1/25 Lecture

Hezekiah's Jerusalem: The Growth of the City


When David and Solomon's Reign ended, so did the Golden Age. The United Kingdom then gets divided into Judah in the South under the reign of Rehoboam and Israel in the North under the reign of Jeroboam when the North "rebels." Something that Professor Cargill noted that piqued my interest was that the Bible has a very heavy theological/religious bias and is written in the standpoint of the South. Then why does Bible refer to Jesus as the King of Israel, and not King of Judah? 


Because Temple in Jerusalem remained within the Southern territory, the North built temples of their own--one in Bethel and one in Dan--because they didn't want to support the South economically. However, even though the South was critical of the North, it also built alternate temples (Beer-Sheva and Arad) for reasons that seem unclear to me.


Despite the false imagery created by the Bible that portrays David & Solomon's Jerusalem as a power player, it was actually very weak compared to the other rising empires. The pacts were made between Judah and Egypt/Syria and Israel and Assyria. The kings of Israel and Judah sought help from their "mother" nation to fight off the other state and, in return, paid tribute in gold and other valuable objects. This is controversial because in the Bible, it clearly states that the chosen city of God should wipe out other nations. With the rise of the powerful and intimidating Assyrian Empire in 8th century BCE, many states were conquered, including Israel and Judah. Assyria then undertook the policy of deportation, and the survivors eventually flocked into Jerusalem. Jerusalem, being a walled city, becomes overcrowded and expands its territory to the other hill. With population growth, urbanization and economic growth follow suit, slowly but surely increasing Jerusalem's influence. This period of growth that lasts roughly about 200 years represents Jerusalem's cultural and religious expansion and embodies Jerusalem's legend as God's chosen city. This is also the period corresponds to Hezekiah's Jerusalem.


Hezekiah fortifies Jerusalem with a "broad" wall on the Northern border, increases water supply with Hezekiah's tunnel, and establishes a royal administration. Hezekiah was indeed preparing for a imminent attack from the Assyrian Empire, which could only mean that Jerusalem had become a power player and a threat. It was fascinating to see how such a small city that was overlooked by the most powerful empire at the time because it seemed too powerless and weak to be even conquered grew to pose a threat to the same empire. It was also interesting to learn about Jerusalem outside of religious context--Jerusalem seemed more like any other ancient city that earned its significance through growth and expansion.