MMST
Encyclopedia
MMST appears exclusively on LMLK seal
inscriptions, seen in archaeological findings
in Israel
, and its meaning has been the subject of continual controversy.
excavated the first two specimens in the original 1868-1869 excavations at Jerusalem (Warren, 1870); however, those were both only partial impressions showing the final two letters ST. The first complete inscription was published by Frederick Jones Bliss
after excavating it from Tell Ej-Judeideh (Bliss, 1900), later determined to be Biblical Moreseth-Gath. Beginning then, here is a list of all the ancient sites scholars have associated with it:
These proposals fall into two main streams of thought. One philosophical school places MMST in a geographical region based on the identification of three other regions surrounding Hebron
, Socoh, and Ziph
(the other words on the LMLK seal
s). The chief problem is that the majority of the seal impressions were not found in any particular region associated with one of the four inscriptions. For example, the majority of HBRN stamps were found at Lachish
significantly to the west. An alternative strategy identifies MMST in the vicinity of Jerusalem (which includes Ramat Rahel) based upon the datum that the majority of MMST stamps were excavated in and around there. The chief problem is that there were more HBRN stamps than MMST found at Jerusalem and more Z(Y)F stamps than MMST found at Ramat Rahel (Grena, 2004, pp. 354–60).
In further support of a Place Name interpretation is the notion that MMST was lost from the Hebrew
Masoretic text, but preserved via a corrupt Greek
transliteration in the Septuagint version of the book of Joshua
, 15:59-60 (Rainey, 1982, p. 59):
suggested that MMST meant Mareshah, but instead of identifying it with the town, he proposed that the seal referred to a potter (or family of potters).
inscriptions were votive slogans or mottoes instead of geographical places, MMST may share the same etymological root as MMSLTW (Strong's Concordance
#4475), a Hebrew
word used in the Bible
translated alternately as domain, dominion, force, government, power, realm, responsibility, rule. (See Genesis 1:16, 1 Kings 9:19, 2 Chronicles 8:6, Psalms
103:22, 114:2, 136:8-9, 145:13, Isaiah
22:21, Jeremiah
34:1, 51:28, Daniel
11:5, Micah
4:8.) The parallel passage found in 2 Kings 20:13 and Isaiah 39:2 deserves special attention for its association of the word in the same chronological context as the LMLK seal
s:
Likewise 2 Chronicles 32:9:
Note that Ginsberg suspected such a literal reading of the inscription in a paper presented in 1945, but changed to the geographic association with Jerusalem in 1948.
Note also the well-known Moab
ite inscription from Kerak
that begins with the fragmented phrase ...MSYT MLK. While we may never know if the first word is a compound of KMS, the Moab
ite deity mentioned in the Bible
as Chemosh, the MMST on the LMLK seal
s may have been "MMSYT" written scriptio defectiva with a possible relation to "mumsa" in the Arabic language
.
LMLK seal
LMLK seals were stamped on the handles of large storage jars mostly in and around Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah based on several complete jars found in situ buried under a destruction layer caused by Sennacherib at Lachish...
inscriptions, seen in archaeological findings
Archaeology of Israel
The archaeology of Israel is the study of the archaeology of Israel, stretching from prehistory through three millennia of documented history. The ancient Land of Israel was a geographical bridge between the political and cultural centers of Mesopotamia and Egypt...
in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, and its meaning has been the subject of continual controversy.
ממשת transliterations into English
- Mameshat (Yeivin, 1961)
- mamsatt (Ginsberg, 1948)
- Mamschat (Galling, 1937)
- Mamshat (Sellers and Albright, 1931)
- Mamshath (Conder, 1901)
- Mamshet (Aharoni, 1960)
- Mamshit (Vilnay, 1960)
- Mamshith (Driver, 1909)
- Memsath (McCown, 1947)
- Memshat (Bliss, 1900)
- Memshath (Macalister, 1905)
- Mimshat (Macalister, 1925)
A place?
