The hexagonal prism detailing the campaign of Sennacherib against Judah

In 721 BCE, the Assyrian army captured the Israelite capital at Samaria and carried away the citizens of the northern kingdom into captivity. The virtual destruction of Israel left the southern kingdom, Judah, to fend for itself in the whirlwind of warring Near Eastern kingdoms. At the time of Samaria's fall, there existed two kings in Judah — Ahaz and his son Hezekiah — who ruled as co-regents. Judah existed as a vassal to Assyria during this time and was forced to pay an annual tribute to the powerful empire. Download high resolution version (265x630, 135 KB)The hexagonal prism detailing the campaigns of Sennacherib against Judah File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (265x630, 135 KB)The hexagonal prism detailing the campaigns of Sennacherib against Judah File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... This article concerns the Assyrian people. ... An Israelite is a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, descended from the twelve sons of the Biblical patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel by God in the book of Genesis, 32:28. ... Samaria, Sumaria or Shomron (Hebrew שֹׁמְרוֹן, Standard Hebrew Å omÉ™ron, Tiberian Hebrew ŠōmÉ™rôn, Arabic سامريّون SāmariyyÅ«n (but commonly called in Arabic جبال نابلس Jibal Nablus), in the New Testament Greek Σαμαρεία) is a term used for the mountainous northern part of the area on the west bank of the Jordan River. ... The Kingdom of Judah (Hebrew מַלְכוּת יְהוּדָה, Standard Hebrew Malḫut YÉ™huda, Tiberian Hebrew Malḵûṯ YÉ™hûḏāh) in the times of the Hebrew Bible, was the nation formed from the territories of the tribes of Judah, Simeon and Benjamin after the Kingdom of Israel was divided, and was named after... This entry incorporates text from Eastons Bible Dictionary, 1897, with some modernisation. ... Hezekiah (which means whom God has strengthened) was king of Judah, the son of Ahaz (2 Kings 18:1; 2 Chronicles 29:1). ...

Hezekiah's reforms

In 715 BCE, following the death of Ahaz, Hezekiah became the sole regent of Judah and initiated widespread religious reforms — smashing the idols the people had worshiped during the reign of his father and leading the Jews toward a renewed relationship with God. He re-captured Philistine-occupied lands in the Negev desert, formed alliances with Ashkelon and Egypt, and made a stand against Assyria by refusing to pay tribute. The historic Philistines (see note Philistines below) were a people that inhabited the southern coast of Canaan around the time of the arrival of the Israelites, their territory being named Philistia in later contexts. ... The Negev (נגב, Standard Hebrew Négev / Nágev, Tiberian Hebrew Néḡeḇ / Nāḡeḇ; Arabic النقب an-Naqab) is the desert region of southern Israel. ... Ashkelon or Ashqelon (Hebrew אַשְׁקְלוֹן; Standard Hebrew AÅ¡qÉ™lon; Tiberian Hebrew ʾAÅ¡qÉ™lôn; Arabic عسقلان   Ê¿Asqalān?; Latin Ascalon) was an ancient Philistine seaport on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea just north of Gaza. ...

In response, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, attacked the fortified cities of Judah. While Sennacherib was besieging Lachish, he received a message from Hezekiah offering to pay tribute in exchange for Assyrian withdrawal. According to the Tanakh, Hezekiah paid three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold to Assyria — a price so heavy that he was forced to empty the temple and royal treasury of silver and strip the gold from the doorposts of Solomon's temple. Sennacherib in his chariot Sennacherib (in Akkadian Sin-ahhe-eriba, Sin (the moon god) has taken the place of brothers to me) was the son of Sargon II, whom he succeeded on the throne of Assyria (705 BC–681 BC). ... Lachish was a town located in the Shephelah, or maritime plain of Palestine (Joshua 10:3, 5; 12:11). ... 11th century Targum Tanakh [תנ״ך] (also spelt Tanach or Tenach) is an acronym that identifies the Hebrew Bible. ... Solomon (Hebrew, Shlomo from Shalom for peace, also Arabic as Suleiman or Sulyaman meaning peace) can mean any of the following: 1. ...

Jerusalem besieged

Sometime during the early part of the Assyrian invasion, Hezekiah met with his military staff concerning the possibility that Jerusalem may fall under siege. The staff immediately oversaw preparations for the Assyrian onslaught. In an effort to deprive the enemy of water, the Jews blocked the springs outside the city. Workers then dug a 533-meter tunnel to the Spring of Gihon, providing the city with fresh water. Additional siege preparations included fortification of the existing walls, construction of towers, and the erection of a new, reinforcing wall. Hezekiah gathered the citizens in the square and encouraged them by reminding them that the Assyrians possessed only "an arm of flesh", but the Jews had the protection of Yahweh. Jerusalem (31°46′ N 35°14′ E; Hebrew:   יְרוּשָׁלַיִם [?]; Yerushalayim; Arabic:   القُدس[?] al-Quds; see also names of Jerusalem) is an ancient Middle Eastern city of key importance to the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ... The Tetragrammaton in Phoenician (1100 BC to 300 CE), Aramaic (10th Century BC to 0) and modern Hebrew scripts. ...

