Possible location of Ziklag footage

Archaeologists have been looking for Ziklag for decades. The most recent location to be identified as the place David lived while working for the Philistines is Khirbet er-Ra’i, eight miles due south of Tel Gath, home of Goliath. While David was hiding from Saul, he led a small mercenary force under the supervision of the king of Gath. The king gave David Ziklag, where David, his men and their families lived for some time. When David was turned back in the Valley of Jezreel in what turned out to be Saul’s final battle, he returned home. There he and his men discovered that all their families had been taken hostage. Ziklag had also been burned. David and his men pursued and killed the band of raiders and rescued their families. They never lived in Ziklag again. This location is a “tel.” You’ll see where archaeologists systematically dig into the dirt to uncover stones and artifacts from previous civilizations. Ziklag would have been a small place. Assuming it had walls for protection, there might have been homes outside the walls. Only in times of danger would those families have come inside the walls for protection and to help defend the city. With all the fighters traveling with David, the city had been undefended when the raiders arrived.