Page 37 - Bible Geography and Near East Studies

The occupants of the city worshipped false gods and lived totally immoral and debauched lives. Their
lifestyle was considered as evil as the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. As a result, they were considered
detestable people to the Hebrews.

Social and Commercial Factors in their Society

The Assyrians built their houses from mudbricks and covered them with plaster, similar to what is found
in many African homes today. They covered their floors with lime mixed with mud, which hardened and
could be cleaned. Some of their houses had a second story, and perhaps they slept on their roofs during
hot weather. Normally, they designed their houses with an outer courtyard. They had bedrooms,
reception areas, kitchens, and even bathrooms with drainage pipes to the outside. If you visited one of
their homes today, you would probably not notice much difference from a typical African home, maybe
a bit nicer.
They cooked in their kitchen using a conical bread oven. They enjoyed eating barley, wheat, vegetables
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like onions, cucumbers, garlic, lettuce, radishes, turnips, and several others, just as we do today.

The family life of the Assyrians differed little from that of many countries today. It was a male-
dominated society, and they practiced monogamy. Marriage was not necessarily a commitment
between a man and a woman; rather was a contract which both parties agreed upon. It was considered
a shame for a woman not to be able to bear children. For any reason, a man could divorce his wife by
cutting off the hem of her dress before city officials. He was then free to remarry. Sounds like Africa
today!

The economy of Assyria was based on a barter system. They did not have coinage, so items of value
were exchanged or traded, including gold or silver, copper, and bronze. Animals and grain were
exchanged for purchases. Most Assyrians were either farmers or in the military. Often, they would trade
with other countries, as desired, the furniture and carved ivory of the Phoenicians.

The Assyrians and Israel

The Assyrians were a thorn in the side of Israel. Beginning in 733 BC under King Tilgath-pileser, Assyria
took the Northern Kingdom’s land and carried the inhabitants into exile (2 Kings 15:29). Later, beginning
in 721 BC, the Assyrian king Shalmaneser besieged Israel’s capital, Samaria, and it fell three years later (2
Kings 18:9-12). This event fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy that God would use Assyria as the “rod of His anger”
(Isaiah 10:5-19); that is, the Assyrian Empire was implementing God’s judgment against the idolatrous
Israelites. The sovereign God takes full credit as the source of Assyria’s authority (compare Isaiah
7:18; 8:7; 9:11; and Daniel 4:17). Secular history records that in 703 BC, Assyria under King
Sennacherib suppressed a major Chaldean challenge.

Given the Assyrian threat against Israel, it is understandable that the prophet Jonah did not want to
travel to Nineveh (Jonah 1:1-3). When he eventually arrived in the Assyrian capital, Jonah preached
God’s impending judgment. After hearing Jonah’s message, the king of Assyria and the entire city of
Nineveh repented, and God turned His anger away for a time (Jonah 3:10). The grace of God was
extended even to the Assyrians.

5 Howard Frederic Vos, Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Manners & Customs: How the People of the Bible Really Lived
(Nashville, TN: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999), 259.
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