It is an unfortunate but well-documented fact that at a point in the relatively recent past, skepticism toward the Bible as a historically reliable document became trendy. Riding this trend of disdain, many scholars eventually began to question the validity of Biblical events like the Exodus and Biblical characters like Joseph and Joshua. Some even began to claim that David was a fictitious king since they saw no ancient evidence to corroborate his position as king or even his existence.
However, archaeologists have found the fragments of a “victory stele” at the base of a wall on the edge of a plaza near the main city gate of the ancient city of Dan. Dating from the 9th century BC,
The inscription on the stele was carved into basalt and placed at Dan, possibly as early as 870 BC. The stele celebrates the Aramean conquest of the Israelite city. Originally erected at the entrance to the city, the stone monument was originally about 3.3 feet (1m) tall and 19.6 inches (50 cm) wide. It was smashed into 3 main fragments some time in the distant past when the Israelites re-captured the city.
Written in Aramaic, the three recovered fragments of the stele contain 13 lines of text narrating the victories of Aram. The inscriptions mention “Jehoram of Israel” and “Ahaziahu of Judah.” Although the name of the Aramean king is not mentioned on any of the fragments found so far, this king was probably Hazael of Aram or Ben-Hadad II of Aram, who are both recorded in the book of Kings as having waged war against Israel. Their headquarters were in Damascus about 30 miles (48 km) to the northwest.
In its discussion of Jehoram (Israel) and Ahaziahu (Judah), line 9 of the stele mentions the “house of David” (byt dwd) by name, describing it as the original ruling house of the Israelite kingdom.
It is important to note that the linguistic formula he “the house of” was common in the ancient Near East as a designation for a founder of a royal house. This positively demonstrates that David was known as the king of Israel and as the first in the dynasty, even by the neighboring Arameans. Analysis confirms that this stele is the earliest known reference to King David, the Israelite monarch. This phrase “house of David” is also found in the books of Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Zechariah. Note carefully the presence of the name David on a stele commemorating the victory of the Arameans, enemies of Israel. This confirms that it could not have been pro-Israel propaganda about a mythical, legendary king. It practically proves that the David referred to on the stele was a historical king.
Summary
The inscription “house of David” on a stele created by a hostile nation is extremely significant. It is an ancient attestation of David as King of Israel, which had been challenged by many scholars prior to the discovery of the Tel Dan Stele. Later confirmation has been provided by the 9th century Mesha Stele. Archaeological analysis found that it, too, had the phrase “house of David” referring to the royal descendants of King David.