Charles WarrenCharles Warren
General Sir Charles Warren, GCMG, KCB, FRS was an officer in the British Royal Engineers. He was one of the earliest European archaeologists of Biblical Holy Land, and particularly of Temple Mount...
excavated the first two specimens in the original 1868-1869 excavations at Jerusalem (Warren, 1870); however, those were both only partial impressions showing the final two letters ST. The first complete inscription was published by Frederick Jones Bliss
Frederick Jones Bliss
Frederick Jones Bliss was an American archaeologist. After training under Flinders Petrie in Egypt, Bliss became involved with the Palestine Exploration Fund working in the field of Biblical archaeology at the site of Tell el-Hesi between 1894 and 1897, while cuncurrently leading an expedition...
after excavating it from Tell Ej-Judeideh (Bliss, 1900), later determined to be Biblical Moreseth-Gath. Beginning then, here is a list of all the ancient sites scholars have associated with it:
- Moresheth-Gath (Clermont-Ganneau, 1899)
- Mampsis (also known as Kurnub; Hommel, 1901)
- Mareshah (Vincent, 1907)
- Tel Masos (also known as Tell el-Meshash or Khirbat al-Mishash; Abel, 1938)
- An unknown site near GezerGezerGezer was a Canaanite city-state and biblical town in ancient Israel. Tel Gezer , an archaeological site midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, is now an Israeli national park....
such as EmmausEmmaus NicopolisEmmaus Nicopolis was the Roman name for a city associated with the Emmaus of the New Testament, where Jesus is said to have appeared after his death and resurrection. In the modern age, the site was the location of the Palestinian Arab village of Imwas, near the Latrun junction, between Jerusalem...
(Albright, 1943) - Jerusalem (via MMS[L]T) or one of its suburbs (Ginsberg, 1948)
- Tel 'Erani (Yeivin, 1961)
- Tel 'Ira (Yadin, 1961)
- An unknown site between BethlehemBethlehemBethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
& HebronHebronHebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
(Lang, 1972); BethlehemBethlehemBethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
vicinity preferred (Rainey, 1982) - An unknown site between Beth Shemesh & Aijalon such as EmmausEmmaus NicopolisEmmaus Nicopolis was the Roman name for a city associated with the Emmaus of the New Testament, where Jesus is said to have appeared after his death and resurrection. In the modern age, the site was the location of the Palestinian Arab village of Imwas, near the Latrun junction, between Jerusalem...
(Lang, 1972) - EmmausEmmaus NicopolisEmmaus Nicopolis was the Roman name for a city associated with the Emmaus of the New Testament, where Jesus is said to have appeared after his death and resurrection. In the modern age, the site was the location of the Palestinian Arab village of Imwas, near the Latrun junction, between Jerusalem...
(also known as Amwas; Lemaire, 1975) - Ramat Rahel (Barkay, 1993)
These proposals fall into two main streams of thought. One philosophical school places MMST in a geographical region based on the identification of three other regions surrounding Hebron
Hebron
Hebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
, Socoh, and Ziph
Ziph
ZiphIn the Hebrew Bible:* A son of Jehaleleel .* A city in the south of the Tribe of Judah , named between Ithnan and Telem.* Ziph , south-east of Hebron...
(the other words on the LMLK seal
LMLK seal
LMLK seals were stamped on the handles of large storage jars mostly in and around Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah based on several complete jars found in situ buried under a destruction layer caused by Sennacherib at Lachish...
s). The chief problem is that the majority of the seal impressions were not found in any particular region associated with one of the four inscriptions. For example, the majority of HBRN stamps were found at Lachish
Lachish
Lachish was an ancient Near East town located at the site of modern Tell ed-Duweir in the Shephelah, a region between Mount Hebron and the maritime plain of Philistia . The town was first mentioned in the Amarna letters as Lakisha-Lakiša...
significantly to the west. An alternative strategy identifies MMST in the vicinity of Jerusalem (which includes Ramat Rahel) based upon the datum that the majority of MMST stamps were excavated in and around there. The chief problem is that there were more HBRN stamps than MMST found at Jerusalem and more Z(Y)F stamps than MMST found at Ramat Rahel (Grena, 2004, pp. 354–60).
In further support of a Place Name interpretation is the notion that MMST was lost from the Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
Masoretic text, but preserved via a corrupt Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
transliteration in the Septuagint version of the book of Joshua
Book of Joshua
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
, 15:59-60 (Rainey, 1982, p. 59):
- Theco
- Ephratha (BaethleemBethlehemBethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
) - Phagor
- Aetan
- Culon
- Tatam
- Thobes
- Carem
- Galem
- Thether
- Manocho
A person?
