The Fall of Samaria
Abstract
The fall of Samaria is narrated in 2 Kings 17. The cuneiform inscriptions dealing with this event are prima facie contradictory: the conquest is ascribed to both Shalmaneser V and Sargon II. The surmise of H. Tadmor that Samaria was conquered twice is investigated. At the same time the events are interpreted in their socio-historical framework. Tadmor's assumption cannot be falsified, although his theory should be modified as regards the date of the first conquest: 723 B.C.E. The fall of Samaria can be interpreted as an inevitable result of the expansion of the Assyrian Empire in combination with internal struggles in Israel. Evidence of deportation reveals that deportees were treated as normal citizens. Thorough discussion of the sources and their interpretation is a feature of this book.
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“…by his son Manasseh, who either ascended the throne after his father's death, or was a coregent for about ten years (for the conflicting dates see Thiele 1965:118-161; Gons:alves 1986:52-58, with earlier literature; Cogan and Tadmor 1988:216,228,260-263; Becking 1992: 47-56; Na'aman 1994:236-239).”
BackgroundThe Neo‐Assyrian Period (ca. 1000–609 bce )
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“…the Chronicler’s work must be carefully distinguished from that of the Deuteronomists, who posit a massive Assyrian deportation of the residents of the northern kingdom as well as a major influx of immigrants from other parts of the Assyrian empire into Samaria (2 K.gs. 17:1-24; see Becking 1992).”
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“Such a reconstruction of events was unreservedly accepted by other scholars (e.g. Kaplan 1959, 66, 71; Wright 1985, 212; Mitchell 1991, 336; Becking, 1992, 59).”
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“They undertook a policy of bi-directional deportation, in which thousands of inhabitants of Samaria and its vicinity were deported, and new populations were introduced into the region (Tadmor 1958; Becking 1992; Park 2012).”
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“The western Samaria region in the Neo-Assyrian period the Kingdom of Israel was devastated during the last third of the 8th century BCE (Becking 1992; Dever 2007; Bagg 2013: 123).”
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“1.7 cm; Crowfoot and Gurney 1957: 87, no. 18, pl. 15, nos 18a – b, reading by Gurney; Becking 1992: 113 – 14, no. 3; Horowitz et al. 2018: 117 – 18, 217, with references to further literature), a steatite cylinder seal, bears an extensive votive text, while Wingate 1 (IAA 60-1355; Tadmor and Tadmor…”
Influential
- Authors
- Becking, B.
- Corresponding author
- Becking, Bob
- ORCID
- Becking, Bob
- Venue
- BRILL eBooks
- Publisher
- BRILL
- Published
- 1992-01-01
- OpenAlex
- W4389011673
- Semantic Scholar
- b81bc8392587bc516d7ab9da84e5ba541f40febb
- Cited by
- 65
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 2 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 8.29
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- BRILL eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Biblical Studies and Interpretation
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Ancient Near East History
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Ancient Egypt and Archaeology
- Keywords
- cuneiform inscription, Sargon II, Assyrian conquest of Samaria, deportation, Kingdom of Israel, biblical historiography
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