Bible Timeline Poster – Page 11 – Amazing Bible Timeline with World History

Posted on January 9, 2013October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — 1 Comment

Syria Governs Judah

Syria is an ancient Middle Eastern land that has been possessed by many foreign rulers all throughout its long history. Originally the territory of Syria was known as Elba, which was a city-state that was built up into a powerful kingdom. Various nomadic peoples such as the Canaanites, Phoenicians and Arameans all migrated into Syria until 2000 B.C. In time empires and kingdoms such as the Sumerians, Egyptians, Assyrians, Hittites and Babylonians all occupied Syria. Eventually, the Persians had taken over this territory and after Alexander the Great had passed away one of his former generals named Seleucus eventually dominated Syria. He established his capital in the ancient city of Antioch which was also a part of the Syrian territory. Syria was just one of a few provinces that were controlled by the Seleucid Empire. The Seleucid rule of Syria lasted a little over 200 years starting in 305 B.C. that is where it appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with world history. The rule ended when the Romans made it a part of their empire in 64 B.C.

The land of Judea had become a part of the Seleucid Empire after it was divided up by Alexander the Great generals. The city of Jerusalem was the capital of ancient Judah. Once Judah had been taken over the Seleucids, it too remained a part of their territory up until they gained their independence in the Maccabee revolt.

The King, who ruled Syria or the Seleucid Empire during this era, was Antioch II Theos. His rule lasted between 261 B.C. and 246 B.C. Around 254 B.C. Antiochus II Theos was intermittently fighting an ongoing war against a rival Greek dynasty known as the Ptolemy. During this period he ruled Judah in a relatively peaceful manner.

One of the customary things to do when an empire or kingdom conquered a territory was to allow it to continue in its way of life. The Greeks used this practice and as long as a conquered territory paid its prescribed tribute and didn’t rebel the territory was left alone. There were governors or officials placed into these conquered territories, but many of them were put there just to remind the people that they were being dominated by a foreign ruler.

Antiochus II Theos was not that concerned with the Jews during his reign. He allowed them to worship as they pleased and to live in the manner that they were accosted. He didn’t try to change their ways or to force them to accept foreign gods. The Greek historian Josephus claimed that he had given citizenship rights to the Jews who lived foreign Greek cities. The people who lived in Jerusalem didn’t have any objection to King Antiochus II Theos rule. Though they did not want to be ruled by any foreign power, they didn’t necessarily believe that Antiochus II Theos was a terrible monarch. Once Antiochus II Theos had passed away in 246 B.C., another Seleucid ruler became king. His name was Antiochus III though he treated the Jews respectably he also set the stage for Antiochus IV, who would come to wreak havoc on Judeans.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Syria
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiochus_II_Theos
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0002_0_01155.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ebla_clay_tablet.jpg

Posted on December 20, 2012August 13, 2015 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Antiochus II of Seleucid Empire

King Antiochus II of the Seleucid Dynasty was the third ruler of this particular line of kings. He was born to King Antiochus I Soter in 286 B.C. which is where he appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History. He was named King Antiochus II Theos or “god” during the second Syrian war that erupted during his reign. During the struggle with Egypt, he encountered a tyrant named Timarchus who was harassing a group of people known as the Milesians.

While King Antiochus II Theos was in power he had to deal with a number of problems within his empire. Most of these problems were created from the minor kings and governors who continued to rebel and keep intrigue within their courts. Some governors managed to pull away from his empire such as Andragoras who ruled over Parthia. Another governor named Diodotus led another one of his provinces named Bactria into revolt. While these events were occurring King Antiochus II Theos was engaged in a war with the Egyptian Ptolemies over the land of Syria. He eventually made peace with the ruling Ptolemy and turned his attention back to the rebellions. When he did it was too late because Parthia had become an independent kingdom that cut off India from his empire.

King Antiochus II didn’t spend a lot of time trying to regain lost territory. He knew that his forces couldn’t contain every last area of the empire. He ensured that the areas that were situated in Asia Minor and Syria were under his control. King Antiochus II already realized that it would have been a waste of time and manpower to try and contain all of the growing unrest throughout every last part of his empire.

