Persian emperor to carry war into Greece, whose rise as the dominant world power is described in the verse immediately following.—Dan. 11:3.

Xerxes was eventually murdered by a courtier and was succeeded to the throne by Artaxerxes Longimanus.—See ESTHER, BOOK OF.

AHAVA

(A·haʹva).

The name given to a river or canal located in Babylonia, NW of Babylon, where Ezra gathered together certain Jews and held a fast during the trek toward Jerusalem. (Ezra 8:15, 21, 31) It evidently was about eight or nine days’ journey from Babylon. (Compare Ezra 7:9; 8:15, 31.) Herodotus (The History of Herodotus, Book I, p. 67) speaks of a small stream called the Is, which flows into the Euphrates, and states that it is about eight days’ journey from Babylon. The city by the same name has been identified with the modern Hit, and some suggest this as the probable location of Ahava.

Concerning the town of Hit, The Encyclopædia Britannica (1910, 11th ed., Vol. XIII, p. 533) says: “From time immemorial it has been the chief source of supply of bitumen for Babylonia, the prosperity of the town depending always upon its bitumen fountains. . . . In the Bible (Ezra 8:15) it is called Ahava; the original Babylonian name seems to have been Ihi, . . . ” This source of bitumen may correspond with the Biblical account of the construction of the Tower of Babel, in which bitumen served for mortar.—Gen. 11:3.

AHAZ

(Aʹhaz) [he, i.e., Jehovah, has grabbed hold].

1. The son of King Jotham of Judah. He began to reign at the age of twenty and continued for sixteen years, until 745 B.C.E. (2 Ki. 16:2; 2 Chron. 28:1) Since Ahaz’ son Hezekiah was twenty-five when he began to reign, this would mean that Ahaz was less than twelve years of age when fathering him. However, one Hebrew manuscript and also the Septuagint and Peshitta versions of 2 Chronicles 28:1 give “twenty-five years” as the age of Ahaz on beginning to reign. Whatever his exact age, Ahaz died relatively young and left a record of consistent delinquency.—See CHRONOLOGY (From the division of the kingdom to the desolation of Jerusalem and Judah).

Despite the fact that Isaiah, Hosea and Micah all actively prophesied during Ahaz’ time, rank idolatry marked his reign. He not only allowed it among his subjects but also personally and regularly engaged in pagan sacrificing, to the extent of offering up his own sons in fire in the valley of Hinnom. (2 Ki. 16:3, 4; 2 Chron. 28:3, 4) Because of this abandonment to false worship, Ahaz’ rule was beset by a flood of troubles. Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel combined to attack Judah from the N, the Edomites seized the opportunity to hit from the SE, and the Philistines invaded from the W. The valuable port of Elath on the Gulf of Aqabah was lost. Zichri, a mighty Ephraimite, killed a son of the king and two of Ahaz’ principal men in the northern kingdom’s raid that resulted in the slaughter of a hundred and twenty thousand in Judah and some two hundred thousand Judeans being taken captive. Only the intervention of the prophet Oded, with the support of certain leading men of Ephraim, caused these captives to be released to return to Judah.—2 Chron. 28:5-15, 17-19; 2 Ki. 16:5, 6; Isa. 7:1.

Ahaz’ ‘quivering heart’ should have been strengthened by the prophet Isaiah’s message from God assuring him that Jehovah would not allow the Syro-Israelite combine to destroy Judah and place a man not of the Davidic line upon the throne. But, when invited to request a sign from God, idolatrous Ahaz replied: “I shall not ask, neither shall I put Jehovah to the test.” (Isa. 7:2-12) Nevertheless, it was foretold that, as a sign, a maiden would give birth to a son, Immanuel (God is with us), and that before the boy grew up the king of Assyria would eliminate the threat to Judah.—Isa. 7:13-17; 8:5-8.

With regard to the “sixty-five years” at Isaiah 7:8, which Isaiah prophesied would be the period within which Ephraim would be “shattered to pieces,” the Commentary on the Whole Bible by Jamieson, Fausset and Brown states (p. 437): “One deportation of Israel happened within one or two years from this time [the time of Isaiah’s prophecy], under Tiglath-pileser (2 Ki. 15:29). Another in the reign of Hoshea, under Shalmaneser (2 Ki. 17:1-6), was about twenty years after. But the final one which utterly ‘broke’ up Israel so as to be ‘not a people,’ accompanied by a colonization of Samaria with foreigners, was under Esar-haddon, who carried away Manasseh, king of Judah, also, in the twenty-second year of his reign, sixty-five years from the utterance of this prophecy (cf. Ezra 4:2, 3, 10, with 2 Kings 17:24; 2 Chronicles 33:11).”

VASSALAGE TO ASSYRIA, AND DEATH

Rather than put faith in Jehovah, however, Ahaz’ fear of the conspiracy led him to choose the shortsighted policy of bribing Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria to come to his aid. Whatever temporary relief the ambitious Assyrian king now brought to Ahaz by smashing Syria and Israel, in the end it only “caused him distress, and did not strengthen him” (2 Chron. 28:20), since Ahaz had now brought the heavy yoke of Assyria on Judah. As a vassal king Ahaz was apparently summoned to Damascus to render homage to Tiglath-pileser and, while in that city, admired the pagan altar there, copied its design and had priest Urijah build a duplicate to be placed before the temple in Jerusalem. Ahaz then presumed to offer sacrifices on this “great altar.” The original copper altar was set to one side until the king should decide what use to make of it. (2 Ki. 16:10-16) Meanwhile he mutilated much of the copper temple equipment and rearranged other features in the temple area all “because of the king of Assyria,” perhaps to pay the heavy tribute imposed on Judah or possibly to conceal some of the temple wealth from the greedy Assyrian’s eyes. The temple doors were closed and Ahaz “made altars for himself at every corner in Jerusalem.”—2 Ki. 16:17, 18; 2 Chron. 28:23-25.

After sixteen years of misrule and rank apostasy, Ahaz died and, though buried as his forefathers were “in the city of David” (2 Ki. 16:20), his body was not placed in the royal burial places of the kings. (2 Chron. 28:27) His name is listed in the royal genealogies.—1 Chron. 3:13; Matt. 1:9.

The name of Ahaz appears in an inscription of Tiglath-pileser III as Yauhazi, corresponding to the full form of the Hebrew name Jehoahaz (Jehovah has grabbed hold).

2. A great-grandson of Jonathan, son of King Saul.—1 Chron. 8:35, 36.

[Picture on page 44]

Seal that says “Belonging to Ushna, servant of Ahaz”

AHAZIAH

(A·ha·ziʹah) [Yah(u) has taken hold].

The name of two kings, one of Israel, the other of Judah.

1. Son of Ahab and Jezebel and king of Israel for two years (920-918 B.C.E.). He followed his idolatrous parents in Baal worship. (1 Ki. 22:51-53) Upon the death of Ahaziah’s father, Moab seized the opportunity to revolt and thereby free itself from the heavy tribute of one hundred thousand lambs and an equal number of male sheep with their wool. (2 Ki. 1:1; 3:4, 5)