Phoenicia
Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...
n king of Tyre from 737 to 729 BC. In 738 he was listed as a tributary of 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 ...
n king
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, T ...
. His predecessor, Ithobaal II, was also stated to have paid tribute in that year. It is possible that the date in the Assyrian record is in error and Hiram's reign did not begin until 737.Edward Lipiński, ''On the Skirts of Canaan in the Iron Age: Historical and Topographical Researches'', Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 153 (Leuven/Louvain: Peeters, 2006), 185–88. Hiram II should not be identified with the "Hiram, king of the Sidonians" who paid tribute to the Assyrians at an earlier date.
In 733 or 732, Hiram allied with
Rezin
King Rezin of Aram () or Rasin of Syria in DRB (; akk, 𒊏𒄭𒀀𒉡/𒊏𒆥𒀀𒉡, Ra-ḫi-a-nu/Ra-qi-a-nu; arc, probably *''Raḍyan''; la, Rasin, link=no) ruled from Damascus during the 8th century BC. During his reign, he was a tri ...
, king of Damascus, but was attacked and defeated by Tiglath-pileser. He was then deprived of
Sidon
Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...
, which the Assyrian king bestowed on Elulaios. Hiram also had agents on
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...
, where his interests probably lay in the copper mines about
Amathus
Amathus or Amathous ( grc, Ἀμαθοῦς) was an ancient city and one of the ancient royal cities of Cyprus until about 300 BC. Some of its impressive remains can be seen today on the southern coast in front of Agios Tychonas, about west o ...
and
Limassol
Limassol (; el, Λεμεσός, Lemesós ; tr, Limasol or ) is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the district with the same name. Limassol is the second largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population ...
.
A letter of Qurdi-Aššur-lāmur to Tiglath-pileser, quotes a report from the Assyrian functionary Nabū-šēzib at Tyre, wherein Nabū-šēzib claims to have prevented Hiram from seizing the sacred tree (''ēqu'') from Sidon: "Hiram cut down the acredtree of the temple of his gods, which is at the entrance to Sidon, saying: ‘I shall move it to Tyre’. I made him stop this: the acredtree, which he cut down, is at the foot of the mount."
According to the hypothesis that much of the material in the
Hiram I
Hiram I ( Phoenician: 𐤇𐤓𐤌 ''Ḥirōm'' "my brother is exalted"; Hebrew: ''Ḥīrām'', Modern Arabic: حيرام, also called ''Hirom'' or ''Huram'')
was the Phoenician king of Tyre according to the Hebrew Bible. His regnal years have b ...
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 ...
, are often re-dated by scholars to the reign of Hiram II and the Judahite king
Ahaz
Ahaz (; gr, Ἄχαζ, Ἀχάζ ''Akhaz''; la, Achaz) an abbreviation of Jehoahaz II (of Judah), "Yahweh has held" (; akk, 𒅀𒌑𒄩𒍣 ''Ya'úḫazi'' 'ia-ú-ḫa-zi'' Hayim Tadmor and Shigeo Yamada, ''The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath ...
. Thus, the incident recorded in 1 ''Kings'' 5—where Hiram presented Solomon with cedar for his temple—may in fact reflect the renovation of the temple undertaken by Ahaz and recorded in 2 ''Kings'' 16. The Tyrian king would have needed Assyrian permission to fell trees on Mount Lebanon, but as Ahaz had recently paid a visit to Tiglath-pileser at Damascus this permission could have been granted then. Likewise, the fleets assembled by Solomon and Hiram in 1 ''Kings'' 10 may better fit the reign of Ahaz. The Israelite king could have procured access to the sea at the
Yarkon River
The Yarkon River, also Yarqon River or Jarkon River ( he, נחל הירקון, ''Nahal HaYarkon'', ar, نهر العوجا, ''Nahr al-Auja''), is a river in central Israel. The source of the Yarkon ("Greenish" in Hebrew) is at Tel Afek (Antip ...
from his overlord, Tiglath-pileser, after the latter's conquest of
Philistia
Philistia (; Koine Greek (LXX): Γῆ τῶν Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''gê tôn Phulistieìm''), also known as the Philistine Pentapolis, was a confederation of cities in the Southwest Levant, which included the cities of Ashdod, Ashk ...
. The gold of
Ophir
Ophir (; ) is a port or region mentioned in the Bible, famous for its wealth. King Solomon received a shipment from Ophir every three years (1 Kings 10:22) which consisted of gold, silver, sandalwood, pearls, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
...
, which the fleets collected, was needed by both kings to cover their tribute to Assyria.Lipiński, ''Itineraria Phoenicia'', 218.
In 729, Mattan II deposed Hiram and seized the throne. In 728 he made a large payment of tribute to buy Assyrian recognition of his usurpation.