Name of Moses anciently carved in stone?

One of 30 Proto-Sinaitic inscription found at Serabit el-Khadim
(Public domain per Wikipedia)

COGwriter

MSN posted the following:

A set of ancient inscriptions carved into the walls of Egyptian mining caves is once again at the center of debate over the Bible’s earliest stories. Dating back roughly 3,800 years, the markings were left by Semitic-speaking workers at the turquoise mines of Serabit el-Khadem in the Sinai Peninsula. While the inscriptions themselves are not new, renewed attention has followed a recent reinterpretation that has prompted fresh claims about their possible connection to biblical figures and events.

The inscriptions are written in what scholars call proto-Sinaitic or proto-Canaanite script, widely regarded as one of the earliest known alphabetic writing systems. According to the Biblical Archaeology Society’s analysis of the site, these symbols represent a key transitional moment between Egyptian hieroglyphs and later alphabets used in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.

What has stirred controversy is how some modern interpretations have framed the inscriptions. In particular, independent researcher Michael S. Bar-Ron has proposed a reinterpretation of one inscription that he argues reflects Northwest Semitic religious language familiar from later biblical tradition. His work has drawn public attention, even as many scholars caution that such conclusions go beyond what the inscriptions can reliably support. …

Recent attention has focused on a particular inscription often labeled Sinai 357, which has become central to renewed biblical debate. Michael S. Bar-Ron, an independent researcher, has argued that several characters in the inscription can be read as part of a Northwest Semitic phrase that includes the name “Moses”. In analysis discussed by National Geographic, Bar-Ron suggests the sequence of symbols may represent an early Semitic devotional text rather than a simple mining record, raising the possibility that the inscription reflects religious language later preserved in the Hebrew Bible.

Bar-Ron’s interpretation hinges on how individual symbols are identified and read. He argues that certain characters correspond to consonantal sounds that, when read together, resemble the name Moses, written without vowels as was typical in early Semitic scripts. Bar-Ron has emphasized that his work does not claim definitive proof of the biblical figure or the Exodus, but rather proposes that the inscription may preserve religious or personal names familiar from later Israelite tradition.

Other scholars have responded with caution. 02/13/26 3,800-year-old inscriptions found in Egypt are raising new biblical questions

Israel365 News posted something about this last Summer:

New Analysis Suggests 3,800-Year-Old Egyptian Inscription Mentions Moses

Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions, primarily found at Serabit el-Khadim, an Egyptian turquoise mine, represent a collection of about forty inscriptions and fragments carved onto rock surfaces by Semitic-speaking individuals working in Egyptian mining areas during the Middle Bronze Age (roughly 1800–1600 BCE). These early inscriptions are recognized as some of the oldest examples of alphabetic script and are widely considered ancestral to later Phoenician, Greek, and Latin alphabets. Their discovery and ongoing decipherment offer invaluable insight into the earliest use of writing in the region.

In July, Archaeology Magazine reported that independent researcher Michael S. Bar-Ron has proposed a striking new reading of ancient Proto-Sinaitic carvings—inscriptions dated approximately 3,800 years ago in an Egyptian turquoise mine at Serabit el-Khadim—that may contain the Hebrew phrase zot m’Moshe (“This is from Moses”).

High-resolution photography and 3D scanning of over two dozen Proto-Sinaitic graffiti revealed stacked characters that one epigrapher interprets as those Hebrew words. These inscriptions also feature petitions addressed to El (a Semitic deity and the Hebrew word for ‘god’) and appear to deface or erase references to the Egyptian goddess Hathor. …

This motif of the letters of Hathor’s name being scratched out echoes the religious tensions depicted in the biblical golden calf episode.

The context suggests a possible narrative: Semitic workers or scribes might have carved these inscriptions in an act of religious or social rebellion. The geographic spread of Proto-Sinaitic—from Egypt through Sinai into Canaan—mirrors the journey described in the Exodus narratives, feeding speculation of a historical connection. …

While the claim of an inscription reading “This is from Moses” is tantalizing, it remains far from conclusively verified—and rightly so. The field awaits peer-reviewed scholarship, more definitive scans, and further analysis. August 19, 2025 https://israel365news.com/411559/new-analysis-suggests-3800-year-old-egyptian-inscription-mentions-moses/

So, this may be an additional piece of evidence supporting the existence of Moses and events in the Bible.

Though, if this is actually related to Moses, the inscription would be more like 3,400, than 3,800, years old.

Of course, for those of us who believe the Bible, no further proof related to Moses is needed. But for some who have heard statements from pseudo-archaeologists that deny the biblical accounts, it may be helpful for them to realize that as time goes on, more and more archaeological evidence surfaces that supports the Bible.

