Unearthing the Shiloach Inscriptions

Hezekiah's Tunnel SiloamWhat’s the connection between a mishnah in Pesachim and Israel’s recent rapprochement with Turkey? What does a recent finding of an inscription in Yerushalayim from the times of Chizkiyahu Hamelech tell us about the Assyrian invasion of Eretz Yehudah in 701 BCE?

The mishnah in Pesachim (4:9) tells us about six things that Chizkiyahu did, three of which the Chachamim approved and three of which they did not. Among those that they did not approve is the fact that he “closed off the waters of the Upper Gichon.” This event is described directly in Divrei Hayamim Beis (32:30). There we learn that “It was Chizkiyahu who stopped up the spring of water of the Upper Gichon, leading it downward west of the City of Dovid.”

Read the rest of this article in Ami Magazine.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *