The Final Destruction of Beth Shemesh and the Pax Assyriaca in the Judahite Shephelah: An Alternative View

Abstract

Recently, Bunimovitz and Lederman suggested that the final destruction of Beth Shemesh illuminates Assyrian policies in the Judahite Shephelah. According to their reconstruction of new data unearthed at Beth Shemesh, the Judahite Shephelah was devastated and depopulated during the pax Assyriaca. This study questions Bunimovitz and Lederman's reconstruction from both the archaeological and historical perspectives. It is suggested that the renewal of the Shephelah, which might have already began in the days of Manasseh, shows signs of cooperation between Judah and Ekron under both the pax Assyriaca and the pax Aegyptiaca, rather than the other way round. This fruitful cooperation was halted as a result of Babylonian destructions, as reflected inter alia in the renewed excavations of Beth Shemesh.