Hazael (; ; oar, 𐡇𐡆𐡀𐡋, translit= , from the

triliteral The roots of verbs and most nouns in the Semitic languages are characterized as a sequence of consonants or " radicals" (hence the term consonantal root). Such abstract consonantal roots are used in the formation of actual words by adding the vowel ...

Semitic root The roots of verbs and most nouns in the Semitic languages are characterized as a sequence of consonants or " radicals" (hence the term consonantal root). Such abstract consonantal roots are used in the formation of actual words by adding the vowel ...

''h-z-y'', "to see"; his full name meaning, " El/God has seen"; akk, 𒄩𒍝𒀪𒀭, Ḫa-za-’-

ilu Ilu or ILU may refer to: * Ilu (drum), a Brazilian instrument * Ilu, Iran, a village in Kurdistan Province, Iran * Inter-Language Unification, WWW project * International Longshoremen's Association, labor union * Incomplete LU factorization *''il ...

) was an

Aramean The Arameans ( oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; syc, ܐܪ̈ܡܝܐ, Ārāmāyē) were an ancient Semitic-speaking people in the Near East, first recorded in historical sources from the late 12th century BCE. The Aramean h ...

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

who is mentioned in the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

. Under his reign,

Aram-Damascus The Kingdom of Aram-Damascus () was an Aramean polity that existed from the late-12th century BCE until 732 BCE, and was centred around the city of Damascus in the Southern Levant. Alongside various tribal lands, it was bounded in its later ye ...

became an empire that ruled over large parts of

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

and

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. While he was likely born in the greater

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

region of today, his exact place of birth is still controversial, with both

Bashan Bashan (; he, הַבָּשָׁן, translit=ha-Bashan; la, Basan or ''Basanitis'') is the ancient, biblical name used for the northernmost region of the Transjordan during the Iron Age. It is situated in modern-day Syria. Its western part, now ...

and the

Beqaa Valley The Beqaa Valley ( ar, links=no, وادي البقاع, ', Lebanese ), also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important ...

being favoured by different historians.

In the Bible

Hazael is first mentioned by name in . God tells

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...

the

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

of God to anoint Hazael king over Syria. Years after this, the Syrian king Ben-Hadad II, probably identical to

Hadadezer Hadadezer (; "he god Hadad is help"); also known as Adad-Idri ( akk, 𒀭𒅎𒀉𒊑, dIM-id-ri), and possibly the same as Bar-Hadad II ( Aram.) or Ben-Hadad II ( Heb.), was the king of Aram Damascus between 865 and 842 BC. The Hebrew Bible st ...

mentioned in the Tel Dan Stele, was ill and sent his court official Hazael with gifts to Elijah's successor,

Elisha Elisha ( ; or "God is my salvation", Greek: , ''Elis îos'' or , ''Elisaié,'' Latin: ''Eliseus'') was, according to the Hebrew Bible, a prophet and a wonder-worker. His name is commonly transliterated into English as Elisha via Hebrew, Eli ...

. Elisha told Hazael to tell Hadadezer that he would recover, and he revealed to Hazael that the king would recover but would die of other means. He also predicted that Hazael would commit atrocities against the Israelites. Hazael denies that he is capable of perpetrating such deeds. Elijah predicts that Hazael will be King of Syria. The next day, he returned to

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

, told Hadadezer he would recover but suffocated Hadadezer and seized power himself. During his reign (c. 842–800 BCE), King Hazael led the Arameans in battle against the forces of King

Jehoram of Israel Jehoram ( ''Yəhōrām''; also Joram) was the ninth king of the northern Kingdom of Israel ( 2 Kings 8:16, 2 Kings 8:25–28). He was the son of Ahab and Jezebel, and brother to Ahaziah and Athaliah. According to 2 Kings, 2 Kings 8:16, in t ...

and King

Ahaziah of Judah Ahaziah ( he, אֲחַזְיָהוּ, "held by Yah(-weh)"; Douay–Rheims: Ochozias) was the name of two kings mentioned in the Hebrew Bible: *Ahaziah of Israel *Ahaziah of Judah Ahaziah ( he, אֲחַזְיָהוּ, "held by Yah(-weh)"; Douay– ...

