Jews have been living in the Land of Israel for 3500 years. And the proof is in the ground and deep in Qumran caves, at 20,000 archeological sites throughout Israel (including Judea and Samaria, which Jordan renamed in 1950 as “the West Bank”), where evidence of the Jewish presence can be found, in ancient walls and mosaic floors, in pottery, knives, drinking cups, and menorahs, in a pillar from Roman times that mentions Judea; in the charred evidence, carbon-dated to the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, in ancient synagogues unearthed beside the Sea of Galilee and in the City of David, in the Dead Sea scrolls found in 11 caves in Qumran between 1947 and 1956, in fragments of purple cloth from the time of King Solomon, in numerous seals with the names of Bibllcal characters on them, in the site at Masada where in 73 A.D. the Jewish defenders, under Roman siege, chose to commit suicide rather than surrender, in the ancient cisterns in the Old City, in the Jewish tombstones on the Mount of Olives, the oldest dating back 3,000 year, in the recently opened first century road that pilgrims walked on up to the Temple, and on and on.
How do those who call the Jews “colonists” in the Land of Israel explain this evidence of the Jewish presence going back thousands of years? They don’t. They simply pass over all of this archeological evidence in silence. More on the evidence of the Jewish presence in the Land of Israel can be found in this 2024 article that you may have missed: “Keep Digging: How Archaeology Debunks the Israel ‘Colonizers’ Libel,” HonestReporting, July 3, 2024:
The libelous claim that Israel is a colonial project causes harm to Jews worldwide and is simply not rooted in reality. Scores of archaeological evidence reveal a Jewish community in the Land of Israel that has lasted for millennia. Despite misleading and antisemitic arguments that Jewish people are colonizers of foreign land, Zionism, the Jewish self-determination movement, in reality, serves as a model for decolonization.
Ancient Accounts of Israel and the Jewish People
One of the earliest references to the Jewish people comes from the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian artifact dating back to 1200 BCE. The stele commemorates the victories of the Pharaoh Merneptah over the Israelites. This marks the first known mention of Israel in ancient Egyptian literature, affirming the longstanding presence of the Jewish people in the region. In the picture to the left, the word “Israel” is highlighted in the artifact’s original Egyptian hieroglyphics. Though there are a handful of exact translations, the sentence reads, “Yisrael, his seed is scattered,” stressing the narrative of Jewish continuity.
The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III is an Assyrian artifact from 841 BCE. It mentions the “House of Omri,” recording the tribute paid by King Jehu of Israel to the Assyrian empire after they had conquered the Kingdom of Israel. The obelisk is the only known contemporary image of an Israelite king, demonstrating the political and dynastic activities of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, therefore reinforcing the Jewish presence in the region.
The Tel Dan Stele, discovered in northern Israel, dates back to the 9th century BCE and contains an Aramaic inscription that mentions the Kingdom of Israel and the “House of David.” This significant find fortifies the biblical account of King David’s dynasty, serving as the oldest non-biblical account of the Davidic dynasty, thus providing tangible evidence of Jewish sovereignty in the land. It is currently located in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem embedded among a collection of thousands of artifacts from this era corroborating the existence of Jewish communities in the Land of Israel over two thousand years ago.
Two small silver amulets discovered in Jerusalem, dating back to the late 7th or early 6th century BCE, provide striking evidence of early Jewish religious practice. These amulets are the oldest known copies of biblical text. Uncovered in the Ketef Hinnom area, they predate the Dead Sea Scrolls by approximately 400 years. Inscribed with an iteration of the Priestly Benediction from Numbers 6:24-26, they invoke the name of the Jewish God, thereby reinforcing the foundational Jewish origins in Jerusalem. The presence of these amulets underscores the deep spiritual and cultural roots of the Jewish people in the region….
The next time you hear someone insisting that the Jews of Israel are a “colonial-settler” people, kindly direct them to the information contained in the paragraphs above, and in their source article.
jimjames says
Hugh Fitzgerald thank you for this clearly stated article of truth and fact. Thanks for your endeavors as Jihad Watch is, for me, a breath of sanity.