Antiochus_II_of_Seleucid_Empire — Coin of Antiochus II

While he was losing parts of his empire he had to marry the daughter of Ptolemy II Philadelphus as an act of good faith for the treaty. This marriage proved to be problematic for the king since he was already married to Laodice I. So he divorced her and banished her to Asia Minor. The rejected Queen did everything that she could in order to regain her position. King Antiochus II couldn’t do anything about this situation until Ptolemy II Philadelphus had died. Once Ptolemy died King Antiochus II divorced his daughter Berenice and went back to Laodice I who ended up poisoning the king. She also killed Berenice and their son. She then placed her son Seleucus II on the throne.

The Seleucid Empire began to go into decline under King Antiochus II Theos. He wasn’t able to keep effective rule over the area and this wasn’t totally his fault. Many of the people that were conquered by the Greeks wanted to be free from these rulers. They were sick and tired of the constant warfare that was occurring between the Greek monarchs. The Greeks allowed the conquered lands to live as they have always done in the past, but most of these people wanted to be free from Greek authority. They had been rebelling long before King Antiochus II Theo took over the throne and their rebellion would become a lot more apparent in the immediate years following his reign.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiochus_II_Theos
http://www.livius.org/am-ao/antiochus/antiochus_ii_theos.html
http://www.seleucid-genealogy.com/Antiochus_II.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AntiochusII.jpg

Posted on December 8, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Socrates of Greece

Greek philosopher Socrates is considered one of the greatest philosophers in all of history. He lived from 470 BC to 399 BC (which is where he appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History.)

Ancient Greece was an important culture to the mindset of modern western societies. In ancient times, the Greeks developed systems of law, government, and philosophy that still influence the world today. Government processes such as democracy were introduced to the world through the ancient Greeks, and so were philosophical thoughts and processes. Greece produced some of the best philosophers the world has ever seen, and Socrates is one of the greatest.

He was born in the city-state of Athens around 470 B.C., and he wasn’t born into wealth or privilege. Historical records aren’t clear about Socrates, but they claim that he was given some form of education since he was literate and an excellent orator. When Socrates was a young adult man he worked as a stone cutter and he also was a military veteran. Socrates apparently fought in the Peloponnesian War and lived through the ordeal. Once his military service was over, he married a woman named Xanthippe. This marriage must have occurred when Socrates was a middle-aged man because records indicate that Xanthippe was much younger than Socrates. She was not only younger than the old philosopher, but she was also a fiery spirited woman who could be shrewd and cunning. She bore him three children and their names were Lamprocles, Sophonicrus, and Menexenus.

Socrates young wife represented an aspect of his life that would bring about his demise. His wit, humor, social skills and ability to speak well had captivated the youth of his day. Though he was a much older man, he managed to gain the acceptance, admiration and respect of the younger generation. When he was being tried for his death, his accusers claimed that he corrupted the youth of society with his speech.

Socrates had become known throughout Athenian society for his productions as well as his oratory skills. He created many satirical plays that were well received in the theater. Socrates was also a senator in Athens and he was very popular with his peers as well as with the public. He had served for many years before he left this position to develop his philosophical ideology.

Socrates never tried to create a new way of thinking or a new set of ideology or principles about life. Instead, he had developed the ability to break everything down to its basic core to expose it for what it really was. Socrates questioned things to their core and his ability to reduce ideas, traditions and patterns of thoughts to their core forced many people to rethink their beliefs, morality and how they view the world. Socrates claimed that knowledge is true to all but the belief is only limited to an individual.

This particular view was dangerous to the mindset of the ruling class of ancient Athens. What Socrates proposed through his philosophy method was that the systems and traditions that were in place in ancient Athens was not valid or that they could be easily dismissed with some given thought. Most people accept their government, laws and way of life without question. Socrates was actually causing many people to reconsider their view of ancient Athenian society or at the very least they seriously began to question these systems.

Eventually, the ruling members were fed up with Socrates and the philosophical method that he used to discredit the gods and myths on which Greek society was established. They decided to execute him and eventually he was tried and put to death. Socrates developed his philosophical style in the marketplace among the everyday people that passed him by throughout the course of a day. Though he was pretty stable for at least half of his life, he died a broken man. He spent so much time philosophizing in the marketplace that he didn’t work. He also had some very important students who also played an important part in developing modern western thought. Plato was one of his best-known students, and most of what is known about Socrates is derived from Plato and a few of pupils. He died in 399 B.C.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socrates
http://www.coedu.usf.edu/culture/Story/Story_Greece_Socrates.htm
http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/People/Socrates/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Socrates_Louvre.jpg

Posted on November 29, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Malachi, Bible Prophet

The life of the Jewish prophet Malachi is shrouded in mystery and silence. Malachi prophesied sometime between 445 BC and 425 B.C to the people of Jerusalem which is where he appears on the Bible Timeline Poster. There isn’t any known reliable source outside Tanakh or the Bible that explains his background or details from the life of the prophet Malachi. To the Christians, he is considered the last prophet before the arrival of John the Baptist and the Messiah Jesus Christ. The Jews consider him the last prophet of the Tanakh. Historians and scholars could not figure out with certainty if Malachi were a priest or just a common man that God had chosen to warn the new Jewish community about their sins.

