Assyri a | Bible Study Notes

The Assyrians were a very strong people . They are often called the ” Romans of Asia” becaus e
of their muscular builds and prowress in warfare . They were avid taunters and frequently hunte d
lions and other vicious creatures that many in the region avoided . They praised the lion and th e
ferocity with which it attacked even to comparing themselves to the beast . Even Nahum referred t o
them symbolically as lions . Their physical strength was like no other nation at that time .
They were an idolatrous people . Their highest god was Assur . Other gods were Nabu, o f
learning, Ninurta, of war, Ishtar, the goddess of love . The king was also the chief priest of the nation .
They attributed victories in battle and on the hunting grounds to the gods .
The Assyrians were also sophisticated artistically . They had great temples to the gods and t o
the kings . They were great sculptors and metalworkers . Many reliefs of Assyrian history are stil l
preserved for us to this day . Much of their intellectual greatness can be attributed to the Chaldean s
There are three distinct periods of Assyrian history :

I. The Chaldean Subjection (settlement - 1300 )

II. Old Assyrian Empire (1300 - 745 )

III. New or Lower Assyrian Empire (745 - 625 )

The Chaldean . Subjectio n
The Assyrians were a large group of Semitic people who settled in the region of Assur and th e
mountains of Zagros . The Assyrians liberated themselves from their neighbors, the Chaldeans, an d
lived harmoneously with them . The death of Shalmaneser I, who conquered much territory in th e
Tigris region, marked the end of the first period .
Old Assyrian Empir e
Tiglathi-nin I is acknowledged as the founder of the Old Assyrian empire because of hi s
yG1 successful war with the Babylonians . It took a century for Babylon to throw off the Assyria n
dominat ion’ Nglath-Pilesar I considered himself to be the king of kings and lord of lords as set up b y
the god Assur . In five years he subdued 42 countries from Syria to the land of the Hittites and muc h
of Mesopotamia . The Assyrian kingdom was compact and very powerful . Near the end of his reign h e
attacked Sippar and Babylon . On a return campaign to Assyria the Babylonian kin g
Merodah-iddin-alchi captured some of Tiglath-pilesar’s baggage, among which was his images of th e
gods which were to secure him victory . They were held for four centuries . Because of this there wa s
no intermarriages, and constant wars . Two kings later ((P 1070) the Israelite kingdom eclipsed th e
Assyrians .
It was during this period that Ahurnasirpal II (883-853) set the tone of the future kings o f
Assyria . He described the ” aim of his foreign policy in terms of his religious duty to conquer the foe s
of the national god Asshur and to impose tribute and tax upon subject peoples .” (Harper, p . 108 .)
Adad-nirari III (810-783) attacked Syria between 805 and 796 and finally conquere d
Damascus in 796 .
During the time of Solomo n’s reign the Assyrian royal women were intermarrying with th e
Egyptian 22nd dynasty kings .
At the end of the second period Assyria is in a decline morally and politically . The king an d
the people, to escape the despair of their situation, are given to drunkenness and laziness . It is likel y
that in this time of demise a curious stranger entered the city crying out, ” Forty days and Nineve h
will be overthrown .” The book of Jonah records how the people from the king to the most humbl e
subject repented in sackloth and ashes . God raised Assyria from the ashes to work on His behalf, t o
bring punishment of Israel for faithlessness and spiritual adultery .
GO~l New Assyrian Empir 77
During Ahaz-c reign, Tiglath-pileser III (744-727) defeated a coalition of forces from Mt .
Ararat (the Uratians) to Syria and captured Arpad in 740 . He marched south in 738 and took th e
coast around Anad and the area north of Hamath . Israel, under Mennahem, and Damascus, as wel las other countries paid a tribute . In the Bible Tiglath-pileser III is known as Pul . 2 Kings 15 :17-2 1
12 Kings 15:23-26 - The reign of Pekahiahj ,~~G,,rA _
He had a short two year reign before being slain by the captain of his guard, Pekah, in Samaria. He was evil as the kings before him
In 734 Pul moved against Philistia and took Gaza and reached the Wadi of Egypt . he mad ealliances with many of the Arab leaders . Damascus, under Rezin, and Israel, under Pekah, forme d
and anti-Assyrian alliance with some of the cities to the north and the city of Ashkelon . Ahaz woul dnot join with the alliance and called for Assyria’s helf, against their attacks on him . 2 King’s 15 .27-2 9
f2 Kings 15 :32-38; 2 Chronicles 27 .-.1-9 -The reign of Jotham -
During Pekah’s reign Jotham became king of Judah . He reigned sixteen years and did wha t
was right other than leaving the high places . The people still followed the corrupt practice o f
