Ancient Cuneiform Writing

The predominate writing material used in the ancient Near East was clay, formed into small tablets and impressed with wedge-shaped symbols called cuneiform writing, and then baked in an oven or dried in the sun. Thousands of clay writing-boards have been uncovered by archaeologists.

Cuneiform is the earliest -known system of writing. It was invented in Sumer around 3000 B.C. The name cuneiform comes from the Latin word "cuneus", meaning wedge. 

The ancient Sumerians introduced their word system throughout the Near East. Cuneiform was so diverse and adaptable to various languages that it spread quickly and survived up until the first century B.C.

According to Babylonian beliefs Nabu, the god of scribal arts gave cuneiform to them.

Writing was mentioned often in the Bible:

 "And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed" 

- Isaiah 29:11     


And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.

- Isaiah 34:4-     
 

"Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and portray upon it the city, even Jerusalem" 

- Ezekiel 4:1     


"Moreover the LORD said unto me, Take thee a great roll, and write in it with a man's pen concerning Mahershalalhashbaz. And I took unto me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah." 

- Isaiah 8:1     


"Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying, Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand, and came unto them. And they said unto him, Sit down now, and read it in our ears. So Baruch read it in their ears.
" 

- Jeremiah 36:14-15     

 

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