The ancient city of AI is often considered to be a ruin that goes by the name EL-TEL (see the picture above).
And BEIT-EL is believed to be in an area that today is identified as a BEITIN.
However, as I mentioned yesterday, we may not have the proper location of Beit-el.
And if we don’t have the proper location of Beit-el, then we don’t have the proper location of Ai.
Because Ai is Beit-el’s sister city.
These two cities go together like two peas in a pod.
This question of the precise location of Beit-el is still up in the air but who cares because even if the assumed locations of these places are not 100% correct, they would still be within a short distance of what the Biblical account reports.
Another point.
Keep in mind that the Hebrew word for “ruin” is Ai.
Because of this, some Bible investigators assert that it was really the city of Beit-el that was attacked and then later was renamed Ai or “ruin”.
On top of that, we have actually discovered a walled city dating back to the 13th century that many believe is BEIT-EL.
So those scholars who claim that what was really attacked was Beit-el and then it was later renamed Ai could be correct.
However, don’t let any of this cast doubt on your faith in the absolute truthfulness and accuracy of the Scriptures.
Because the truth is over time as cities were destroyed and rebuilt over and over again, they were also renamed and more often than not given the same name.
That’s right folks.
In the Scriptures, we’ll actually find different cities given the EXACT SAME NAME.
Why?
Simply because folks back in those days would just use a common noun to describe a place and the city of Ai which again means “ruin” is a perfect case in point.
History just isn’t so black-and-white as many scholars want to make it out to be.
So don’t get all bent out of shape by all those skeptical scholars who try to cast doubt on the proper name or identification of some ancient city or town in Scripture.
The truth is it’s only once in a blue moon that the name of some Biblical site has been proven to be correct utilizing some ridiculous scientific method involving dates and ancient sites that have been dug up.
Look, the bottom line is it’s not like the residents of ancient cities and towns during the Biblical era had erected these huge billboard signs saying “Welcome to the City Ai”.
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