Sancheriv's Campaign and Assyrian Sources/0

Sancheriv's Campaign and Assyrian Sources

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Overview

The story of Sancheriv's campaign against Yehuda is one of the most documented events in Tanakh.  Both Biblical and Assyrian sources speak of the attack

Biblical Sources

Tanakh discusses Sancheriv's campaign at length in Melakhim II 18-19, Yeshayahu 36-37, and Divrei HaYamim II 32.  Many other chapters throughout the first half of Yeshayahu also allude to the threat,¹ as does Mikhah.²

• Melakhim II  – The account in Melakhim is the fullest of the three sources, sharing how Chizkiyahu rebelled against Assyria, leading Sancheriv to retaliate in the fourteenth year of Chizkiyahu's reign. Sancheriv captured the fortified cities of Yehuda, prompting Chizkiyahu to send him a large tribute so that he would not attack Yerushalayim. For unknown reasons, the tribute did not have the desired effect³ and emissaries of Sancheriv returned to the city to convince the people to surrender.⁴  Chizkiyahu prays and Yeshayahu tells him not to fear, for Sancheriv will return to his land and die there. Though a brief respite is granted when the Assyrians are forced to deal with a Kushite threat, the Assyrians promise to return.  A second prayer leads to miraculous intervention as an angel strikes the Assyrian camp, killing 185,000 people and causing them to retreat.
• Yeshayahu – Yeshayahu's version of the campaign is almost identical to that of Melakhim, leaving out only the discussion of Chizkiyahu's original tribute. Other passages in the book further highlight the destruction wrought by Assyria or speak of the miraculous salvation, though Sancheriv himself is not explicitly mentioned.⁵ 
• Divrei HaYamim II – The account in Divrei HaYamim, though relatively brief,⁶ provides information regarding Chizkiyahu's preparations for Sancheriv's attack that is lacking in the other Biblical sources. Chizkiyahu fortified the city walls, made shields and weapons, appointed military captains and encouraged his soldiers. His most well known act is his plugging of the springs outside the city and diverting the water through "Chizkiyahu's tunnel"⁷ to ensure that the enemy could not benefit from the water⁸ while  Israel could sustain itself throughout a prolonged siege. 

Extra-Biblical Sources

Sancheriv's campaign is well documented in Assyrian sources, as it is described in detail in the Assyrian annals and also portrayed pictorially in the Lakhish reliefs found in the palace of Nineveh.  Archaeological evidence provides further evidence of the campaign:

• Assyrian Annals – Copies of Sancheriv's annals have been preserved on three monumental prisms⁹ known as the the Taylor Prism,¹⁰ the Jerusalem Prism,¹¹ and the Oriental Institute Prism.¹² The inscriptions are almost identical¹³ and constitute the latest and most comprehensive editions of the annals.¹⁴   According to the inscription, Sancheriv's campaign was an attempt to quell rebellions in Tzidon, Ahskelon, Ekron and Yehuda.  The four had formed a coalition against Assyria, with expectation of aid from Egypt. Chizkiyahu is mentioned in two sections.  In the context of the insurrection of Ekron, we are told that they overthrew their king, who had been a loyal vassal to Sancheriv and "handed him over to Hezekiah, the Jew" for safekeeping.  Later, Sancheriv tells of the invasion of Yehuda. He boasts of having laid siege to 46 cities, taking 200,150 captives, imprisoning Chizkiyahu in Jerusalem, and plundering the towns. He ends by describing the extensive tribute paid to him by Chizkiyahu. 
• Lakhish Relief – Sancheriv recorded his siege and victory over Lakhish, perhaps the second biggest city in Yehuda,¹⁵ in a series of wall reliefs that cover an entire room in his palace in Nineveh.¹⁶ Together they tell the story of the battle.  One panel depicts the Assyrian soldiers, some holding long spears, others armed with bows and arrows, and yet others with slingshots. Another section of the relief highlights the besieged city, depicting the ramps and battering rams used in the attack.  The relief then depicts the defeated Judeans, some dead, and others deported into exile. The Assyrians carry the looted booty, including huge goblets and even furniture. A final scene portrays Sancheriv on his throne, as prisoners bow in submission, or are executed, before him.  An inscription reads "Sennacherib, king of the world, king of Assyria, set up a throne and the booty of Lakhish passed before him."
• Excavations at Lakhish – Extensive excavations at Tel Lakhish were carried out  between 1973 and 1994¹⁷ under the direction of Prof. D. Ussishkin.  The archaeological finds from these digs provide further material evidence of the campaign.  One of the most significant finds was an Assyrian siege ramp, above which were massive fortifications.¹⁸ The ramp and defenses appear similar to the depictions on the relief,¹⁹ and attest to the severity of the attack.   Another discovery were a series of jugs whose handles contained a seal with the imprint "למלך" and date to the reign of Chizkiyahu.  Ussishkin theorizes that these were storage vessels produced by Chizkiyahu's government as part of  preparations for the Assyrian attack.²⁰ 
• Azeikah Inscription

