The article deals with the biblical and historical kings of the Land of Israel— Abimelech of Sichem, the three kings of the United Kingdom of Israel and those of its successor states, Israel and Judah, followed in the Second Temple period, part of

classical antiquity Classical antiquity, also known as the classical era, classical period, classical age, or simply antiquity, is the period of cultural History of Europe, European history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD comprising the inter ...

, by the kingdoms ruled by the Hasmonean and Herodian dynasties. The

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' United Kingdom of Israel, and then of divided kingdoms,

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and Judah. In contemporary scholarship, the united monarchy is debated, due to a lack of archaeological evidence for it. It is generally accepted that a " House of David" existed, but some scholars believe that David could have only been the king or chieftain of Judah, which was likely small, and that the northern kingdom was a separate development. There are some dissenters to this view, including those who support the traditional narrative, and those who support the united monarchy's existence but believe that the Bible contains theological exaggerations.

Overview tables

Kings and prophets

Diagrams, Saul to Zedekiah

Abimelech, son of Gideon

* Abimelech – the son of Gideon, was the first man declared a king in the Land Israel; he ruled from Sichem over the territory of Manasseh.

House of Saul

Saul and David by Rembrandt Mauritshuis 621

According to the Bible, the Tribes of Israel lived as a confederation under ''ad hoc'' charismatic leaders called judges. In around 1020 BCE, under extreme threat from foreign peoples, the tribes united to form the first United Kingdom of Israel. Samuel anointed Saul from the Tribe of Benjamin as the first king. * Saul (1020–1000 BCE) or (1040-1000 BCE) * Ish-bosheth (Esbaal) (1000–998 BCE)

House of David: united monarchy

Separation into two kingdoms

After the death of king Solomon the United Kingdom of Israel was divided in two – the northern Kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam, with its capital, first in Shechem, then Penuel, Tirzah, and finally Samaria, and ruled by a series of dynasties beginning with Jeroboam; and the southern Kingdom of Judah with its capital still in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

and ruled by the House of David. Under Hezekiah's rule in the Kingdom of Judah, the

Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew to dominate the ancient Near East and parts of South Caucasus, Nort ...

conquered and destroyed the northern kingdom 722 BCE leaving only the southern kingdom of Judah. The Bible judges all kings of Israel and Judah by their attitude towards Yahwism, and on this basis they all belong to one of the categories: the ''good'' kings, the ''bad'' kings, and the kings who acted both ''good as well as bad''. All kings of Israel are considered to be bad, except of Jehu who is considered to have acted both good, since he is credited with the suppression of a cult of Baal, as well as bad, since he failed to suppress a cult of golden calves in Bethel and Dan. Amongst kings of Judah, five of them are judged to have acted good throughout their reign: Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jotham, Hezekiah, and Josiah, whereas Jehoash, Amaziah, Uzziah and Manasseh are all described as kings who acted good as well as bad during their reign. The remaining monarchs are considered to have acted bad throughout their reign.

Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)

Kingdom of Judah

Hasmonean Dynasty

Herodian Dynasty

* Herod the Great (r. 37–4 BCE) * Herod Agrippa (r. 41–44 CE)

Family Tree

References

External links

King
at the '' Jewish Encyclopedia''
Kings of the Jews
at Project MUSE *Kings of the Jews
IsraelJudahHasmoneans & Herodians
at '' The Algemeiner'' {{Authority control Kings Kings Books of Kings

Kings Kings Kings Lists of ancient people