Israelite Exiles in Media: A New Look at ND 2443+

Vetus Testamentum

Vetus Testamentum 59 (2009) 71-79

www.brill.nl/vt

Israelite Exiles in Media: A New Look at ND 2443+* Gershon Galil University of Haifa, Israel

Abstract This paper reexamines ND 2443+, a Neo-Assyrian administrative record excavated at Calah in 1952, and first published by Barbara Parker in 1961 (Iraq 23, pp. 27-28). A new translation of this important text is presented, followed by a few notes and a discussion on the relation between the Israelite exile Hilqī-Iāu, and the city Sagbat/Bīt-Sagbat in Media. The text should be dated to the last years of Tiglath-pileser III since it mentions Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur, the nāgir ekalli, first appointed ca. 775 B.C., and the Israelites Hilqī-Iāu and Gir-Iāu, probably exiled from Israel after the 733-732 B.C. campaign. In light of the new interpretation of ND 2443+ the issue of “the cities of Media” (1 Kgs 17:6; 18:14) is reconsidered, and it is suggested that ND 2443+ indicates the deportation of Israelites to Media in the last years of Tiglath-pileser III. Keywords Exiles, the cities of Media, Tiglath-pileser III, Assyria, Hilqī-Iāu

In 1961 Barbara Parker published about 80 administrative records excavated at Nimrud in 1952 in the administrative wing of the North-West palace, including ND 2443+.1 This text was found in room ZT.4 which yielded about 400 other tablets, including copies of letters sent by the king, letters sent to the king, administrative lists of people and objects, records of payments from conquered areas, one literary text, and more.2 As Parker pointed out: “This room ceased to be used at some date not precisely determined and was filled up with earth containing tablets dated to the period from Tiglath-pileser III to

*) This article reworks in more detail ideas presented in a paper delivered at the SBL international meeting in Vienna, July 2007. 1) See Barbara Parker, “Administrative tablets from the North-West Palace, Nimrud”, Iraq 23 (1961), pp. 15-67, esp. pp. 27-28, and pls. XIV and XX. 2) See O. Pedersén, Archives and Libraries in the Ancient Near East 1500-300 B.C. (Bethesda, MD 1998), pp. 147-149. © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2009

DOI: 10.1163/156853308X372955

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Sargon.”3 The letters unearthed in this room were published in CTN V and in the SAA series,4 but the administrative records are mentioned in few studies, notwithstanding their great importance.5 Two fragments of ND 2443+ are preserved, but do not join: (1) ND 2443, a fragment of five columns of the upper part of the obverse, with about 9-10 preserved lines in cols. II-V (the reverse of this fragment is mostly not inscribed, with only a few traces preserved in r. I and III); (2) ND 2621, a fragment of two columns of the right edge of the obverse, probably of the same tablet (cols. IV-V; the reverse of this fragment, cols. r. I-II, consists of 14-20 preserved lines). Parker presented a transliteration and a translation of ND 2443+ with a few notes, but her editio princeps misunderstood a few lines and ignored the most important details. So a new translation of this text is presented below, followed by a discussion.

Translation Obverse (ND 2443) I:1-4 I:5 II:1-2 II:3

3)

“[. . .—x persons, whom] Mannu-kī-Aššūr [bro]ught into Dimeti; [. . .—] 10 persons (napšutū = ZI.MEŠ) [. . .].” The rest is lost. “Ṣiṣi—4 person[s]; Quia—[. . .]; a total of [1]6 bearded men (ša ziqni = LÚ ša NUNDUN) (and) 46 persons,

See Parker, p. 15. See H. W. F. Saggs, The Nimrud Letters, 1952 (CTN V; London, 2001); S. Parpola (ed.), The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part I, Letters from Assyria and the West (SAA I; Helsinki, 1987), nos. 1, 26, 32, 110, 171-172, 176-178; G. B. Lanfranchi and S. Parpola (eds.), The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part II, Letters from the Northern and Northeastern Provinces (SAA V; Helsinki, 1990), nos. 74, 215. 5) See K. Deller, “The Neo-Assyrian Epigraphical Remains of Nimrud”, Orientalia 35 (1966), p. 194; J. N. Postgate, Taxation and Conscription in the Assyrian Empire, (Studia Pohl: Series Maior 3; Rome, 1974), pp. 127, 139, 147, 198, 220, 224, 226, 400-402; B. Oded, Mass Deportations and Deportees in the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Wiesbaden, 1979), pp. 112-113; K. Radner, Die neuassyrischen Privatrechtsurkunden als Quelle für Mensch und Umwelt (SAAS 6; Helsinki, 1997), pp. 125, 128, 132, 158, 298, 302, 314; R. Mattila, The King’s Magnates: A Study of the Highest Officials of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (SAAS XI; Helsinki, 2000), pp. 24, 28, 35-38, 41-42, 49, 55, 57, 65, 69-70, 101-102, 118, 122, 132. 4)