Let me add that the skeptics used to say that there was no writing at the time Moses wrote Genesis, yet later evidence proved that there was–that is discussed in our free e-book: Who Gave the World the Bible? The Canon: Why do we have the books we now do in the Bible? Is the Bible complete?

Many of the so-called educated have claimed many fraudulent positions, like that the biblical Joshua, who followed Moses, was also a myth.

Joshua’s Altar – How Archaeology proves the Bible

Since the 1960’s, many historians and Bible scholars (the “Minimalists”) suggested that the Bible is not a history book and that the events described in the Old Testament, never really happened or are at best, inaccurate. They claimed the Exodus and the Conquest never occurred, Moses and Joshua never really existed. Why did they come to that conclusion? Because of “lack of archaeological proof”, they claim.

In 1982, a young secular Israeli archaeologist by the name of Adam Zertal started excavating an ancient archaeological site on Mt. Ebal, near the Biblical city of Shechem in the region of Samaria, Israel. He dated the structure to the Early Iron Age (1250 BC). March 22, 2023. https://www.israel365news.com/368740/joshuas-altar-how-archaeology-proves-the-bible/

As far as the dating of the altar itself goes, while there are some broken pots that date into the 13th century BCE, the rocks themselves are not dated. If this is the altar that Joshua built, it would have been built about 150 years earlier–somewhere in the 1400-1370 BCE date. That said, Adam Zertal presented a 1985 study where he believed he was able to prove that there were different stages during the site’s development and that critics who did not believe this could be Joshua’s altar overlooked evidence (e.g. https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/12/1/2).

Related to Joshua and skeptics, we put together the following video related to him and the Mt. Ebal stone:

16:34

Did Joshua of the Bible Exist?

The Temple Institute out of Jerusalem reported that the first archaeological dig has started at the site many believe was the tomb of Joshua of the Bible. What does the Bible say about Joshua’s burial? Why do places like Wikipedia and Google point to sources who say that Joshua did not exist, but instead was a national myth? Are they looking at the wrong time (13th instead of 15th century BCE)? What about archaeological evidence that points to place the Book of Judges mentions? What about the destruction of ancient Jericho? Should we trust the biblical account or those who claim to have scholarly knowledge? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel go over these matters.

Here is a link to the video: Did Joshua of the Bible Exist?

As far as the time of the Exodus goes, it was about 200 years earlier than many secular scholars claim–and many who claim the later date of 1250 BC also claim there is no evidence that it happened. Since the Exodus was around 1446 BC, this means that Moses had to have been writing no later than 40 years after that as he died about forty years after the Exodus. If the Mount Ebal stone contains ancient Hebrew, that would also be proof that it existed near the time of Moses.

Now, obviously some form of writing did exist, as Jesus was telling the truth about Moses writing.

That said, as far as ancient Hebrew writing goes, here is some information from our free online book :

The first five books of the Bible were mainly written by Moses. Notice the following:

⁴ And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord … (Exodus 24:4a)

²⁴ … Moses had completed writing the words of this law in a book, when they were finished, ²⁵ that Moses commanded the Levites, who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying: ²⁶ “Take this Book of the Law, and put it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 31:24b-26)

After writing, Moses wanted them protected. …

Secular scholars, however, generally do not believe that Moses wrote the books. They basically claim that ancient Hebrew (sometimes called Paleo-Hebrew) did not exist before the 10^th century B.C.E., hence it was not possible. Those of us who believe the words of Jesus must agree that somehow Moses did write what Jesus said he did, hence there was some type of written ‘Hebrew’ language.

Some less secular scholars believe that Moses wrote in something like Proto-Sinaitic, also referred to as Proto-Canaanite (Aschmann R. When Was Hebrew First Written? © Richard P. Aschmann. Last updated: 25-Apr-2019), a language that was related to Phoenician which had 22 consonants and no vowels, like ancient Hebrew did (Sáenz-Badillos A. A History of the Hebrew Language. Cambridge University Press, 1996, pp. 16-17).

Some others, like Dr. Doug Petrovich, assert that the alphabetical Hebrew language essentially was derived from Egyptian hieroglyphics and was the earliest prototype of modern languages, perhaps initially developed by Israel’s son Joseph (Petrovich D. The World’s Oldest Alphabet: Hebrew As The Language Of The Proto-Consonantal Script. Carta Jerusalem, 2016, pp. 28-33; Berkowitz AE. Did Moses Really Write the Bible? Breaking Israel News, February 28, 2019). This is consistent with a finding from Yale’s Egyptologist John Coleman Darnell about the timing of the earliest alphabetic writing (Darnell JC. Egypt Carvings Set Earlier Date for Alphabet. The New York Times, Nov. 14, 1999).

