THE HEBREWS IN ASSYRIAN HISTORY
Revival of Assyrian Power--The Syro-Cappadocian Hittites--The
Aramaean State of Damascus--Reign of Terror in
Mesopotamia--Barbarities of Ashur-natsir-pal III--Babylonia and
Chaldaea subdued--Glimpse of the Kalkhi Valley--The Hebrew Kingdoms
of Judah and Israel--Rival Monarchs and their Wars--How Judah became
subject to Damascus--Ahab and the Phoenician Jezebel--Persecution of
Elijah and other Prophets--Israelites fight against
Assyrians--Shalmaneser as Overlord of Babylonia--Revolts of Jehu in
Israel and Hazael in Damascus--Shalmaneser defeats Hazael--Jehu
sends Tribute to Shalmaneser--Baal Worship Supplanted by Golden Calf
Worship in Israel--Queen Athaliah of Judah--Crowning of the Boy King
Joash--Damascus supreme in Syria and Palestine--Civil War in
Assyria--Triumphs of Shamshi-Adad VII--Babylonia becomes an Assyrian
Province.
In one of the Scottish versions of the Seven Sleepers legend a
shepherd enters a cave, in which the great heroes of other days lie
wrapped in magic slumber, and blows two blasts on the horn which hangs
suspended from the roof. The sleepers open their eyes and raise
themselves on their elbows. Then the shepherd hears a warning voice
which comes and goes like the wind, saying: "If the horn is blown once
again, the world will be upset altogether". Terrified by the Voice and
the ferocious appearance of the heroes, the shepherd retreats
hurriedly, locking the door behind him; he casts the key into the sea.
The story proceeds: "If anyone should find the key and open the door,
and blow but a single blast on the horn, Finn and all the Feans would
come forth. And that would be a great day in Alban."[428]
After the lapse of an obscure century the national heroes of Assyria
were awakened as if from sleep by the repeated blasts from the horn of
the triumphant thunder god amidst the northern and western
mountains--Adad or Rimmon of Syria, Teshup of Armenia, Tarku of the
western Hittites. The great kings who came forth to "upset the world"
bore the familiar names, Ashur-natsir-pal, Shalmaneser, Shamash-Adad,
Ashur-dan, Adad-nirari, and Ashur-nirari. They revived and increased
the ancient glory of Assyria during its Middle Empire period.
The Syro-Cappadocian Hittites had grown once again powerful and
prosperous, but no great leader like Subbiluliuma arose to weld the
various States into an Empire, so as to ensure the protection of the
mingled peoples from the operations of the aggressive and ambitious
war-lords of Assyria. One kingdom had its capital at Hamath and
another at Carchemish on the Euphrates. The kingdom of Tabal
flourished in Cilicia (Khilakku); it included several city States like
Tarsus, Tiana, and Comana (Kammanu). Farther west was the dominion of
the Thraco-Phrygian Muski. The tribes round the shores of Lake Van had
asserted themselves and extended their sphere of influence. The State
of Urartu was of growing importance, and the Nairi tribes had spread
round the south-eastern shores of Lake Van. The northern frontier of
Assyria was continually menaced by groups of independent hill States
which would have been irresistible had they operated together against
a common enemy, but were liable to be extinguished when attacked in
detail.
A number of Aramaean kingdoms had come into existence in Mesopotamia
and throughout Syria. The most influential of these was the State of
Damascus, the king of which was the overlord of the Hebrew kingdoms of
Israel and Judah when Ashur-natsir-pal III ascended the Assyrian
throne about 885 B.C. Groups of the Aramaeans had acquired a high
degree of culture and become traders and artisans. Large numbers had
filtered, as well, not only into Babylonia but also Assyria and the
north Syrian area of Hittite control. Accustomed for generations to
desert warfare, they were fearless warriors. Their armies had great
mobility, being composed mostly of mounted infantry, and were not
easily overpowered by the Assyrian forces of footmen and charioteers.
Indeed, it was not until cavalry was included in the standing army of
Assyria that operations against the Aramaeans were attended with
permanent success.