. After defeating them at

Ramoth-Gilead Ramoth-Gilead ( he, רָמֹת גִּלְעָד, meaning "Heights of Gilead"), was a Levitical city and city of refuge east of the Jordan River in the Hebrew Bible, also called "Ramoth in Gilead" (; ; ) or "Ramoth Galaad" in the Douay–Rheims Bib ...

, Hazael repelled two attacks by the

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...

ns, seized Israelite territory east of the

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

, and the

Philistine The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek (LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, when ...

city of Gath. Although unsuccessful, he also sought to take

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

(). Hazael's death is mentioned in .

Tel Dan Stele

A monumental Aramaic inscription discovered at

Tel Dan Dan ( he, דן) is an ancient city mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, described as the northernmost city of the Kingdom of Israel, and belonging to the tribe of Dan. The city is identified with a tell located in Upper Galilee, northern Israel, know ...

is seen by most scholars as having been erected by Hazael, after he defeated the Kings of Israel and Judah. Recent excavations at

Tell es-Safi Tell es-Safi ( ar, تل الصافي, Tall aṣ-Ṣāfī, "White hill"; he, תל צפית, ''Tel Tzafit'') was an Arab Palestinian village, located on the southern banks of Wadi 'Ajjur, northwest of Hebron which had its Arab population expelled ...

/ Gath have revealed dramatic evidence of the siege and subsequent conquest of Gath by Hazael. An archaeomagnetic study has suggested that the sites of

Tell Zeitah Tel Zayit ( he, תל זית, ar, Tell Zeita, Kirbat Zeita al Kharab) is an archaeological tell in the Shephelah, or lowlands, of Israel, about 30 km east of Ashkelon. History The site, roughly , shows evidence of human settlement throughout ...

Tel Rehov Tel Rehov ( he, תל רחוב) or Tell es-Sarem ( ar, تل الصارم), is an archaeological site in the Bet She'an Valley, a segment of the Jordan Valley, Israel, approximately south of Beit She'an and west of the Jordan River. It was occupied ...

and Horvat Tevet were destroyed by Hazael's campaign. King

Joash of Judah Jehoash (; el, Ιωας; la, Joas), also known as Joash (in King James Version), Joas (in Douay–Rheims Bible, Douay–Rheims) or Joás (), was the eighth king of Kingdom of Judah, Judah, and the sole surviving son of Ahaziah of Judah, Ahaziah ...

forestalled Hazael's invasion by bribing him with treasure from the royal palace and temple.

Items belonging to Hazael

Bronze plaques

Decorated bronze plaques from chariot horse-harness taken from Hazael, identified by their inscriptions, have been found as re-gifted

votive object A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generally ...

s at two Greek sites, the

Heraion of Samos The Heraion of Samos was a large sanctuary to the goddess Hera, on the island of Samos, Greece, 6 km southwest of the ancient city of Samos (modern Pythagoreion). It was located in the low, marshy basin of the Imbrasos river, near where it en ...

and in the temple of Apollo at

Eretria Eretria (; el, Ερέτρια, , grc, Ἐρέτρια, , literally 'city of the rowers') is a town in Euboea, Greece, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow South Euboean Gulf. It was an important Greek polis in the 6th and 5th centur ...

Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...

