1071 Assumption of Mary 1072 nally 19 m high date from the 3rd century BCE. (e.g., 2 Kgs 15 : 29; 17 : 6; Isa 10 : 5; 31 : 8; Hos 5 : 13; They are the best fortifications of the Greek world. 8 : 9). In biblical texts postdating the fall of the As- The Athena temple was built approximately 530 syrian Empire by the end of the 7th century BCE, BCE. The theater, the buleuterion, gymnasium, the word Asˇsˇûr is still frequently used as the name and the Roman bath, the Byzantine church built of a superior foreign power (e.g., Num 24 : 22, 24; on the temple of Athena and the harbor are in good Isa 10 : 24; 19 : 23; Hos 14 : 4; Mic 5 : 5; cf. 1QM I, condition. Assos was famous for its wealth of grain 6). The name may be taken as purely symbolic in and a special stone which accelerated the decay of these cases; sometimes, however, it may, in fact, re- dead bodies (slack lime). fer to the Persian Empire (as in Ezra 6 : 22 where Bibliography: ■ J. T. Clarke, Report on the Investigations at melek Asˇsˇûr means the Persian king) or to the Seleu- Assos, 1881 (Boston, Mass. 1882). ■ J. T. Clarke, Report on the cid rulers. In the Septuagint, apart from the books Investigations at Assos, 1882, 1883 (New York 1898). ■ E. translated from Hebrew, the Greek equivalent Schwertheim, “Assos,” DNP 2 (Stuttgart 1997) 112–13. Ασσυρ α is the dwelling place of Tobias and his ■ C. J. Hemer, “Alexandria Troas,” TynB 26 (1976) 79–112. ■ E. Yamauchi, New Testament Cities in Western Asia Minor family (Tob 1). In Judith, it stands for the empire (Grand Rapids, Mich. 1980). ruled by Nebuchadnezzar, which actually was Bab- Beate Kowalski ylonia. Almost two thirds of the occurrences of Asˇsˇûr belong to the compound “king(s) of ,” either Assumption of Mary in plural as a collective (malkê Asˇsˇûr; 2 Kgs 19 : 11, /Dormition and Assumption of Mary 17; Neh 9 : 32 etc.) or in singular (melek Asˇsˇûr) de- noting individual kings. The following Assyrian kings are mentioned by name: Tiglath-Pileser III, Assumption of Moses also called Pul (744–727 BCE, 2 Kgs 15 : 19, 29; /Moses, Testament of 16 : 7, 10; 1 Chr 5 : 6, 26; 2 Chr 28 : 20); Shalmaneser V (726–722 BCE, 2 Kgs 17 : 3; 18 : 9; cf. Tob 1 : 2, 13, 15–16); Sargon II (721–705 BCE, Isa 20 : 1), Sen- Assyria nacherib (704–681 BCE, 2 Kgs 18 : 13; 19 : 16, 20, 1. Assyria in the Bible 36; Isa 36 : 1; 37 : 17, 21, 37; 2 Chr 32 : 1–2, 9–10, 2. Geography and Climate 22; cf. Tob 1 : 15, 18); Esarhaddon (681–669 BCE, 3. Archaeology 2 Kgs 19 : 37; Isa 37 : 38; Ezra 4 : 2; cf. Tob 1 : 21– 4. Texts 22) and Ashurbanipal (Ezra 4 : 10). In addition, the 5. History 6. Society, Religion, and Culture Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (604–562 BCE) 7. Assyria and the Bible is called king of Assyria throughout Judith. 8. Literature The image of Assyria in the Hebrew Bible is that of supreme political and military power. As- 1. Assyria in the Bible syria is never mentioned in an unequivocally posi- The proper name Asˇsˇûr is the Hebrew equivalent tive tone, even though it can be seen as the “rod of of the Akkadian word Asˇsˇu¯ r which denotes a) Ashur, my [i.e., God’s] anger” against unfaithful Israel (Isa the supreme god of the Assyrians, b) the city of Ass- 10 : 5). In general, Assyria and its kings appear as hur, the ancient capital and principal cult center of invaders and suppressors of people (Isa 10 : 24; Hos ˇ Assyria (modern Qal at Serqa¯ t), and c) the land of 8 : 9), and the fall of Assyria is celebrated both as a ¯ ˇˇ Assyria (Akkadian matAssu¯ r). fait accompli (Nah 1–3) and as an eschatological In the Hebrew Bible, the name of the god Ashur event (Isa 14 : 24–27; Ezek 32 : 22–23). is attested only in the name of the king Esarhaddon In prophetic literature, especially in Isa (7 : 18; (E¯ sar-høaddon < Asˇsˇu¯ r-ah˚u-iddina 2 Kgs 19 : 37; Isa 10 : 24; 11 : 11, 16; 19 : 23–25; 27 : 13; 52 : 4) and 37 : 38; Ezra 4 : 2), the orthography of which reflects Hos (7 : 11; 9 : 3; 11 : 5, 11; 12 : 2), Asˇsˇûr appears fre- the phonetical change sˇ> s in the Neo-Assyrian lan- guage. In Gen 2 : 14, the word is understood as a quently in parallelism with Misørayim, Egypt (cf. also reference to the city, since the river Tigris is said to Jer 2 : 18, 36; Mic 7 : 12; Zech 10 : 10–11; Lam 5 : 6). run “east of Asshur,” but this is not really conclu- While in a few cases the reference may be made to sive. The list of the descendants of Shem mentions an existing bipolarity of political powers – to As- Asˇsˇûr as the ancestor of the Assyrians; his brothers syria and Egypt (Isa 7 : 18?), or to Seleucids and Pto- include Elam and Aram (Gen 10 : 22; 1 Chr 1 : 17). lemies (Isa 19 : 18–25?) – this parallelism usually In the majority of cases, Asˇsˇûr has a geopolitical symbolizes the two slaveries of Israel: the first in meaning denoting Assyria as a country (eresø Asˇsˇûr Egypt and the second in , sometimes Isa 7 : 18), in particular the Assyrian Empire which prophesying a renewed exodus (Isa 11 : 16; Zech was the strongest political power in the Near East 10 : 10–11). during the monarchical period of Israel and Judah Martti Nissinen

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2. Geography and Climate the center of Assyria was reduced to religious and See /Mesopotamia cultic affairs. Again, the excavators focused pri- marily on the temples and palaces, which are situ- 3. Archaeology ated in the northern area of the town, yet they also In modern usage the term “Assyria” is employed investigated the residential regions of the city. in a general geographical-cultural-historical sense. Since 1950, excavations have been undertaken in Assyrian provincial centers and military bases, such Thus, on the one hand “Assyria” refers to the cen- as Til Barsip (Tell Ahmar), Dur-Katlimmu (Tell Se¯ h tral region of Assyrian culture and history; in the ˚ H amad) or Harbe (Tell Huwera). This work has elu- 2nd and 1st millennium BCE it extended along the cidated the organization of the Assyrian provincial middle section of the Tigris, approximately be- system. Gradually scholars have paid more atten- tween Jebel Hamrin and Mosul, corresponding tion to aspects of everyday culture, i.e., the condi- roughly to the northern part of modern Iraq. In tions of the population that are not revealed when a broader sense, it may designate those territories, one excavates monumental or public buildings. In varying in size, that were governed by the kings of the course of grand-scale surveys, the settlement Assyria from about 1400 up to 609 BCE. With re- structures have also been investigated – not only gard to cultural history, the terms “Assyria” or “As- those in the central Assyrian region, but also those syrian” express in the broadest sense a distinction of the territories governed by the Assyrians. from the Babylonian culture which dominated Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum Southern Mesopotamia. Before archaeologists began to systematically 4. Texts explore Assyria in the middle of the 19th century, our knowledge of Assyria, the Assyrians and Assyr- The three main periods of Assyrian history reflect ian culture was restricted to the hints given in the the three linguistic phases of the Assyrian lan- Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, in Greek and Roman guage: Old, Middle and Neo-Assyrian. The local As- authors of classical antiquity, and in Arabic sources. syrian vernacular was for the most part used in Since the 13th century and increasingly since the everyday texts like letters and legal and administra- 17th century, people traveling through the Orient tive documents. However, the term “Assyrian attempted to locate the major Mesopotamian cities texts” is here understood in a broader sense, refer- (e.g., ). During the 19th century the grow- ring not only to texts written in the Assyrian dia- ing interest in human history, the search for the lect of Akkadian, but generally to texts written in origins of the biblical tradition, the interest in dif- Assyria. Literary, scholarly and religious texts and ferent, particularly non-European, cultures, the de- royal inscriptions were mainly written in a form of sire for prestigious, exotic artifacts and – last but Babylonian, in the so-called Standard Babylonian. not least – political and economic interests encour- Furthermore the use of the language in- aged investigation into the ancient Near East, and creased during the 1st millennium BCE. thus also Assyria. a. The Old Assyrian Period. The Old Assyrian pe- The first extensive excavations focused pri- riod (2000–1750 BCE) is exceptional in that only a marily on the impressive ruins of the large Assyrian small number of texts, including royal inscriptions, cities and capitals from the 9th to the 7th centuries come from the capital Asshur and