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II:4-6

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whom Mannu-kī-Aššūr brought into Sagbat—at the disposal of Hilqī-Iāu. II:7-8 Dugul-pān-ili—4 person[s]; Liphur-ilu—4 ditto (= persons); II:9-10 [. . .]-a—3 ditto (= persons); [. . .]-ri—2 ditto (= persons)”; III:1-9 A list of male names (only a few signs remain); IV:1 “[1?]4 bearded men (and) IV:2-3 105 persons, at the disposal of Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur; IV:4 76 ditto (= persons), at the disposal of Hilqī-Iāu; IV:5 16 ditto (= persons), at the disposal of Bēl-šamka; IV:6 25 ditto (= persons), at the disposal of Ahi-dūrī; IV:7 34 ditto (= persons), at the disposal of Ṣil-Issār; IV:8-9 a grand total of 25 eunuchs (ša rēši = LÚ.SAG) (and) 44 bearded men”. V:1-9 A list of male names (only a few signs remain); Break (V:10'-12' = ND 2621) A list of male names (only a few signs remain) V:13' “a total of 13 bearded men (and) 41 persons V:14'-17' the women Tangî, Hazūgâ, Mār-gubbi, Agî-[. . .] V:18'-19' the woman [. . .—x] persons; the woman [. . .]”. The rest is lost. Reverse (= ND 2621) r. I:1' r. I:2' r. I:3' r. I:4' r. I:5' r. I:6' r. I:7' r. I:8' r. I:9' r. I:10' r. I:11' r. I:12' r. I:13' r. I:14' r. I:15' r. I:16' r. I:17' r. I:18'-20'

“[PN —x ditto (= person/persons)]; [PN —x ditto (= person/persons)] Adda-[. . . —x ditto (= person/persons)]; [. . .]-li-[. . . —x ditto (= person/persons)] Harrānāiu [—x ditto (= person/persons)] Uppahir-ilu [—x ditto (= person/persons)] Ilu-iddina —5 ditto (= persons); Matī’ —4 ditto (= persons); Sagīb-Adda —3 ditto (= persons); Gir-Iāu —1 ditto (= person); Ia-sūrī —4 ditto (= persons); Ahu —1 ditto (= person); Sagī’ —1 ditto (= person); Sa’īlu —5 ditto (= persons); Adda-sūrī —4 ditto (= persons); Gurādu —2 ditto (= persons); Erība/Rība-[. . .]—1? ditto (= person)”; Traces of personal names; the rest is lost.

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r. II:1’-2’ “[. . .] persons—[at the disposal of Bēl-Harrān]-bēlu-uṣur; r. II:3’-4’ [. . . at the disposal of ] Hilqī-Iāu. A grand total of 2[0]5 persons”. r. II:5’-8’ Broken away. r. II:9’-12’ “Hilqī-Iāu, Bēl-šamka, Ahi-dūrī, Ṣil-Issār”. The rest is broken, with one exception: “x persons” at the end of line 14’. This administrative document probably records the placement of deportees among Assyrian officials.6 During their transfer from place to place these deportees held the provisional status of prisoners of war (hubut qašti, kišittu, šallatu). Only at the second stage did the king of Assyria place them in various positions and on the various levels of Assyrian society.7 In the fullness of time they became an inseparable part of Assyrian society, or in the phrase of the Assyrian propaganda itti nišē KUR Aššur amnūšunūti. The deportees were placed primarily according to the king’s requirements and their talents. Some were given low-level and even senior positions in the Assyrian bureaucracy. ND 2443+ is not dated (or its date is lost), but it is reasonable to suppose that it was composed in Calah in the last years of the reign of Tiglath-pileser III, since the well known palace herald, Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur, who served as the official eponym of 741 B.C., is probably mentioned in this text (IV:3; r. II:2’).8 Moreover, Israelite deportees are clearly listed in this document (see below), indicating that it was composed after 733/2 B.C. Yet it should not be dated too many years later, since Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur was appointed palace herald in the reign of Shalmaneser IV (783-772 B.C.), as clearly indicated by his stele found in Tell Abta: his title in this stele is “nāgir ekalli of Shalmaneser, 6)

