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 ISRAELITES

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ISRAELITES

Damascus, while on the west of the same river, he was forced to grant to that monarch trading privi- leges (cf. Ill Kings, XX, 34). But in other direc- tions he succeeded in extending his authority. The inscription of Mesa proves that he brought Moab under tribute. He cemented Israel's alliance with Tyre by the marriage of his son Achab with Jezabel. the daughter of the Tyrian priest and king, Ethbaal. His territories, now apparently limited to the tribes of Ephraim, Manasses, and Issachar, with a portion of Zabulon, were consolidated under his firm rule, so much so that the Assyrians, who henceforth care- fully watched over the affairs of Palestine, desig- nated Israel under the name of ''the House of Amri ", even after his dj-nasty had been overthrown.

The second period comprises the kings from .\chab to Jeroboam II (S7o-7Sl B. c). These kings were as follows: —

ISR.\EL JUD.4^

Achab 870-S.53 B.C. Josaphat. .. .876-8.51 B.C.

Ochozias. . . .853-S,->l " Joram 8-51 -843 "

Joram 8.')l-842 " Ochozias .... S4.3-S42 "

Jehu S42-814 " Athalia 842-836 "

Joachaz 814-797 " Joas 836-796 "

Joas 797-781 " Amasias .... 796-782 "

Azarias

(Ozias)...782—

The reign of Achab, Amri's son and successor, was a memorable one in the history of the chosen people. It was marked at home by a considerable progress of Israel in the arts of peace (cf. Ill Kings, xxii, 39); by the public adoption of the Phoenician worship of Baal and Astarthe (D. V. .\shtaroth, Ashtoreth), and also by a strenuous opposition to it on the part of the Prophets in the person of Elias. the leading religious figure of the time. Abroad, Israel's friendly rela- tion with Juda assumed a permanent character liy the marriage of Athalia, the daughter of Achab and Jez- abel, with Joram, the son of Josaphat; and in point of fact, Israel was at peace with Juda throughout the twenty-two years of Achab's reign. Israel's chief neighbouring foe was Syria, over whose ruler, Bena- dad II, Achab won two important victories (875 B. c). Yet, upon the westward advance of their com- mon enemies, the Assyrians, under Salmanasar II, the kings of Israel and Syria united with other princes of Western Asia against the AssvTian hosts, and checked their onward march at Karkhar on the Oron- tes, in 8.54 B.C. Next year. Achab resumed hostilities against SvTia, and fell mortally wounded in battle before Ramoth Galaad. Achab's son, Ochozias, died after a short reign (853-51 B. c.) and was succeeded by his brother Joram (851-42 b. c). The two wars of Joram's reign were unsuccessful, although, in both, Israel had the help of the Southern Kingdom. The first was directed against Mesa, King of Moab, who, as related in Holy Writ and in his own inscription (known as " the Moabitic Stone "), had throTSTi off the yoke of Israel, and who did not hesitate, when very hard pressed, to offer liis oldest son as a burnt-of- fering to Chamos (A. V. Chemosh). The second was waged against Damascus and proved exceedingly dis- astrous: Samaria nearly fell into the hands of the Syrians; Joram himself was seriously wounded before Ramoth Galaad, and next slain, at Jezrael, by one of his officers, Jehu, who assumed the crown and began a new dynasty in Israel. Jehu's long reign of twenty- eight years (842-14 B.C.) was most inglorious. Israel's deadly foe was the S\Tian king, Hazael, who had also reached the throne by the murder of his master, Ben- adad II. Instead of helping him to withstand the attacks of Salmanasar II, Jehu secured peace with Assyria by the payment of a tribute (842 b. c), and let Hazael face single-handed the repeated invasions of the Assyrian king. Apparently, he had hoped thereby to weaken the Aramean power, and perhaps

even to get rid of it altogether. It so happened, how- ever, that after a while Salmanasar desisted from his attacks upon Hazael, and thus left the latter free to turn his arms against Israel and against Juda, its ally. The SjTian king secured for Damascus not only Basan and Galaad, and the whole of the country east of the Jordan, but also Western Palestine, destroyed the Philistine city of Geth, and was bought off by Joas of Juda with the richest spoil of his palace and temple. Joachaz (814-797 b. c), the son and successor of Jehu, was compelled during the greater part of his reign to accept from Hazael and his son, Benadad III, the most humiliating conditions yet imposed upon a King of Israel (cf. IV Kings, xiii, 7). Rehef. however, came to him when the resources of Damascus were effect- ively crippled by AssjTia during the closing years of the ninth century b. c. Israel's condition was further improved under Joas (797-81 B. c), who actually de- feated Syria three several times, and reconquered much of the territory — probably west of the Jordan — which had been lost by Joachaz, his father ,(cf. IV Kings, xiii, 25).

The third period in the history of the Northern Kingdom extends from Jeroboam II to the fall of Samaria (781-22 b. c.) On the basis of the .\ssyrian inscriptions combined with the data of Holy Writ, the chronology of the last period may be given approxi- mately as follows: —

IsR.iEL Juda

Jeroboam II. 781-740 B.C. Azarias

Zacharias 6 months (Ozias). . .782-737 B.C.

Sellum 1 month Joatham.. . .737-735 "

Manahem 740-737 B.C. Achaz 735-725 "

Phaceia 737-735 " Ezechias 725-696 "

Phacee 735-733 "

Osee 733-722 "

During the long reign of Jeroboam II. the Northern Kingdom enjoyed an unprecedented prosperity. Ow- ing chiefly to the fact that Israel's enemies had grown weaker on every side, the new king was able to eclipse the victories achieved by his father, Joas, and to main- tain for a while the old ideal boundaries both east and west of the Jordan (IV Kings, xiv. 28). Peace and security followed on this wonderful territorial ex- tension, and together with them a great artistic and commercial development set in. Unfortunately, there set in also the moral laxity and the religious unfaith- fulness which were in vain rebuked by the Prophets Amos and Osee, and which surely presaged the utter ruin of the Northern Kingdom. Jeroboam's son, Zacharias (740 b. c.) was the last monarch of Jehu's dynasty. He had scarcely reigned six months when a usurper, Sellum, put him to death. Sellum, in his turn, was even more summarily dispatched by the truculent Manahem. The last-named ruler had soon to face the Assyrian power directly, and, as he felt unalile to withstand it, hastened to proffer tribute to Theglathphalasar III and thereby save his crown (738 B. c). His son Phaceia reigned about two years (737- 35 b. c.) and was slain by his captain, Phacee, who combined with Syria against Achaz of Juda. In his sore distress, Achaz appealed for AssjTian help, with the result that Theglathphalasar again (734 b. c.) in- vaded Israel, annexed Galilee and Damascus, and carried many Israehtes into captivity. Phacee's mur- derer, Osee. was AssjTia's faithful vassal as long as Theglathphalasar lived. Shortly afterwards, at the in- stigation of Eg\-pt, he revolted against Salmanasar IV, Assyria's new ruler, whereupon Assyrian troops over- ran Israel and laid siege to Samaria, which, after a long resistance, fell, near the close of the year 722 B. c, under Sargon II, who had meantime succeeded Salmanasar IV. With this ended the Northern King- dom, after an existence of a little more than two hun- dred years. (For the fate of the Israehtes left in Pales- tine or exiled, see C.\ptivities of the Isk.^elites.)