Religion Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Sack of Jerusalem
Date c. 925 BC
Location Jerusalem
Result Egypt takes and despoils Jerusalem; Egypt in Victory
Belligerents
Judea Egypt
Commanders
Rehoboam Shoshenq I
Strength
Much fewer Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown Unknown

The Sack of Jerusalem 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 Kushites, 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.

According to 2 Chronicles 12, Shishaq's army numbered 60,000 horsemen and 1200 chariots. Shishaq invaded and sacked Jerusalem. The entire[1] Kingdom of Judah, as opposed to the northern Kingdom of Israel (made up of all except tribes Judah and Benjamin), was looted. Shishaq did not destroy Jerusalem, leaving with tributary gifts of gold and most of the temple's movable treasures. The Ark of the Covenant, however, was apparently spared, as it is reported as being in the Temple during the reign of Josiah[2] (c.640 BC-609 BC).

A memorial of the invasion of Judea has been discovered at Karnak, in Upper Egypt, and similar reliefs on the walls of a small temple of Amun at el-Hibeh. These inscriptions show the pharaoh, Shoshenq I (Shishaq), holding in his hand a bound group of prisoners whom the king is shown smiting with his mace. The names of presumably captured towns located primarily in the kingdom of Israel (including Megiddo), with a very few in Judah, the Negeb, and perhaps Philistia, are also listed. Some of these include a few of the towns that Rehoboam had fortified, although there is debate about whether these fortifications were preexisting or only a later response to Shishaq's initial attack.

References[]

  1. Isserlin, B S J, 'The Israelites' Pub by Thames and Hudson (1998) pg 82
  2. 2 Chronicles 35:3

External links[]

Advertisement