Willie Martin
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 Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2003 11:12 am Post subject: Japheth and Ham - 9 |
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The Phoenicians were the city states of Tyre and Sidon, and had a far flung
empire on land and sea. They were the best sailors in the ancient world at
that time, and they saw the rise of David and Israel and made an alliance
with them. They were a common race of Semitic people; they also had a common
language.
There were only dialectic differences between Hebrew and the Phoenician
tongue. 1 Kings 17:9-16 relates where Elijah met with a Phoenician or
Zidonan widow, and they had immediate discourse, with no difficulty at all
in communication.
King Hiram the king of Tyre made David a palace and they became very close
allies as 1 King 5:1 shows.
The Israelite Phoenician alliance was an ancient super power, with all
twelve tribes of Israel united they sat astride the area where three
continents met; they had the world's greatest navy in the Phoenicians
combined with David's one and one-half million man army. And David was not
the least bit reluctant to use it.
They were challenged by Assyria and Mesopotamia, which is almost totally
unknown by most and yet it is related in the Bible. There was a revolt in
Amon which is a pretext for war between many nations and the Israelites.
It is discussed in 1 Chronicles 19 and 20 in some detail. There were 32
thousands chariots from Mesopotamia alone (1 Chronicles 19:7) that came to
fight David's army in this battle.
There was also an unknown number of men from Mesopotamia and Syria which
included a number of different people which fought with Ammon against
Israel.
In verse 9 we can see it was a national effort with a number of different
nations to destroy Israel as it states their kings came to watch the battle.
"And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array before the
gate of the city: and the kings that were come were by themselves in the
field." (1 Chronicles 19:9)
So, we can clearly see, this was not just a mercenary effort, this was a
matter of national commitment against Israel. Israel won the first round and
also the second which left them with no one in the area to challenge them.
If you will look at Psalm 83, which was likely written by David at this time
where he lists many nations that come to help the children of Lot, which
also included Ammon to destroy Israel from off the face of the earth.
"Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.
For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up
the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted
against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from
being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For
they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against
thee: The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the
Hagarenes; Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the
inhabitants of Tyre; Assur also is joined with them: they have holpen the
children of Lot. Selah. Do unto them as unto the Midianites; as to Sisera,
as to Jabin, at the brook of Kison: Which perished at Endor: they became as
dung for the earth. Make their nobles like Oreb, and like Zeeb: yea, all
their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunna: Who said, Let us take to ourselves
the houses of God in possession. O my God, make them like a wheel; as the
stubble before the wind. As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame
setteth the mountains on fire; So persecute them with thy tempest, and make
them afraid with thy storm. Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek
thy name, O Lord. Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let
them be put to shame, and perish: That men may know that thou, whose name
alone is YAHWEH, art the most high over all the earth." (Psalm 83:1-18)
Secular history has recorded that Assyria's Empire went into eclipse or
confusion, some encyclopedias call it, between 1100-900 B.C. Halley's Bible
Handbook comments on it also, and states that ancient Israel was much
stronger than Assyria, Babylon or Egypt.
This is the same period as Israel's golden age under David and Solomon. And
is glossed over in almost all historical texts, if they even cover it at
all. What happened to Assyria?
It was defeated badly in a war against Israel's army, as we learn from 1
Chronicles and Psalm 83. The texts of ancient history will not tell you this
nor will it give great credibility as the Bible is the Word of God. Assyria
and other nations had provoked Ammon to start this war, and this will give
you a little indication of how large an area that David ruled.
In Psalm 83 he named the nations that became a part of this war, which
included Assyria and in all likelihood became a vassal state to David.
It included the Ishmaelites, which included the Arabian Peninsula and people
we don't know where they lived in the east, so we really don't know how
large an are David actually ruled.
But he did rule from Egypt to somewhere about the middle of the modern
nation of Iran. Ether directly or through vassal states as a result of that
war. But Israel was the dominant super power of the ancient world at this
time.
Is there evidence of an Israelite Empire? The answer is Yes! But the secular
historians will rarely call it an Israelite Empire, they will call it a
Phoenician Empire.
Most people who do not realize the difference between Judah and Israel balk
at this major role for Israel because they think the Jews were the
Israelites and the Jews have always been few in number, but they don't
realize that the men from Judah were only a small part of David's army at
this time. It is true that David was of the tribe of Judah but he, also, had
eleven other tribes to provide manpower.
The Phoenician Empire is credited by historians as being dominant in the
Mediterranean Sea; as being present in substantial numbers in the British
Isles, the West Coast of Europe and Africa in the period of about 1100-800
B.C. and they are not at all bashful in calling it a Phoenician Empire. |
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