Ashur-natsir-pal III[429] was preceded by two vigorous Assyrian
rulers, Adad-nirari III (911-890 B.C.) and Tukulti-Ninip II (890-885
B.C). The former had raided North Syria and apparently penetrated as
far as the Mediterranean coast. In consequence he came into conflict
with Babylonia, but he ultimately formed an alliance with that
kingdom. His son, Tukulti-Ninip, operated in southern Mesopotamia, and
apparently captured Sippar. In the north he had to drive back invading
bands of the Muski. Although, like his father, he carried out great
works at Asshur, he appears to have transferred his Court to Nineveh,
a sure indication that Assyria was once again becoming powerful in
northern Mesopotamia and the regions towards Armenia.
Ashur-natsir-pal III, son of Tukulti-Ninip II, inaugurated a veritable
reign of terror in Mesopotamia and northern Syria. His methods of
dealing with revolting tribes were of a most savage character. Chiefs
were skinned alive, and when he sacked their cities, not only
fighting-men but women and children were either slaughtered or burned
at the stake. It is not surprising to find therefore that, on more
than one occasion, the kings of petty States made submission to him
without resistance as soon as he invaded their domains.
In his first year he overran the mountainous district between Lake Van
and the upper sources of the Tigris. Bubu, the rebel son of the
governor of Nishtun, who had been taken prisoner, was transported to
Arbela, where he was skinned alive. Like his father, Ashur-natsir-pal
fought against the Muski, whose power was declining. Then he turned
southward from the borders of Asia Minor and dealt with a rebellion in
northern Mesopotamia.
An Aramaean pretender named Akhiababa had established himself at Suru
in the region to the east of the Euphrates, enclosed by its
tributaries the Khabar and the Balikh. He had come from the
neighbouring Aramaean State of Bit-Adini, and was preparing, it would
appear, to form a powerful confederacy against the Assyrians.
When Ashur-natsir-pal approached Suru, a part of its population
welcomed him. He entered the city, seized the pretender and many of
his followers. These he disposed of with characteristic barbarity.
Some were skinned alive and some impaled on stakes, while others were
enclosed in a pillar which the king had erected to remind the
Aramaeans of his determination to brook no opposition. Akhiababa the
pretender was sent to Nineveh with a few supporters; and when they had
been flayed their skins were nailed upon the city walls.
Another revolt broke out in the Kirkhi district between the upper
reaches of the Tigris and the southwestern shores of Lake Van. It was
promoted by the Nairi tribes, and even supported by some Assyrian
officials. Terrible reprisals were meted out to the rebels. When the
city of Kinabu was captured, no fewer than 3000 prisoners were burned
alive, the unfaithful governor being flayed. The city of Damdamusa was
set on fire. Then Tela was attacked. Ashur-natsir-pal's own account of
the operations runs as follows:--
The city (of Tello) was very strong; three walls surrounded it.
The inhabitants trusted to their strong walls and numerous
soldiers; they did not come down or embrace my feet. With battle
and slaughter I assaulted and took the city. Three thousand
warriors I slew in battle. Their booty and possessions, cattle,
sheep, I carried away; many captives I burned with fire. Many of
their soldiers I took alive; of some I cut off hands and limbs; of
others the noses, ears, and arms; of many soldiers I put out the
eyes. I reared a column of the living and a column of heads. I
hung on high their heads on trees in the vicinity of their city.
Their boys and girls I burned up in flames. I devastated the city,
dug it up, in fire burned it; I annihilated it.[430]
The Assyrian war-lord afterwards forced several Nairi kings to
acknowledge him as their overlord. He was so greatly feared by the
Syro-Cappadocian Hittites that when he approached their territory they
sent him tribute, yielding without a struggle.
For several years the great conqueror engaged himself in thus subduing
rebellious tribes and extending his territory. His military
headquarters were at Kalkhi, to which city the Court had been
transferred. Thither he drafted thousands of prisoners, the great
majority of whom he incorporated in the Assyrian army. Assyrian
colonies were established in various districts for strategical
purposes, and officials supplanted the petty kings in certain of the
northern city States.
The Aramaeans of Mesopotamia gave much trouble to Ashur-natsir-pal.