In 1905 Robert Alexander Stewart MacalisterRobert Alexander Stewart Macalister
Robert Alexander Stewart Macalister was an Irish archaeologist.Macalister was born in Dublin, Ireland and studied at Cambridge University. Although his earliest interest was in the archaeology of Ireland, he soon developed a strong interest in biblical archaeology. Along with Frederick J...
suggested that MMST meant Mareshah, but instead of identifying it with the town, he proposed that the seal referred to a potter (or family of potters).
A proclamation?
If the LMLK sealLMLK seal
LMLK seals were stamped on the handles of large storage jars mostly in and around Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah based on several complete jars found in situ buried under a destruction layer caused by Sennacherib at Lachish...
inscriptions were votive slogans or mottoes instead of geographical places, MMST may share the same etymological root as MMSLTW (Strong's Concordance
Strong's Concordance
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, generally known as Strong's Concordance, is a concordance of the King James Bible that was constructed under the direction of Dr. James Strong and first published in 1890. Dr. Strong was Professor of exegetical theology at Drew Theological Seminary at...
#4475), a Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
word used in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
translated alternately as domain, dominion, force, government, power, realm, responsibility, rule. (See Genesis 1:16, 1 Kings 9:19, 2 Chronicles 8:6, Psalms
Psalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
103:22, 114:2, 136:8-9, 145:13, Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
22:21, Jeremiah
Book of Jeremiah
The Book of Jeremiah is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the book of Isaiah and preceding Ezekiel and the Book of the Twelve....
34:1, 51:28, Daniel
Book of Daniel
The Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible. The book tells of how Daniel, and his Judean companions, were inducted into Babylon during Jewish exile, and how their positions elevated in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. The court tales span events that occur during the reigns of Nebuchadnezzar,...
11:5, Micah
Book of Micah
The Book of Micah is one of fifteen prophetic books in the Hebrew bible/Old Testament, and the sixth of the twelve minor prophets. It records the sayings of Mikayahu, meaning "Who is like Yahweh?", an 8th century prophet from the village of Moresheth in Judah...
4:8.) The parallel passage found in 2 Kings 20:13 and Isaiah 39:2 deserves special attention for its association of the word in the same chronological context as the LMLK seal
LMLK seal
LMLK seals were stamped on the handles of large storage jars mostly in and around Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah based on several complete jars found in situ buried under a destruction layer caused by Sennacherib at Lachish...
s:
- And HezekiahHezekiahHezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasures--the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory--all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that HezekiahHezekiahHezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
did not show them.
Likewise 2 Chronicles 32:9:
- After this SennacheribSennacheribSennacherib |Sîn]] has replaced brothers for me"; Aramaic: ) was the son of Sargon II, whom he succeeded on the throne of Assyria .-Rise to power:...
king of AssyriaAssyriaAssyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
sent his servants to Jerusalem (but he and all the forces with him laid siege against LachishLachishLachish was an ancient Near East town located at the site of modern Tell ed-Duweir in the Shephelah, a region between Mount Hebron and the maritime plain of Philistia . The town was first mentioned in the Amarna letters as Lakisha-Lakiša...
), to HezekiahHezekiahHezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
king of JudahKingdom of JudahThe Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
, and to all JudahKingdom of JudahThe Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
who were in Jerusalem...
Note that Ginsberg suspected such a literal reading of the inscription in a paper presented in 1945, but changed to the geographic association with Jerusalem in 1948.
Note also the well-known Moab
Moab
Moab is the historical name for a mountainous strip of land in Jordan. The land lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by numerous archeological findings, most notably the Mesha Stele, which describes the Moabite victory over...
ite inscription from Kerak
Kerak
Kerak Castle is a large crusader castle located in Kerak in Jordan. It is one of the largest crusader castles in the Levant.Construction of the castle began in the 1140s, under Pagan, the butler of Fulk of Jerusalem. The Crusaders called it Crac des Moabites or "Karak in Moab", as it is frequently...
that begins with the fragmented phrase ...MSYT MLK. While we may never know if the first word is a compound of KMS, the Moab
Moab
Moab is the historical name for a mountainous strip of land in Jordan. The land lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by numerous archeological findings, most notably the Mesha Stele, which describes the Moabite victory over...
ite deity mentioned in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
as Chemosh, the MMST on the LMLK seal
LMLK seal
LMLK seals were stamped on the handles of large storage jars mostly in and around Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah based on several complete jars found in situ buried under a destruction layer caused by Sennacherib at Lachish...
s may have been "MMSYT" written scriptio defectiva with a possible relation to "mumsa" in the Arabic language
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
.