To avoid a similar fate in the south Ahaz continued to pay tribute to Assyria and, although it seems that they were not compelled to do so, many people thought it politic to worship Assyrian gods. The prophet Isaiah and his contemporary Micah warned that such idolatrous practices caused the collapse of Israel and foresaw a similar fate for Judah.
Ahaz was succeeded by his son Hezekiah (r.c.729-c.687 BC). When Sargon II turned his attention to other parts of the empire, Egypt and Philistia sought the assistance of Judah to throw off Assyrian domination. The prophet Isaiah warned that such an alliance would fail and Hezekiah heeded his advice. Assyria quickly defeated the Philistinian/Egyptian forces and Judah escaped punishment.
Hezekiah attempted to reform the religious practices of the people by removing the altar to the Assyrian gods his father had erected, and closing down local shrines in order to centralise worship in Jerusalem. He also sent a message to the people remaining in the northern kingdom urging them to come south to worship.
After the death of Sargon II, the kings of Babylon and Egypt asked Hezekiah to help overthrow the Assyrians. Isaiah again cautioned against such an alliance but this time Hezekiah did not listen. Sargon’s successor Sennacherib (r.705-681 BC) quickly subdued Babylon, Phoenicia and Philistia, and then moved against Judah in 701 BC. According to the annals of Sennacherib, the Assyrian army took forty-six cities before moving on to Jerusalem. But the city did not fall. Sennacherib unexpectedly withdrew his troops for reasons that remain unclear. Despite this respite for Judah the Assyrians remained a seemingly irresistible threat. Hezekiah accepted that Judah had to be a submissive vassal state again and bought his kingdom’s survival with tribute payments.
Under Hezekiah’s son Manasseh (c.66; r.c.697-c.643 BC) Judah was completely under Assyrian domination. Pagan ceremonies became prevalent and, like Ahaz, Manasseh worshipped Assyrian gods as a sign of submission. Amon (r.c.643-c.641 BC) continued his father’s policies.
When Amon was assassinated, he was succeeded by his son Josiah (c.39; r.c.641-c.610 BC). During this time the Babylonians advanced against Assyria and captured all its main cities. In 609 BC the Assyrians made a final attempt to regain the town of Harran and called on Egypt to come to their aid. Josiah allied himself with Babylon and tried to block the Egyptian forces at Megiddo. Josiah was mortally wounded and Judah came under the domination of Egypt. Josiah’s son Jehoahaz (r.c.609 BC) reigned for only three months, before being deposed by the pharaoh Necho II (r.610-595 BC) and taken into Egyptian captivity.
Josiah’s second son Jehoiakim (r.c.609-c.598 BC), who had been put into power by the Egyptians, transferred his allegiance to Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon (r.605-562 BC). During the reign of Jehoiakim, Jeremiah continued to prophesy disaster. When the Babylonians defeated the Egyptians at Carchemish in 605 BC, Jehoaikim decided the time was ripe for rebellion. Nebuchadnezzar, however, quickly responded by invading the country and conquering Jerusalem. In this siege Jehoiakim was killed and replaced by his son Jehoiachin (r.c.598-c.597 BC) who was captured. Along with other important citizens he was led into captivity, and the treasures of the palace and Temple were plundered.
A new king, Zedekiah (r.c.597-c.586 BC) was placed on the throne by Nebuchadnezzar. Jeremiah counselled Zedekiah to accept Babylonian domination, but the king decided to join a rebellion led by Egypt. After a siege of eighteen months, Jerusalem was conquered: all the main buildings were destroyed and Zedekiah was blinded and exiled to Babylon.
Judah was made a province of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Gedaliah, a Judean aristocrat, was appointed its governor. He sought to conciliate the people but the diehards regarded him as a collaborationist. Gedaliah was assassinated and fearful of reprisals the conspirators fled to Egypt taking Jeremiah with them against his will. The province of Judah was probably abolished and at least the bulk of it incorporated into the province of Samaria, but the details are not known.
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