Ahasuerus Ahaziah
THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA
285 Critical
View
seplms (••Am."
xi.
(J)
Despite tlic I'iict Hint both .loiiinl the Septuajriiit refer to
Ahiisiienis us Artii.xerxes, modern seholurs, such as Keil (•Coiuineiitary to Esther"), HerllK'aii, anil Hyssel C'Coniiiieiitary to Esther"), Wilileliocr ("• Kurzer HaiulKoiniiieiitar." 1898), Sayce ("•lliijher Crilicisrn t. 41)11), anil SchradiT {"K. A. are a.yi'eed that Xerxes and noneollieris meant by Ahasuerus, and tliis fur vaiimis reasons: (1) Alia.suenis is tin- attempt of the llelirew to re])resent the Persian Khsliayarslia, the alipli tieinff prosthetic just as it is in Ahasliilar|ienim (Kstli. iii. V2), where the Persian is Ksehatrapuwan Wildelioer, /« Iwo). The Ureek represents it by Xerxes. (2) The (Icscriptiou that Ileiodotus gives of the character of Xerxes corresponds to the IJil)lieal and, later, the
under Uezin, These kings api)arently wished to compel him to Join them in opposing the Assyrians, who were arming a force against Syria and Palestine under the great Tiglath-Pileser III. (Pul). To protect himself he called in the aid of the Assyrians. their interference, and as a result of their
Through
anil the .Moiiunieiits."
invasion and subjection of the kingiloin of Damas-
T.
cus and of Palestine outside of Judah, Aliaz was relieved of his troublesome neighbors; but his protector henceforth claimed and held suzerainty over his kingdom. This war of invasion lasted two years (7:i4-T;i^2 li.c), and ended in the cajilure and annexation of Damascus to Assyria and of the territory of Israel north of the border of Jezreel. Aliaz in the meanwhile furnished auxiliaries to Ti.iilatli-Pile.scr. This apjieal to Assyria met with stern opposition from the prophet Isjiiah, who counseled .Vliaz to rely ujion the Lord and not ujion outside aid. The sequel seemed to Justily the king and to condemn the projihet. Afiaz. during liis wliole reign, was free from troubles with which the neighboring rulers ivere harassed, who from time to time revolted against A.ssyria. Thus it was that, in 722, Samaria was taken and northern Israel wholly incoriiorated into the Assyrian eni]iiie. Hut what was externally a bles,siug proved to be inwardly a curse. Aliaz, who was irres-
" p.
- !T.)),
(
— vain,
foolish, tickle, and liolkinj^ must he a Persian; for the whole atmosphere is Persian. The court is at Shushan, and the ollicers are Persian. (4) Ik'tween the third and seventh years of his rei,!;n Ahasuerus is lost to view in the Biblical account; hut that was just the time when Xerxes was engaged in the inva-
midrashic iiiclure tein))ered,
(i!)
The
sion of Oreece. There can therefore he
no doubt that
tlio
monarch
name jiassed among the Hebrews erus was the one known as Khshayarsha
as Ahasuin the i'ersiuii inscriptions and among the Greeks as Xerxes. The Habylonian tablets spell his name Khisiarshu. Akhshivarshu, etc. An Aramaic inscription fC. 1. 8." ii. 1, Vi-i) spells it L"lN"L"n. Whelher there are any references to Ahasuerus in the Old Testament which are really historical is a serious question. The Ahasuerus of Dan. ix. 1. the father of Darius "of the seed of the Aledes." is as unknown to history as is his sou. Probably Ijoth are the confused ideas about Persian kings of a badly informed writer(see "Journal of IJibl. I,it."xvii. 71). In like manner the reference to Ahasuerus in Ezra, iv. 6 occurs where Canibyses or Darius is to be expected, if Hie statement is historical, and is no doubt the result of the igiionince of a late w riter. Concerning the references to Ahasuerus in the Hook of Esther various opinions are entertained, and ultimate judgment depends upon the estimate of the Ixiok itself. See Estiikk, Book of. G. B. L.— G. A. U. Avliose
AHASUERUS, THE LEGEND WMii
i:iM.