Furthermore:

Proto-Sinaitic texts discovered in the ancient Egyptian turquoise mines of Serabit el-Khadem in Sinai—are generally dated to the 19^th century B.C.E., … are thought to have been written by Canaanite workers, adapted Egyptian hieroglyphs to serve as written symbols for distinct alphabetic sounds. (Early Alphabetic Writing Found at Lachish. Biblical Archaeology Society, April 20,2021; Goldwasser, O. How the Alphabet Was Born from Hieroglyphs.” Biblical Archaeology Review, March/April 2010)

According to Dr. Petrovich’s translation of certain inscriptions found in Egypt, one dating to 1842 BC., includes the phrase,  “Hebrews of Bethel, the beloved.”  He also asserts there were three inscriptions naming three biblical people.  These, he said, were Asenath, the wife of Joseph (Genesis 41:45), Ahisamach, the father of one of the craftsmen who would build the Tabernacle (Exodus 35:34), and Moses. Dr. Petrovich says that the Moses related one dates to 1446 BC, a possible year of the Exodus.

Some critics claim Dr. Petrovich misunderstands aspects of Hebrew grammar, and have denounced his conclusions.

That being said, Dr. Petrovich wrote:

Sinai 115 … called the Renefsheri Stele … Sinai 115 … indeed mentions six Hebrews, as has been argued here, the oldest extrabiblical reference to Hebrews/Israelites (ca. 1842 BC) …

Sinai 377 is a rock inscription … Sinai 377 holds the honor of being the oldest extant, fully Hebrew, proto-consonantal inscription yet known. Dating precisely to 1840 BC, thanks to the accompanying ME inscription (Sinai 46) …

Hebrew has the distinction of being the world’s first alphabet, the one from which Phoenician and every other alphabetic script in the history of the world has been derived. (ibid, pp. 15, 28,29,35,192)

Whether or not Hebrew was the world’s first alphabet, the dates of Sinai 115 and Sinai 377 were several centuries before Moses was born (cf. Genesis 50:24-25; Exodus 7:7; 12:40-41, 13:19)—which would have been around 1526 B.C. (based on an Exodus date of c. 1446 B.C. and Moses being 80 years old at the time per Exodus 7:7).

Consider that Moses was considered the educated son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Exodus 2:10). Stephen the martyr declared:

²² And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds. (Acts 7:22)

Since Moses was educated in Egypt, he would have been able to read hieroglyphics, but likely also was trained in other scripts, like perhaps some proto-Canaanite or proto-Phoenician and/or proto-Hebrew.

Either way, Moses did write the books in some type of Hebrew or proto-Hebrew/Phoenician script that Jesus and biblical writers said he did, irrespective of scholarly disputes (cf. Romans 3:4). Those books were preserved by the Levites and the Jews (cf. Deuteronomy 31:25-26; Romans 3:1-2).

When faced with supposed scientific criticism of the validity of anything in the Bible, what should you do?

You should, “Believe God” (1 John 5:10).

Or as the Apostle Paul wrote:

4 … Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. (Romans 3:4)

Throughout the centuries so called experts have wrongly claimed to have science disprove aspects of the word of God.

The Apostle Paul had to warn Timothy about that:

20 O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:

21 Which some professing have erred concerning the faith.  (1 Timothy 6:20-21, KJV)

Jesus confirmed the above when He told Philadelphian Christains:

11 … Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. (Revelation 3:11)

Do not let critics or so-called experts dissuade you from believing the word of God.

The find at Mount Ebal looks to confirm aspects of scripture.

But even if it does not, remember to “let God be true but every man a liar” (Romans 3:4).

We also have the following related video:

14:14

Bible Writing Evidence?

Although Jesus said that Moses wrote scripture and the Book of Deuteronomy states that Moses wrote scripture, could Moses even write anything? Many mainstream “scholars and experts” disagree. Is there archaeological evidence that supports whether or not Moses could possibly write? What about proto-Hebrew? Could the Exodus have been 1446 or 1250 BC? What about what Dr. Scott Stripling and the Mount Ebal curse stone? Did Dr. Adam Zertal end up concluding that Moses and Joshua existed as the Bible teaches? What about Sinai 177 of the Renfsheri Stele and Sinai 377 rock inscription dating to the 19th century BCE. What about the conclusions of Dr. Doug Petrovich? When faced with that which is falsely called science that disagrees with the Bible, what is a Christian supposed to do? Is there evidence that the Bible could have had writings from Moses? Dr. Thiel and Steve Dupuie address these matters.