In Parker’s opinion: “This list may relate to the distribution of prisoners of war or the handing in to their officers of prisoners taken by individual soldiers” (p. 28, note 1). Oded (pp. 112-113) accepts Parker’s conclusions and assumes “with a high degree of probability” that the text refers to “captives given to certain functionaries.” For a similar opinion see M. Jursa, “Mār-gubbī,” in H. D. Baker (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Helsinki, 2001), vol. 2/II, p. 737b. 7) Oded, pp. 75-115, with earlier literature. 8) For Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur and the his Tell Abta stele, see A. K. Grayson, “Assyrian Officials and Power in the Ninth and Eighth Centuries”, SAAB 7 (1993), pp. 19-52, esp. pp. 28-29; K. Radner, “Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur”, in K. Radner (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Helsinki, 1999), vol. 1/II, p. 301a-b(2); F. M. Fales, L’impero assiro: storia e amministrazione (IX-VII secolo a.c.), (Roma–Bari, 2001), pp. 55, 64; S. W. Holloway, Aššur is King! Aššur is King! Religion in the Exercise of Power in the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Leiden–Boston–Köln, 2002), pp. 296-297; Grayson, 1993, pp. 28-29; idem, Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC, II (858–745 BC), (RIMA 3; Toronto, 1996), pp. 241-242 (=A.0.105.2:9); U. Magen, Assyrische Königsdarstellungen—Aspekte der Herrschaft (BaF 9; Mainz am Rhein, 1986), p. 50; Radner, 1999, p. 301a-b(2); Mattila, pp. 29-31.

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king of Assyria”.9 In 778 B.C., Bēl-lēšir was still the palace herald,10 so it is reasonable to suppose that Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur was appointed after 778 B.C. and before 772 B.C.11 During the reign of Aššur-nerari V (754-745 B.C.) his career was interrupted by Marduk-šallimanni, who was eponym in 751 B.C.12 This may imply, as suggested by Radner and Mattila that Bēl-Harrān-bēluuṣur had been involved in the rebellion against Aššur-dan III (772-755 B.C.) and Aššur-nerari V.13 In 741 B.C., Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur is named eponym,14 so he was probably reinstalled in his position by Tiglath-pileser III when he ascended the throne.15 Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur was a very powerful man: his name is mentioned in his stele before the king’s; he founded a city and its temples, and granted it exemption from taxation (zakūtu). His powerful position is also reflected in his stele’s iconography, where he is depicted in the ubāna tarāṣu pose. His beardless portrayal indicates that he was a eunuch.16 At least two persons listed in this text bear Hebrew names with the theophoric element—Iāu: Hilqī-Iāu (II:6; IV:4; r. II:3', 9') and Gir-Iāu (r. I:10')17. Both 9)

