Hezion Explained

Hezion may refer to two kings of Aram Damascus.

10th–9th century BCE

Hezion
Succession:	King of Aram Damascus
Moretext:	(King of Syria)
Reign:	before 886 BCE
Predecessor:	?
Pre-Type:	Predecessor
Successor:	Tabrimmon
Suc-Type:	Successor
Issue:	Tabrimmon (son)

According to the genealogy given in the Books of Kings (15:18 KJV), Hezion was a king of Aram Damascus, where Ben-Hadad I is said to be the "son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, who lived in Damascus."^[1] The passage in 1 Kings refers to King Asa of Judah, who is dated by several scholars^[2] to not later than 866 BCE. In the 19th century many scholars equated him with Rezon the Syrian, an enemy of Solomon.

8th century BCE

Hezion
Succession:	King of Aram Damascus
Moretext:	(King of Syria)
Reign:	circa 773 BCE
Predecessor:	Possibly Ben-Hadad III
Pre-Type:	Predecessor
Successor:	Possibly Rezin
Suc-Type:	Successor

Hezion of Damascus was a king of Aram Damascus during the 8th century. Shamshi-ilu^[3] fought against Hezion of Damascus in 773-2 BCE and extracted tribute from him.^[4]

See also

• Aramean kings

Notes and References

1. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary Merrill F. Unger, Roland Kenneth Harrison, R. K. Harrison - 2006 "This important royal inscription in general confirms the order of early Syrian rulers as given in 1 Kings 15:18, where Ben-hadad is said to be the “son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, who lived in Damascus."
2. "On the reliability of the Old Testament K. A. Kitchen - 2003 p 8 and 30, dates Ben-Hadad I within 910-887, and "A Survey of the Old Testament", Hill and Walton provide a chart comparing various scholars with Asa's final dates no later than 866"
3. "Samsi-ilu, a "strong man" in Assyria, during the reigns of Shalmaneser IV, Assur-dan III and Assur-nirari V. ... probably ordered by the new king under the strong influence of Samsi-ilu."
4. The Book of Amos in Emergent Judah p173 Jason Radine - 2010 "Samsi-ilu fought against Hezion of Damascus and apparently extracted tribute from him in 773/2, but Damascus appears to have remained independent. 10 This period, the middle two quarters of the eighth century, was proposed by Wolff as ..."