Although he had laid a heavy hand on Suru, the southern tribes, the
Sukhi, stirred up revolts in Mesopotamia as the allies of the
Babylonians. On one occasion Ashur-natsir-pal swept southward through
this region, and attacked a combined force of Sukhi Aramaeans and
Babylonians. The Babylonians were commanded by Zabdanu, brother of
Nabu-aplu-iddin, king of Babylonia, who was evidently anxious to
regain control of the western trade route. The Assyrian war-lord,
however, proved to be too powerful a rival. He achieved so complete a
victory that he captured the Babylonian general and 3000 of his
followers. The people of Kashshi (Babylonia) and Kaldu (Chaldaea) were
"stricken with terror", and had to agree to pay increased tribute.
Ashur-natsir-pal reigned for about a quarter of a century, but his
wars occupied less than half of that period. Having accumulated great
booty, he engaged himself, as soon as peace was secured throughout his
empire, in rebuilding the city of Kalkhi, where he erected a great
palace and made records of his achievements. He also extended and
redecorated the royal palace at Nineveh, and devoted much attention to
the temples.
Tribute poured in from the subject States. The mountain and valley
tribes in the north furnished in abundance wine and corn, sheep and
cattle and horses, and from the Aramaeans of Mesopotamia and the
Syro-Cappadocian Hittites came much silver and gold, copper and lead,
jewels and ivory, as well as richly decorated furniture, armour and
weapons. Artists and artisans were also provided by the vassals of
Assyria. There are traces of Phoenician influence in the art of this
period.
Ashur-natsir-pal's great palace at Kalkhi was excavated by Layard, who
has given a vivid description of the verdant plain on which the
ancient city was situated, as it appeared in spring. "Its pasture
lands, known as the 'Jaif', are renowned", he wrote, "for their rich
and luxuriant herbage. In times of quiet, the studs of the Pasha and
of the Turkish authorities, with the horses of the cavalry and of the
inhabitants of Mosul, are sent here to graze.... Flowers of every hue
enamelled the meadows; not thinly scattered over the grass as in
northern climes, but in such thick and gathering clusters that the
whole plain seemed a patchwork of many colours. The dogs, as they
returned from hunting, issued from the long grass dyed red, yellow, or
blue, according to the flowers through which they had last forced
their way.... In the evening, after the labour of the day, I often sat
at the door of my tent, giving myself up to the full enjoyment of that
calm and repose which are imparted to the senses by such scenes as
these.... As the sun went down behind the low hills which separate the
river from the desert--even their rocky sides had struggled to emulate
the verdant clothing of the plain--its receding rays were gradually
withdrawn, like a transparent veil of light from the landscape. Over
the pure cloudless sky was the glow of the last light. In the distance
and beyond the Zab, Keshaf, another venerable ruin, rose indistinctly
into the evening mist. Still more distant, and still more indistinct,
was a solitary hill overlooking the ancient city of Arbela. The
Kurdish mountains, whose snowy summits cherished the dying sunbeams,
yet struggled with the twilight. The bleating of sheep and lowing of
cattle, at first faint, became louder as the flocks returned from
their pastures and wandered amongst the tents. Girls hurried over the
greensward to seek their fathers' cattle, or crouched down to milk
those which had returned alone to their well-remembered folds. Some
were coming from the river bearing the replenished pitcher on their
heads or shoulders; others, no less graceful in their form, and erect
in their carriage, were carrying the heavy loads of long grass which
they had cut in the meadows."[431]
Across the meadows so beautiful in March the great armies of
Ashur-natsir-pal returned with the booty of great campaigns--horses
and cattle and sheep, bales of embroidered cloth, ivory and jewels,
silver and gold, the products of many countries; while thousands of
prisoners were assembled there to rear stately buildings which
ultimately fell into decay and were buried by drifting sands.
Layard excavated the emperor's palace and dispatched to London, among
other treasures of antiquity, the sublime winged human-headed lions
which guarded the entrance, and many bas reliefs.
The Assyrian sculptures of this period lack the technical skill, the
delicacy and imagination of Sumerian and Akkadian art, but they are
full of energy, dignified and massive, and strong and lifelike. They
reflect the spirit of Assyria's greatness, which, however, had a
materialistic basis. Assyrian art found expression in delineating the
outward form rather than in striving to create a "thing of beauty"
which is "a joy for ever".
