Excavations at Hadid, located between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, have unearthed evidence of foreign people living in the former territory of the Kingdom of Israel. Two cuneiform tablets dating to the 7th century BC have been discovered on which only foreign names are recorded. One of the tablets was found in the courtyard of a pillared house and records the sale of land, while the other tablet was uncovered in a separate structure and records a loan. Both tablets, written in Akkadian, bear foreign names – likely Babylonian and Aramean – while no Israelite or Yahwistic name is mentioned. Another discovery was made during this season's excavations: a seal with the image of the Assyrian moon god, Sin, was unearthed. It too was found in a 7th-century BC archaeological context. The archaeologists have suggested this is evidence that the territory of the former Kingdom of Israel was populated largely with non-Israelite people during this time. This would be consistent with the biblical description that "in the ninth year of Hoshea [722 BC], the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria (2 Kings 17:6). The text goes on to state: "The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Kuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took over Samaria and lived in its towns" (2 Kings 17:24).
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