ierce anger of
Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah. Because Syria,
Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against
thee, saying, Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us
make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it,
even the son of Tabeal: Thus saith the Lord God, It shall not
stand, neither shall it come to pass.[512]

The unstable Ahaz had sought assistance from the Baal, and "made his
son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the
heathen".[513] Then he resolved to purchase the sympathy of one of the
great Powers. There was no hope of assistance from "the fly that is in
the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt", for the Ethiopian Pharaohs
had not yet conquered the Delta region, so he turned to "the bee that
is in the land of Assyria".[514] Assyria was the last resource of the
king of Judah.

So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria,
saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up and save me out of
the hand of Syria and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which
rise up against me. And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was
found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's
house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria. And the
king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went
up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it
captive to Kir[515] and slew Rezin.[516]

Tiglath-pileser recorded that Rezin took refuge in his city like "a
mouse". Israel was also dealt with.

In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of
Assyria, and took Ijon and Abel-beth-maachah, and Janoah and
Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of
Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria. And Hoshea the son
of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and
smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.[517]

Tiglath-pileser recorded: "They overthrew Paqaha (Pekah), their king,
and placed Ausi'a (Hoshea) over them". He swept through Israel "like a
hurricane". The Philistines and the Arabians of the desert were also
subdued. Tribute was sent to the Assyrian monarch by Phoenicia, Moab,
Ammon, and Edom. It was a proud day for Ahaz when he paid a visit to
Tiglath-pileser at Damascus.[518] An Assyrian governor was appointed
to rule over Syria and its subject s