When Ashur-natsir-pal died, he was succeeded by his son Shalmaneser
III (860-825 B.C.), whose military activities extended over his whole
reign. No fewer than thirty-two expeditions were recorded on his
famous black obelisk.
As Shalmaneser was the first Assyrian king who came into direct touch
with the Hebrews, it will be of interest here to review the history of
the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah, as recorded in the Bible,
because of the light it throws on international politics and the
situation which confronted Shalmaneser in Mesopotamia and Syria in the
early part of his reign.
After Solomon died, the kingdom of his son Rehoboam was restricted to
Judah, Benjamin, Moab, and Edom. The "ten tribes" of Israel had
revolted and were ruled over by Jeroboam, whose capital was at
Tirzah.[432] "There were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam
continually."[433]
The religious organization which had united the Hebrews under David
and Solomon was thus broken up. Jeroboam established the religion of
the Canaanites and made "gods and molten images". He was condemned for
his idolatry by the prophet Ahijah, who declared, "The Lord shall
smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and he shall root up
Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and
shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their
groves, provoking the Lord to anger. And he shall give Israel up
because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to
sin."[434]
In Judah Rehoboam similarly "did evil in the sight of the Lord"; his
subjects "also built them high places and images and groves, on every
high hill, and under every green tree".[435] After the raid of the
Egyptian Pharaoh Shishak (Sheshonk) Rehoboam repented, however. "And
when he humbled himself, the wrath of the Lord turned from him, that
he would not destroy him altogether: and also in Judah things went
well."[436]
Rehoboam was succeeded by his son Abijah, who shattered the power of
Jeroboam, defeating that monarch in battle after he was surrounded as
Rameses II had been by the Hittite army. "The children of Israel fled
before Judah: and God delivered them into their hand. And Abijah and
his people slew them with a great slaughter: so there fell down slain
in Israel five hundred thousand chosen men. Thus the children of
Israel were brought under at that time, and the children of Judah
prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord God of their fathers. And
Abijah pursued after Jeroboam, and took cities from him, Bethel with
the towns thereof, and Jeshanah with the towns thereof, and Ephraim
with the towns thereof. Neither did Jeroboam recover strength again in
the days of Abijah, and the Lord struck him and he died."[437]
Ere Jeroboam died, however, "Abijah slept with his fathers, and they
buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead.
In his days the land was quiet ten years. And Asa did that which was
good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. For he took away the
altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the
images, and cut down the groves. And commanded Judah to seek the Lord
God of their fathers and to do the law and the commandment. Also he
took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the
images: and the kingdom was quiet before him. And he built fenced
cities in Judah: for the land had rest, and he had no war in those
years; because the Lord had given him rest."[438]
Jeroboam died in the second year of Asa's reign, and was succeeded by
his son Nadab, who "did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in
the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to
sin".[439] Nadab waged war against the Philistines, and was besieging
Gibbethon when Baasha revolted and slew him. Thus ended the First
Dynasty of the Kingdom of Israel.
Baasha was declared king, and proceeded to operate against Judah.
Having successfully waged war against Asa, he proceeded to fortify
Ramah, a few miles to the north of Jerusalem, "that he might not
suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah".[440]
Now Israel was at this time one of the allies of the powerful Aramaean
State of Damascus, which had resisted the advance of the Assyrian
armies during the reign of Ashur-natsir-pal I, and apparently
supported the rebellions of the northern Mesopotamian kings. Judah was
nominally subject to Egypt, which, however, was weakened by internal
troubles, and therefore unable either to assert its authority in Judah
or help its king to resist the advance of the Israelites.
In the hour of peril Judah sought the aid of the king of Damascus.
"Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures
of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and
delivered them into the hand of his servants: and King Asa sent them
to Ben-hadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria,
that dwelt at Damascus, saying, There is a league between me and thee,
and between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent unto thee a
present of silver and gold: _come and break thy league with Baasha
king of Israel, that he may depart from me_".[441]
Ben-hadad accepted the invitation readily. He waged war against
Israel, and Baasha was compelled to abandon the building of the
fortifications at Ramah. "Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout
all Judah; none was exempted: and they took away the stones of Ramah,
and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded; and king Asa
built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah."[442]
Judah and Israel thus became subject to Damascus, and had to recognize
the king of that city as arbiter in all their disputes.