. The inscriptions read "that which

Hadad Hadad ( uga, ), Haddad, Adad (Akkadian: 𒀭𒅎 '' DIM'', pronounced as ''Adād''), or Iškur ( Sumerian) was the storm and rain god in the Canaanite and ancient Mesopotamian religions. He was attested in Ebla as "Hadda" in c. 2500 BCE. ...

gave to our lord Hazael from 'Umq in the year that our lord crossed the River". The river must be the Orontes. The triangular front pieces show a " Master of the animals" gripping inverted sphinxes or lions in either hand, and with goddesses who stand on the heads of lions. When

Tiglath-Pileser III Tiglath-Pileser III (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "my trust belongs to the son of Ešarra"), was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 745 BC to his death in 727. One of the most prominent and historically significant Assyrian kings, Tig ...

took Damascus in 733/2, these heirlooms were part of the loot that fell eventually into Greek, probably

n hands.

Arslan Tash ivories

A set of ivory bed decorations were found in 1928 in

Arslan Tash Arslan Tash ( tr, Arslan Taş "Lion Stone"), ancient Hadātu, is an archaeological site in Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, around east of Carchemish and the Euphrates and nearby the town of Kobanî. History The city was the center of an Ar ...

in northern

(ancient Hadātu) by a team of French archaeologists. Among them is the

Arslan Tash ivory inscription Arslan Tash ivory inscription is a small ivory plaque with an Aramaic language inscription found in 1928 in Arslan Tash in northern Syria (ancient Hadātu) by a team of French archaeologists led by François Thureau-Dangin.Aramaic language The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...

that carries the name 'Hazael'; this bed seems to have belonged to king Hazael of Aram-Damascus. The inscription is known as KAI 232. Also, some fragmentary ivories mentioning Hazael were found in

Nimrud Nimrud (; syr, ܢܢܡܪܕ ar, النمرود) is an ancient Assyrian city located in Iraq, south of the city of Mosul, and south of the village of Selamiyah ( ar, السلامية), in the Nineveh Plains in Upper Mesopotamia. It was a majo ...

, in Iraq.A. R. Millard, Alphabetic Inscriptions on Ivories from Nimrud. Iraq, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Spring, 1962), pp. 41-51 (13 pages). https://doi.org/10.2307/4199711

Notes

References

* Biran, A., and Naveh, J. 1995. The Tel Dan Inscription: A New Fragment. ''Israel Exploration Journal'' 45(1):1–18. * Ephal, I., and Naveh, J. 1989. Hazael's booty inscriptions. ''Israel Exploration Journal'' 39(3–4):192–200. * Lemaire, A. 1991. Hazaël, de Damas, Roi d’Aram. Pp. 91–108 in ''Marchands, Diplomates et Empereurs, Etudes sur la civilisation mésopotamienne offertes à P. Garelli''. Paris: Editions Recherche sur la Civilisations. * Maeir, A. 2004. The Historical Background and Dating of Amos VI 2: An Archaeological Perspective from Tell es-Safi/Gath. ''

Vetus Testamentum ''Vetus Testamentum'' is a quarterly academic journal covering various aspects of the Old Testament. It is published by Brill Publishers Brill Academic Publishers (known as E. J. Brill, Koninklijke Brill, Brill ()) is a Dutch international a ...

'' 54(3):319–34. * Galil, G., "David and Hazael: War, Peace, Stones and Memory," ''Palestine Exploration Quarterly'', 139,2 (2007), 79–84. * Maeir, A. M., and Gur-Arieh, S. 2011. Comparative aspects of the Aramean Siege System at Tell es-Sa¦fi/Gath. Pp. 227–44 in ''The Fire Signals of Lachish: Studies in the Archaeology and History of Israel in the Late Bronze Age, Iron Age and Persian Period in Honor of David Ussishkin'', eds. I. Finkelstein and N. Na’aman. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.

External links

Tell es-Safi/Gath Excavation Project BlogTell es-Safi/Gath Excavation Project website
{{Authority control Monarchs of the Hebrew Bible 796 BC deaths 9th-century BC Kings of Syria 8th-century BC Kings of Syria 9th-century BC biblical rulers Aramean kings Ancient Damascus Year of birth unknown Kings of Syria Biblical murderers Gath (city)