Assyria proper. BCE, Dur-Sharrukin (Khorsabad, P. E. Botta), Calah Predominantly the Old Assyrian texts come from (Nimrud, A. H. Layard) and Nineveh (Kuyunjik, the Anatolian city of Kanesh, modern Kültepe, C. J. Rich, P. E. Botta; A. H. Layard, H. Rassam), Im- about 1,000 km from the city of Asshur. Over gur-Enlil (Balawat, H. Rassam). Investigation of 22,000 documents have been found so far and the large-scale palaces, temples and the enormous mili- excavations are still continuing with only one tary and civil constructions initiated our apprecia- fourth of the 30 hectare mound excavated. Kanesh tion and understanding of the Assyrians’ monu- was an Assyrian trade colony for long distance mental symbolic architecture. Sculptural trade in textiles and tin, and the texts are for the ornaments of stone in palaces and temples, the or- most part business documents and letters of the As- thostates covered with narrative series in relief and syrian merchants. The material culture of Kanesh extensive inscriptions, sculptures in the round rep- is local, and without the text finds, the site would resenting apotropaic genies and portraits of Assyr- not have revealed its nature as an Assyrian trading ian kings, as well as Ashurbanipal’s immense li- outpost. brary at Nineveh are among the most impressive b. Middle Assyrian Period. A typical feature of discoveries of those excavations. In the 20th cen- the Mesopotamian culture is the many law codes of tury, excavations in the royal capitals continued, which the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi is the but now with attention to the much smaller city of best known but not the earliest. The only known Asshur (mod. Qalat asˇ-Sˇirqa¯ t), from which Assyria Assyrian law collection is the Middle Assyrian derives its name. In the first millennium BCE, new Laws. The law is known from a collection of tablets capitals were built and the function of Asshur as (labeled A–O) found in Asshur. Best preserved and

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1075 Assyria 1076 of most general interest for the study of ancient of an ancient empire that successfully ruled the societies is Tablet A. The tablet deals with legal Near East for nearly three centuries and constituted matters concerning women and includes regula- a model for later empires. tions about dress. According to the Middle Assyrian Many of the literary texts come from the Assyr- law married women had to be veiled in the streets, ian capital Nineveh where they had belonged to the as unmarried women and prostitutes were not al- library of King Ashurbanipal. Indeed, much of the lowed to be veiled. Mesopotamian literature known to us originates The new structure of the society with the in- from the Ashurbanipal Library. This library was creased power of the king and central role of the systematically collected for Ashurbanipal and texts palace is reflected in Middle Assyrian Palace Edicts, were copied in a unified format. Major parts of the provisions concerning the conduct of palace per- texts are scholarly in nature, including omen col- sonnel. The expansion of the territorial state was lections, lexical and medical texts. The best known, recorded since the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I (1115– however, are the literary works survived as copies 1076 BCE) in a new genre of royal inscriptions, the from this library, most notably the great Mesopota- annals, chronologically organized detailed accounts mian epics, the Enuma Elish and the Gilgamesh Epic. of the military exploits of the kings. The 11th tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic tells the story c. The Neo-Assyrian Empire. The vast majority of the flood and the wording runs in close, often of cuneiform texts were written on clay tablets or word to word, parallel with the biblical account. inscribed on stone on palace walls or stele. During The Nineveh finds were made already by the the 1st millennium BCE, texts were also written in 19th century and unfortunately the exact find con- the Aramaic alphabetic script on perishable materi- text of the texts was not recorded. Modern excava- als, like wax tablets and papyrus, but virtually all tions in other capitals like Asshur and Calah and of these texts have disappeared. in several smaller Assyrian cities have revealed true The royal inscriptions of Assyria are the major archives and private libraries found in situ. source of the history of the era, and also for biblical Raija Aulikki Mattila history as the inscriptions record the relations of Assyria with Israel and Judah. The view of the royal 5. History inscriptions is balanced by a sizable corpus of As- Archaeological findings, monuments and written syrian correspondence. The correspondence con- sources reflect Assyria’s history in extremely vary- sists of some 3,000 items and falls into two main ing quantity and perspective. Historians divide the categories: letters from scholars and various reli- nearly 1,500 years of Assyrian history into three gious authorities and political and administrative chronological epochs, thus creating an historical letters. The scholarly letters are mainly addressed construct. Old Assyrian refers to the period 2000– to the kings Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal. This 1750 BCE; the term Middle Assyrian covers the time material is central for understanding the ideologi- 1400–1000 BCE; the period 1000–609 BCE is called cal aspects of Assyrian kingship. Of the latter group Neo-Assyrian. These three epochs differ with regard of political and administrative letters about 1,300 to not only cultural and intellectual history, but can be attributed to the reign of Sargon II. also socio-economic and historical-political condi- The letters from governors and other high offi- tions, although one notices persisting traditions cials to the king give a vivid inside view of the day and strong continuity in all respects. Different eth- to day running of the empire. The letters deal with nicities and cultures exerted influence on the re- a variety of topics in the administration of Assyrian gion that was later to become the center of Assyria. provinces: supplying the workforce and materials Besides the Semitic-speaking groups (Akkadian and needed for the major building projects of the em- Amorite), the Hurrians lived here. The influence pire, reallocation of deportees, agricultural matters, from Southern Mesopotamia, which was domi- disputes inside the administration and military in- nated by the Sumerians, and from neighboring Iran telligence reports from the borders of the empire. should also not be underestimated. The correspondence reveals the central role of the From our present state of knowledge, Assyria’s king in the administration of the empire. history began 100 km south of Mosul in Asshur, The epistolary material is further augmented by situated on the western bank of the Tigris. The set- legal and administrative documents, international tlement had already existed for a long before the treaties, royal grants and decrees, astronomical re- 2nd millennium BCE, when Assyria became an in- ports and oracular queries. Other texts like prophe- dependent state, and the 1st millennium BCE, cies have lately been of great interest to biblical when the Assyrian Empire arose. We have only scholars. Assyrian texts are now to a large extent fragmentary information about the situation of the available in modern editions and new research has place and its surroundings in prehistoric times and dramatically changed our view of the Neo-Assyrian in the early historical period. In the 3rd millen- Empire. The traditional view emphasizing the cru- nium BCE, there was a sanctuary of the goddess elty of Assyria has given way to a multifaceted view Ishtar, which attracted the interest of the greater