Sennacherib marched on Jerusalem with a large army. When the Assyrian force arrived, its field commander brought a message from Sennacherib himself. In an attempt to demoralize the Jews, the field commander announced to the people on the city walls that Hezekiah was deceiving them, and Yahweh could not deliver Jerusalem from the king of Assyria. He listed the gods of the people thus far swept away by Sennacherib then asked, "Who of all the gods of these countries has been able to save his land from me?"

The Tanakh relates how Hezekiah clad himself in sackcloth out of anguish from the psychological warfare that the Assyrians were waging. However, the prophet Isaiah assured Hezekiah that the city would be delivered and Sennacherib would be cut down with the sword. The Tanakh states that during the night, an angel of Yahweh brought death to 185,000 Assyrians troops. When Sennacherib saw the destruction wreaked on his army, he withdrew to Nineveh. Jerusalem was spared destruction. 11th century Targum Tanakh [תנ״ך] (also spelt Tanach or Tenach) is an acronym that identifies the Hebrew Bible. ... Hairshirt is also a 1998 movie. ... The U.S. Department of Defense defines psychological warfare (PSYWAR) as: The planned use of propaganda and other psychological actions having the primary purpose of influencing the opinions, emotions, attitudes, and behavior of hostile foreign groups in such a way as to support the achievement of national objectives. ... Isaiah the Prophet in Hebrew Scriptures was depicted on the Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo. ... The Annunciation - the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear Jesus (El Greco, 1575) An angel is an ethereal creature (meaning it is of the air), found in many mythologies, whose duties are to assist and serve God or the gods of many religious traditions. ... This article is about the ancient Middle Eastern city of Nineveh. ...

The hexagonal prism and other sources

A prism detailing the events of Sennacherib's campaign against Judah was discovered in the ruins of Nineveh in 1830. The account dates from about 690 BCE and is blatantly self-serving to the Assyrian king. The text of the prism boasts how Sennacherib destroyed forty-six of Judah's cities and trapped Hezekiah in Jerusalem "like a caged bird." The text goes on to describe how the "terrifying splendor" of the Assyrian army caused the Arabs and mercenaries reinforcing the city to desert. Intriguingly, the prism does not make mention of the destruction — or even capture — of Jerusalem. It abruptly stops after detailing the siege of the city. This raises the following issue: surely a ruler as narcissistic as Sennacherib would have narrated his conquest of the capital of Judah — that is, unless the city was never conquered. The mass death mentioned in the Tanakh has never been substantiated by any archaeological find, but the abrupt end of the prism account — along with the fact that Assyrian campaigns in the west ceased until the latter part of Esarhaddon's regency--may serve as circumstantial evidence that the Tanakh account is reliable. The Greek historian Herodotus, Chaldean historian Berosus, and Jewish historian Josephus all make reference to the delivery of Jerusalem in their writings, further substantiating the Tanakh account. 1830 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... For other uses, see Arab (disambiguation). ... Mercenary (disambiguation). ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Bust of Herodotus Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: ΗΡΟΔΟΤΟΣ, Herodotos) was an ancient historian who lived in the 5th century BC (484 BC-ca. ... Berossos (also Berossus or Berosus) Greek: Βεροσσος, was a Hellenistic Babylonian writer. ... Josephus (ca. ...

Sennacherib's end

The prophecy of Isaiah did not come to pass immediately, but did eventually intersect with Sennacherib. In 681 BCE, while worshiping in the temple of Nisroch, the king of Assyria was killed by his own son. He had ruled Assyria for twenty-four years. Centuries: 8th century BC - 7th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 730s BC 720s BC 710s BC 700s BC 690s BC - 680s BC - 670s BC 660s BC 650s BC 640s BC 630s BC Events and trends 689 BC - King Sennacherib of Assyria sacks Babylon 687 BC - Gyges becomes king of... According to the Bible, Nisroch is an Assyrian god in whose temple Sennacherib was worshiping when he was assassinated. ...

See also

• Solomon's Temple
• Babylonian captivity
• Second Temple
• Herod's Temple
• Siege of Jerusalem (70)
• Destruction of Jerusalem
• Jewish-Roman wars
• Western Wall