AHAVA
OF.
See
,Ii-.w.
—
possibly a canal or Inancli . river of the Kuplirales upon the banks of which Ezra halted his expedition on its march from IJabylon to Jerusalem (Kzra, viii. l.")-IJl), to fast and to humble themselves lie fore the Lord. Prom he tifli riilh verse of the .same chapter one might infer thai Ahava was niso the name of a villaire or town. In 1 Ksd. viii, (J. H. L. 41, (11, it isc.illed Theras.
—
olute and impressible, yielded readily to the glamour and prestige of the Assyrians in religion as well as in polities. In 732 he went to Damascus to swear homage to Tiglath-Pileser and his gods; and, taking a fancy to an altar which he saw there, he had one
which, with a correhe made a jiermanent feature of the Temide worship. Changes were also made in the arrangements and furniture of theTem|>le, "becauseof the king of Assyria"(ll Kings, xvi. Furthermore, Aliaz litted up an astrological 18). observatory with accom]ianyiug sacrifices, after the like
it
nuiile
in Jeriis;ilem,
sponding change
in
ritual,
fashion of the ruling peo])le.
In other
ways Aliaz
lowered the character of the national worship. It is recorded that lie even offered his son by lire to JIoloch. His government must be considered, on the whole, disastrous to his country, especially in its religious aspects; and a large jmrt of the reforming work of his son Hezekiali aimed at undoing the evil that Aliaz had wrought. ISiiii.inoKAi'iiv: See the C"iiiiiientarli>s nn II Klncs, xvl., II Ctiron. xxviii., ami Isu. vfl,,anil lliestiinitant histories of Israel (or tile period in (lui'stion. For the reliidoiis with .Assyria ami itj» ponsequeni'es. sif Si'liniiier, t I. (i. T. 2il ciI.. pp. i'»7 t-t Mcriirei.v. Itistni'it, /'roM/jcr;/. (iHii thr ,V"/Mi»lfllM. ffC'/. : I. I'liaps. ivaliil vli., e.si>e(iall.v Sf lilTit .«<<(.: rriie. The Mmiliminix mill llii did Tii'lumcut, pp. ito ct ini.: Seliniilcr.
K.
Ii.
11. 2(1.
J.
In Rabbinical
I
the rabbis,
who
reler
Literature: lo
II
F.
McC.
According
Chron. xxviii.
to
19-2.'i,
Ahaz was the king who persisted in his wickedness even in the face of all the (rials to which was subjected, and would not repent (Saiih. IdSii. Meg. llii). Woi^se llian this, he threatened Israel's lie
A9AWA.
See Al IIAW..
AHAZ, King
religion lo
of
Judah
(T:tr>-7in
ii.r.).— Bib-
His reign is lical Data: Son of Kinir Jotliam. meinonilile as that ill which Judah tirsi became vassal to .ssyria, and .Vssyriaii (Kabyloiiian) modes (if worship were tiist inlroiluced into the ollicial worship at Jerusjilein. The Hebrew anthorilies know only the form of his nami' given atiove. but = Jilioahaz the .Vs.syriaiis called him Vaiil.mzi has held fast"); the former name being a eontraelion of the hitler, like Nathan for Elnathan or .loiiathaii. Immediately upon his iieeession .Vliaz had to meet a conibiiiiilioii formed by (
"Whom YHWH
northern Isniel. under
Pekiili.
and Damascus
(Syria),
its
very foundation, in order to destroy
hope of regeiiemtion. He closed the schools and houses of worship so that no instruction should be possible, and the Siiekinah (or Glory of God) should abandon the land. It was for Ihisrea.soii that Isaiah had to leach in secret (Ver. Saiih. x. 28/i; Gen. H. xlii), tliongb .liaz always humbly submilted lo the all
prophet's rebukes
— hisonlv reileeming feature (Snnh. "
K.
104.1).
AHAZIAH,
King of Judah Son and succesHis sor lit .lib>'i:iiii and irniiidsoii of .li'hoshaphat. reign, like that of his namesake of Sjiinariii. was very brief, lasting but a year (S-13-842 ii.f.). Shortly
