Settlement and Demography in Seventh-Century Judah and the Extent and Intensity of Sennacherib's Campaign

Abstract

A detailed examination of data from dozens of excavated sites, urban and rural alike, reveals that most parts of Judah prospered in the seventh century BCE, and that this, and not the eighth century, represents the settlement peak in most parts of the kingdom. Systematic investigation of the data conducted both on the site level and on a regional basis allows us to identify patterns of continuity, prosperity and decline during the transition from the eighth to the seventh century BCE. The identified patterns are presented, and possible explanations for them are suggested. These patterns are then compared and contrasted with information from the various textual sources (both the biblical and the Assyrian sources) on Sennacherib's campaign to Judah in 701, in order to gain a better understanding of the campaign and its impact on the kingdom of Judah.