: ha-ʿAy, “The Ruin”) just east of Bethel (modern Baytīn in the West Bank). 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