Tel Dan Stele

A basalt stone stele was discovered in 1993 in northern Israel at the foot of Mount Hermon. This was once the location of the Israelite city of Dan. Dated to the 9th century B.C., the Tel Dan Stele references the “House of David” which was the ruling dynasty of Judah. The stone is broken and parts are missing, but on the ninth line it is interpreted as saying, “[I killed Jeh]oram son of [Ahab] king of Israel, and I killed [Ahaz]yahu son of [Joram kin]g of the House of David…” All kings of Judah were descended from David, and this stone shows that 150 years after King David’s death, the invading King Hazael of Syria continued to recognize a line of kings as belonging to David’s dynasty.

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