Ithobaal III (Latin Ithobalus, Hebrew Ethbaal) was recorded by

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...

as the king on the

list of kings of Tyre The King of Tyre was the ruler of Tyre, the ancient Phoenician city in what is now Lebanon. The traditional list of 12 kings, with reigns dated to 990–785 BC, is derived from the lost history of Menander of Ephesus as quoted by Josephus in ''Ag ...

reigning 591/0–573/2 BCE at the time of the first fall of

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

, and therefore the subject of

Ezekiel's cherub in Eden The cherub in Eden is a figure mentioned in . Many translations, including the '' New International Version'', identify the cherub with the King of Tyre, specifically Ithobaal III (reigned 591–573 BCE) who according to the list of kings of Tyre ...

. During his time, Josephus also wrote that

Nebuchadnezzar II Nebuchadnezzar II (Babylonian cuneiform: ''Nabû-kudurri-uṣur'', meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir"; Biblical Hebrew: ''Nəḇūḵaḏneʾṣṣar''), also spelled Nebuchadrezzar II, was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling ...

besieged Tyre for 13 years, which probably covered 585 to 573 BC. The precise year it began is difficult to pinpoint with scholars divided as to whether it started in 598, the seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, or 585, which was Ithobaal III's seventh year as king. There are even those who proposed an earlier date - around 603-590 - citing that the Babylonians would have attacked it first before launching a campaign against Egypt. The city, according to the oracles of

Ezekiel Ezekiel (; he, יְחֶזְקֵאל ''Yəḥezqēʾl'' ; in the Septuagint written in grc-koi, Ἰεζεκιήλ ) is the central protagonist of the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible. In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Ezekiel is acknow ...

was not captured. Ithobaal himself survived the siege with the prophet acknowledging that "King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre... yet neither he nor his army got anything".

References

{{Phoenicia-stub Monarchs of the Hebrew Bible Kings of Tyre 6th-century BC biblical rulers People from Tyre, Lebanon 6th-century BC Phoenician people