Relationship Between the Sources

I. Reconciling Discrepancies: The Outcome of the Battle

Though the two sets of sources agree about the basic facts: Sancheriv attacked Yehuda, captured many of its cities, reached Yerushalayim and was paid a large tribute,²¹ they differ greatly regarding the outcome of the battle.  Only Tanakh records the miraculous salvation of Yehuda and defeat of the Assyrians.  The annals, in contrast, imply that Sancheriv was the victor.

Prof. H. Tadmor²² suggests that a close study of the literary structure of the annals reveals that in reality the two sources do not contradict at all: 

• Schematic  structure of the annals – Tadmor points out that the annals were written according to certain set formulas²³ in which description of conquered territories always included discussion of the same four components: 1) the fate and punishment of the enemy king, 2) the capture and destruction of the capital and other cities, 3) replacement of the king by a loyal vassal, and 4) payment of tribute.²⁴  These four elements are indeed found in Sancheriv's description of his conquest of Tzidon, Ahskelon, and Ekron, but, significantly, they are not all present in the discussion regarding Yehuda. 
• The exception: Yehuda – In the description of the attack on Yehuda, Chizkiyahu is not said to be captured or killed, only imprisoned in his royal residence, "like a bird in a cage."²⁵ There is no mention of the destruction of the capital city or of replacement by a loyal vassal, only a very elaborate description of the tribute given. Tadmor posits the obvious explanation for the unique description: Sancheriv did not portray a complete victory because there was none;  in the end Yerushalayim was not vanquished and Chizkiyahu was not ousted.
• Compensating for the missing victory – Prof. Tadmor suggests that Sancheriv found himself forced to compensate for a reality that did not match a literary formula designed to relay total victory.  He, thus, attempted to obscure the truth, playing with his formulaic structure.  Chizkiyahu is made a prisoner, but in Jerusalem. Loyal vassals are given control, but rather than replacing the king, they rule only over the smaller towns.  Most telling, though, is that Sancheriv appends to his annals an extensive and unparalleled description of the tribute paid by Yehuda,²⁶ as if listing all the material gains will hide the fact that Yerushalayim itself was not won.
• The Lakhish relief – When deciding to commemorate his campaign in pictures, Sancheriv chose to depict his conquest of Lakhish specifically. This, too, suggests that it, rather than a conquest over Yerushalayim, was his biggest victory.²⁷  As no other conquests from the campaign merit such a grand commemoration, Tadmor suggests that the entire artistic endeavor might have been an attempt to cover up the fact that Yerushalayim was not defeated.

II.Reconciling Discrepancies: Egypt's Role

A second point of contrast between the annals and Tanakh relates to the chronology of the conflict between Assyira and Egypt.  According to Tanakh, the Assyrians left to deal with the Egyptian-Ethiopian threat during their campaign against Yehuda, while the annals present Egypt-Ethiopia as intervening earlier, when Assyria was fighting the Philistines in Ekron.