After reigning about twenty-four years, Baasha of Israel died in 886
B.C. and was succeeded by his son Elah who came to the throne "in the
twenty and sixth year of Asa". He had ruled a little over a year when
he was murdered by "his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots",
while he was "drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza steward of
his house in Tirzah".[443] Thus ended the Second Dynasty of the
Kingdom of Israel.
Zimri's revolt was shortlived. He reigned only "seven days in Tirzah".
The army was "encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the
Philistines. And the people that were encamped heard say, Zimri hath
conspired and hath also slain the king; wherefore all Israel made
Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp.
And Omri went up from Gibbethon and all Israel with him, and they
besieged Tirzah. And it came to pass when Zimri saw that the city was
taken, that he went into the palace of the king's house, and burnt the
king's house over him with fire, and died."[444]
Omri's claim to the throne was disputed by a rival named Tibni. "But
the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that
followed Tibni, son of Ginath: so Tibni died, and Omri reigned."[445]
Omri was the builder of Samaria, whither his Court was transferred
from Tirzah towards the close of his six years reign. He was followed
by his son Ahab, who ascended the throne "in the thirty and eighth
year of Asa king of Judah.... And Ahab ... did evil in the sight of
the Lord above all that were before him." So notorious indeed were
father and son that the prophet Micah declared to the backsliders of
his day, "For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the
house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsel; that I should make thee a
desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall
bear the reproach of my people".[446]
Ahab was evidently an ally of Sidon as well as a vassal of Damascus,
for he married the notorious princess Jezebel, the daughter of the
king of that city State. He also became a worshipper of the Phoenician
god Baal, to whom a temple had been erected in Samaria. "And Ahab made
a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger
than all the kings of Israel that were before him."[447] Obadiah, who
"feared the Lord greatly", was the governor of Ahab's house, but the
outspoken prophet Elijah, whose arch enemy was the notorious Queen
Jezebel, was an outcast like the hundred prophets concealed by Obadiah
in two mountain caves.[448]
Ahab became so powerful a king that Ben-hadad II of Damascus picked a
quarrel with him, and marched against Samaria. It was on this occasion
that Ahab sent the famous message to Ben-hadad: "Let not him that
girdeth on his harness (armour) boast himself as he that putteth it
off". The Israelites issued forth from Samaria and scattered the
attacking force. "And Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of
Syria escaped on a horse with the horseman. And the king of Israel
went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with
a great slaughter." Ben-hadad was made to believe afterwards by his
counsellors that he owed his defeat to the fact that the gods of
Israel were "gods of the hills; therefore they are stronger than we".
They added: "Let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we
shall be stronger than they". In the following year Ben-hadad fought
against the Israelites at Aphek, but was again defeated. He then found
it necessary to make "a covenant" with Ahab.[449]
In 854 B.C. Shalmaneser III of Assyria was engaged in military
operations against the Aramaean Syrians. Two years previously he had
broken the power of Akhuni, king of Bit-Adini in northern Mesopotamia,
the leader of a strong confederacy of petty States. Thereafter the
Assyrian monarch turned towards the south-west and attacked the
Hittite State of Hamath and the Aramaean State of Damascus. The
various rival kingdoms of Syria united against him, and an army of
70,000 allies attempted to thwart his progress at Qarqar on the
Orontes. Although Shalmaneser claimed a victory on this occasion, it
was of no great advantage to him, for he was unable to follow it up.
Among the Syrian allies were Bir-idri (Ben-hadad II) of Damascus, and
Ahab of Israel ("Akhabbu of the land of the Sir'ilites"). The latter
had a force of 10,000 men under his command.