He spoke to the Jewish community that had returned to the land of Judah to rebuild the temple under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah. There are some scholars who believe that he had to have been a part of the prophets, priests or scribes that were led by Ezra. Malachi is considered a minor prophet simply because there wasn’t a lot of information about his life printed in the Tanakh or the Bible.

After the Israelites had been finally able to return home, they managed to rebuild the temple and to resettle Jerusalem. At first there was great joy and enthusiasm when they first arrived home but they soon became discouraged. The people were glad to be back in their homeland once again, but they wanted to be free from Persian rule and to have a great kingdom like they did in the days of kings David and Solomon. When this didn’t happen many of the people began to believe that God no longer cared about them. As a result, they started to sin again.

In the past, the kingdoms of Israel and Judah went into exile because of idolatry. This time around they had fallen into the sin of not honoring and respecting God. Idolatry wasn’t a big issue, but the people of Judah were now intermarrying with foreign women, robbing God of his tithes and not faithfully teaching the law.

Malachi rebukes the people in the opening chapter of the book for not realizing that God loved them even if he doesn’t show it by blessing the nation with independence and great power. Malachi then goes on to reveal to the people of Judah that God will judge his people before he deals with other nations. Malachi also explains to the people of Judah that they rob God when they don’t give him the proper tithes and offerings. Malachi uses a series of questions and answers at the beginning of some the chapters within the book so that they could understand how they were sinning toward God.

Malachi closes out his prophetic messages in chapter 4 of the book by revealing to the people of Judah that God will ultimately deal harshly with the wicked, and the righteous will be spared judgment. He then says that the prophet Elijah will come back and preach before the coming Day of Judgment from the Lord.

In the Torah and the Bible Malachi is considered the last prophet that God used to warn the people about their sins. Christians believe that the period between Malachi and Jesus Christ was used to prepare the world for his arrival. Jewish people believe that God no longer would use any more prophets to warn the people of their sins, and they still wait for the Messiah’s return.

Biblical References:

Malachi 2: 1 – 9 Malachi reveals how the people do not faithfully teach the law.
Malachi 2: 10 – 16 Malachi expresses how God is against their intermarriages to foreign women and how he hates them divorcing their wives.
Malachi 3: 6 – 12 Malachi exposes how some of the Jewish people were trying to rob God by not paying tithing correctly.

References:
http://www.biblegateway.com/
http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1678766/jewish/Who-Was-the-Prophet-Malachi.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Malachi
http://malachi.jesusanswers.com/
http://www.biblestudytools.com/malachi/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Duccio_di_Buoninsegna_066.jpg

Posted on November 17, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Confucius

Confucius was an ancient Chinese philosopher who forever revolutionized Chinese ideology, culture, and society. His philosophies were so influential to the Chinese mindset that his way of thinking had influenced Chinese generations for thousands of years as well as many other people who exist in other parts of the world.

Confucius was born in 551 B.C. which is where he appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History. He lived during the Zhou Dynasty of China. Confucius began his philosophical journey in the early adult years of his life. He was employed as a shepherd, a cow herder, a bookkeeper and as a clerk. Confucius eventually became a teacher and was able to start instructing people with the wisdom that was a natural part of his character.

He eventually became a governor of a town and by 505 B.C. he was selected to be a minister of crime. Confucius was involved in politics and influenced the ruling Chinese leaders of the day to move the country toward a centralized government. He also had followers who helped to spread his philosophical ideas.

Due to problems with the ruling officials of his land Confucius eventually left his post and traveled around to other kingdoms spreading his philosophies but the rulers of the time were not interested in using them to govern their affairs. Confucius eventually returned home when he was an old man and spent the remaining years of his life passing on his wisdom and knowledge to his followers.