• G. Galil²⁸ suggests that the contradiction is easily solved if one posits that the annals are not written chronologically, but rather topically.²⁹  The historiographer recorded the history of the campaign region by region, even though events certainly overlapped.³⁰
• Others³¹ solve the problem by suggesting that Egypt attempted to come to the aid of the coalition on two different occasions and battled against Assyria twice. 

III. Elucidating Tanakh

The Assyrian account of the campaign, together with the historical background that it provides, can shed light on certain aspects of Tanakh's narrative which are mentioned only in passing, or are otherwise obscure:

• "הוּא הִכָּה אֶת פְּלִשְׁתִּים" – Immediately after sharing that Chizkiyahu rebelled against Assyria, Melakhim shares that he smote the Philistines: "הוּא הִכָּה אֶת פְּלִשְׁתִּים עַד עַזָּה".  The text does not explain the nature of the attack nor whether it was at all related to the rebellion mentioned just beforehand.  In light of the annals, it is possible that the verse alludes to Chizkiayhu's role in the insurrection in Ekron.  Chizkiyahu appears to have been one of those organizing the coalition against Assyria. In an effort to strengthen the alliance, he helped the people of Ekron to overthrow their king who had been Sancheriv's loyal vassal, and perhaps even attacked other Philistine regions to ensure that they sided against Assyria.
• Egypt
• Lakhish
• Extent of devastation – Sefer Melakhim barely speaks of the devastation wrought on Yehuda as a whole, sharing that "עָלָה סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר עַל כׇּל עָרֵי יְהוּדָה הַבְּצֻרוֹת וַיִּתְפְּשֵׂם" but no more. Sancheriv's claim of smiting 46 cities and taking hundreds of thousands of prisoners might be hyperbolic, but it nonetheless testifies to the high degree of destruction in the country.

• birds in flight

 

¹ See notes below for examples.

² See Mikhah 1:9-14 and RadakMikhah 1:9About R. David Kimchi there.

³ Commentators raise the issue, questioning why Sancheriv would have attacked if Chizkiyahu had already submitted through the sending of tribute.  Abarbanel suggests that Sancheriv tricked Chizkiyahu, leading him to believe that a tribute would suffice, even though he always intended to quell the rebellion with force.  As such, the verses describe two stages of one campaign.  Radak, in contrast, suggests that really the verses describe two distinct events.  After the initial tribute Sancheriv was appeased, but when Chizkiyahu once again rebelled at some later date, Sancheriv returned and renewed the attack.  Modern scholars continue the debate, with some suggesting that there was but one campaign and others raising the possibility that there were two. See G. Galil, "מסע סנחריב למערב : היסטוריה והיסטוריוגראפיה", Zion 53 (1988): 1-12, and opinions cited there. See also, W. Shea, "Jerusalem Under Siege," BAR 25:6 (1999): 36-44, and M. Cogan, "Sennacherib's Siege of Jerusalem: Once or Twice?," BAR 27:1 (2007): 40-69.

⁴ The chapter discusses at length the various arguments made by Ravshakeh (Sancheriv's messenger) to dishearten the people and sway them to surrender. He tells them that their reliance on aid from Egypt is misguided, for Egypt will not be a reliable ally, and questions whether the Judeans have enough horses to battle Assyria.  He further points to Assyria's many previous conquests, suggesting that their is no reason that Yehuda's fate should differ.  He also invokes religious arguments, pointing out that he comes at the directive of Hashem.  As such, and in the light of the fact that the gods of all the other lands did not save their inhabitants, Yehuda has no reason to think they will be saved by Hashem.  In suggesting that the people submit, he alludes to Assyria's policy of deportation, telling the people: "וְלָקַחְתִּי אֶתְכֶם אֶל אֶרֶץ כְּאַרְצְכֶם".

