After Eight Seasons at Tel Burna, Have We Found Biblical Libnah?

After eight seasons of excavations at Tel Burna, the question remains as to its biblical identification. Have the findings matched the expectations of the staff who conducted a preliminary survey in 2009? Does Tel Burna indicate evidence that matches the biblical descriptions (e.g. Josh 10:29-39; 15:42; 21:13; 2 Kgs 8:22; 19:8; 23:31; 24:18; 1 Chr 6:42; 2 Chr 21:10; Jer 52:1)? After the 2017 season’s dig, the answer is still maybe, but, now, very likely! The archaeology confirms that Tel Burna was a first line of defense before nearby Lachish, about nine kilometers to the south, from at least the ninth century BCE to Sennacherib’s Judean campaign. Tel Burna demonstrates evidence of Judean military oversight, since its Iron Age IIA fortification monitors Nahal Guvrin’s transportation. These data indicate Judah’s establishment of a stronghold to defend the western border with Lachish. The fact that an individual from Libnah was the mother of the last of the Judean kings (i.e. Hamutal) indicates that Jerusalem’s hegemony saw the need to consolidate the ties of power with this western border city. Correspondingly, Tel Burna provides evidence of Iron IIC settlement, a fact which distinguishes Tel Burna from Tel Zayit most clearly as biblical Libnah. Thus, Tel Burna proves to be the most likely candidate at the moment for the status of “biblical Libnah,” since its recent finds confirm the necessary biblical occupational levels and also present expected confirmations that are simply lacking in the nearest contender for “Libnah” (i.e. Tel Zayit).