Four years after Ahab began to reign, Asa died at Jerusalem and his
son Jehoshaphat was proclaimed king of Judah. "And he walked in all
the ways of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that
which was right in the eyes of the Lord: nevertheless the high places
were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet in
the high places."[450]
There is no record of any wars between Israel and Judah during this
period, but it is evident that the two kingdoms had been drawn
together and that Israel was the predominating power. Jehoshaphat
"joined affinity with Ahab", and some years afterwards visited
Samaria, where he was hospitably entertained.[451] The two monarchs
plotted together. Apparently Israel and Judah desired to throw off the
yoke of Damascus, which was being kept constantly on the defence by
Assyria. It is recorded in the Bible that they joined forces and set
out on an expedition to attack Ramoth in Gilead, which Israel claimed,
and take it "out of the hand of the king of Syria".[452] In the battle
which ensued (in 853 B.C.) Ahab was mortally wounded, "and about the
time of the sun going down he died". He was succeeded by his son
Ahaziah, who acknowledged the suzerainty of Damascus. After a reign of
two years Ahaziah was succeeded by Joram.
Jehoshaphat did not again come into conflict with Damascus. He devoted
himself to the development of his kingdom, and attempted to revive the
sea trade on the Persian gulf which had flourished under Solomon. "He
made ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir for gold; but they went not;
for the ships were broken (wrecked) at Ezion-geber." Ahaziah offered
him sailors--probably Phoenicians--but they were refused.[453]
Apparently Jehoshaphat had close trading relations with the
Chaldaeans, who were encroaching on the territory of the king of
Babylon, and menacing the power of that monarch. Jehoram succeeded
Jehoshaphat and reigned eight years.
After repulsing the Syrian allies at Qarqar on the Orontes in 854
B.C., Shalmaneser III of Assyria found it necessary to invade
Babylonia. Soon after he came to the throne he had formed an alliance
with Nabu-aplu-iddin of that kingdom, and was thus able to operate in
the north-west without fear of complications with the rival claimant
of Mesopotamia. When Nabu-aplu-iddin died, his two sons
Marduk-zakir-shum and Marduk-bel-usate were rivals for the throne. The
former, the rightful heir, appealed for help to Shalmaneser, and that
monarch at once hastened to assert his authority in the southern
kingdom. In 851 B.C. Marduk-bel-usate, who was supported by an Aramæan
army, was defeated and put to death.
Marduk-zakir-shum afterwards reigned over Babylonia as the vassal of
Assyria, and Shalmaneser, his overlord, made offerings to the gods at
Babylon, Borsippa, and Cuthah. The Chaldæans were afterwards subdued,
and compelled to pay annual tribute.
In the following year Shalmaneser had to lead an expedition into
northern Mesopotamia and suppress a fresh revolt in that troubled
region. But the western allies soon gathered strength again, and in
846 B.C. he found it necessary to return with a great army, but was
not successful in achieving any permanent success, although he put his
enemies to flight. The various western kingdoms, including Damascus,
Israel, and Tyre and Sidon, remained unconquered, and continued to
conspire against him.
The resisting power of the Syrian allies, however, was being greatly
weakened by internal revolts, which may have been stirred up by
Assyrian emissaries. Edom threw off the yoke of Judah and became
independent. Jehoram, who had married Athaliah, a royal princess of
Israel, was dead. His son Ahaziah, who succeeded him, joined forces
with his cousin and overlord, King Joram of Israel, to assist him in
capturing Ramoth-gilead from the king of Damascus. Joram took
possession of the city, but was wounded, and returned to Jezreel to be
healed.[454] He was the last king of the Omri Dynasty of Israel. The
prophet Elisha sent a messenger to Jehu, a military leader, who was at
Ramoth-gilead, with a box of oil and the ominous message, "Thus saith
the Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel. And thou shalt smite
the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my
servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord,
at the hand of Jezebel.... And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the
portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her."
Jehu "conspired against Joram", and then, accompanied by an escort,
"rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel", so that he might be the first
to announce the revolt to the king whom he was to depose.
The watchman on the tower of Jezreel saw Jehu and his company
approaching and informed Joram, who twice sent out a messenger to
enquire, "Is it peace?" Neither messenger returned, and the watchman
informed the wounded monarch of Israel, "He came even unto them, and
cometh not again; and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son
of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously".
King Joram went out himself to meet the famous charioteer, but turned
to flee when he discovered that he came as an enemy. Then Jehu drew
his bow and shot Joram through the heart. Ahaziah endeavoured to
conceal himself in Samaria, but was slain also. Jezebel was thrown
down from a window of the royal harem and trodden under foot by the
horsemen of Jehu; her body was devoured by dogs.[455]
The Syrian king against whom Joram fought at Ramoth-gilead was Hazael.