⁵ See, for instance, Yeshayahu 7 and  Yeshayahu 8 which describe how Assyria has spread throughout Yehuda, reaching the capital: "עַד צַוָּאר יַגִּיעַ". Yeshayahu 10 speaks of Assyria's gloating and their ultimate destruction, while Yeshayahu 31 criticizes the nation's trust in the alliance with Egypt, but similarly shares that in the end: וְנָפַל אַשּׁוּר בְּחֶרֶב לֹא אִישׁ.  Though not all agree that all these verses refer to Sancheriv's campaign specifically, they nonetheless contribute to the reader's appreciation of the threat represented by Assria.
In other verses, though Assyria is not mentioned, they are likely the subject of Yeshayahu's words. Yeshayahu 1's description of the ravage done to Yehuda and Jerusalem's lone status would appear to match the era: "אַרְצְכֶם שְׁמָמָה עָרֵיכֶם שְׂרֻפוֹת אֵשׁ ... וְנוֹתְרָה בַת צִיּוֹן כְּסֻכָּה בְכָרֶם כִּמְלוּנָה בְמִקְשָׁה כְּעִיר נְצוּרָה."  Yeshayahu 29's discussion of the besieged city of Jerusalem and its miraculous salvation similarly appear to refer to Sancheriv.

⁶ It omits the discussion of Chizkiyahu's tribute and shortens the description of the Assyrian negotiations, Chizkiyahu's prayers and Yeshayahu's encouragement.

⁷ This engineering feat is also mentioned in Melakhim II 20:20 and in Yeshayahu 22:9-11. The tunnel was discovered in 1838 by E. Robinson, and is now open to the public in the City of David.  It stretches 533 meters from the Gichon Spring to the Shiloach Pool.  In 1880, an inscription was found on the walls of the tunnel which recounts how the men digging it worked from opposite directions and met in the middle. See, though, A Grossberg, "כיצד התכונן חזקיהו למצור סנחריב" inחידושים  בחקר ירושלים י"א (Ramat Gan, 2006): 113-128, who suggests that the diverting of the water and building of the tunne were distinct and that the latter only occurred later, as there was not sufficient time to do so before Chizkiyahu attacked.

⁸ See Sancheriv's boast, "אֲנִי קַרְתִּי וְשָׁתִיתִי מַיִם זָרִים" (Melakhim II 19:24), which suggests that in other battles, he did manage to benefit from his enemies' water sources.

⁹ All three prisms are hexagonal in shape, made of baked clay, and stand about one foot high. The inscriptions are written in Akkadian cuneiform.

¹⁰ The prism is currently housed in the British museum. It is named after Colonel R. Taylor who acquired it in 1830.

¹¹ This copy is found in the Israel Museum.

¹² This monument is housed in the Oriental Institute in Chicago.

¹³ The dates on the prisms attest that, despite the similarity, they were not all written at the same time, with the Jerusalem and Taylor Prisms dating to 691 BCE and the Oriental Institute Prism dating to 689 BCE.

¹⁴ There are many other copies of Sancheriv's annals, but most are fragmentary in nature.  These, in contrast, detail all eight of Sancheriv's campaigns, the third of which relates to his attack on Chizkiyahu and Yehuda. 
The earliest account of the campaign to Yehuda actually dates to 700 BCE, only a year after the battles.  It is known as the Rassam Cylinder, named after the archaeologist who discovered it in the late 1870's. [All together, four well-preserved copies of the cylinder have been found in Sancheriv's “Palace without Rival.”]  It differs mainly with regards to the description of the tribute paid by Chizkiyahu, being more extensive than the other accounts. [See discussion below.]

