Battle of Zephath
| Battle of the Valley of Zephath | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Kingdom of Judah in yellow as indicated in the map | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Kingdom of Judah | Kingdom of Egypt with Kushite contingents | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
King Asa of Judah |
Zerah the Ethiopian (may have actually been the Pharaohs Osorkon I or Osorkon II) | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown[1] |
Unknown 300 chariots[2] 1.000 Ethiopians | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| unknown | unknown but heavy | ||||||||
The Battle of Zephath, according to the Hebrew Bible (2 Chronicles 14:9–15), occurred during the dates of 911-870 BCE, in the reign of King Asa of Judah. It was fought at 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 Ethiopian who, given the time frame with Asa's reign, may either be Pharaoh Osorkon II or Osorkon I.[3]
The warriors of Judah were victorious in the battle, utterly defeating the Egyptians and Kushites,[4] which the Chronicler attributes to divine intervention,[5] and Asa's forces collected a large volume of war spoils.[6] 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 the latter would again make encroachments in the region.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:9–15
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:9–15
- ^ Cheyne and Black, Encyclopedia Biblica
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:10
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:12–13
- ^ 2 Chronicles 14:13–15
- Battles involving ancient Egypt
- 10th century BC in the Kingdom of Judah
- Hebrew Bible battles
- 9th century BC in the Kingdom of Judah