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1077 Assyria 1078 region. The inventory of this cultic building proves In 1850–1800 BCE, the political situation the connections with the area of Southern Mesopo- changed in the region along the Tigris, and neigh- tamian culture, and at the same time it hints at boring municipal states gained influence. About independent developments in Northern Mesopota- 1830 BCE, the Assyrian emporium in Kanesˇwas in mia. The formation of two empires in the later 3rd part destroyed by fire, and the delicate system of millennium BCE – the empire of the kings of Ak- long-distance trade deteriorated. The city of Asshur kad (23rd century BCE) and that of the kings of Ur was subjugated by the Amorite Shamshi-Adad I (21st century BCE) – affected the city of Asshur as (1808–1776 BCE), king of the adjacent municipal well, which at least temporarily lost its independ- state of Ekallatum, and became part of his empire ence. which comprised the entire Upper Mesopotamia. a. 2000–1500 BCE. The city of Asshur gained po- Protected by Shamshi-Adad I, commerce with Ana- litical autonomy with the end of the reign of the tolia was renewed, although under restricted condi- dynasty III of Ur, if not before this time. It then tions. The political situation within Asshur itself had the benefit of its favorable geographical loca- had changed as well: Shamshi-Adad I made use of tion. The municipality of Asshur developed into a the title “King” (Akkadian sˇarrum) and - center of interregional trade between Iran, South- strated his absolute claim for government by intro- ern Mesopotamia and Anatolia. The most impor- ducing titles of Babylonian rulers (as “King of All,” tant mercantile goods were tin from Iran, and wool for instance). With theological sophistication he and textiles from Mesopotamia. These goods were laid emphasis on his claim by equating the city- sold for iron ore, precious metals and semi-finished god Ashur with the ancient Sumerian imperial god manufactured articles in Anatolia. Information Enlil of Nippur. Moreover, he apparently had his about the development and function of the com- ancestors included in the list of Assyrian kings in mercial empire is based on the approximately order to support the legitimacy of his reign in As- 22,000 “Kültepe texts” from the archives of Assyr- syria. After the death of Shamshi-Adad I, the his- ian merchants in Anatolian trading stations. So far tory of Assyria and its hinterland becomes obscure, the most important site of these is ka¯ rum (Akkadian since we lack sources for this period. Although the “trading centre”) kanesˇ(modern Kültepe). A dense Assyrian list of kings transmits the names of the network of such large and small commercial cen- kings of Asshur in an uninterrupted sequence, we ters (emporia) covered Anatolia and was connected know almost nothing about the political, social, with the parent city of Asshur by way of intermedi- and economic situation of the city and its sur- ate stations in Upper Mesopotamia. Contracts with roundings. the respective native rulers regulated the condi- b. 1500–1000 BCE. In the late 16th century BCE, tions of this trade with regard to all economic, po- as the Hurrian minor principalities formed the litical, legal, and pragmatic details. The city of Ass- hur benefited from the wealth which was state of Mitanni under the sovereignty of a (grand) streaming into and through the city thanks to this king, the city of Asshur was at least temporarily trade; it established itself as a powerful centre of part of a large hegemonic power. But as the kings commerce in Upper Mesopotamia. Reduced taxes of Mitanni focussed their attention on Egypt and were systematically granted to merchants coming Hatti, the rulers of Asshur succeeded in initiating from the towns of Southern Mesopotamia, which international contacts on their own with Kassite guaranteed a regular influx of goods from Babylo- rulers in Babylonia and with the Egyptian Pharaoh, nia. taking small step by small step. The Assyrian king The political organization of this trading state Ashur-uballit I (1353–1318 BCE) emphasized his clearly differed both from the older and the con- territorial claims by repeated military attacks temporary forms of government elsewhere in Mes- against Mitanni, and he adopted the title of “King opotamia. Not territorial, but rather commercial of the Land of Asshur.” This formed the material interests defined its structure. The ruler was re- and ideological foundation of an independent state garded as viceroy of the city-god Ashur and as the named “Assyria.” supreme representative of the city of Asshur. With Expansion of territory became an important in- regard to domestic affairs, however, he seems to strument of the Assyrian kings’ political power. have held more the position of a primus inter pares Long-distance trading, which had been the main than that of an absolute ruler. Decisions regarding source of Assyrian revenue for a long time, became both domestic and foreign affairs were made by an nearly insignificant. Instead the community fo- assembly consisting of representative members of cused on agriculture and compensated the lack of those families which were economically influential raw materials and resources by conquering addi- in the city of Asshur. The ruler generally acted on tional regions. This new claim for territory is ac- behalf of this municipal assembly. An annually re- companied by a fundamental reorganization of the placed functionary was in charge of controlling eco- community’s administration and policy. The king nomic affairs; the respective year was also named ruled with absolute power, responsible only to the after him. city-god. A complex economic bureaucracy and a

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1079 Assyria 1080 well-organized territorial administration now char- as highly specialized craftsmen and engineers – acterize the Assyrian realm. Apparently, adminis- made it possible for the Assyrian kings to exhibit a trative practices of ancient Assyrian times were new dimension of luxury and splendor. Ashurna- combined with structures of administration com- sirpal founded a new capital, Calah (Nimrud), situ- mon to Upper Mesopotamian kingdoms. Members ated on the eastern bank of the Tigris, and it was of the royal family or members of the old influen- to become the center of the Assyrian empire for tial families were appointed to the most important nearly 150 years. The place had already been the positions. As a rule, conquered territories first re- residence of an Assyrian provincial governor during ceived the status of vassals and only were gradually the 2nd millennium BCE; but only in the 1st mil- integrated in the Assyrian Empire and provincial lennium BCE was a new type of city created cover- system. This development reached a first climax ing an area of more than 350 hectares and includ- during the 13th century with Adad-nirari I (1297– ing an artificially constructed citadel mound. 1265 BCE), Shalmaneser I (1264–1234 BCE), and About the same time, the kingdom of Urartu arose Tukulti- I (1233–1197 BCE). Hanigalbat, in the region between Lake Van and Lake Urmia; the centre of the former kingdom of Mitanni, was this was to become a constant, dangerous adversary definitively conquered, and Assyria’s realm of in- of Assyria until the end of the 8th century BCE. fluence now extended to the river Euphrates in the During the reign of Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727 west, thus directly bordering on Hittite country. To BCE) Assyria’s imperialism gained a new universal the north and to the east, Assyrian rulers pressed quality. The system of Assyrian provinces was ex- forward against the tribes living in the mountains. tended, and the deportation of groups of subdued In ca. 1215 BCE, they conquered . This first nations intensified. Babylonia, Media/Persia, zenith of Assyria’s territorial power is reflected in Urartu, Southern Anatolia, Syria, and Palestine a number of ambitious enterprises, the most mo- were the targets of his imperial policy. Tiglath- mentous being the foundation of the new capital Pileser III conquered Babylonia; in the preceding and residential city of Kar-Tukulti-Ninurta (Telu¯ l decade the relationship to Babylonia had been char- alAqa¯ r) by Tukulti-Ninurta I. This undertaking acterized more by cooperation. Tiglath-Pileser III failed, however, just before it was finished because himself assumed the title of “King of Babylonia.” of domestic political resistance and the murder of During the reign of his son and successor Shalma- Tukulti-Ninurta. neser V (727–722 BCE), Israel became part of the The collapse of the Hittite kingdom, the shift- Assyrian Empire. The circumstances of Sargon II’s ing of population in the Syrian area thereafter, and enthronement remain obscure. Sargon II carried on domestic problems restricted Assyria’s attempt at Assyria’s imperial policy; he succeeded in defini- expansion during the 12th century BCE. Never- tively subduing Assyria’s main adversary, Urartu. theless, already Tiglath-Pileser I (1115–1076 BCE) He founded a new capital, Dur-Sharrukin (Khorsa- was in a position to extend the borders of the As- bad) and thus relocated Assyria’s political center, syrian realm. The Aramaic groups within the popu- which had been situated in Nimrud, to a place fur- lation had begun to pose problems. Meanwhile, ther north. they had organized minor communities in the area Sargon II was killed in 705 BCE, during a cam- of the Upper Khabur and along the Euphrates, and paign directed against Anatolian Tabal. This event they represented a latent danger to the borders of troubled caused great concern