More than one threat says
If anyone are colonisers in the Levant, it is the Arabs from Arabia.
mgoldberg says
and everywhere else…. it was never the welcome wagon, but the march in with the demand to surrender…. or else.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
💯
jimjames says
This conflict is a religious war that is waged by the Islamists/Muslims; mainly today the Shiite but clearly stated in the Quran. The Islamist is not only an invader he is imperial in his mission to conquer the world. “Allah” for me in the readings I’ve done mainly from Robert Spencer is more of a demon than a prophet as his behavior is contrary to the discipline demanded by followers of Jesus, Buddhists and Hinduism. Do not forget the Zoroastrian s!.
gravenimage says
+1
somehistory says
The Creator of heaven and earth, told Abraham to move to what became the Land of Israel, and promised the faithful man that his offspring would be given the Land.
When Moses took the Israelites from Egypt, they headed for that same Land.
The God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob, told the Israelites to put the people….the likes of the Canaanites and others who sacrificed their children to the fires of molech/moloch…out of the Land flowing with milk and honey.
The record in the Bible and the very dirt….artifacts found therein…, give evidence of the Jews living in the Land given to Abraham by its Owner.
The Jews were slaves in Egypt and were hated by the Egyptians. The many peoples around them in ancient times, hated them. The hatred lives on in the people around them today.
Some people hate Truth. Whatever that Truth may be. So, they lie and keep lying to get others to believe the lies.
Cynthia says
The JEWS are “people of the book” (bible). They refused human sacrifice and idols, antithetical to ancient times. They began the golden rule and morality. No one who is evil likes this, then and today.
This small people in number outlasted the Egyptians, Romans, ottomans…and will outlast the Sunni and Shia terrorists as well.
Walter Sieruk says
It’s impossible for the Jewish people to be “colonists” in the Bible land. Likewise, the Jews do not to have a “illegal occupation of that same land. For God had given all this land that now composes the State of Israel, including What many people call the “West Bank” is by Biblical right and historic rights are the lands of Judea and Samaria.
Therefore, the Jewish people do have a legitimate because God had declared so.
For the Bible reveals, that God had given all that land to the Jewish people. This may be found in, for example, Genesis 28:13-15. 35:10-12. Deuteronomy 32:48,49. Psalm 105:7-11.
Therefore, the Jewish people do have a legitimate because God had declared so. They in no uncertain terms are they ”colonists “ of that land
In other words, the Jews have tall this land by Divine Right. Moreover, the Jewish people should have this land by historic rights as shown in First Kings 4:20,21, 24,25. 8:55, 56.
For the Bible informs its reader “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel for His special treasure.” Psalm 135:4. [N.K.J.V.]
bill says
The Muslims are the colonists as they invaded most of the ME, North Africa and parts of Sub Saharan Africa, Also parts of Asia Minor and the Far east where they eliminated most of Buddhism and even have a strong presence in the Philippines. They even once held Spain and much of the Balkans. But for British colonialism they would still have India. So why does nobody, as far as I know, ever accuse the Muslims of colonialism? Pus the fact that most of the colonial countries gave independence to their colonies after WW2 whereas the Muslim insist that any land where they set foot is theirs for ever!
jimjames says
I understand Islam to be the most IMPERIAL force in recorded history. As the Quran for me is a program for total subjugation and world conquest.
Banwart Kindal says
Islam ☪️ is like the 3rd distant cousin in the Middle East who can’t get a place at the table. They are the true rewriters of history. Claiming the Hebrew patriarchy of Abraham as their earliest. Which is ludicrous.
They are a dark stain in the ME. Steal, kill, destroy and lie is their short history.
gravenimage says
Are the Jews ‘Colonists’ in the Land of Israel?
……………………………………………………
Fine piece, Mr. Fitzgerald.