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  • From: K Randolph <kwrandolph AT gmail.com>
  • To: B-Hebrew <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] 1 Kings 20:14 Who are the young men, princes of the districts?
  • Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2010 09:29:01 -0700

George:

On Tue, Apr 27, 2010 at 7:50 PM, George Athas
<George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>wrote:

> Karl,
>
> I think you’re confusing two very different periods here. There was no
> Samaria during the Tel Amarna age, and Ben Hadad (whichever one of them we
> are talking about) is much, much later.
>

Part of the question here is, “When was the Tel Amarna age?”

Archaeological studies have pretty much ruled out the late bronze age. The
only significant city in Canaan during the late bronze age was Hazor, which
was destroyed during the late bronze age, and never mentioned in the Amarna
letters.

The Amarna letters reflect a much later period, namely the ninth and eighth
centuries BC, which makes this a very possible reading, that these people
were Egyptian officials, a squad to keep the peace.

Either the archaeology is all messed up, or modern historical reconstruction
is messed up, both can’t be right.

>
> GEORGE ATHAS
> Moore Theological College (Sydney, Australia)
> www.moore.edu.au
>
> I referenced the unique way of referencing these people, which made me
question why? I noticed that in Tanakh that N(R refers to a young man, not
necessarily a boy, hence could here refer to trained and battle hardened
soldiers, the equivalent to privates in the army. Further they were under
the authority of the “princes of the districts”, a rather strange
appellation, indicating the possibility that they were not Israelites. That,
in connection with the above, makes me conclude the possibility that they
were Egyptians. That makes sense of the Hebrew text, a text that has puzzled
me for years.

Karl W. Randolph.




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