sacrificing and burning incence on the high places .
He reinforced the wall in Jerusalem and built cities in the hill country, and put forts an d
towers on the wooded hills . He reinforced Judah well which was needed in this turbulent time .
Judah was small amidst her enemies . He fought and defeated the Ammonites who paid him a heav y
tribute for three years . The reason for his strength is that ” he ordered his ways before the Lord .”
When he died, Ahaz, his son, reigned in his stead .
WKings 16 :1-5-2 ~Chrronicles 28:1-151
Ahaz took ttie throne in the seventeenth year of Pekah’s reign . He was a wicked king wh o
offered to the Baals, offered his sons in the valley of Hinnom (likely to Molech) and sacrificed on th e
high places and under every green tree . Because of his wickedness God brought the Syrians agains t
him who defeated him and took a great number captive to Damascus . Israel also delivered a
devastating blow to Judah killing 120,000 men of valor in one day and several of the key governmen t
officials were killed . The kings son was also killed . Israel took 200,000 captive to Samaria but Obed ,
a prophet, warned them to take Judah home or suffer great punishment from God . They ” already ha d
sins of their own ” and should not bring any more of the wrath of God on them . This they did, takin g
the people back to Jericho . During this time Edoni took Elath back and drove Judah from there .
.~ f
Assyria did come in 3n73 and renewed the authority over Tyre and Ashkelon an d
defeated the coalition . the region of Dor, Megiddo, and Gilead were made into Assyrian provinces .
Pekah was deposed and the rest of Israel placed under Hoshea . Damascus was conquered and pu t
directly under Assyrian rule . Parts of the Israeli and Syrian population were deported and peopl e
from other areas were brought in to resettle the area .
Resettlement of conquered peoples was a common practice of the Assyrians . They would b e
able to avert potential problems by displacing people .from familiar surroundings . They would ceas e
to be able to identify with their former territory and would have to adjust to the new land . Thi s
practice continued with the Babylonian empire that followed .
12 Kings 16 :6-20, 2 Chronicles 28 :16-27 1
It was during this time that Ahaz visited Damascus and added a new god to his portfolio . H e
saw the altar in Damascus, when meeting with Tiglath-pileser, and sent to U .riah the priest to make .
him an altar just like it . He figured that he could call on the strength of the Syrian gods to help him .
He moved the altar of God and put this abomination in its place . He changed the way of worship an d
many of the articles of the temple complex . He shut up the doors of the house of the Lord and put hi s
own altars up around Jerusalem . God made the king ; of Assyria afflict him instead of helping him ,
Ahaz became more faithless to the Lord in his distress instead of coming to Hinz . When Ahaz died h ewas not buried in the tombs of the kings .
After Tiglath-pileser’s success in Palestine he returned to quell a revolt in Babylonia . In 72 9he achieved victory .
12 Kings 18 :1-8 ; 2 Chronicles 29 :1-31 :211
Shalmaneser V (726-722) had internal problems in Assur, the capital, enabling Egypt t o
become a stronger influence in Palestine . Hoshea, an Assyrian appointee, transferred allegience t o
Egypt for which Assyria sent an army against Israel . They beseiged Samaria for 2 years and it fell i n
722 . Israel was made into a province called Samerina and the deportation and repopulation too k
place . 12 Kings 17 .•1-41; 18 :9-12 1
The year after Samaria was captured Sargon (721-705) ascended the Assyrian throne ,
Babylonia was in revolt, the Umatians to the north were attempting to throw off’ the yoke an d
Hamath led rebellions in Phoenicia, Philistia, Arpad, Damascus and Syria . These were supported b y
Egypt in their revolt . Sargon was relatively powerless against Babylonia although they could no t
advance against him . Sargon invaded the Uratian territory in 714 after he quelled the revolt i n
Palestine in 720 .
In 716 he drove as far as the river of Egypt and built a fortress there . In M he returned t o
stop a disturbance in Palestine and conquered Ashdod, the ringleader of the rebellion that incite d
many of the Palestinian states to revolt .
When Sargon died there was wide revolt in the empire, among them was Hezekiah of Juda h
and Merodach-baladan of Babylonia .
Sennacherib (704681) took the throne and atracked Babylonia first . He defeate d
Merodach-baladan and put a Babylonian nobleman on the throne . He then turned to attack Hezekia h
in 701, who by this time had gathered other Palestinian neighbors for the revolt . Egypt als o
supported the revolt and gave Judah assurance that they would help . Hezekiah prepared for th e
Assyrians and a probable seige by preparing a water supply [2 Chronicles 32 :2-81