For the Tell Abta stele, see Grayson, 1996, 241-242 (= A.O.105.2:9); Magen, p. 50. Tell Abta is located in wadi Tartar, and is identified with Dur-Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur, the city built up by Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur himself, see S. Parpola and M. Porter, The Helsinki Atlas of the Near East in the Neo-Assyrian Period (Helsinki, 2001), p. 8, and map 4. 10) For Bēl-lēšir, see A.R. Millard, The Eponyms of the Assyrian Empire 910-612 B.C. (SAAS 2; Helsinki, 1994), pp. 38, 90; R. Mattila, “Bēl-lēšir”, in K. Radner (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Helsinki, 2000), vol. 2/I, p. 321a(3). 11) See Radner, 1999, p. 301; Mattila, p. 31. 12) For Mrduk-šallimanni see M. R. Mattila, “Mrduk-šallimanni”, in H. D. Baker (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, vol. 2/II, (Helsinki, 2001), p. 726b (1). 13) See Radner, 1999, p. 301; Mattila, p. 31. 14) See Millard, p. 44. 15) See Radner, 1999, p. 301; Mattila, p. 31. 16) See Magen, p. 50; Fales, p. 64; Mattila, p. 31. 17) For Hilqī-Iāu and Gir-Iāu, see H. Tadmor, “Assyria and the West: The Ninth Century and its Aftermath”, in H. Goedicke and J. J. M. Roberts (eds.) Unity and Diversity (Baltimore, 1975), pp. 36-48, esp. p. 42; B. Becking, The Fall of Samaria, (Leiden, 1992), p. 84; B. Oded, “Observations on the Israelite/Judaean Exiles in Mesopotamia during the Eighth-Sixth Centuries BCE”, in K. van Lerberghe and A. Schoors (eds.), Immigration and Emigration within the Ancient Near East. Festschrift E. Lipinski (Leuven, 1995), p, 207. In his opinion, Hilqiahu was “responsible for a unit of men, apparently filled a military post”. See also D. Schwemer, “Hilqī-Iāu”, in K. Radner (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Helsinki, 2000), vol. 2/I, p. 472a. In his opinion, Hilqiahu was a “Military official active in Kalhu”. For the name Gir-Iāu see K. Fabritius, “Gir-Iāu”, in K. Radner (ed.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Helsinki, 1999), vol. 1/II, p. 425b; R. Zadok, The Earliest Diaspora: Israelites and Judeans in Pre-Hellenistic Mesopotamia (Publications of the Diaspora Research Institute, 151; Tel-Aviv, 2002), p. 21.

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are probably Israelites exiled from Galilee or Transjordan in 733/2 B.C.18 It is not reasonable to suppose that they were exiled by Sargon II, since Bēl-Harrānbēlu-uṣur was at least in his seventies or even in his eighties when Sargon II ascended the throne in 722 B.C. (if he was still alive), since he was at least in his twenties or even his thirties when he erected his stele (before 772 B.C.). In sum, ND 2443+ was composed in the last years of the reign of Tiglathpileser III, and it is the earliest record of Israelite exiles in Assyria.19 The people are described by the pattern PN—x persons (used for families; or PN—1 person, used probably for single people). This pattern is clearly attested at the beginning of col. II, as well as in line 7 of this column and in r. II:1', 4', and 13'. Clearly then, persons are listed and not other items. Three main terms define persons in this text: (1) ša rēši (LÚ.SAG) = eunuch;20 (2) ša ziqni (LÚ ša NUNDUN) = bearded men; (3) napšutu (ZI) = souls, persons. The first term is attested only once, in IV: 8, the second four times (II:3; IV:1, 9; r. I:13'), and the third at least ten times (I:5; II:1, 3, 7; IV:2; V:13', 18) For the deportations from these areas in 733/2 B.C., see H. Tadmor, The Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (Jerusalem, 1994), pp. 80-81; G. Galil, The Chronology of the Kings of Israel and Judah (SHCANE 9; Leiden, 1996), pp. 69-70. 19) Israelite ambassadors reside in Kalhu probably as early as the reign of Adad-nenari III (ca. 784 BC), as indicated by the Nimrud wine lists. For these lists see J. V. Kinnier Wilson, The Nimrud Wine Lists (CTN I; London, 1972), nos. 1, 4, 8, and pp. 90-94, 114-117; S. M. Dalley and J. M. Postgate, The Tablets from Fort Shalmaneser (CTN III; London, 1984), nos. 121, 142, and pp. 22-25, 241. In Kinnier Wilson’s opinion the majority of the groups mentioned in the wine lists were prisoners of war (p. 91), but in Tadmor’s opinion they were ambassadors (1975, p. 42). In my opinion it is clear that the Samaritans (and probably also other groups) were ambassadors, see also Dalley and Postgate (p. 24), who pointed out that: “The new fragments indicate that they also included leaders and ambassadors from the countries concerned who were present in an official capacity”. For the hospitality with which visiting ambassadors were treated in Assyria, see Postgate, 1974, pp. 127-128. For the attitude towards foreign delegates in Assyria, see also J. M. Russell, Sennacherib’s Palace without Rival at Nineveh (Chicago−London, 1991), pp. 223-240. 20) For eunuchs in the Neo-Assyrian period, see A. K. Grayson, “Eunuchs in Power: Their Role in the Assyrian Bureaucracy”, in M. Dietrich and O. Loretz (eds.), Vom Alten Orient Zum Alten Testament: Festschrift für W. F. von Soden zum 85. Geburstag am 19. June 1993 (Kevelaer, 1995), pp. 85-98; K. Deller, “The Assyrian Eunuchs and Their Predecessors”, in K. Watanabe (ed.), Priests and Officials in the Ancient Near East (Heidelberg, 1999), pp. 303-311; K. Watanabe, “Seals of Neo-Assyrian Officials”, in K. Watanabe (ed.), Priests and Officials in the Ancient Near East (Heidelberg, 1999), pp. 313-366; H. Tadmor, “The Role of the Chief Eunuch and the Place of Eunuchs in the Assyrian Empire”, in S. Parpola and R. M. Whiting (eds.), Sex and Gender in the Ancient Near East (Helsinki, 2002), pp. 603-611; L.R. Siddall, “A Re-examination of the Title ša rēši in the Neo-Asssyrian Period”, in J. Azize and N. Weeks (eds.), Gilgameš and the World of Assyria (ANESSup 21; Leuven–Paris–Dudley, MA, 2007), pp. 225-240.

