| Ahab | |
|---|---|
 Portrait from Promptuarium Iconum Insigniorum | |
| King of Israel (Northern Kingdom) | |
| Reign | c. 874 – c. 853 BC |
| Predecessor | Omri |
| Successor | Ahaziah |
| Died | c. 853 BC Ramoth-Gilead, Syria |
| Burial | |
| Consort | Jezebel of Sidon |
| Issue | [1] |
| Dynasty | Omrides |
| Father | Omri |
Ahab (/ˈeɪhæb/; Hebrew: אַחְאָב, romanized: ʾAḥʾāḇ; Akkadian: 𒀀𒄩𒀊𒁍, romanized: Aḫâbbu; Koinē Greek: Ἀχαάβ, romanized: Akhaáb; Latin: Achab) was the son and successor of King Omri and the husband of Jezebel of Sidon according to the Hebrew Bible.[2] He was widely criticized for causing "moral decline" in Israel, according to the Yahwists. Modern scholars argue that Ahab was a Yahwist and introduced Yahweh to the Kingdom of Judah via imperialism. This mostly occurred in the latter half of his reign.[3][4][5]
The existence of Ahab is historically supported outside the Bible. Shalmaneser III of the Neo-Assyrian Empire documented in 853 BC that he defeated an alliance of a dozen kings in the Battle of Qarqar; one of these was Ahab. He is also mentioned on the inscriptions of the Mesha Stele.[6]
Ahab became king of Israel in the thirty-eighth year of King Asa of Judah, and reigned for twenty-two years, according to 1 Kings 16:29. William F. Albright dated his reign to 869–850 BC, while Edwin R. Thiele offered the dates 874–853 BC.[7] Most recently, Michael Coogan has dated Ahab's reign to 871–852 BC.[8]
- ^ For a discussion about whether Athaliah was actually the daughter of Ahab or Ahab's father Omri, see Klein, Reuven Chaim (2014). "Queen Athaliah: The Daughter of Ahab or Omri?". Jewish Bible Quarterly. 42 (1): 11–20.
- ^ 1 Kings 16:29–34
- ^ Grabbe, Lester (2017). p. 183-184. Ancient Israel: What Do We Know and How Do We Know It?. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-567-67043-4. “ His chief palace overseer Obadiah was a devoted Yhwh worshipper, and Ahab could hardly have been ignorant of that (1 Kgs 17.3). Furthermore, his two sons had theophoric names that contained a form of the divine name Yhwh (Ahaziah [1 Kgs 22.40] and Jehoram [2 Kgs 1.17]), which would hardly have been the case if he had been a Baal worshipper.”
- ^ Frevel, Christian (2021). "When and from Where did YHWH Emerge? Some Reflections on Early Yahwism in Israel and Judah". Entangled Religions. 12 (2). doi:10.46586/er.12.2021.8776. hdl:2263/84039 – via RUB.
- ^ Stahl, Michael J. (2023). "Yahweh or Baal- Who Was the God of Northern Israel?". Biblical Archaeology Review. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024.
- ^ Finkelstein & Silberman 2002, pp. 169–195.
- ^ Thiele 1965.
- ^ Coogan 2009, p. 237.