Confucius had a wife named Qi Guan and a child that he dearly loved, but he abandoned them at an early age in order to devote himself to his philosophical works. His mother died when he was 23 years old and his father was a well-known military commander who died sometime after her passing. This great philosopher never thought of himself as a religious leader or great teacher; he did his best to teach people about how they should look to the ancient Chinese philosophers, scholars and wise men who were already established in history.

His philosophies touched on almost every major subject that is a part of people’s lives. These include religion, government, economics, morality, and culture. Confucius put people above everything else and many modern scholars consider his teachings to be humanistic. Confucius’ followers considered him a model for humanity that all humans should strive to emulate. This is because Confucius didn’t teach a set of abstract principles or from the position of a deity.

The concept of Li was another Confucian idea and it stressed performing actions that were associated with sacrifice to ancestors and deities, social and political institutions and etiquette of daily behavior. He promoted government that ruled through people’s natural rights and morality. He also believed that if a ruler governed correctly they would never need to issue orders because people would naturally adhere to him because he is directing them from the righteous and truth based position.

After Confucius died in 497 B.C. his followers continued to promote his teachings. In time, his ideas became known as Analects. His students used his teachings to develop different types of political and social theories. Some of Confucius’ followers were killed at different times in history because his teachings conflicted with the ruling ideology of the day and other times his books were burned or prohibited. Still many Chinese governments and societies considered Confucius to be one of the best philosophers and wisest men to have ever existed in the history of China and the Earth.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucius#Early_life
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/confucius/
http://www.iep.utm.edu/confuciu/
http://academics.hamilton.edu/asian_studies/home/culttemp/index.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Confucius_Tang_Dynasty.jpg

Posted on November 8, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Oracle of Delphos

The Oracle of Delphos was a series of female prophets that have used by ancient Greek people to foretell future events. The Oracle was especially popular during the seventh century BC that is where it appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History.

There are varying historical accounts about how the Delphos Oracle came into existence. About 1400 B.C. a Greek herder named Coretas realized that his flock was acting strangely once he took them near a chasm that was close to Mt. Parnassus. As Coretas neared the chasm, he began to feel strange, and he realized that he could see into the past and more importantly into the future. Coretas was puzzled by what was happening to him, but he realized that a strange vapor was coming from the chasm, and he attributed this vapor as the presence of a Greek deity. Coretas told many people in his nearby village about his experience. They started to travel to the chasm to experience the same thing, and some of them lost their lives when they entered into a trance-like a state.

Apparently a few individuals lost control of their mental faculties and fell into the chasm. So the villagers built a tripod over the chasm and elected one person to become a prophet. The first person that was chosen to be an oracle was a young virgin woman from their village. This young virgin woman soon found her a suitor and ran away with him. The villagers established a new set of rules for oracles. All oracles had to be at least fifty years old and dedicated to their duty as a prophetess to the gods.

The oracles of Delphos were also known as Pythia, and they were considered priestesses of the Greek god Apollo. Historians also claim that they served Apollo and Dionysus with some speculation about Poseidon. In time the inhabitants who resided near the Oracle built up a bank, a temple, constructed a sacred spring and formed a shrine near the temple. Once the area near the temple was settled many people from all over Greece began to come to the temple to hear the oracle’s prophesies and revelations.

Religious rites were set up for the adherents of Apollo, who worshiped at the temple near Delphi. The priests and priestesses set up temple rites that had to be followed by the Oracle and visitors to the temple. The Pythia demanded payment for her prophesies. People had paid the Delphi temple in gold, silver and other goods. They also were required to bring animals for the purpose of sacrificing them to the gods. People had to draw lots to see who would go first with seeing the oracles, but individuals who could afford to pay an extremely large amount of money would usually end up being the first in line. The huge amount of money that was being made by this spectacle helped the people of Delphos to start one of the first major banking centers in the world. People asked the oracle about the best time to plant their crops or if they would ever find true love. Rulers and governing officials wanted to know if they would win wars or if disease and famine would ruin their kingdoms and empires.

