Assyrian siege of Jerusalem
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2007) |
Siege of Jerusalem | |
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Part of Jerusalem, Kingdom of Judah | |
Result |
Both sides claim victory
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Unknown
Ancient Sources:
- 185,000 (According to the Biblical account)
Part of a series on |
Jerusalem |
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The Assyrian siege of Jerusalem (circa 701 BC) was an aborted siege of Jerusalem, then capital of the Kingdom of Judah, carried out by Sennacherib, king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The siege concluded Sennacharib's campaign in the Levant, in which he attacked the fortified cities and devastated the countryside of Judah in a campaign of subjugation. Sennacherib besieged Jerusalem, but did not capture it.
Sennacherib's Annals describe how the king trapped Hezekiah of Judah in Jerusalem "like a caged bird" and later returned to Assyria when he received tribute from Judah. In the Hebrew Bible, Hezekiah is described as paying 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold to Assyria. The biblical story then adds a miraculous ending in which Sennacherib marches on Jerusalem with his army only to have it struck down near the gates of Jerusalem by an angel, prompting his retreat to Nineveh.
According to biblical archaeological theory, Siloam tunnel and the Broad Wall in Jerusalem were built by Hezekiah in preparation for the impending siege.
Background
In 720 BC, the
When
attacked Judah, laying siege to Jerusalem.The siege
Sources from both sides claimed victory, the
Hebrew account
The story of the Assyrian siege is told in the biblical books of
According to
During the siege, Hezekiah dressed in sackcloth (a sign of mourning), but the prophet Isaiah assured him that the city would be delivered and Sennacherib would fail.[1] According to Isaiah, an angel then killed 185,000 Assyrian troops overnight.[2] Some scholars believe this number has been transcribed incorrectly, with one study suggesting the number was originally 5,180.[4] Another scholar advises that the biblical narrative is marked by legendary embellishments that end with a miracle that saves Jerusalem.[5]
Assyrian account
After he besieged Jerusalem, Sennacherib was able to give the surrounding towns to Assyrian vassal rulers in Ekron, Gaza and Ashdod. His army still existed when he conducted campaigns in 702 BC and from 699 BC until 697 BC, when he made several campaigns in the mountains east of Assyria, during one of which he received tribute from the Medes. In 696 BC and 695 BC, he sent expeditions into Anatolia, where several vassals had rebelled following the death of Sargon II. Around 690 BC, he campaigned in the northern Arabian deserts, conquering Dumat al-Jandal, where the queen of the Arabs had taken refuge.[7]
Other theories
Herodotus wrote that the Assyrian army was overrun by mice when attacking Egypt.[8] Some Biblical scholars take this to an allusion that the Assyrian army suffered the effects of a mouse- or rat-borne disease such as bubonic plague.[9][10] Even without relying on that explanation, John Bright suggested it was an epidemic of some kind that saved Jerusalem.[4] The Babylonian historian Berossus also wrote that it was a plague that defeated the Assyrian army in the siege.[11]
In popular culture
An 1813 poem by Lord Byron, The Destruction of Sennacherib, commemorates Sennacherib's campaign in Judea from the Hebrew point of view. Written in anapestic tetrameter, the poem was popular[citation needed] in school recitations.
Ancient sources
- Book of Kings
- Book of Isaiah
- Book of Chronicles
- Sennacherib's Prism
- Titus Flavius Josephus
See also
- Siege of Jerusalem (disambiguation), in particular Siege of Jerusalem (597 BC) and Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)
References
- ^ ISBN 9780674397316
- ^ a b c "Pritchard, James B. ed., Ancient Near Eastern Texts, 2nd ed. (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1955), 287ff". Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
- ^ Evans 2023, p. 89.
- ^ a b "A History of Israel", John Bright, SCM 1980, p.200
- ISBN 978-0-664-23245-0.
- ^ Kalimi & Richardson 2014, pp. 53–54.
- ^ Grayson 1991, p. 111–113.
- ^ The History Of Herodotus, Book 2, Verse 141
- ^ "Sennachrib", New Bible Dictionary, InterVarsity Press, 2nd Edition, Ed. J.D.Douglas, N.Hillyer, 1982
- S2CID 218529968.
- ^ Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book 10, chapter 1, section 5
- ISBN 9780385659123.
- doi:10.5508/jhs29552.
- ^ Nazek Khalid Matty (2016), Sennacherib's Campaign Against Judah and Jerusalem in 701 BC; pp. 178–180; De Gryuter, Berlin/Boston.
Bibliography
- Evans, Paul S. (2023). Sennacherib and the War of 1812: Disputed Victory in the Assyrian Campaign of 701 BCE in Light of Military History. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-0-567-70897-7.
- Grabbe, Lester (2003). Like a Bird in a Cage: The Invasion of Sennacherib in 701 BCE. A&C Black. ISBN 9780826462152.
- Grayson, A.K. (1991). "Assyria: Sennacherib and Essarhaddon". In Boardman, John; Edwards, I. E. S. (eds.). The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume III Part II. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521227179.
- Kalimi, Isaac; Richardson, Seth (2014). Sennacherib at the Gates of Jerusalem: Story, History and Historiography. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-26562-2.