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18'; r. II:2', 4', 14'; and its abbreviation “ditto” occurs 18 times). In IV:8-9 the scribe presents a total of 25 eunuchs against 44 non-eunuchs (“bearded men”); and in the other cases (II:3; IV:1; r. I:13') a total of “bearded men” and (their?) persons is recorded (it is possible that “bearded men” are also listed in I:1 and 5 before the totals of persons). Since these bearded men are “brought” to a certain city by an Assyrian official (Mannu-kī-Aššūr) and allotted to other officials, it is reasonable to suppose that these people are deportees; however, the term ša ziqni usually defines officials.21 One possible solution of this contradiction is that these are deportees appointed by the Assyrian administration as officials, now being transferred to their new places (a few with their families, others as singles) to serve under the authority of the named senior officials. Note that the Assyrian officials such as Bēl-Harrān-bēlu-uṣur, Bēl-šamka, Ahidūrī, Ṣil-Issār and Hilqī-Iāu are not defined by these three terms or by any other term, but are mentioned just by their personal names. The relation between the totals and the detailed description is not always clear: for example, IV:8-9 is not a summary of IV:4-7 since the total of these lines is 151 while only 69 are listed in lines 8-9; therefore, the “ditto” in these lines must refer to persons, and not to eunuchs or “bearded men”. The total of “persons” might be presented in the next line (IV:10) but unfortunately it is lost. The bearded men might be the family heads: the ratio of “bearded men” and “persons” in one case is probably 1:7.5 (IV:1-2), and in the other two cases it is about 1:3 (II:3; V:13; see the discussion below on the average size of a family in this text, 3.66 or 4.67).22 Clearly, at least one deportee, namely Hilqī-Iāu already functions in this text as an Assyrian official, probably senior, indicating that the deportees were placed by the king of Assyria in various positions and on the various levels of Assyrian society. Although it is possible that the family heads were already appointed, and even assigned to a definite destination, these deported families are still in transit, so they are defined in this paper as “deportees”. So this administrative text probably documents the distribution of deportees of various ranks to be resettled in different places and to serve under the authority of various officials. A total of 12 families are preserved, consisting of 44 persons, about 3.66 persons per family. If the family head is not included in each of these family 21) For the terms ša ziqni and ša rēši, see AHw, p. 1530; CAD, Z, pp. 126-127; Grayson, 1995, p. 92; Fales, pp. 59-63, 302; Tadmor, 2002, p. 605. 22) In V: 18' a woman is probably presented as a family head, with an unclear number of persons (see the restoration, above).