for his son and suc- the Assyrian Empire and its trade. cessor (704–682 BCE) so that he even- c. The 1st Millennium BCE until the Fall of the tually abandoned his father’s capital Dur-Shar- Assyrian Empire. The Assyrian kings’ military rukin and relocated the Assyrian royal capital to campaigns during the 11th and 10th centuries BCE Nineveh. The hydraulic constructions that were were regularly directed towards the north western made in the course of the city’s rebuilding belong area with the intention to re-establish the contacts to the Assyrian kings’ most expensive technical un- with the Mediterranean region. In addition, the at- dertakings. During his reign Sennacherib pursued tempt at further expansion was aimed at the re- the imperial policy at the borders of the kingdom gions in the north and north east (Zagros), which as well. In 689 BCE conflicts concerning the leader- were abounding in natural resources. Ashurnasir- ship in southern Mesopotamia accumulated: In the pal II (883–859 BCE) and his son Shalmaneser III past the Babylonians had already tried repeatedly (858–824 BCE) subdued the Levant. Spoil seized to bring the Assyrian dominance to an end. After- during the campaigns as well as tributes and taxes wards Sennacherib conquered the city of Babylon from the conquered regions became Assyria’s most in 689 BCE and devastated it completely. As ex- important economic sources. Population deporta- pected, this added a new religious and ideological tion, a practice that was a common instrument of dimension to the military-political conflict between Assyrian imperial policy, was intensified. Precious Asshur and Babylon. metals, wood, ivory, manufactured articles of any Sennacherib’s son Esarhaddon (681–669 BCE) kind, but especially men capable of labor – as well tried to abolish this act of hubris by rebuilding

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Babylon and re-establishing cultic practices. At the the main fields of professional activities. Although zenith of power the Assyrian Empire included Mes- within Assyrian society there always existed forms opotamia and the Fertile Crescent, parts of Egypt, of private property, the population’s labor was es- Southern Anatolia and the west of Iran. But struc- sentially at the disposal of the state (i.e., its central tural problems within this enormous empire be- institutions of the palace and temple) – either di- came increasingly visible. The exterior border lines rectly (by compulsory labor) or indirectly (by taxa- were under constant threat, for example, from the tion). Scythians and Cimmerians in the north, the Man- Whereas during the period of the ancient Assyr- nean tribes in the Zagros mountains, by the revolt ian trading empire the king’s power was restricted in the Levant which Egypt had encouraged, and by by municipal-communal institutions like the city Elam’s support of Babylonia. hall or the city assembly, from the Middle Assyrian During Ashurbanipal’s reign (669–631 BCE) times on the royal palace became the ideological, the Assyrian Empire managed to remain somewhat political, and economic centre of the empire. These stable for about two decades by means of military palaces, which were as monumental as they were operations. Domestic problems, however, (espe- expensive, represented the Assyrian king’s omni- cially the conflict with Ashurbanipal’s brother Sha- potence by both their enormity and their decora- mash-shum-ukin, who had been appointed king of tions, which consisted of precious and symbolic Babylon) resulted in internal destabilization, cul- materials and narratives in relief. In addition, fi- minating in the chaos that accompanied the succes- nancially and politically influential family clans, sion to the throne. There were rebellions in vast whose members in part held political positions, parts of the Assyrian Empire, primarily in southern were active in the economy. Their influence may be Mesopotamia. There resistance against Assyria had traced back to ancient Assyrian traditions, although been stimulated and strengthened by the Chal- the basis and form of the Assyrian economic system daean Nabopolassar. In the course of just a few had fundamentally changed. After the decline of years “Assyria” was reduced to its central region on the ancient Assyrian trading empire, the economy the banks of the Tigris and the western regions up was based on agricultural products, taxation, and to the Euphrates. In 614 BCE Median forces sacked compulsory services, as well as spoils of war, trib- and destroyed the city of Asshur. During the fol- utes and (long-distance) trade. A highly specialized lowing years the remaining major cities in the As- bureaucracy and a carefully organized system of syrian central region were subjugated as well. In provincial administration secured control of these 609 BCE the Assyrian Empire came to a definitive resources. end with the conquest of the city Haran by Babylo- The king was the head of the Assyrian state. nian and Median forces and the death of the last The ruler’s position was legitimized both transcen- Assyrian king, Ashur-uballit II. dentally and immanently. Apparently, in Assyria only members of one family had a claim to the 6. Society, Religion, and Culture royal throne. Apart from one exception to the rule, The inhabitants of Assyria and its surroundings the throne was handed down within the male line called themselves “men of Asshur.” They were sub- of descent of this family (chiefly from the father to jects of the king of Assyria and therefore at the the son). Being an absolute ruler, the king not only same time subjects of the god Ashur. When Assyria functioned as an intermediary between men and became an independent state, further ethnic the gods; in his own person he also combined su- groups were added to the Assyrians, yet they too preme political, military, legal, and religious pow- were considered “people of the land of Asshur.” ers. In ancient Assyrian times his power of author- The Assyrian spoke a variant of Akkadian called ity was restricted by the municipal assembly. In “Assyrian,” although in the 1st millennium BCE, later epochs the king is surrounded by a group of the Aramaic language increased in importance. Part men who had important functions in government; of the population settled permanently within cities among these were the supreme general, the grand and rural communities, while the rest was commit- vizier, the principal cupbearer, and the leading her- ted to a nomadic or semi-nomadic way of living. ald. An extensive royal household guaranteed that The society consisted of different social classes de- the royal court functioned well. Wise men exerted fined by their level of freedom or bondage (depend- an immense influence on political decisions at the ency, slavery, or temporary slavery due to economic Assyrian court. They were specialized in different misfortune) and by different degrees of socio-eco- fields of knowledge, and the Assyrian kings con- nomic influence. sulted them regularly. The family, led by a male chief, was the most As the independent state came into being, the important social institution. It formed an economic army increasingly gained importance. It had been unit which might be integrated into larger units, conceived in part as a standing army probably al- e.g., the palace or the sanctuary. Besides agricul- ready in Middle Assyrian times. Persons rendering tural activities, craftsmanship and trading made up seasonal military service, mercenaries, and prison-

