Extrabiblical Mentions of Biblical Characters
by Stuart Steinberg
Here is a list of inscriptions discovered that mention various figures in the Hebrew Bible.
There are several dozen inscriptions—mostly seals, ostraca, plaques, and royal stelae—that mention individuals named in the Hebrew Bible. Below is a concise list of the key inscriptions and the biblical figures they mention, with approximate dates.
Key Hebrew Bible Figures in Inscriptions:
Merneptah Stela (Egypt)
Date: c. 1208 BCE
Mention: “Israel” as a people in Canaan (not a named person, but the first clear extrabiblical reference to “Israel”).
Mesha Stela (Moabite Stone)
Date: c. 840 BCE
Mention: “Omri, king of Israel” and “house of David”; strongly associated with King Omri (I Kings 16) and David.
Tel Dan Inscription
Date: late 9th–early 8th century BCE
Mention: “house of David” and a king of Israel, widely read as “Jehoram son of Ahab” and “Ahaz” (of Judah).
Kurkh Monolith (Shalmaneser III)
Date: c. 850 BCE
Mention: “A‑ha‑abu Sir‑ila‑a‑a” (Ahab of Israel) at the Battle of Qarqar.
Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III
Date: c. 825 BCE
Mention: “mIa‑ú‑a mar mHu‑um‑ri‑i” (interpreted as “Jehu son of Omri”), often taken as King Jehu of Israel.
Hazael inscriptions (Assyrian texts)
Date: mid‑9th century BCE
Mention: “Hazael of Damascus” (II Kings 8–13) in several Assyrian inscriptions under Shalmaneser III.
Tiglath‑Pileser III inscriptions (Kulb or Kalhu)
Date: c. 740–735 BCE
Mention: “Pekah king of Israel” and “King Ahaz of Judah” (2 Kgs 16; 2 Chr 28).
Sargon II inscriptions (Khorsabad)
Date: c. 710–707 BCE
Mention: “Hanunu of Gaza” and “Kammusu‑naddubi of Ashdod” (Isaiah 20 identifies Ashdod‑ruler Azuri/ Yamani; Ashdod‑names are probably typos or variants).
Sennacherib’s Annals (Prism and Inscriptions)
Date: c. 690 BCE
Mention: “Hezekiah king of Judah” (2 Kgs 18–19; Isa 36–37).
Nebuchadnezzar Chronicle
Date: c. 550–400 BCE (copying events of 597 BCE)
Mention: Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of Jerusalem and capture of King Jehoiachin (II Kings 24:12).
Nabonidus Cylinder
Date: c. 550 BCE
Mention: “Belshazzar” (Balthazar) as crown‑prince of Babylon (Daniel 5).
Cyrus Cylinder
Date: c. 539 BCE
Mention: Cyrus king of Persia and his policy of allowing exiled peoples to return, paralleling Ezra–Nehemiah.
“House of Baal” / “House of David” graffiti and seals
Date: 8th–7th centuries BCE
Several Hebrew seals and ostraca bear the dynastic formula “belonging to the servant of ...” linked to Judahite officials (e.g., Shema, Elishama, Ahazaryahu) mentioned in II Kings 22; II Chronicles 34; Jeremiah 39).
Lachish Ostraca (letters from Lachish)
Date: c. 588 BCE (late 7th century)
Mention: names of Judean officers such as “Hoshaiah” and “Ya’ush,” which are not directly named in the Bible but come from the same context as Jeremiah, Zedekiah, and Nebuchadnezzar.
Prism of Esarhaddon (Sherifflet)
Date: c. 670 BCE
Mention: “Manasseh, king of Judah,” and other vassals of Assyria (II Kings 21; II Chronicles 33).