People visited the oracle from all over Greece and other areas of the world such as Egypt, Rome, Mesopotamia and the Middle East. Scholars had gathered into the area near Delphos to exchange knowledge about the oracle’s interpretation and current affairs or intellectual information. The practice of the Oracle continued for many years up until the 4th century A.D. About this time Christianity had spread far and wide, and it had affected the lives of many Greek people. The Oracle of Delphos and its temple practices conflicted with the Christian belief system, so Catholic leaders had the temple shut down because of its pagan rituals. The Oracle of Delphi was never prophesized again once the temple was finally closed at the demands of the Catholic Church.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythia http://www.pbs.org/empires/thegreeks/background/7_p1.html http://ehistory.osu.edu/world/articles/articleview.cfm?aid=8 http://www.coastal.edu/ashes2art/delphi2/misc-essays/oracle_of_delphi.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Collier-priestess_of_Delphi.jpg

Posted on October 29, 2012June 21, 2021 by Margaret Hunter — 35 Comments

Belshazzar Babylonian King

King Belshazzar was either the son or grandson of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and he was the last Babylonian king to rule the throne before the Persians conquered the kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar was his father and after he had passed away Belshazzar became the next king. Some accounts claim that Belshazzar was the son of a ruler named Nabonidus who gained power over Babylon after he married one of Nebuchadnezzar’s daughters called Nitorcris. Once Nabonidus ruled Babylon he decided to make the moon god Sin the chief deity. This caused him some serious problems because the officials, priests, and the people recognized Marduk as their patron god. Nabonidus had to leave Babylon in order to save his life and while he was gone his son Belshazzar ruled as the crown prince. In this account, Belshazzar began acting as regent in the absence of his father around 553 B.C.

Belshazzar’s reign as king (not when he was acting in his father’s stead) was incredibly brief and he only ruled two years before the Persians took over Babylon in 539 B.C. He appears on the Bible Timeline Poster right before the fall of Babylon. The Bible says that King Belshazzar was feasting with a thousand of his nobles and he decided to allow them to drink from the golden cups that were taken from God’s temple by Nebuchadnezzar during his reign. As the kings drank the wine they began to praise the gods of gold, silver and other materials. Then out of nowhere a human hand appeared and wrote a message on a wall near the king and his nobles while they feasted.

Belshazzar,Last_Babylonian_King — Belshazzar sees the writing

When Belshazzar saw this he became very frightened to the point that he turned pale.
Belshazzar summoned his wise men to figure out the message that was written on the wall. The wise men were not able to figure out what was happening so the Queen summoned Daniel because she remembered how he had helped Nebuchadnezzar with his troubling dreams and visions many years ago. Daniel interpreted the inscription “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin” which basically meant that God has numbered Belshazzar’s days and that the kingdom was going to be overrun by the Persians. King Belshazzar gave Daniel many rewards, but he died later on that night when the Persians attacked the Babylonian city.

The Bible doesn’t go into detail about how the Persians conquered Babylon it just states that they killed King Belshazzar after the handwriting on the wall had occurred. Historical records indicate that Nabonidas had come back to the city of Babylon to defend it from the mighty Persian army that was moving from the east. King Nabonidas then marched a Babylonian force to intercept the Persians, but they were unsuccessful with stopping this army. The Persians under King Darius marched into Babylon during the night of Belshazzar’s feast and took the city.

Since Belshazzar only ruled Babylon for two years there is very little information about the things he did while he was in authority. He seems to have been a stable and well liked ruler but many historians have not put out a lot of information about his policies or the things he did for the kingdom of Babylon while he was in power. His name means “Baal protects the king”.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belshazzar
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2846-belshazzar
http://www.christiananswers.net/dictionary/belshazzar.html

Posted on October 17, 2012September 24, 2015 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Shalmaneser Assyrian Ruler

Shalmaneser was the son of Tiglath-Pileser III and he ruled Assyria from 727 to 722 B.C., which is where he appears on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History. This particular king came to power after Tiglath-Pileser had passed away. His birth name was Ululayu, and he later changed it to Shalmanezer.

During the reign of Shalmaneser, he conquered the northern tribes of Israel. God allowed this Assyrian king to judge his people for their sin of idolatry. When Shelmanezer went up against Israel, he defeated King Hoshea.

This particular king was considered an evil ruler by God, but the Lord also says that he wasn’t as wicked as many of the Israeli rulers before him. After defeating Israel, Shalmaneser allowed King Hoshea to stay in power as long as he paid him tribute. King Hoshea went along with King Shalmanezer’s demands, but the Israeli monarch eventually rebelled against Assyria.

King Hoshea tried to form a secret alliance with Pharaoh So of Egypt. While Hoshea formed this alliance, he didn’t pay any tribute to King Shalmaneser. The Assyrian rulers then put him in chains and carried him away to prison. King Hoshea ruled Israel for 9 years before he was imprisoned. The Assyrian king decided to march the Israelites back to Assyria or other parts of his empire. He placed them in areas such as Harbor, Gozan, and Medes. These areas would have been in places such as modern-day Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia.