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1083 Assyria 1084 ers of war completed and extended these forces. tamia, however, the god Ashur presided over the Annual campaigns made it necessary to spend enor- pantheon. Originally, Ashur had been the city-god mous means for maintaining the troops. Even of Asshur, having local – at most regional – rele- though the king was the army’s official com- vance. But with the rise of the Assyrian independ- mander-in-chief, the multitude of military cam- ent state he gained a new quality, becoming the paigns and both cultic and domestic obligations “Assyrian state/imperial god.” This development made him delegate the leadership of these military was probably initiated when attributes of the god excursions to his confidents. In return they were Enlil were transferred to Ashur during the reign of entrusted with landed estates and provincial ad- Shamshi-Adad I. Since Middle Assyrian times this ministration. syncretism is explicitly theologically confirmed, as With regard to administration the Assyrian do- Ashur is equated with the supreme Babylonian de- main was divided into provinces. Each had a center ity, Marduk, on the one hand, and with Anshar, of its own already in Middle Assyrian times. A well the father of deities, on the other. He not only rises established network of public roads and a hierarch- to the leading position in the Mesopotamian pan- ical military-civil administration secured the con- theon, but he is also found at the beginning of crea- nections between the periphery and the political tion. Possibly, it is the vague nature of this god’s center of the empire. personality (there are, for instance, no mythological Apart from institutions of political organiza- narratives about him that have come down to us) tion (structures of administration), the establish- that made him extremely successful as he com- ment of norms (e.g., of the metric system) contrib- bined other deities’ aspects within his own iden- uted to the unification of the Assyrian empire. The tity. His role as the Assyrian ruler’s god may be chronological system differed from the Sumerian traced back to Old Assyrian times: the ruler of Ass- and Babylonian traditions inasmuch as the individ- hur considered himself to be viceroy of the god ual calendar years were named after a person (epo- Ashur. This commissary relationship was an impor- nym). The choice of the eponym was directly tied to tant basis of legitimating Assyrian imperialism. In the socio-economic position of his family. In Neo- contrast to other deities who were worshipped in Assyrian and presumably already in Middle Assyr- many places, the worship of Ashur focused on the ian times, the names of the years were reserved for city of Asshur since Middle Assyrian times. In As- functionaries of national administration. From this syrian religious ideology the god’s temple was time on, the ruler after his ascension to the throne taken to be the center of the world and of the Assyr- was the first eponym. The sequence of eponym ian cosmos – and as a symbol of the cosmic order years was fixed in (eponym) lists. Legal documents, in general. It was not only the sanctuary of the god administrative texts, letters, and royal inscriptions Ashur, but also included small chapels for other were dated exactly. Together with the list of Assyr- major deities of the pantheon. ian kings, the eponym lists were the basis of Assyr- Within Assyrian religion it was above all Ishtar ian chronology. These lists allow us to reconstruct who had a prominent position beside Ashur. In dif- the history of the empire with relative precision. ferent hypostases she was worshipped in the cen- As in all ancient Near Eastern communities, re- tral Assyrian region in three large sanctuaries, ligion played an important part in Assyrian culture namely at Arbela, Nineveh, and Asshur. In addi- as well. Available sources, however, throw light pri- tion, there are a number of minor cultic locations, marily upon the official religious practice of the where to some extent she was worshipped in the state; personal piety and private cultic activities are shape of other goddesses. Besides Ninurta and Sha- known only to a limited extent. The polytheistic mash, Ishtar also plays an important part in Assyr- nature of Assyrian religion was reflected in a differ- ian royal ideology in the 1st millennium BCE. Her entiated cultic system. A hierarchy of cultic profes- sanctuary at Arbela was a place where people fre- sionals and economically independent sanctuaries quently sought prophetic oracles. were characteristic of Assyria as well. The Assyrian There is much less information about private king was expected to regularly attend the cultic in- forms of cultic activities and personal piety in the stitutions. Building activities, donations, and the various classes of the population. The names of the establishment of new institutions are traditional Assyrians reflect the polytheistic nature of Assyrian themes of Assyrian royal inscriptions. Being the su- religion. Evidence from private houses attests preme priest of the god Ashur, the king also had a mainly to magic practices intended to protect fixed position among cultic personnel. against the vicissitudes of life. Special attention was The organization of the Assyrian pantheon es- focused on the king in this respect. Assyrian rulers sentially corresponds to common Mesopotamian employed the facilities of divination when they traditions. Thus, we regularly find cults of major were faced with a decision. This is best documented deities such as Ishtar, Ninurta, Sîn, Shamash, Ea or in the time of the Sargonid dynasty. Because sour- Enlil, in the major Assyrian cities, above all in Ass- ces with comparable structures are lacking, it is im- hur. Contrary to the practice in Southern Mesopo- possible to say whether the importance of divina-

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1085 Assyria 1086 tion within political procedures is a phenomenon count of the campaign of Adad-nirari III (810–783 typical of this special era only. For the most part BCE); according to the stele, Mari of Damascus and kings consulted practitioners of extispicy and as- Joash of Samaria (Iu¯ a¯ su Samerina¯ ia), together with trologers (they promoted the latter during the 1st the rulers of Tyre and Sidon, paid tribute to him, millennium BCE) when they made decisions on presumably in the year 797 BCE (Tadmor 1973; cf. both domestic and foreign affairs. Prophetic oracles Weippert 1992). In another inscription, Adad-nirari were of special interest to the king personally since III lists “the land of H˚ umri,” i.e., Israel, among the they were considered to be a special form of direct nations subdued by him. In the Hebrew Bible, communication between the king and the deity. 2 Kgs 13 : 25 describes the confrontation between We find a structural complement in the Assyrian Joash and Ben-, the contemporary king of rulers’ letters addressed to a deity. They are formal- Damascus, who may be identical with Mari (Mil- ized descriptions of the royal res gestae which are lard 1987–1990); however, there is no mention of stylized as if the rulers were rendering an account Joash’s tribute to the Assyrian king. of their actions in the presence of the deity who Tiglath-Pileser III (744–727 BCE), also called had granted them kingship. Pul(u) in Babylonia as well as in the Hebrew Bible A characteristic of Assyrian royal inscriptions is (2 Kgs 15 : 19; 1 Chr 5 : 26), reorganized the military that they describe in detail not only military cam- and provincial organization of Assyria and, by paigns but also non-sacral royal building programs. means of annual military campaigns, increased As- We find analogies to this in the narrative decora- syria’s control in the Near East, developing it into tions in the palaces. Authorized by Assyrian kings, a full-scale empire. In his several inscriptions (Tad- these accounts describe aspects of Assyrian govern- mor 1994), he gives an account of his military and ment and power politics. The Assyrians’ reputation political activities in Syria-Palestine. Menahem, the of being a nation of cruel warriors is based on these Samarian (Menih˚imme Samerina¯ ia), is mentioned in works. However, this reputation is unfounded inas- two inscriptions among Syrian, Phoenician, and much as it downplays Assyria’s manifold social even Tabalean and Arabian rulers who paid tribute achievements. to Tiglath-pileser III; it has usually been assumed Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum that this happened in 738 BCE when the Syrian cities of Arpad, Kullani and Hatarikka (biblical 7. Assyria and the Bible Hadrach) were annexed as Assyrian provinces, but the evidence does not unambiguously support this a. Israel and Judah in Assyrian Records. Israel dating (for different views, see Loretz/Mayer; Tad- enters the Assyrian historical records in the inscrip- mor 1994: 274–76). tions of King Shalmaneser III (858–824 BCE) who According to the Hebrew Bible (2 Kgs 15 : 19– continued the expansion of Assyria towards the 20), “King Pul of Assyria came against the land,” west, begun by his predecessor Ashurnasirpal II and Menahem, King of Israel, gave him a thousand (883–859 BCE). The first historical source record- talents of silver. The tribute-paying is in line with ing an encounter of Assyria with Israel is the Kurkh the Assyrian records, which, however, never indi- Monolith, i.e., Shalmaneser III’s account of the bat- cate that Tiglath-Pileser III would have set foot in tle of Qarqar (H˚ irbet Qerqu¯ r) in Syria, by the river Israel by that time. A few years later, however, he Orontes, in the year 853 BCE, mentioning “Ahab, marched south west to the Wadi of Egypt (nahøal the Israelite” (Akk. Ah˚abbu Siriala¯ ia) as one of the Musøri, modern Wadi el-Arish). The subjugation of twelve kings from Syria and Phoenicia he defeated. Gaza in 734 BCE was followed by a two-year siege The alliance was led by Adda-Idri (Hadad-Ezer) of of