Ithobaal III
Ithobaal III (Latin Ithobalus, Hebrew Ethbaal) was recorded by Josephus as the king on the list of kings of Tyre reigning 591/0–573/2 BCE at the time of the first fall of Jerusalem, and therefore the subject of Ezekiel's cherub in Eden.[1] During his time, Josephus also wrote that Nebuchadnezzar II besieged Tyre for 13 years (Siege of Tyre (586–573 BC)), which probably covered 585 to 573 BC.[2] The precise year it began is difficult to pinpoint, though most scholars believe it began around 586/585 BC and ended around 573 BC.[3] There are even those who proposed an earlier date - around 603-590 - citing that the Babylonians would have attacked it first before launching a campaign against Egypt. However, this theory is considered implausible by historian Josette Elayi.[3] The city, according to the oracles of Ezekiel, was not captured.[2] Ithobaal himself survived the siege with the prophet acknowledging that "King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre... yet neither he nor his army got anything".[4] “Ithobaal” means “With Baal”, a theophoric name indicating devotion to the Canaanite god Baal.
References
- ↑ Nebuchadrezzar and Babylon p27 Donald John Wiseman - 1991 188 Though the precise dates for the reign of Ethbaal III of Tyre are disputed, these are currently taken to be 591/0–573/2 BC Since Josephus says that 'in the seventh year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, he began to besiege ...
- 1 2 Barton, John (2004). The Biblical World. Oxon: Taylor & Francis. p. 503. ISBN 0415350905.
- 1 2 Elayi, Josette (2018). The History of Phoenicia. Atlanta, GA: Lockwood Press. p. 199. ISBN 9781937040819.
- ↑ Litwa, M. David (2016). Desiring Divinity: Self-deification in Early Jewish and Christian Mythmaking. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 14. ISBN 9780190467166.