¹⁵ See H. Tadmor, "מלחמת סנחריב ביהודב: בחינת היסטוריוגראפיות והסטורית", Zion 50 (1985): 65-80, in the name of B. Mazar, who suggests that Lakhish was not simply a fortress city but more like a second capital. This could parallel Yizrael's status as a second capital to Shomron in the Northern Kingdom.  See also Mikhah 1:13-14 where Lakhish is second to Yerushalayim, and how Amaziah flees there in Melakhim II 14:19.

¹⁶ The reliefs were discovered by A. Layard during excavation in what is known as Sancheriv's “Palace without Rival,” in Nineveh, in the mid-late 1840's.  They are currently housed in the British Museum.

¹⁷ Two sets of prior excavations were carried, first by the British  J. Starkley in the 1930's and then by Israeli  Y. Aharoni in 1966 and 1968.

¹⁸ The ramp was found in the south-western corner of the tel, which is also the most fortified.  The walls there form a tower from which the city's defenders could fight against the Assyrians, as depicted in the relief.

¹⁹ For a discussion regarding the relationship between the relief and the archaeological excavations, see D. Ussishkin, "The ‘Lachish Reliefs’ and the City of Lachish," Israel Exploration Journal 30 (1980): 174-195.  See also D. Ussishkin, "כיבוש לכיש בידי סנחריב מלך אשור" in דרך ארץ : אבן חרס ואדם, ed. I. Zaharoni (Israel,1996).

²⁰ See his article on the site of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University, Excavations and Restoration work at Tel Lachish. Other objects found at the site include: several perforated stones, in two of which were the remains of burnt rope, many slingstones, and close to 1000 arrowheads. Ussishkin theorizes that the large stones were used by the defenders in attempts to damage the battering rams, while the other ammunition probably belonged to the Assyrians as it matches the relief's portrayal of Assyrian archers and slingers.

²¹ Surprisingly, they even record similar figures, with Melakhim mentioning 30 talents of gold and 300 talents of silver and the annals recording 30 talents of gold and 800 of silver.

²² See H. Tadmor, "מלחמת סנחריב ביהודב: בחינת היסטוריוגראפיות והסטורית", Zion 50 (1985): 65-80.

²³ Another examples of the standardized description is the fact that in all the annals the king is depicted as an epic hero, the enemy as an arrogant sinner and the conquest as a holy war.

²⁴ It is for this reason that the annals are arranged topically, by destroyed city, rather than chronologically.

²⁵ Cf. the promise of Yeshayahu that "כְּצִפֳּרִים עָפוֹת כֵּן יָגֵן י"י צְבָאוֹת עַל יְרוּשָׁלָ‍ִם."

²⁶ By the description of each of the other kingdoms conquered, Sancheriv suffices by saying, "and [I] imposed upon him tribute (due) to me."   When discussing Yehuda, on the other hand, there is an entire list of the items given in tribute, which extends for several lines in the annals, mentioning gold, silver, various gems, ivory chairs, and captives.  The Rassam cylinder, one of the earlier copies of Sancheriv's annals (dating to just 1 year after the campaign, 700 BCE) contains an even more extensive list of the tribute, adding clothing, chariots, shields, and various weapons.

²⁷ If the capital had in fact been destroyed, one would have thought that it, rather than Lakhish, would have been the subject of the relief.

²⁸ See article cited above. 

²⁹ In this he follows H. Tadmor (in his article cited above), who suggests that the main criteria in organizing the annals was the fourfold literary structure mentioned above.  This necessitated telling the story region by region and not chronologically.  He brings several examples where it seems clear that the annals are not chornological. Though the annals depict Sidqia, king of Ashkelon as being exiled before his cities are vanquished, it is much more likely that this only happened afterwards. Similarly, it is very probably that Chizkiyahu did not release Adi to be reinstated as king over Ekron until he, too, was forced to submit to Assyria, even though the annals suggest otherwise.

³⁰ G. Galil suggests that Assyi9ra's victory over Egypt waso nly partial.

³¹ See K. Kitchen, The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (Warminster, 1973): 383ff, (cited by G. Galil).