Damascus, whose king Rah˚ ianu (Aramaic Radø- Damascus and Irhulenu of Hamath. The event is ya¯ n, biblical Rezin) had attempted to form an anti- not mentioned in the Hebrew Bible; whether Adda- Assyrian alliance. Damascus fell in 732 BCE, and as Idri should be equated with the Ben-Hadad in the result of the campaigns of 734–732 BCE, Syria- 1 Kgs 20–22 is unlikely (Pitard: 114–25). Palestine was brought under direct control of As- Twelve years later, in 841 BCE, Shalmaneser III syria. According to both the Hebrew Bible (2 Kgs is said to have received tribute from Baal-Manzer, 15 : 29–30; 1 Chr 5 : 26) and the inscriptions of Ti- king of Tyre, and Jehu, “son of H˚ umri” (Ia¯ u¯ ama¯ r glath-Pileser III, Israel (Bı¯ tH˚ umria) was reduced to a H˚ umri). The tribute of Jehu is also mentioned in rump state consisting of little more than the capital Shalmaneser III’s Black Obelisk, which depicts Jehu Samaria, and a considerable number of the popula- kissing the ground before the feet of the Assyrian tion was deported; the desolation of Galilee is visi- king. The designation of Jehu, king of Israel, as ble also in the archaeological record (Gal). Pekah “son/descendant of H˚ umri” indicates that the As- (Paqah˚u), king of Israel was killed or overthrown syrians, against the biblical account of Jehu’s revolt and replaced by Hoshea (Awse¯ a); Tiglath-Pileser III (2 Kgs 9), saw him as a descendant of the Omride claims to have installed Hoshea, while 2 Kgs 15 : 30 dynasty (Bı¯ tH˚ umri). says he conspired against Pekah and killed him. Joash, king of Israel, is probably referred to in Tiglath-Pileser III’s campaigns had an effect a stele found at Tell ar-Rima¯ h, which gives an ac- even on Judah: the first king of Judah appearing in

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1087 Assyria 1088 the Assyrian records is Ahaz (Iau¯ -h˚a¯ zi) mentioned in 1987: 92). Dalley (2004) has presented some evi- a long list of tributary kings from the year 729 dence for good relations between Assyria and Judah BCE. The Azrı¯ -Ia¯ u mentioned in an inscription of at this time, most importantly the royal tomb exca- Tiglath-Pileser III was formerly identified with Az- vated at Nimrud (ancient Calah˚ ) in 1988–1989. In ariah, king of Judah, but this assumption was the tomb two female bodies were found, together based on an erroneous joining of a fragmentary with inscribed objects belonging to Iabâ, the queen tablet to the inscription, providing the name with of Tiglath-Pileser, and Atalia, the queen of Sargon. the attribution “Yaudi;” the person in question Dalley takes it to be probable that both names are may actually be the king of Hatarikka (thus Hebrew and the Assyrian kings, thus, had Judean Na’aman 1995). The Assyrian sources have nothing wives (1998; 2004); however, the Hebrew origin of to tell about the anti-Assyrian alliance of Aram and the names and, hence, the ethnicity of the queens, Israel who, according to the Hebrew Bible, attacked is not certain (Achenbach; Younger 2002). against Judah ca. 735 BCE (the so-called “Syro- After the death of Sargon II, his son Sen- Ephraimite war”; 2 Kgs 16 : 5 and Isa 7 : 1–9), nei- nacherib (705–681 BCE) undertook in 701 BCE a ther do they report the encounter of Ahaz and Ti- campaign to the West in order to quell a revolt of glath-Pileser III in Damascus related in 2 Kgs several Syrian and Palestinian rulers, Hezekiah of 16 : 10–18. Judah (H˚ azaqi-Ia¯ u Iauda¯ ia) among them, against As- The fall of Samaria in 722 BCE is recorded by syrian dominion. According to the inscription of the Assyrians, but there is a discrepancy between Sennacherib, he captured 46 fortified cities and car- the sources about who actually conquered the city. ried off 200,150 people from Judah. The most im- The Babylonian Chronicle says Shalmaneser V portant of these cities was Lachish (cf. 2 Kgs 18 : 14, (726–722 BCE) ruined Samaria, while Sargon II 17), the capture of which is presented iconographi- (721–705 BCE) in his inscriptions repeatedly lays cally on the wall reliefs of Sennacherib’s palace the claim of having destroyed the city, calling him- (Uehlinger 2003). The biblical (2 Kgs 18 : 13–16) self “the conqueror of Samaria and the whole land and the Assyrian records tally remarkably with each of Bit H˚ umria.” The Hebrew Bible is no less am- other about the conquest of the Judean cities and biguous; according to 2 Kgs 18 : 9–10, Shalmaneser the heavy tribute Hezekiah paid to Sennacherib, V besieged Samaria for three years, but it is not thus retaining the restricted independence of Judah clear whether Shalmaneser V or Sargon II is re- as a vassal state of Assyria. The alleged siege of Jeru- ferred to as melek Asˇsˇûr in 2 Kgs 17 : 5–6, 24–27; salem related in 2 Kgs 18 : 17–19 : 36 par. Isa 36–39 18 : 11. Obviously, the exact historical circumstan- (cf. 2 Chr 32 : 1–23), ending with a miraculous de- ces were not clear to the biblical writer who, accord- feat of the Assyrian army, presents more historical problems (for different interpretations, see Gon- ing to Tadmor, mixed up two events: the conquest çalves). Sennacherib says to have locked Hezekiah of Samaria by Shalmaneser V in 722 BCE, and the up “like a bird in a cage.” While this expression is renewed capture of Samaria by Sargon II in 720 traditionally interpreted in the light of the biblical BCE (Tadmor 1958; Cogan/Tadmor: 199–200; cf. account as a reference to the siege of Jerusalem Becking 1992; Younger 1999; for a different view, (Gallagher), many scholars now interpret it as de- see Na’aman 1990). noting a blockade which required only a minor Both the inscriptions of Sargon II and the He- military operation, denying the actual siege (e.g., brew Bible refer to a mass deportation of the inhab- Massmann; Mayer; Knauf). itants of Israel to Assyria. The deportations of Isra- There is no direct reference to the death of Sen- elites – both by Tiglath-pileser III and by Sargon nacherib in Assyrian sources, but 2 Kgs 19 : 37 par. II – result in a number of Hebrew names in Neo- Isa 37 : 38 tells that, while worshipping in the tem- Assyrian documents from different parts of the em- ple of his god (i.e., Ninurta? cf. Uehlinger pire, including Halah (H˚ alah˚h˚u), Gozan (Guza¯ na)on 1999), he was murdered by his sons the river Habur and the “cities of the Medes” men- and Sharezer who then escaped to the land of Ara- tioned in 2 Kgs 17 : 6; 18 : 11 (Becking 1992: 61–93; rat. This is in reasonable agreement with informa- 2002; Younger 1998; Oded). Some of these people tion deductible from cuneiform records, according occupy prestigious positions in the military and to which the murderer of Sennacherib was his eld- civil administration. The repopulation of Samaria est son Arda-Mullissi (cf. MT Adrammelek) whom with people from Babylonia related in 2 Kgs 17 : 24 his younger son Esarhaddon had replaced as the cannot be directly reconciled with Assyrian sources; crown prince and who, therefore, incited a civil war however, Sargon II mentions in his annals to have (Parpola 1980). Moreover, Assyrian prophecies and settled certain Arab tribes in Samaria, and there is inscriptions related to Esarhaddon’s rise to power some further evidence of Assyrian deportations to not only indicate that the rebelling brothers were Samaria (Na’aman/Zadok). two, but also that they fled to an unknown land The inscriptions of Sargon II do not mention (Nissinen 1998: 14–30). Judah, but a letter to him reports the entering of a During the reigns of Esarhaddon (681–669 Judean emissary to Calah˚ with a tribute (Parpola BCE) and his son Ashurbanipal (668–627 BCE), the

