THE CAPTIVITIES

By W. Edmund Filmer B.A.

The Plain Facts about Israel and Judah

AFTER the death of Solomon, the Israel nation was divided into two kingdoms:  in the south  the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, usually called ‘the house of Judah’, were ruled over by the Davidic line of kings in Jerusalem; while in the north a series of non-Davidic dynasties ruled over the remaining  ten tribes, usually known  as ‘the house  of Israel’, subsequently with Samaria  as  their capital.

Both kingdoms lapsed  into idolatry, for which they went into exile in fulfilment of prophecies uttered  by Moses before they ever entered the land. Seven stages in their deportation are recorded. The northern kingdom was completely removed by the Assyrians in three stages, the Assyrians also taking captive a first instalment of Judah.  The remainder of the House of Judah  was taken captive to Babylon in three stages, though a final remnant did escape to Egypt.

A THE ASSYRIAN CAPTIVITIES

I.The First Captivity of Israel

When the Israelites were invaded  by the Assyrians under  Tiglath Pileser, it was  the Trans-Jordan tribes which were the first to be taken captive. We read in 1 Chronicles 5:26 that ‘the  God of Israel  stirred  up the spirit  of Pul king of Assyria, and the spirit  of Tilgath Pilneser king  of Assyria,  and  he carried them away, even the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river Gozan, unto  this  day’.

It will be recalled that these were the tribes who had asked for, and were promised by Moses, an inheritance east of Jordan.

2.The Second Captivity of Israel

Later, Samaria itself was besieged  by. the Assyrians under Shalmaneser and Sargon, and the main body of the House of Israel was taken captive and deported to the same places as their Trans-Jordan compatriots. Thus we are told in 2 Kings 17: 5-6 that ‘the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and  went  up to Samaria,  and besieged it three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took  Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes’.

Media was that north western part of Persia which lies between Assyria(northern  Mesopotamia)  and the Caspian Sea.

3.The Final Deportation of Israel

It appears that the last remnants of the House of Israel were  removed  by the Assyrian king Esar-haddon who replaced them  by captives which  he  had  taken  in Babylonia (southern Mesopotamia). This is recorded in 2 Kings 17:24: ‘And the king of Assyria brought  men from Babylon, and  from Cuthah, and  from Ava, and from Hamath, and  from Sepharvaim, and  placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities. thereof.’

It is recorded  in Ezra 4: 2 and 4: 9 that these foreign tribes were imported by the Assyrian king Esar-haddon; they were the ancestors of the people who later became known as Samaritans in our Lord’s time.

4.The Assyrian Captivity of Judah

The Assyrians were also responsible for deporting a part of the southern kingdom of the House of Judah. Thus we  read  that ‘in  the  fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did  Sennacherib king  of  Assyria  come up against all the  fenced cities of Judah, and took them’ (2 Kings 18: 13).

The Assyrian  records say that Sennacherib  took 46 strong  cities  and  innumerable villages,  carrying away  200,150 captives,  but  there  is nothing  to say where they went-it is possible that they joined the Israelites already in captivity in Media.

In answer to Hezekiah’s prayer, the Assyrian armies besieging Jerusalem  were destroyed overnight by divine intervention, and the remnant of the House of Judah continued to exist  in the land  for another hundred years. Eventually Josiah,  king of Judah, was killed  in battle against the  Egyptians; his son, Jehoahaz, was taken  captive,  and  the Jews  became subject to  Egypt..  ‘And  Pharaoh-nechoh made Eliakim  the  son  of  Josiah king  in  the  room  of Josiah his   father, and   turned his   name to Jehoiakim’ (2 Kings 23: 34)

Meanwhile, Babylon  was  replacing Assyria as dominant power in the east,  and in the year 605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptian army sent to support Assyria at the battle  of Carchemish. This is referred, to in Jeremiah 46:1-2 as happening in the fourth  year  of Jehoiakim: ‘The  word  of  the  Lord which  came to Jeremiah the  prophet against the Gentiles; against Egypt, against the  army of Pharaoh-Necho king  of Egypt, which was  by the river Euphrates in  Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king  of Babylon smote in  the fourth year of  Jehoiakim the  son  of Josiah king of Judah.. ..’

B. THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITIES

5.The First Babylonian Captivity of Judah

Immediately following his victory at Carchemish, Nebuchadnezzar advanced on  Egypt and  besieged Jerusalem, whence he took captive some ofthe better class Jews,  among whom  was  Daniel: ‘In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with  part of the vessels of the house  of God: which he carried  into  the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. And the  king   spake unto Ashpenaz the  master of eunuchs, that he  should bring certain of  the children of Israel, and  of the  king’s seed, and  of the  princes  among these  were  of the  children of Judah, Daniel,  Hananiah, Mishael  and  Azariah’ (Dan. 1:1-6).

The  apparent disorepancy between the  dates given by Jeremiah and Daniel arises from the fact that Jeremiah was writing in Jerusalem where the regnal year  of the  king began  on  Ist Tisri in the  autumn, whereas Daniel was living in Babylon when he wrote, and  there  the regnal year started  on Ist Nisan in the spring (see diagram).

It is evident  from 2 Kings 22-23 that at this period of Jewish  history  the regnal  years  did not begin  on Ist  Nisan,  for it is impossible that  all  the  events recorded in these  chapters could  occur  within  the fortnight preceding 14th Nisan, the official date of the Passover  (cf. 2 Kings 22: 3 with 23:23).

6.The Second Babylonian Captivity of Judah

Jehoiakim reigned eleven yeas in Jerusalem and was  succeeded by his son  Jehoiachin who  had reigned  only three  months when he was attacked by Nebuchadnezzar: ‘And  Nebuchadnezzar king  of Babylon  came  against the city, and  his servants did  besiege it. … . And  be  carried away all Jerusalem, and all the  princes, and all the mighty men  of valour, even  ten  thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort  of the  people of the land. And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and   the king’s mother, and   the   king’s wives, and   his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from  Jerusalem to  Babylon’ (2 Kings 24:11-16).

It is stated  in verse  12 that  this occurred in the eighth year, i.e. the 8th year of Nebuchadnezzar which was 597 B.C. Ezekiel was taken into exile at this time, for  he  dates all his  prophecies from  the  time  of Jehoiachin’s captivity (see Ezek. 1: 2, etc.).

7. The Final Deportation of Judah

The Babylonians made Jehoiachin’s  uncle  king, and changed his name to Zedekiah: ‘And it came to pass  in  the ninth year  of his  reign, in  the  tenth month, in  the tenth day   of  the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king  of Babylon came, he,  and all  his   host, against Jerusalem, and   pitched against it;  and  they  built forts  against it round about. And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king  Zedekiah’ (2 Kings 25: 1-2).

Thus Jerusalem fell in 586 BC, and the temple,  the king’s palace and the whole  city were  destroyed by fire. ‘And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before.his eyes, and  put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him  with  fetters of brass, and   carried him to Babylon’ (2 Kings 25:7).

The Remnant Escape to Egypt.

‘As for the  people  that  remained in the  land  of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah … ruler’. (v. 22). Gedaliah was, however, soon assassinated, ‘and all  the   people,  both small and   great, and  the captains of the armies, arose, and came  to Egypt: for they  were  afraid of the  Chaldees‘ (v. 26).

According to the prophecy of Jeremiah  44, most of this remnant perished (v. 14) only a few ever returning to their own land (v. 28).

The Kings of Assyria

B.C.             REIGN

772-754            18            Assur-dan III

754-745             9             Ashur-nirari V

745-727            18            Tiglath Pileser

726-722             5             Shalmaneser V

722-705            17            Sargon

705-681            24           Sennacherib

680-669           13            Esar-haddon

668-638           30           Assur-bani-pal

The Kings of Babylon

B.C.             REIGN

668-648           20          Shamash-shum-ukin

647-626           22           Kandalanu

626-605           21           Nabopolassar

605-562           43           Nebuchadnezzar

562-560           2             Evil-Merodach

560-556           4             Neriglissar

556                   –              Labashi-Marduk

555-539           17           Nabonidus

NOTE:The ‘first year’ of the king began on 1st Nisan following the king’s accession, the preceding fraction of a year being called ‘the year he began to reign’