Battle of Zephath
![]() | This article uses texts from within a religion or faith system without referring to secondary sources that critically analyze them. (June 2024) |
Battle of the Valley of Zephath | |||||||||
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![]() Kingdom of Judah in yellow as indicated in the map | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
![]() | Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt with Kushite contingents | ||||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
![]() | Zerah the Ethiopian (may have actually been the Pharaohs Osorkon I or Osorkon II) | ||||||||
Strength | |||||||||
Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||||
unknown | unknown |
The Battle of Zephath, according to the Hebrew Bible (2 Chronicles 14:9–15), occurred during the period of 911-870 BCE in the reign of King Asa of Judah. It was fought in the Valley of Zephath near Maresha in modern-day Israel between the armies of the Kingdom of Judah under the command of King Asa and that of the Kushites and ancient Egyptians under the command of Zerah the Cushite, who, given the time frame with Asa's reign, may have been a military commander under Osorkon I.[1]
The warriors of Judah were victorious in the battle, utterly defeating the Egyptians and Kushites,[2] which the Chronicler attributes to divine intervention,[3] and Asa's forces collected a large volume of war spoils.[4] Asa's forces pursued the enemy stragglers as far as the coastal city of Gerar, where they halted due to exhaustion. The result of the battle created peace between Judah and Egypt until the time of Josiah some centuries later, when Egypt would again make encroachments in the region.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Kitchen, Kenneth (2003). "Egyptian interventions in the Levant in Iron Age II". In Dever, William G.; Gitin, Seymour (eds.). Symbiosis, symbolism, and the power of the past: Canaan, ancient Israel, and their neighbors from the Late Bronze Age through Roman Palaestina. Eisenbrauns. pp. 113–132 [124]. ISBN 978-1-57506-081-1.
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:10
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:12–13
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:13–15