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Assyrian Empire was at its height, and Judah re- affinity of the biblical legislation to the Mesopota- mained a vassal state of Assyria. Both kings men- mian law collections – Book of Covenant (Exod tion Manasseh, king of Judah (Menasê/Minsê sˇar Ia- 20 : 23–23 : 19) to the Code of Hammurabi (Wright) udı¯ ), once in their inscriptions, Esarhaddon among and Deuteronomy to the Middle Assyrian Laws 22 kings who contributed to his building projects, (Otto) – suggests a more or less direct literary de- and Ashurbanipal among tribute-payers and mili- pendence. tary supporters on the occasion of his Egyptian Recently, the Assyrian prophetic oracles (Par- campaign in the year 667 BCE. These are the only pola 1997) have established themselves as a pri- references of Judah in the Assyrian sources from mary point of comparison for biblical prophecy. this period; this may indicate a lack of conflicts and The affinities between Assyrian prophecy and the the loyalty of Manasseh to his Assyrian overlords Hebrew Bible are manifold and often due to the during his long reign. This was also the period of common cultural background (Nissinen 1993; the thorough establishment of the Assyrian cul- Weippert 2001). Nevertheless, the characterization tural influence in Judah. of Assyria in Isa 1 corresponds to the image prom- b. The Legacy of Assyria in the Bible. Due to its ulgated by the Assyrians themselves (Machinist), long period of supremacy in the Near East, Assyria and the similarities between the Assyrian oracles left an enduring cultural and religio-political herit- and Isa 40–55 imply a close cultural contact during age to the contemporary and subsequent civiliza- the Babylonian exile. The same is true for the con- tions within its broad sphere of influence. The fall spicuous familiarity of Ezek 1 with Assyrian and of Assyria at the end of the 7th century BCE by no Babylonian iconography (Uehlinger/Müller Tru- means terminated the Assyrian cultural impact. faut). The transfer of the political power to the Babyloni- The wisdom literature of the Hebrew Bible has ans and later, in the 6th century BCE, to the Achae- plenty of largely still unexplored cognates in Meso- menids, did not bring about a fundamental change potamian wisdom, hymns, prayers and lamenta- in the religio-political structures and the underly- tions. For instance, the Song of Solomon has a very ing royal ideology. close affinity to the Neo-Assyrian Love Lyrics of Nabû The highly developed Assyrian military strat- and Tasˇme¯ tu, which gives new relevance to the quest egy, as well as the sophisticated administrative for the precursors of biblical love poetry in the Mes- structure, was the foundation of the military and opotamian sacred marriage tradition (Nissinen civil organizations of the Babylonians and the 2001). Mesopotamian mantic wisdom, known to us Achaemenids, and even those of Byzance and Otto- from Neo-Assyrian texts such as the Underworld Vi- man Turkey. The heritage of Assyria, however, was sion of an Assyrian Prince, belongs to the roots of not merely of military and political, but also of in- apocalypticism (Kvanvig 1988), to which also the post-factum predictions in the literary predictive tellectual and religious nature. The Babylonian wis- texts (deJong Ellis 1989), of which the Marduk dom and literature was sheltered, promoted and Prophecy and the Sˇulgi Prophecy derive from Neo- mediated by the Assyrians, and Assyria was the Assyrian sources, contribute. channel through which the Mesopotamian cultural influence spread both to Persia and to the West: Bibliography: ■ R. Achenbach, “Jabâ und Atalja – zwei jü- Syria-Palestine, Asia Minor and, what is often ig- dische Königstöchter am assyrischen Königshof?,” BN 113 nored Greece and Classical Antiquity (Lanfranchi; (2002) 29–38. ■ S. Aro/R. M. Whiting (eds.), The Heirs of As- syria (Melammu Symposia 1; Helsinki 2000). ■ B. Becking, Panaino; Rollinger; Parpola 2003). Even after the The Fall of Samaria (SHANE 2; Leiden 1992). ■ B. Becking, fall of the Assyrian Empire, the Mesopotamian reli- “West Semites at Tell Sˇeh˚ H amad,” in Kein Land für sich al- gious tradition lived on in Mesopotamia and Syria, lein, FS Manfred Weippert (eds. U. Hübner/E.-A. Knauf; leaving perceptible traces in early Christianity, OBO 186; Fribourg/Göttingen 2002) 153–66. ■ R. Borger, Gnosticism (Parpola 2001) and Islam (Hämeen-Ant- Die Inschriften Asarhaddons, Königs von Assyrien (AfO.B 9; Graz tila). 1956). ■ R. Borger, Beiträge zum Inschriftenwerk Assurbanipals Assyrian cultural hegemony was established by (Wiesbaden 1996). ■ M. Cogan, “Judah under Assyrian He- ■ means of both diplomacy and military force. The gemony,” JBL 112 (1993) 403–14. M. Cogan/H. Tadmor, II Kings (Anchor Bible 11; New York 1988). ■ S. Dalley, long political and cultural influence of Assyria on “Yabâ and Atalya and the Foreign Policy of Late Assyrian Israel and Judah (Spieckermann; Cogan) finds man- Kings,” SAA.B 12 (1998) 83–98. ■ S. Dalley, “Recent Evi- ifold reflections in the Hebrew Bible. The Assyrian dence from Assyrian Sources for Judaean History from Uzz- treaty practice and ideology was introduced in Is- iah to Manasseh,” JSOT 28 (2004) 387–401. ■ M. deJong rael and Judah when their rulers paid tribute to Ellis, “Observations on Mesopotamian Oracles and Pro- Assyria as vassal kings. It is evident from the close phetic Texts,” JCS 41 (1989) 127–86. ■ E. Frahm, Einleitung ■ parallelism of Deuteronomy and the Neo-Assyrian in die Sanherib-Inschriften (AfO.B 26; Horn 1997). A. Fuchs, Die Inschriften Sargons II. aus Khorsabad (Göttingen treaties that the ancient Near Eastern treaty ideol- 1994). ■ Z. Gal, Lower Galilee during the Iron Age (Winona ogy, especially in its Assyrian form, served as the Lake, Ind. 1992). ■ W. R. Gallagher, Sennacherib’s Campaign model of the biblical theology of covenant (Wein- to Judah (SHCANE 18; Leiden 1999). ■ F. J. Gonçalves, L’ex- feld; Veijola; Steymans; Otto). Moreover, the close pédition de Sennachérib en Palestine dans la littérature hebraïque

Authenticated | [email protected] Download Date | 1/19/19 4:02 PM Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception 2 (© Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 2009) 1091 Assyria 1092 ancienne (EBib 7; Paris 1986). ■ L. L. Grabbe (ed.), “Like a Damascus (Winona Lake, Ind. 1987). ■ R. Rollinger, “The Bird in a Cage” (JSOT.S 363; Sheffield 2003). ■ A. K. Ancient Greeks and the Impact of the Ancient Near East,” Grayson, “History and Culture of Assyria,” ABD 4 (New in Mythology and Mythologies (ed. R. M. Whiting; Melammu York 1992) 732–55. ■ A. K. Grayson, Assyrian Rulers of the Symposia 2; Helsinki 2001) 233–64. ■ H. Spieckermann, Early First Millennium BC II (858–745 BC) (The Royal Inscrip- Juda unter Assur in der Sargonidenzeit (FRLANT 129; Göttingen tions of Mesopotamia, Assyrian Periods 3; Toronto 1996). 1982). ■ H. U. Steymans, Deuteronomium und die adê zur ■ J. Hämeen-Anttila, “Descent and Ascent in Islamic Myth,” Thronfolgeregelung Asarhaddons (OBO 145; Fribourg/Göttin- in Mythology and Mythologies (ed. R. M. Whiting; Melammu gen 1995). ■ H. Tadmor, “The Campaigns of Sargon II of Symposia 2; Helsinki 2001) 47–67. ■ U. Hübner/E. A. Asˇsˇur,” JCS 12 (1958) 22–40, 77–100. ■ H. Tadmor, “The Knauf (eds.), Kein Land für sich allein, FS Manfred Weippert Historical Inscriptions of Adad-Nirari III,” Iraq 35 (1973) (OBO 186; Fribourg/Göttingen 2002). ■ E. A. Knauf, “701: 141–50. ■ H. Tadmor, The Inscriptions of Tiglath-Pileser III Sennacherib at the Berezina,” in “Like a Bird in a Cage” (ed. King of Assyria (Jerusalem 1994). ■ C. Uehlinger, “Nisroch,” L. L. Grabbe; JSOT.S 363; Sheffield 2003) 141–49. ■ H. S. DDD2 (1999) 630–32. ■ C. Uehlinger, “Clio in the World Kvanvig, Roots of Apocalyptic (WMANT 61, Neukirchen- of Pictures,” in “Like a Bird in a Cage” (ed. L. L. Grabbe; Vluyn 1988). ■ W. G. Lambert, “Assyrien und Israel,” TRE JSOT.S 363; Sheffield 2003) 221–305. ■ C. Uehlinger/S. 4 (Berlin/New York 1979) 265–77. ■ G. B. Lanfranchi, Müller Trufaut, “Ezekiel 1, Babylonian Cosmological Schol- “The Ideological and Political Impact of the Assyrian Impe- arship and Iconography: Attempts at Further Refinement,” rial Expansion on the Greek World in the 8th and 7th Cen- ThZ 57 (2001) 140–71. ■ T. Veijola, “Davidverheißung turies BC,” in The Heirs of Assyria (eds. S. Aro/R. M. Whiting; und Staatsvertrag,” ZAW 95 (1983) 9–31. ■ M. Weinfeld, Melammu Symposia 1; Helsinki 2000) 7–34. ■ O. Loretz/ “Covenant Terminology in the Ancient Near East and its W. Mayer, “Pulu-Tiglatpileser III. und Menahem von Israel Influence on the West,” JAOS 93 (1973) 190–99. ■ M. nach assyrischen Quellen und 2 Kön 15, 19–20,” UF 22 Weippert, “Die Feldzüge Adadnararis III. nach Syrien,” (1990) 221–31. ■ P. Machinist, “Assyria and its Image in ZDPV 108 (1992) 42–67. ■ M. Weippert, “‘Ich bin Jahwe’ – First Isaiah,” JAOS 103 (1983) 719–37. ■ L. Massmann, ‘Ich bin Isˇtar von Arbela’,” in Prophetie und Psalmen, FS Klaus “Sanheribs Politik in Juda,” in Kein Land für sich allein,FS Seybold (eds. B. Huwyler et al.; AOAT 280; Münster 2001) Manfred Weippert (eds. U. Hübner/E. A. Knauf; OBO 186; 31–59. ■ R. M. Whiting (ed.), Mythology and Mythologies Fribourg/Göttingen 2002) 167–80. ■ W. Mayer, “Sen- (Melammu Symposia 2; Helsinki 2001). ■ D. P. Wright, nacherib’s Campaign of 701 B.C.E.,” in “Like a Bird in a “The Laws of Hammurapi as a Source for the Covenant Col- Cage” (ed. L. L. Grabbe; JSOT.S 363; Sheffield 2003) 168– lection (Exodus 20 : 23–23 : 19),” Maarav 10 (2003) 11–87. 