Zobah: Difference between revisions

'''Zobah''' or '''Aram-Zobah''' ({{Lang-he|אֲרָם צוֹבָא|translit=ʾĂrām Ṣōḇāʾ}}) was an early [[Aramean]] state mentioned in the [[Hebrew Bible]], which extended north-east of biblical [[King David]]'s realm.<ref name="CBSC"/>

[[Alexander Kirkpatrick|A. F. Kirkpatrick]], in the [[Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges]] (1896), places it broadly between [[Damascus]] and the [[Euphrates]].<ref name="CBSC">Kirkpatrick, A. F., [https://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/1_samuel/14.htm Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges on 1 Samuel 14], accessed 26 July 2019</ref> It is thought by some to have extended from the [[Beqaa Valley]] along the eastern side of the [[Anti-Lebanon Mountains]], reaching [[Hamath]] to the north and [[Damascus]] to the south, making it at one time a state of considerable importance.{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}}

In [[I Samuel]], the kings of Zobah were said to have fought with Israelite king [[Saul]] ({{Bibleref2bibleverse|I Samuel |14:47}}). Kirkpatrick suggests that "the 'kings' were apparently independent chiefs", but by the time of King David there was a single king, [[Hadadezer bar Rehob]].<ref name="CBSC" /> Later, King Hadadezer bar Rehob allied with [[Ammon (nation)|Ammon]] against King David, who defeated Zobah and made the kingdom tributary to [[United Monarchy|Israel]] ({{Bibleref2bibleverse|II Samuel |10}}). In this war, Arameans from across the Euphrates came to Hadadezer's aid ({{Bibleref2bibleverse|II Sam. |10:16}}). Upon the accession of [[Solomon]], Zobah became independent of Israel (compare {{Bibleref2bibleverse|I Kings |xi. 23}} et seq.).

After the 10th century BCE, Zobah is not mentioned in the [[Hebrew Bible]], but the city of Subiti, which is mentioned in the annals of [[Ashurbanipal]] as having been conquered by him in the 7th century BCE, is probably identical with it (compare Schrader, "K. B." ii. 217).{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}} The same city is mentioned in some broken [[Cuneiform script|cuneiform]] lists of towns in connection with Hamath and [[Damascus]].{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}}

Based on the biblical narrative, primarily from the [[books of Kings]] and II Samuel, [[Berothai]], a city belonging to Hadadezer ({{Bibleref2bibleverse|II Sam. |8:8}}) is identified by many with [[Berothah]] ({{Bibleref2bibleverse|Ezekiel |47:16}}), which was between [[Hamath]] and [[Damascus]].{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}} Zobah was probably located near this city, though [[Joseph Halévy]] claims to have identified Zobah with [[Chalcis, Syria|Chalcis]].{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}} On the later view, the area in question would be found in the far north of [[Syria]] and parts of [[Turkey]].{{dubious|This sentence describes a REGION. The topic here is the CITY. Is this sentence referring to the region where one should look for the CITY, or to the KINGDOM? If the latter: wrong place for that, plus: at what point in time? Mess.|date=August 2020}}{{factcitation needed|date=July 2019}}