Page 69 - Western Civilization A Brief History, Volume I To 1715 9th - Jackson J. Spielvogel

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Prisoners from Judah. The Assyrians overran the kingdom of Israel in 722 or 721 B.C.E., destroyed the capital city of Samaria, and then began an assault on the kingdom of Judah. In this eighth-century B.C.E. relief from the palace of Sennacherib at Nineveh, Assyrian soldiers are seen impaling Jewish prisoners after their conquest of the fortified town of Lachish in Judah in 701 B.C.E.
their exile is still evoked in the stirring words of Psalm 137:
By the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. . . .
How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.2
But the Babylonian captivity of the people of Judah did not last. A new set of conquerors, the Persians, destroyed the Chaldean kingdom and allowed the peo- ple of Judah to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their
The Hebrews: “The Children of Israel” 31
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MAP 2.1 The Israelites and Their Neighbors in the First Millennium B.C.E. United under Saul, David, and Solomon according to the biblical account, greater Israel split into two states—Israel and Judah—after the death of Solomon. With power divided, the Israelites could not resist invasions, which dispersed many Jews from Canaan. Some, such as the “ten lost tribes,” never returned. Others were sent to Babylon but were later allowed to return under the rule of the Persians.
Q Why was Israel more vulnerable to the Assyrian Empire than Judah was?
The southern kingdom of Judah was also forced to pay tribute to Assyria but managed to retain its inde- pendence as Assyrian power declined. A new enemy, however, appeared on the horizon. The Chaldeans (kal-DEE-unz) brought the final destruction of Assyria, conquered the kingdom of Judah, and completely destroyed Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. Many people from Judah were deported to Babylonia; the memory of
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British Museum, London/Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
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