200. ■ A. Millard, “Mari’,” RlA 7 (Berlin/New York 1987– ■ K. L. Younger, “The Deportations of the Israelites,” JBL 90) 418–19. ■ A. Millard, The Eponyms of the Neo-Assyrian 117 (1998) 201–27. ■ K. L. Younger, “The Fall of Samaria Empire 910–612 BC (SAA.S 2; Helsinki 1998). ■ N. Naaman, in Light of Recent Research,” CBQ 61 (1999) 461–82. “The Historical Background of the Fall of Samaria (720 ■ K. L. Younger, “Yahweh at Ashkelon and Calah?,” VT 52 BC),” Bib. 71 (1990) 206–25. ■ N. Naaman, “Tiglath- (2002) 207–18. Pileser III’s Campaigns against Tyre and Israel (734–732 Martti Nissinen B.C.E.),” TA 22 (1995) 268–78. ■ N. Naaman/R. Zadok, “Assyrian Deportations to the Province of Samerina in the Light of Two Cuneiform Tablets from Tel Hadid,” TA 27 8. Literature (2000) 159–88. ■ M. Nissinen, “Die Relevanz der neuassyr- Reputed in Milton for its kings’ “wealth and luxu- ischen Prophetie für die alttestamentliche Forschung,” in rie” ( 1.722) and its geographical ex- Mesopotamica – Ugaritica – Biblica, FS Kurt Bergerhof (eds. panse (Paradise Regained 3.269–79), the Assyrian M. Dietrich/O. Loretz; AOAT 232; Neukirchen-Vluyn 1993) Empire is mainly viewed negatively in Western lit- 217–58. ■ M. Nissinen, References to Prophecy in Neo-Assyrian Sources (SAA.S 7; Helsinki 1998). ■ M. Nissinen, “Akkadian erature. Dante displays on the purgatorial terrace Rituals and Poetry of Divine Love,” in Mythology and Mythol- of pride the murder of Sennacherib by his sons and ogies (ed. R. M. Whiting; Melammu Symposia 2; Helsinki the flight of the routed Assyrians, together with 2001) 93–136. ■ B. Oded, “The Settlements of the Israelite their slaughtered remains, after Judith’s beheading and Judaean Exiles in Mesopotamia in the 8th – 6th Centu- of Holofernes (Purgatorio 12.52–54, 58–60). Shake- ries B.C.E.,” in Studies in Historical Geography and Biblical His- speare reinforces the unfavorable image through a (eds. G. Galil/M. Wein- toriography Presented to Zecharia Kallai passing epithet (“O base Assyrian knight” [2 Henry feld; VT.S 81; Leiden 2000) 91–103. ■ E. Otto, Das Deuteronomium (BZAW 284; Berlin/New York 1999). ■ A. IV 5.3.101]) and violent simile (“swift as stones / Panaino, “The Mesopotamian Heritage of Achaemenian Enforced from the old Assyrian slings” [Henry V Kingship,” in The Heirs of Assyria (eds. S. Aro/R. M. Whiting; 4.7.55–65]). Olmstead (1923: 645) alleges that the Melammu Symposia 1; Helsinki 2000) 34–49. ■ S. Parpola, modern “impression of Assyrian character” was “The Murderer of Sennacherib,” in Death in Mesopotamia (ed. conditioned by the opening of Byron’s The Destruc- B. Alster; Mesopotamia 8; Copenhagen 1980) 161–70. ■ S. tion of Sennacherib, long a required reading in Parpola, The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part I: Letters from As- schools: “The Assyrian came down like the wolf on syria and the West (SAA 1; Helsinki 1987). ■ S. Parpola, As- syrian Prophecies (SAA 9; Helsinki 1997). ■ S. Parpola, “Mes- the fold.” This poem, which goes on to celebrate opotamian Precursors of the Hymn of the Pearl,” in the divine annihilation of the Assyrian force (2 Kgs Mythology and Mythologies (ed. R. M. Whiting; Melammu 19 : 35), is satirized by the poet Ogden Nash. A re- Symposia 2; Helsinki 2001) 181–93. ■ S. Parpola, “As- sult of Byron’s excessive similes and metaphors, syria’s Expansion in the 8th and 7th Centuries and its quips Nash, was Long-Term Repercussions in the West,” in Symbiosis, Symbol- ism, and the Power of the Past (eds. W. G. Dever/S. Gitin; … that whenever you mention Old Testament Winona Lake, Ind. 2003) 99–111. ■ W. T. Pitard, Ancient soldiers

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to people they say Oh yes, they’re the ones that written in Arabic, which based themselves on the a lot of more ancient Assyrian commentaries. After the 9th wolves dressed up in gold and purple ate them. century, there is evidence for the existence of lec- (Very Like a Whale) tionaries. Prior to this, the captions of the Gospels used to contain information on their liturgical use Bibliography: ■ A. T. Olmstead, History of Assyria (New York 1923). in the ecclesiastical year. The Gannat Bussame (“Gar- Eric Ziolkowski den of Delights”) of a Turkish exegete of the 13th See also /Ashur (Deity); /Ashurbanipal; century constitutes an ample commentary on the /Asshur (City); /Asshur (Person); /Assyrian lectionary and its biblical texts. It contains several Church, Reception of the Bible in; /Babylonia; citations of lost biblical commentaries. /Calah; /Esarhaddon; /Four Empires; While Assyrian literature played almost no role /Mesopotamia; /Nebuchadnezzar; at all in the divulgation of the early biblical text, it /Nineveh; /Sargon; /Sennacherib; paved the way for printed editions of the Bible in /Shalmaneser; /Tiglath-Pileser Syrian literature in the 19th century. The Bible edi- tion printed in Urmia in 1852 was based on the Peshitta. For the first time, it contained a transla- Assyrian Church, Reception of the tion of the biblical text into Neo-Syrian which is, Bible in however, grounded on the Hebrew text rather than on the Syrian one. On the basis of the edition of In the Orthodox Church, the interpretation of the Urmia, a new edition was elaborated and published Bible is regulated by the interpretation methods of the early School of Antioch which were adapted by by the American Trinitarian Bible Society in 1913. the church. At the synods of the 6th century CE, The Chaldeans and Assyrians, who are allied with the methods and exegesis practiced by Theodore of the Catholic Church in Rome, published their own Mopsuestia were made authoritative for any bibli- Bible edition in three volumes between 1887 and cal interpretation. Methodically, emphasis is placed 1892. It was the basis for the Maronite edition on typology rather than on allegorical interpreta- printed in Beirut in 1952. The edition published tion. Special characteristics of the Assyrian tradi- by the Dominicans in Mosul between 1887 and tion are its interest in historical aspects, its greater 1892 was ordered by the Syrian-Catholic arch- skepticism towards traditional opinions and its dil- bishop of Damascus and the Chaldean archbishop igent attempts at reconstructing the historical of Diyarbakır. Subsequently, there was an increas- framework for biblical texts. At the same time, ing body of homiletic literature that prospered in however, the commentaries and interpretations of all Assyrian churches, but that was especially biblical books by Syrian church fathers remained present in the periodicals and writings of the so- in use, especially those by Ephraem the Syrian and called Nestorian Presbyterians. However, Catholic Narsai. In the 6th century, there were, from the and Anglican and, at a later stage, Russian-Ortho- perspective of Antiochene theology, both orthodox dox (i.e., the “Nestorians” united with the Russian commentaries (Babai, Ahob of Qatar, Gabriel of Qa- church) publications were of great importance as tar) and commentaries written by reforming circles well. At the same time, there are still handwritten (Henana of Adiabene). The latter deliberately re- commentaries of the Bible even today. An example nounced the exegesis proposed by Theodore of of this is the short commentary on biblical wisdoms Mopsuestia and were condemned at different syn- by Johannes Pascha whose manuscripts are pre- ods. However, even in later exegetic literature they served in Berlin. remained influential, and not only as an antithesis Biblical interpretation was not limited to com- to the main traditions. The scholia by Theodore bar mentaries. From the beginning, Assyrian poets re- Konai refer to all the writings and texts of the Pe- arranged biblical texts and used them for creating shitta. By means of an inquiry-response system, he chants for the community, so that biblical tradi- comments on every topic of the biblical tradition tions could be commemorated by singing during which seems important to him. Besides several liturgy. Ephraem the Syrian introduced women anonymous commentaries, the comments by choirs to this effect. A novella on Joseph which has Isˇobar Nun (823–28 Catholicos Patriarch of his been attributed to Ephraem the Syrian shows that church) on the whole Bible, also composed in an the poets worked with great artistic freedom in or- inquiry-response form, and those of Isˇodad of der to make the biblical text accessible to the peo- Merw (9th century), were of great influence, even ple. Because of their artistic inspiration, these beyond the confessional boundaries of the Assyrian writers tended to adapt biblical writings quite church of the East. The West-Syrian tradition took freely. Such adaptations of biblical stories flour- up citations, especially from Isˇodad’s commenta- ished during the so-called Syrian Renaissance. They ries. were collected in “song books” and quickly became Another part of the Assyrian tradition are the popular. They have remained a permanent feature commentaries of Abdalla¯ h ibn at-T aiyib (d. 1043), of liturgical celebrations and in the treasury of

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