King Shalmaneser then transported peoples from other parts of his empire such as Babylon and Hamath and placed them in various Israeli cities such as Samaria. After King Shalmaneser placed these people inside of Samaria God had to send lions against some of these people because they would not obey him. The Assyrian king then authorized a priest to go back to Israel to teach the people about God. Instead of turning completely away from idol worship the people continued to pray to pagan gods while worshipping the Lord. They even designated priests to lead them in the worship of foreign deities.

God told the people that if they feared him and worshiped him alone he would deliver them from their enemies, but the people didn’t listen. They continued to worship other gods, and they taught their children to do the same thing for many generations. God had used a foreign ruler to help get his people to get back in line with his truth. He allowed these rulers to use extreme measures to get the people to come to their senses. Some of the people did respond to God’s methods of correction but many did not. Eventually, King Shelmanezer had passed away, and Israel no longer had a king since Hoshea was the last ruler before the people were exiled.

Biblical References:

2 Kings 17: 1 – 4 Outlines King Hoshea’s reign and how he was forced to pay Assyria tribute.
2 Kings 17: 5 – 23 Shelmanezer carries away many Israelites and God condemns his people for their sins.
2 Kings 17: 24 – 33 Assyria resettles foreigners in Samaria.
2 Kings 17: 29 – 41 God tells the people to turn to him so that they will be protected, but the people still refuse to listen.

References:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings+17&version=NKJV http://www.ucl.ac.uk/sargon/essentials/kings/shalmaneserv/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shalmaneser_V http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shalmaneser_V.jpg

Posted on October 1, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — Leave a comment

Pekahiah of Israel, King

Around 738 B.C., the kingdom of Israel was already under the control of the Assyrian Empire. King Pekahiah was the second to last king who ruled Israel before the kingdom was brought completely under the control of the Assyrians. He appears on the Bible Timeline poster during the 8th century BC. God had allowed Judah to be conquered by the Assyrians because of their sins.

The Kingdom of Israel that was started by King Saul had split into two parts. The northern kingdom was called Israel, and the southern kingdom was Judah. The first ruler of the newly divided kingdom of Israel was Jeroboam. When King Jeroboam was in power, he started a new religion called the Golden Calf Cult. This religion was designed to keep the people from reuniting Judah and Israel back into one kingdom.

The Golden Calf Cult had the people of Israel worship false gods instead of Yahweh. After the Golden, Calf Cult was created many Israeli kings used this religion as a form of policy to keep the power on their land. Pekahiah was the son of Menahem, and he was an idol worshipping ruler. He led the people in sinning against God through his idolatry. He was also one of the last rulers of the house of Gadi. God sent prophets to warn King Pekahiah and the people of Israel from their sins, but the king didn’t listen to them. So the Lord allowed one of Pekahiah’s military commanders by the name Pekah to plot his assassination.

Historians claim that Pekah became frustrated at the king’s inability to rid the land of the Assyrian’s power and that he probably thought that he could do a better job with ruling Israel than the king. So Pekahiah conspired with 50 men from Gilead, and he took over the throne. Many Israeli kings were assassinated because of their sins. Pekahiah was the 6th king of Israel to lose his life in this manner. Since Pekahiah didn’t try to turn away from his sins he probably thought that the problems the Israeli people were experiencing from the Assyrians were something that he could handle without God’s help. Instead of relying on God’s power he turned to the power of foreign gods to give him the help that he needed.

Even though the Bible doesn’t say it, the king probably tried to form alliances with other kingdoms that were under the control of the Assyrians. Apparently these types of alliances existed because Pekah formed some during his reign with other kingdoms to get rid of the Assyrian yoke. Pekahiah’s rule only lasted two years, and he ruled from the Israeli capital of Samaria. King Pekahiah’s reign had helped to set the stage for the final destruction of Israel. When King Pekahiah was in power, his rule only lasted for a short amount of time because of his many sins. There were only two kings who ruled after his reign. The last kings of Israel hadn’t learned their lesson from God about forsaking idolatry and believing in him alone.