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totals, the grand total will be 56, making an average of 4.67 persons per family.23 Moreover, if indeed the family head is not included in each family total, three or four additional families, of two persons each, are attested in r. I:10’, 12'-13' (and possibly also in r. I: 17').24 The possibility that they are single people (or “no families”, consisting of a man with his brother/ sister or slave/ maid) is preferred in this paper, since in most cases attested in Neo-Assyrian records the family head is included in the total of his family. The toponyms mentioned in ND 2443+ are of great importance. The location of Dimeti is unclear, but it should not be identified with URU.dim-me-ti in the Harran area, attested in the “Harran census” (SAA XI 201 I:39). Sagbat is mentioned in col. II, line 5. Parker thought that it is a personal name, so she read: qur-di-BE-tu-u-ni. But the following reading should evidently be preferred: ana (URU) sag-bat TU (erēbu)-u-ni, namely, “(they were) brought into Sagbat”. Two different cities named Sagbat/Bīt-Sagbat are attested in Neo-Assyrian records: the first is located near the Elamite border, between Elam and BītIakīn and is mentioned in the inscriptions of Sargon II;25 the second one is in Media, and identified by Parpola and Porter with Hamadan, about 480 km east-south-east of Calah.26 This city is attested in the summary inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III, and possibly also in his annals, as well as in Sargon’s stele from Iran, and in his annals.27 Since there were no deportations to the Elamite border in the reign of Tiglath-pileser III, it is reasonable to suppose that Hilqiahu was appointed in Media. This area was conquered by Tiglath-pileser III in 737, as clearly attested in his inscriptions: “. . . (the lands) of the mighty Medes—I annexed to Assyria. I rebuilt their cities and set up the Weapon of Ashur my lord therein. I settled there the people of foreign lands, conquered by me. I placed [2] of my eunuchs over them as governors”.28

23)

For the size of the family in the Neo-Assyrian Period, see G. Galil, The Lower Stratum Families in the Neo-Assyrian Period (CHANE 27; Leiden–Boston, 2007), pp. 273-291, 346-347. 24) In this case the grand total of these 16 families will be 64 persons, an average of four people per family. 25) For this city, see S. Parpola, Neo-Assyrian Toponyms (AOAT 6; Kevelaer–Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1970), p. 298; A. Fuchs, Die Inschriften Sargons II aus Khorsabad (Göttingen, 1993), p. 456. 26) See Parpola and Porter, p. 7, map 11. 27) See Tadmor, 1994, Summ. 7:31; Ann. 15:9; Fuchs, 1993, p. 428; L. D. Levine, Two NeoAssyrian Stelae from Iran ([Toronto,] 1972), pp. 38-39, 47. 28) See Tadmor, 1994, pp. 166-167; Summ. 7:36-37.

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The issue of “the cities of Media” mentioned in 2 Kgs 17:6; 18:11 will be reconsidered now in light of the new interpretation of ND 2443+.29 The mentioned scriptures indicate that Israelites were deported by the Assyrians after the fall of Samaria, to four main districts: Halah, Habur, Gozan and the cities of Media. Many documents indicate the presence of Israelite exiles in the first three areas,30 but till now no reference in the Assyrian records has been thought to imply a deportation of Israelites to Media. In light of the new interpretation of ND 2443+, for the first time a clear connection is found between an Israelite exile, Hilqiahu, and a city probably located in Media. So for the first time we might have an indication of a deportation of Israelites to Media. This deportation took place probably in the last years of Tiglath-pileser III, not in the reign of Sargon. So if the scriptures in 2 Kgs 17:6; 18:11 relate only to the deportations after the fall of Samaria and are not a summary of all the deportations from the Northern kingdom, Israelites might have been deported to Media at least twice: in the last years of Tiglath-pileser III and in the days of Sargon II (probably after 716 B.C.). Hilqiahu’s powerful position is indicated by two facts: (1) he is mentioned twice after Bēl-Harrān-bēluuṣur, and before the other Assyrian senior officials mentioned in this text; and (2) at least 138 people are at his disposal, probably including dozens of junior officials. ND 2443+ clearly indicates that Hilqiahu was already a senior official, when Giriahu was appointed to a junior position. They might both be military officers, and the interesting point is that probably only a short time passed between the fall of Galilee and Transjordan, and the nomination of these Israelites to various positions in the Assyrian Administration.

29)

For previous discussions on the issue of “the cities of Media”, see I. M. Diakonoff, “ʿry mdy: The Cities of the Medes”, in M. Cogan and I. Eph’al (eds.), Ah, Assyria . . . Studies in Assyrian History and Ancient Near Eastern Historiography Presented to H. Tadmor (Jerusalem, 1991), pp. 13-20; Becking, pp. 69-73; K. L. Younger Jr., “The Deportations of the Israelites”, JBL 117 (1998), pp. 201-227, esp. p. 223. 30) See Becking, pp. 61-73; B. Oded, “The Settlements of the Israelite and Judean Exiles in Mesopotamia in the 8th-6th Centuries BCE”, in G. Galil and M. Weinfeld (eds.), Studies in Historical Geography and Biblical Historiography presented to Zecharia Kallai, (VTSup 81; Leiden−Boston−Köln, 2000), pp. 94-97.