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Sack of Jerusalem (925 BC)
Encyclopedia
The Sack of Jerusalem is an incident described in the bible's First Book of Kings, and, with some differences, in the Second Book of Chronicles.
According to these sources it took place in the 5th year of the reign of Rehoboam
, following the death of his father, Solomon
. This event has been variously dated to between 926 and 917 BC.
The Egyptian pharaoh
Shishaq raided the Kingdom of Judah
with his allies, including the Kush
ites, with the result that a number of hill towns were taken and Jerusalem sacked. Shishaq took away treasures of the temple
of Yahweh
and the king's house, as well as shields of gold which Solomon had made; Rehoboam replaced them with bronze ones.
. Shishaq did not destroy Jerusalem, but forced Rehoboam
the king of Judah to strip the temple of its gold and movable treasures.
, in Upper Egypt
, and similar reliefs on the walls of a small temple of Amun
at el-Hibeh, show the pharaoh, Shoshenq I (Shishaq), holding in his hand a bound group of prisoners. The names of captured towns are located primarily in the territory of the kingdom of Israel
(including Megiddo), with a few listed in the Negeb, and perhaps Philistia. Some of these include a few of the towns that Rehoboam had fortified according to Chronicles
According to these sources it took place in the 5th year of the reign of Rehoboam
Rehoboam
Rehoboam was initially king of the United Monarchy of Israel but after the ten northern tribes of Israel rebelled in 932/931 BC to form the independent Kingdom of Israel he was king of the Kingdom of Judah, or southern kingdom. He was a son of Solomon and a grandson of David...
, following the death of his father, Solomon
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
. This event has been variously dated to between 926 and 917 BC.
The Egyptian pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
Shishaq raided the Kingdom of Judah
Kingdom of Judah
The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
with his allies, including the Kush
Kingdom of Kush
The native name of the Kingdom was likely kaš, recorded in Egyptian as .The name Kash is probably connected to Cush in the Hebrew Bible , son of Ham ....
ites, with the result that a number of hill towns were taken and Jerusalem sacked. Shishaq took away treasures of the temple
Solomon's Temple
Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple, was the main temple in ancient Jerusalem, on the Temple Mount , before its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar II after the Siege of Jerusalem of 587 BCE....
of Yahweh
Yahweh
Yahweh is the name of God in the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jews and Christians.The word Yahweh is a modern scholarly convention for the Hebrew , transcribed into Roman letters as YHWH and known as the Tetragrammaton, for which the original pronunciation is unknown...
and the king's house, as well as shields of gold which Solomon had made; Rehoboam replaced them with bronze ones.
Biblical narrative (1 Kings and Chronicles)
According to , Shishaq, leading an army of 60,000 horsemen and 1200 chariots, invaded Judah and sacked Jerusalem in order to assist his ally, the king of IsraelKingdom of Israel
The Kingdom of Israel was, according to the Bible, one of the successor states to the older United Monarchy . It was thought to exist roughly from the 930s BCE until about the 720s BCE, when the kingdom was conquered by the Assyrian Empire...
. Shishaq did not destroy Jerusalem, but forced Rehoboam
Rehoboam
Rehoboam was initially king of the United Monarchy of Israel but after the ten northern tribes of Israel rebelled in 932/931 BC to form the independent Kingdom of Israel he was king of the Kingdom of Judah, or southern kingdom. He was a son of Solomon and a grandson of David...
the king of Judah to strip the temple of its gold and movable treasures.
Karnak relief
A relief discovered at KarnakKarnak
The Karnak Temple Complex—usually called Karnak—comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, chapels, pylons, and other buildings, notably the Great Temple of Amun and a massive structure begun by Pharaoh Ramses II . Sacred Lake is part of the site as well. It is located near Luxor, some...
, in Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt is the strip of land, on both sides of the Nile valley, that extends from the cataract boundaries of modern-day Aswan north to the area between El-Ayait and Zawyet Dahshur . The northern section of Upper Egypt, between El-Ayait and Sohag is sometimes known as Middle Egypt...
, and similar reliefs on the walls of a small temple of Amun
Amun
Amun, reconstructed Egyptian Yamānu , was a god in Egyptian mythology who in the form of Amun-Ra became the focus of the most complex system of theology in Ancient Egypt...
at el-Hibeh, show the pharaoh, Shoshenq I (Shishaq), holding in his hand a bound group of prisoners. The names of captured towns are located primarily in the territory of the kingdom of Israel
Kingdom of Israel
The Kingdom of Israel was, according to the Bible, one of the successor states to the older United Monarchy . It was thought to exist roughly from the 930s BCE until about the 720s BCE, when the kingdom was conquered by the Assyrian Empire...
(including Megiddo), with a few listed in the Negeb, and perhaps Philistia. Some of these include a few of the towns that Rehoboam had fortified according to Chronicles