Archaeologists have also confirmed many customs referred to in the Bible account concerning Abraham. For example, at Nuzu, or Nuzi, an ancient Hurrian city southeast of Nineveh, clay tablets have been found that authenticate such customs as these: Slaves becoming heirs to childless parents (compare Abraham’s remarks about his slave Eliezer​—Genesis 15:1-4); a barren wife’s being obligated to provide her husband with a concubine (Sarah, or Sarai, gave Hagar to Abraham​—Genesis 16:1, 2); and business transactions taking place at the gate of a city (compare Abraham’s purchase of the field and cave of Machpelah, near Hebron​—Genesis 23:1-20).

CUSTOMS AND LAWS

Archaeology has done much to explain customs alluded to in the Bible, thus showing the accuracy of the Biblical record. One instance of this is the account in Genesis, chapter 31, where it is reported that Jacob’s wife Rachel “stole the teraphim that belonged to her father,” Laban. (Gen 31 Vs. 19) It is stated why Laban went to the trouble of chasing after his daughter and her husband for seven days. It was in order to retrieve his “gods.” (Gen 31 Vss. 23, 30) Interestingly, an archaeological discovery in the ancient northern Mesopotamian city of Nuzi has revealed the existence of a patriarchal law whereby the possession of family gods gave a man the title deeds to the estate of his deceased father-in-law. When a person remembers that Laban was a native of northwestern Mesopotamia and how treacherously he had dealt with Jacob, knowledge of this law sheds light on Rachel’s strange theft and on Laban’s frantic efforts to recover his “gods.” The Louvre Museum, in Paris, displays several such “household gods” discovered in various cities of Mesopotamia. Their small size (four to six inches [10 to 15 cm]) also helps to explain how Rachel was able to hide the teraphim by sitting on a saddle basket containing them and refusing to get up when Laban made his search.​—Gen 31 Vss. 34, 35.