Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290)
The earliest letters from a ruler of Jerusalem, pleading for Egyptian archers
Found 1887 — Part of the Amarna archive found by locals at Tell el-Amarna; acquired for Berlin and Cairo
Where Tell el-Amarna, Middle Egypt (Germany)
Dates from c. 1350–1335 BCE · Late Bronze Age IIA (Amarna period) · Pre-Israelite Jerusalem (Jebusite city)
Now at Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin (EA 285–290; VAT 1643 etc.); some in Egyptian Museum, Cairo
How Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290) was found
Six letters in the archive come from 'Abdi-Heba, ruler of Urusalim'. EA 288 and 289 are among the best preserved.
What it is
Clay tablets in Akkadian cuneiform. Abdi-Heba (a Hurrian-style name meaning 'servant of Heba') tells Pharaoh that the Habiru are taking the king's lands, that Shechem's Labayu has helped them, and that if archers are not sent 'the lands of the king are lost'.
Why it matters for the Bible
These are the first written records from Jerusalem, a century or more before David. They show Jerusalem as a small hill-country kingdom under Egyptian control with a non-Israelite ruler, matching the Bible's picture of a Jebusite city that Israel did not hold until David. They also show that the name Urusalim (Yerushalayim) was already in use.
The Hebrew word: ye-roo-shah-LAH-yim
יְרוּשָׁלַיִם
יְרוּשָׁלַיִם is pronounced ye-roo-shah-LAH-yim and means Jerusalem (Strong's H3389).
People this discovery connects to
- Adoni-zedek — אֲדֹנִי־צֶדֶק (ah-doh-nee-TSEH-dek) — my lord is righteousness (king of Jerusalem in Joshua 10)
Places
- Jerusalem — יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (ye-roo-shah-LAH-yim) — foundation of peace (traditional)
Events
Jebusite Jerusalem before Israel · Canaanite kings resisting Israel's entry
Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290) in Scripture
Joshua 10:1 Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem hears of Israel's victories; Abdi-Heba's letters show a Jerusalem king facing similar threats in the same era. (First mention of Jerusalem.)
Judges 1:21 Benjamin could not drive out the Jebusites of Jerusalem; the letters show the city's long non-Israelite rule.
2 Samuel 5:6-7 David finally takes Jerusalem from the Jebusites, ending the kind of rule Abdi-Heba represents.
Questions people ask
What is Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290)?
Clay tablets in Akkadian cuneiform. Abdi-Heba (a Hurrian-style name meaning 'servant of Heba') tells Pharaoh that the Habiru are taking the king's lands, that Shechem's Labayu has helped them, and that if archers are not sent 'the lands of the king are lost'.
When was Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290) discovered?
It was found in 1887 by Part of the Amarna archive found by locals at Tell el-Amarna; acquired for Berlin and Cairo, at Tell el-Amarna, Middle Egypt.
Where is Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290) today?
Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin (EA 285–290; VAT 1643 etc.); some in Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
Which Bible verses does Abdi-Heba's Jerusalem Letters (EA 285–290) relate to?
Joshua 10:1, Judges 1:21, 2 Samuel 5:6-7.
Related discoveries
- עִבְרִיAmarna Letters and the HabiruCanaanite kings beg Pharaoh for help against roving 'Apiru' bands
- תְּעָלָהHezekiah's Tunnel (Siloam Tunnel)533-metre rock-cut water channel bringing the Gihon Spring inside Jerusalem's walls
- חֻרְבָּןJerusalem's 586 BCE Destruction LayerBurnt Room, House of Ahiel, Givati ash and arrowheads — the fall of Jerusalem in the ground
- הַר הַבַּיִתHerodian Western Wall and Temple Mount PlatformThe retaining walls of Herod's expanded Temple enclosure
- נִקְבָּהSiloam InscriptionHebrew record of the moment two tunnelling crews met under Jerusalem
- תְּקִיעָהTrumpeting Place Inscription'To the place of trumpeting…' — a stone from the Temple's southwest corner tower
Sources
- Moran, The Amarna Letters (1992), EA 285–290
- Wikipedia: Abdi-Heba
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