Here is a link to our video: Bible Writing Evidence?

Believe God.

Believe the word of God.

Also, many have falsely asserted that King David was also a myth.

To help disprove that, here is a link to that July-September 2017 edition of Bible News Prophecy magazine. Its front cover shows an ancient stela that mentions King David, and contains more information about why true science supports the Bible. In 2023, its inscription was declared to be genuine (see Mesha Stela declared to mention ‘House of David,’ hence is additional proof of the biblical text)–of course, that means it was also genuine in 2017 and before. Related to David, we put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

The Bible is true, but many do not want it to be believed.

The world’s claimed anti-biblical knowledge is false.

The Apostle Paul warned:

20 … Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge — 21 by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith. (1 Timothy 6:20-21)

Be careful not to accept ‘knowledge’ from those who are contradicting the Bible.

Notice also:

9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)

Do you really love the truth?

Then do not fall for their lies.

Remember to “let God be true but every man a liar” (Romans 3:4).

There was a Moses, Joshua, and David. And some are looking for even more evidence to prove that is so.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

EXODUS Exodus sermons, which it total cover each and every verse of that book, include Exodus 1-4: Jewish Myths or Lessons for Christians Today?, Exodus 5-7: Serpents, Blood, and Revelation, Exodus 8-9: Plagues and Prophecy, Exodus 10-12: The Last Plagues & 21st Century Prophecies, and Exodus 13-15: Passover Protection and Armageddon. Another article is Exodus 16-19 which covers all of those verses–here is a link to a related sermon: Exodus 16-19: Manna, Governance, and End Time Protection. Another article is Exodus 20 which covers all of the verses in that chapter–here is a link to a related sermon: Exodus 20: The Ten Commandments. Another article covers the verses in those chapters Exodus 21-24: These are the Judgments–here is a link to a related sermon: Exodus 21-24: Judgments. Here is a link to the article Exodus 25: Ark of the Covenant and Mercy Seat–here is a link to a related sermon: Exodus 25: Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat. Here is a link to the article Exodus 26-32 Tabernacle, Sacrifices, & the Book of Life–here is a link to a related sermon: Exodus 26-32: Tabernacle, Golden Calf, and Book of Life. A final article is: Exodus 33-40, The Final Chapters.Here are links to two related video sermons: Exodus 33-36: Moses Shown and You Should Too and Exodus 37-40: Finishing the Work.There is also more, such as the article: When was the Exodus? Did it Happen? Some deny the biblical account of the Exodus. Was Ramses II the pharaoh then? When did the Exodus occur?  Is there proof outside of the Bible that there was an Exodus? Here is a related article in the Spanish language: ¿Cuándo fue el Éxodo? ¿Ocurrió realmente? Also: Reasons, Proofs, and Ramifications of the Ten Plagues of Exodus What do you know about these plagues? What happened to the ‘gods of Egypt’? Is there any confirmation outside the Bible? Might something worse be coming? A related two-part sermon is available: Egypt and the Plagues (Part 1) and Exodus Plagues and Prophecy (Part 2). Also: Exodus and the Days of Unleavened Bread. This article discusses parts of the Book of Exodus with some connections to the Days of Unleavened Bread. Also Exodus 4:24, Why would God have sought to kill Moses? What did Moses do wrong? Do you have a similar problem?
Is God’s Existence Logical? Is it really logical to believe in God? Yes! Would you like Christian answers to give atheists? This is a free online booklet that deal with improper theories and musings called science related to the origin of the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and evolution. Here is a link to a related sermon: Evolution is NOT the Origin of Life. Two animated videos of related interest are also available: Big Bang: Nothing or Creator? and A Lifegiver or Spontaneous Evolution?
Read the Bible Christians should read and study the Bible. This article gives some rationale for regular bible reading.
Who Gave the World the Bible? The Canon: Why do we have the books we now do in the Bible? Is the Bible complete? Are there lost gospels? What about the Apocrypha? Is the Septuagint better than the Masoretic text? What about the Textus Receptus vs. Nestle Alland? Was the New Testament written in Greek, Aramaic, or Hebrew? Which translations are based upon the best ancient text? Did the true Church of God have the canon from the beginning? Here are links to related sermons: Let’s Talk About the Bible, The Books of the Old Testament, The Septuagint and its Apocrypha, Masoretic Text of the Old Testament, and Lost Books of the Bible, and Let’s Talk About the New Testament, The New Testament Canon From the Beginning, English Versions of the Bible and How Did We Get Them?, What was the Original Language of the New Testament?, Original Order of the Books of the Bible, and Who Gave the World the Bible? Who Had the Chain of Custody?