Meta Description: Join Dr. David Noe and Dr. Jeff Winkle as they explore the shocking connection between the Philistines and the Mycenaean Greeks. Discover why Goliath’s armor sounds like Homer’s Iliad, the mystery of the “Sea Peoples,” and why the Ark of the Covenant narrative mirrors the plague of Apollo.
Introduction: Rainy Days and Cream Curls
Welcome back to “Vomitorium South,” listeners! In Episode 128 of the Ad Navseam Podcast, hosts Dr. David Noe and Dr. Jeff Winkle are sheltering in the bunker on a damp, rainy night in West Michigan. The mood is a bit “Karen Carpenter”—rainy days and Mondays always get them down—but the intellectual fire is burning bright.
This week, the hosts tackle a subject that bridges the gap between the Bible and the Classics: the origins of the Philistines.
The discussion is anchored by the book Giving Goliath His Due: New Archaeological Light on the Philistines by Neal Bierling. In a delightful twist of local history, Dr. Winkle reveals a personal connection: as a teenager, he worked at the “Cream Curl Bakery” founded by the author’s family, rolling pastry horns while hearing tales of Bierling’s archaeological digs (complete with Uzi-toting guards protecting the excavation sites!).
Who Were the Philistines?
In modern parlance, calling someone a “Philistine” is an insult. It implies they are uncouth, uncultured, and hate the arts. However, Bierling’s book argues for a massive “cultural rehabilitation.”
Far from being uncultured brutes, the Philistines were likely Mycenaean Greeks—refugees from the collapse of the Bronze Age world, often referred to in Egyptian records as the Sea Peoples.
The Evidence:
- Pottery: Philistine “Bichrome” pottery features floral and faunal motifs identical to Mycenaean styles, standing in stark contrast to the plain, image-free pottery of the Israelites.
- Linguistics: Names like Achish and Goliath are not Semitic. They share roots with Anatolian and Greek names (potentially linking Achish to the Trojan Anchises).
- Architecture: They buried their dead in chamber tombs, a distinctly Mycenaean practice.
Goliath: A Homeric Hero in Canaan?
The most famous Philistine of all is Goliath of Gath. When we look at the description of his armor in 1 Samuel 17 through the lens of the Latin language and Greek epic, the parallels are striking.
Goliath is not dressed like a typical Canaanite warrior. He is dressed like a hero from the Iliad:
- Bronze Helmet: (Galea or Cassis).
- Bronze Greaves: (Ocreae).
- Single Combat: Goliath calls for a duel to decide the battle, a practice known as monomachia. This mirrors the duel between Paris and Menelaus in the Iliad.
Dr. Noe notes that the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the specific term euknemides (“well-greaved”) to describe him—the exact epithet Homer uses for the Achaeans. Goliath is essentially a displaced Homeric hero fighting in the Judean hills.
The Ark and the Iliad: A Literary Twin?
Perhaps the most mind-blowing connection discussed in the episode is the parallel between 1 Samuel 5–6 and Book 1 of the Iliad.
The Biblical Account: The Philistines capture the Ark of the Covenant (Arca Foederis) as a trophy. God strikes them with a plague of tumors and mice. To stop the plague, their priests advise them to return the Ark with guilt offerings: golden images of the tumors and the mice.
The Homeric Account: The Greeks capture Chryseis (daughter of a priest of Apollo) as a trophy. Apollo (Smintheus, the “Mouse God”) strikes them with a plague. To stop the plague, Calchas advises them to return the girl with a hecatomb (sacrifice).
The Parallel Structure:
- The Trophy: Ark vs. Chryseis.
- The Plague: Tumors/Mice vs. Apollo’s Arrows.
- The Cause: Displeased Deity (Yahweh vs. Apollo).
- The Solution: Return the prize with a specific offering.
- The Method: Oxen transport the offering to the enemy territory.
Bierling argues that the Philistines, being Mycenaean refugees, carried their cultural rituals with them. When faced with a plague caused by a captured religious trophy, they reverted to their ancestral “Homeric” liturgy to appease the angry god.
Visual Evidence: The Mask of Agamemnon
If the literary evidence wasn’t enough, the visual evidence seals the deal. The hosts discuss anthropoid coffins found in Beth-Shean (where King Saul’s body was hung). These coffins feature face lids with distinctive feathered headdresses.
When compared side-by-side to the famous Mask of Agamemnon found by Schliemann at Mycenae, the resemblance is uncanny. The “Almondic” eyes, the ears, and the styling suggest they were made using the same cultural template.
Sponsors
This episode is supported by friends of the Latin language and classical living:
- Ratio Coffee: Don’t let your morning brew have a “brackish tang.” Upgrade to the Ratio 8 or Ratio 6 for coffee that blooms perfectly.
- The Deal: Visit ratiocoffee.com and use code ANCO3N (N for Nice!) for a discount.
- Hackett Publishing: Whether you need a copy of the Iliad to compare with 1 Samuel, or the Lingua Latina series, Hackett is the place to go.
- The Deal: Visit hackettpublishing.com and use code AN2023 for 20% off and free shipping.
Gustatory Parting Shot
Dr. Noe wraps up the episode with a poem by Edward Robert Bulwer-Lytton (a man with four names!). While the hosts don’t agree with the sentiment that “man does not live by bread alone,” they appreciate the rhythm:
“We may live without poetry, music and art;
We may live without conscience, and live without heart;
We may live without friends; we may live without books;
But civilized man cannot live without cooks.
He may live without books, hat is knowledge but grieving?
He may live without hope, what is hope but deceiving?
He may live without love,, what is passion but pining?
But where is the man that can live without dining?”
Valete! (And watch out for the cream curls!).
Resources for the Latin Learner
- The Moss Method: Want to read the Septuagint account of Goliath in the original Greek? Go from “Neophyte to Erudite” at mossmethod.com.
Latin Per Diem: Join Dr. Noe’s live classes on Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata. Visit latinperdiem.com.