He had murdered Ben-hadad II as he lay on a bed of sickness by
smothering him with a thick cloth soaked in water. Then he had himself
proclaimed the ruler of the Aramaean State of Damascus. The prophet
Elisha had previously wept before him, saying, "I know the evil that
thou wilt do unto the children of Israel; their strongholds wilt thou
set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and
wilt dash their children and rip up their women with child".[456]
The time seemed ripe for Assyrian conquest. In 843 B.C. Shalmaneser
III crossed the Euphrates into Syria for the sixteenth time. His first
objective was Aleppo, where he was welcomed. He made offerings there
to Hadad, the local Thor, and then suddenly marched southward. Hazael
went out to oppose the advancing Assyrians, and came into conflict
with them in the vicinity of Mount Hermon. "I fought with him",
Shalmaneser recorded, "and accomplished his defeat; I slew with the
sword 1600 of his warriors and captured 1121 chariots and 470 horses.
He fled to save his life."
Hazael took refuge within the walls of Damascus, which the Assyrians
besieged, but failed, however, to capture. Shalmaneser's soldiers
meanwhile wasted and burned cities without number, and carried away
great booty. "In those days", Shalmaneser recorded, "I received
tribute from the Tyrians and Sidonians and from Yaua (Jehu) son
(successor) of Khumri (Omri)." The following is a translation from a
bas relief by Professor Pinches of a passage detailing Jehu's tribute:
The tribute of Yaua, son of Khumri: silver, gold, a golden cup,
golden vases, golden vessels, golden buckets, lead, a staff for
the hand of the king (and) sceptres, I received.[457]
The scholarly translator adds, "It is noteworthy that the Assyrian
form of the name, Yaua, shows that the unpronounced aleph at the end
was at that time sounded, so that the Hebrews must have called him
Yahua (Jehua)".
Shalmaneser did not again attack Damascus. His sphere of influence was
therefore confined to North Syria. He found it more profitable,
indeed, to extend his territories into Asia Minor. For several years
he engaged himself in securing control of the north-western caravan
road, and did not rest until he had subdued Cilicia and overrun the
Hittite kingdoms of Tabal and Malatia.
Hazael of Damascus avenged himself meanwhile on his unfaithful allies
who had so readily acknowledged the shadowy suzerainty of Assyria. "In
those days the Lord began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them
in all the coasts of Israel; from Jordan eastward, all the land of
Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from
Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan."[458]
Israel thus came completely under the sway of Damascus.
Jehu appears to have cherished the ambition of uniting Israel and
Judah under one crown. His revolt received the support of the orthodox
Hebrews, and he began well by inaugurating reforms in the northern
kingdom with purpose apparently to re-establish the worship of David's
God. He persecuted the prophets of Baal, but soon became a backslider,
for although he stamped out the Phoenician religion he began to
worship "the golden calves that were in Bethel and that were in
Dan.... He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel
to sin."[459] Apparently he found it necessary to secure the support
of the idolators of the ancient cult of the "Queen of Heaven".
The crown of Judah had been seized by the Israelitish Queen mother
Athaliah after the death of her son Ahaziah at the hands of Jehu.[460]
She endeavoured to destroy "all the seed royal of the house of Judah".
But another woman thwarted the completion of her monstrous design.
This was Jehoshabeath, sister of Ahaziah and wife of the priest
Jehoiada, who concealed the young prince Joash "and put him and his
nurse in a bedchamber", in "the house of God". There Joash was
strictly guarded for six years.[461]
In time Jehoiada stirred up a revolt against the Baal-worshipping
queen of Judah. Having secured the support of the captains of the
royal guard and a portion of the army, he brought out from the temple
the seven years old prince Joash, "the king's son, and put upon him
the crown, and gave him the testimony, and made him king. And Jehoiada
and his sons anointed him, and said, God save the king.
"Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising
the king, she came to the people into the house of the Lord: and she
looked, and, behold the king stood at his pillar at the entering in,
and the princes and the trumpets by the king: and all the people of
the land rejoiced, and sounded with trumpets, also the singers with
instruments of musick, and such as taught to sing praise. Then
Athaliah rent her clothes, and said, Treason, Treason.
"Then Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds that
were set over the host, and said unto them, Have her forth of the
ranges: and whoso followeth her, let him be slain by the sword. For
the priest said, Slay her not in the house of the Lord. So they laid
hands on her; and when she was come to the entering of the horse gate
by the king's house, they slew her there.
"And Jehoiada made a covenant between him, and between all the people,
and between the king, that they should be the Lord's people. Then all
the people went to the house of Baal, and brake it down, and brake his
altars and his images in pieces, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal
before the altars."[462]
When Jehu of Israel died, he was succeeded by Jehoahaz. "The Lord was
kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of
Ben-hadad the son of Hazael all their days." Then Jehoahaz repented.
He "besought the Lord, and the Lord hearkened unto him: for he saw the
oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. And
the Lord gave Israel a saviour, so that they went out from under the
hands of the Syrians."[463] The "saviour", as will be shown, was
Assyria. Not only Israel, but Judah, under King Joash, Edom, the
Philistines and the Ammonites were compelled to acknowledge the
suzerainty of Damascus.
Shalmaneser III swayed an extensive and powerful empire, and kept his
generals continually employed suppressing revolts on his frontiers.
After he subdued the Hittites, Kati, king of Tabal, sent him his
daughter, who was received into the royal harem. Tribes of the Medes
came under his power: the Nairi and Urartian tribes continued battling
with his soldiers on his northern borders like the frontier tribes of
India against the British troops. The kingdom of Urartu was growing
more and more powerful.
In 829 B.C. the great empire was suddenly shaken to its foundations by
the outbreak of civil war. The party of rebellion was led by
Shalmaneser's son Ashur-danin-apli, who evidently desired to supplant
the crown prince Shamshi-Adad. He was a popular hero and received the
support of most of the important Assyrian cities, including Nineveh,
Asshur, Arbela, Imgurbel, and Dur-balat, as well as some of the
dependencies. Shalmaneser retained Kalkhi and the provinces of
northern Mesopotamia, and it appears that the greater part of the army
also remained loyal to him.
After four years of civil war Shalmaneser died. His chosen heir,
Shamshi-Adad VII, had to continue the struggle for the throne for two
more years.
When at length the new king had stamped out the last embers of revolt
within the kingdom, he had to undertake the reconquest of those
provinces which in the interval had thrown off their allegiance to
Assyria. Urartu in the north had grown more aggressive, the Syrians
were openly defiant, the Medes were conducting bold raids, and the
Babylonians were plotting with the Chaldaeans, Elamites, and Aramaeans
to oppose the new ruler. Shamshi-Adad, however, proved to be as great
a general as his father. He subdued the Medes and the Nairi tribes,
burned many cities and collected enormous tribute, while thousands of
prisoners were taken and forced to serve the conqueror.
Having established his power in the north, Shamshi-Adad then turned
attention to Babylonia. On his way southward he subdued many villages.
He fell upon the first strong force of Babylonian allies at
Dur-papsukal in Akkad, and achieved a great victory, killing 13,000
and taking 3000 captives. Then the Babylonian king,
Marduk-balatsu-ikbi, advanced to meet him with his mixed force of
Babylonians, Chaldaeans, Elamites, and Aramaeans, but was defeated in
a fierce battle on the banks of the Daban canal. The Babylonian camp
was captured, and the prisoners taken by the Assyrians included 5000
footmen, 200 horsemen, and 100 chariots.
Shamshi-Adad conducted in all five campaigns in Babylonia and
Chaldaea, which he completely subdued, penetrating as far as the
shores of the Persian Gulf. In the end he took prisoner the new king,
Bau-akh-iddina, the successor of Marduk-balatsu-ikbi, and transported
him to Assyria, and offered up sacrifices as the overlord of the
ancient land at Babylon, Borsippa, and Cuthah. For over half a century
after this disaster Babylonia was a province of Assyria. During that
period, however, the influence which it exercised over the Assyrian
Court was so great that it contributed to the downfall of the royal
line of the Second Empire.