Israel
- The Kingdom of Israel
The Kingdom of Israel
(Hebrew: מַלְכוּת יִשְׂרָאֵל) was the Kingdom proclaimed by the
Israelite nation around 1050 BCE.
The nation itself was formed as the Israelites left Goshen, Egypt during
the Exodus at an uncertain date, often considered to be in the late 13th
century BCE.
Prior to the establishment of the kingdom, the Hebrew people, (the
Israelites) were led by the patriarchs and later byJudges. The notion of
kingship was for a long time anathemetised, as it was seen as one man
being put in a position of reverence and power that in their faith was
reserved for the one true God. According to the Bible, it was Samuel,
one of last of the judges, to whom the nation appealed for a king, as
his sons, who had been appointed judges over Israel, misused the office.
Although he tried to disuade them, they were resolute and Samuel
anointed Saul ben Kish from the tribe of Benjamin as king.
United Monarchy
Around 1050 BCE, the twelve tribes of Israel united to form the Kingdom
of Israel. Saul was the first King of Israel. He unified the tribes
under a single Israelite authority, but, according to the Torah, due to
his disobedience to God, he ruled for only two years.
David, the second King of Israel, established Jerusalem as Israel's
national capital around 3,000 years ago. Before then, Shilo (modern day
Tel Shilo) had been capital of Israel.
David succeeded in truly unifying the Hebrew tribes, and firmly
consolidated the monarchical government. He embarked on successful
military campaigns against Israel's enemies, and defeated bitter foes
such as the Philistines, thus creating secure borders for Israel. David
established a central government in Jerusalem, a standing army,
judiciaries across the land, and a sophisticated infrastructure.
Under King David, Israel grew from Kingdom to Empire, and its military
and political sphere of influence in the Middle East expanded greatly,
as it controlled a number of weaker client states around it.
The third King of Israel, Shelomoh, (meaning "one whose peace is his" in
Hebrew) or "Solomon" in English, is portrayed as a wise leader in the
Torah. Solomon constructed the First Temple in Jerusalem. His reign was
a time of peace for Israel.
Following Solomon's death, tensions between the northern part of Israel,
containing the ten northern tribes, and the southern section, dominated
by Jerusalem and the southern tribes, reached a boiling point, and in
920 BCE, Israel split into two kingdoms: Israel in the north and Judah
in the south. See also History of ancient Israel and Judah.
Soon after the death of Solomon, the prophecy of Ahijah (1 Kings
11:31-35) was fulfilled with the division of the kingdom. Rehoboam, the
son and successor of Solomon, was scarcely seated on his throne when the
old jealousies between Judah and the other tribes broke out anew, and
Jeroboam was sent for from Egypt by the malcontents (12:2,3).
Rehoboam insolently refused to lighten the burdensome taxation and
services that his father had imposed on his subjects (12:4), and the
rebellion became complete. The Tribe of Ephraim and all Israel raised
the old cry, "Every man to his tents, O Israel" (2 Samuel 20:1).
Rehoboam fled to Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:1-18; 2 Chronicles 10), and
Jeroboam was proclaimed king over all Israel at Shechem, with the Tribe
of Judah and the Tribe of Benjamin remaining faithful to Rehoboam. War
continued, with varying success, between the two kingdoms for about
sixty years, until Jehoshaphat allied himself with the house of Ahab
through marriage. Later, his son and successor Jehoram of Judah married
Ahab's daughter Athaliah, cementing the alliance. The sons of Ahab were
slaughtered by Jehu following his Coup d'état (though this is disputed
by the Dan Stele).
Extent of the Kingdom
The area of Solomon's kingdom, excluding the Phoenician territories on
the shore of the Mediterranean, did not much exceed 34,000 km˛ (13,000
square miles). The kingdom of Israel encompassed about 24,000 km˛ (9,375
square miles). Shechem was the first capital of this kingdom (1 Kings
12:25), afterwards Tirza (14:17). Samaria was subsequently chosen as the
capital (16:24), and continued as such until the destruction of the
kingdom by the Assyrians (2 Kings 17:5). During the siege of Samaria
(lasting for three years) by the Assyrians, Shalmaneser V died and was
succeeded by Sargon II of Assyria, who himself records the capture of
that city thus: "Samaria I looked at, I captured; 27,280 men who dwelt
in it I carried away" (2 Kings 17:6) into Assyria. Thus, after a
duration of two hundred and fifty-three years, the kingdom of the ten
tribes came to an end. They were scattered throughout the East, and are
popularly known as the Lost ten tribes of Israel.
" Judah held its ground against Assyria for yet one hundred and
twenty-three years, and became the rallying-point of the dispersed of
every tribe, and eventually gave its name to the whole race. Those of
the people who in the last struggle escaped into the territories of
Judah or other neighbouring countries naturally looked to Judah as the
head and home of their race. And when Judah itself was carried off to
Babylon, many of the exiled Israelites joined them from Assyria, and
swelled that immense population which made Babylonia a second Judah".
After the deportation of the ten tribes, the vacated land was colonized
by various eastern tribes, especially Syrians, whom the king of Assyria
sent thither (Ezra 4:2, 10; 2 Kings 17:24-29).
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