The Syro-Ephraimite War took place in the 8th century BC, when the

Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew ...

was a great regional power. The tributary nations of

Aram-Damascus The Kingdom of Aram-Damascus () was an Aramean polity that existed from the late-12th century BCE until 732 BCE, and was centred around the city of Damascus in the Southern Levant. Alongside various tribal lands, it was bounded in its later ye ...

(often called Aram) and the

Kingdom of Israel The Kingdom of Israel may refer to any of the historical kingdoms of ancient Israel, including: Fully independent (c. 564 years) *Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy) (1047–931 BCE), the legendary kingdom established by the Israelites and uniting ...

(often called

Ephraim Ephraim (; he, ''ʾEp̄rayīm'', in pausa: ''ʾEp̄rāyīm'') was, according to the Book of Genesis, the second son of Joseph ben Jacob and Asenath. Asenath was an Ancient Egyptian woman whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph as wife, and the daughte ...

because of the main tribe) decided to break away. The

Kingdom of Judah The Kingdom of Judah ( he, , ''Yəhūdā''; akk, 𒅀𒌑𒁕𒀀𒀀 ''Ya'údâ'' 'ia-ú-da-a-a'' arc, 𐤁𐤉𐤕𐤃𐤅𐤃 ''Bēyt Dāwīḏ'', " House of David") was an Israelite kingdom of the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. C ...

, ruled by King

Ahaz Ahaz (; gr, Ἄχαζ, Ἀχάζ ''Akhaz''; la, Achaz) an abbreviation of Jehoahaz II (of Judah), "Yahweh has held" (; akk, 𒅀𒌑𒄩𒍣 ''Ya'úḫazi'' 'ia-ú-ḫa-zi'' Hayim Tadmor and Shigeo Yamada, ''The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath ...

, refused to join the coalition. In 735 BC Aram-Damascus, under

Rezin King Rezin of Aram () or Rasin of Syria in DRB (; akk, 𒊏𒄭𒀀𒉡/𒊏𒆥𒀀𒉡, Ra-ḫi-a-nu/Ra-qi-a-nu; arc, probably *''Raḍyan''; la, Rasin, link=no) ruled from Damascus during the 8th century BC. During his reign, he was a tri ...

, and Israel, under

Pekah Pekah (, ''Peqaḥ''; akk, 𒉺𒅗𒄩 ''Paqaḫa'' 'pa-qa-ḫa'' la, Phacee) was the eighteenth and penultimate king of Israel. He was a captain in the army of king Pekahiah of Israel, whom he killed to become king. Pekah was the son of Rem ...

, attempted to depose Ahaz through an invasion. Judah was being defeated and, according to 2 Chronicles 28, lost 120,000 troops in just one day. Many significant officials were killed, including the king's son Maaseiah. Many others were taken away as slaves. Telling of the same war, states that Rezin and Pekah besieged Jerusalem but failed to capture it. During the invasion, the

Philistines The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek ( LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, whe ...

and

Edomites Edom (; Edomite: ; he, אֱדוֹם , lit.: "red"; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Egyptian: ) was an ancient kingdom in Transjordan, located between Moab to the northeast, the Arabah to the west, and the Arabian Desert to the south and east.N ...

were taking advantage of the situation and raiding towns and villages in Judah. Ahaz asked

Tiglath-Pileser III Tiglath-Pileser III ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "my trust belongs to the son of Ešarra"), was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 745 BC to his death in 727. One of the most prominent and historically significant Assyrian kings, T ...

of Assyria for help.biblical literature :: The divided monarchy: from Jeroboam I to the Assyrian conquest - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
/ref> The Assyrians defended Judah, conquering Israel, Aram-Damascus and the Philistines, but the post-war alliance only brought more trouble for the king of Judah. Ahaz had to pay

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conq ...

to Tiglath-Pileser III with treasures from the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jeru ...

and the royal treasury. He also built idols of Assyrian gods in Judah to find favor with his new ally.

Immanuel prophecy

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

tells King Ahaz that the invasion will be unsuccessful and tells him to ask God for a sign. Ahaz refuses, claiming he does not want to test God. Isaiah then announces that God himself will choose the sign: Isaiah 8 details another prophecy about a child by the name of

Maher-shalal-hash-baz "Maher-shalal-hash-baz" (; he, מַהֵר שָׁלָל חָשׁ בַּז, ' – "Hurry to the spoils!" or "He has made haste to the plunder!") was the second prophetic name mentioned in Isaiah chapter 8– 9. Biblical accounts The name is ment ...

(Hebrew: מַהֵר שָׁלָל חָשׁ בַּז "Hurry to the spoils!" or "He has made haste to the plunder!"). Isaiah then explains that the significance of this name is that before this child can speak, Assyria will plunder both Syria and Ephraim. Isaiah concludes these prophecies concerning his children, Shear-Jashub (meaning "the remnant shall return"), Immanuel (meaning "God with us"), and Maher-shalal-hash-baz, by saying, The context continues into chapter 9 which also uses a birth of a child as its object.

References

External links

* http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%207-12&version=NASB * http://www.jewsforjudaism.org/questions-a-answers-primary-234/68-the-jewish-messiah/374-messiah--the-criteria * http://www.ucgstp.org/bible/brp/2ki16a.htm * http://www.bsw.org/?l=71811&a=Ani17.html {{Authority control 8th-century BC conflicts 8th century BC in the Kingdom of Judah Ancient Israel and Judah Hebrew Bible battles Military history of the Assyrian Empire

Immanuel prophecy

See also

References

External links