Biblical References:

2 Kings 15: 23 – 26 Outlines the reign of Pekahiah and his assassination.

References:
http://www.biblegateway.com/
http://www.aboutbibleprophecy.com/p106.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phasea-Pekah.jpg

Posted on September 20, 2012October 4, 2017 by Margaret Hunter — 2 Comments

Hezekiah of Judah, King

King Sennacherib of Assyria enjoyed his yearly tribute from the kingdom of Judah. Assyrian rulers were paid an annual tribute from Judah since of the reign of King Ahaz around 740 B.C. King Ahaz was a wicked ruler who brought a lot of problems onto Israel from God. One of the punishments that God brought upon the Jewish people was constant harassment from their enemies. God allowed the king of Assyria to force the kingdom of Judah to pay them tribute. After King Ahaz had died, his son King Hezekiah took his place on the throne.. He appears on the Bible Timeline Poster between 726 and 697 BC.

After ruling Judah for 14 years, King Hezekiah missed a tribute payment to Assyria. King Sennacherib became angry and mobilized his army against Judah to make sure that they will pay him the tribute. King Hezekiah was a god fearing righteous man unlike his father, Ahaz. The king knew that the Assyrians were powerful warriors and that their armies were strong. He also realized that if God didn’t intervene to rescue them they would surely be defeated at the hand of the Assyrians.

King Hezekiah tried to pay off the debt that he owed to keep the Assyrians from attacking. The Assyrians didn’t take the money they wanted to destroy Judah. They sent messengers to taunt the people of Judah, and they spoke blasphemous things against them and against God. King Hezekiah then prayed to God and then he held a meeting with Isaiah the prophet. Isaiah told him that the Lord heard his prayer and decided to deliver Judah from Assyria. God sent an angel who killed 185,000 Assyrian troops. King Senncherib and the rest of his troops fled back to Assyria and within a few days of his return the Assyrian king was killed by his sons. God punished the Assyrians for their blasphemies. This event is an important one from the life of King Hezekiah because it allowed the people of Judah to live in peace instead of being carried off into captivity. This fate had already happened to their relatives in Israel, and if it weren’t for Hezekiah, it would have happened to the Judeans as well.

King Hezekiah’s name means “to strengthen” or “to fortify” and during his life he played a critical role in keeping Judah in God’s will. What made Hezekiah such a good king in good standing with the Lord is the fact that he truly honored God. Hezekiah wasn’t perfect, but he did his best to honor God and to get the people of Judah to follow his example. He conducted religious reforms by encouraging the priests to reopen the temple that was closed by his father, Ahaz. He also had them to remove all of the pagan idols and altars that his Ahaz had spread all throughout the land during his reign. He instructed the priests to make sacrifices to God once again and to lead the people in proper worship. After the Temple of Solomon was rededicated to the Lord, the people of Judah brought so many tithes to the temple that there were huge piles of possessions, food and wealth stacked up within the area.

They also enjoyed a great Passover feast each year. The king’s religious reforms were so great and influential on the people that Hezekiah’s fame began to spread all through the land. God had caused all of these good things to come upon Hezekiah because he was truly trying to do his best for the Lord. Toward the end of King Hezekiah’s reign, God removed his presence from the ruler to test his heart. One day the King became ill and was about to die, and the prophet Isaiah told the king that he would live. Instead of being grateful to God, King Hezekiah became prideful. Eventually, God used Isaiah to tell the king that Babylon was going to carry off everything into his kingdom including the people. Isaiah then told him that this would take place after Hezekiah died. King Hezekiah lived out the rest of his days in peace, and he was grateful that the Lord spared him this trouble during the last 15 years of his life.

Biblical References:

2 Chronicles 29: 1 – 2 Background information on King Hezekiah.
2 Chronicles 29: 3 – 17 King Hezekiah reopens the Solomon’s Temple.
2 Chronicles 29: 18 – 36 The Temple is rededicated to the Lord and God turns the heart of his people and causes them to worship in a way that pleases him.
2 Chronicles 30 Passover Celebration.
2 Chronicles 31: Hezekiah reforms the religion of Israel, and he removes the pagan altars and places of worship.
2 Chronicles 32: 1 – 23 Assyria attacks Judah and God defend them.
2 Chronicles 32: 24 – 31 King Hezekiah becomes ill, and God heals him.
2 Chronicles 32: 32, 33 King Hezekiah dies and his son Manasseh is the next king to rule the land
2 Kings 18 – 22 Tells an alternate story about King Hezekiah’s life with some detailed information about the major events in his life.

References:
http://www.biblegateway.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezekiah
http://www.varchive.org/tac/hezekiah.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:%C3%85hus_kyrka-10.jpg