Book of the Bible
2 Kings
The kings of Israel and Judah, the fall of Samaria in 722 BC, and the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.
What the sources say, and how sure we are
- The text says
Second Kings tells why the northern kingdom fell to Assyria and why Judah fell to Babylon, and ends with the release of King Jehoiachin from prison in Babylon.2 Kgs 17; 2 Kgs 25
- Outside evidence
Sennacherib’s Prism records his campaign against Judah in 701 BC and says he shut Hezekiah up in Jerusalem “like a bird in a cage.” It does not claim the city was captured. The Babylonian Chronicle records the capture of Jerusalem in 597 BC.Sennacherib Prism; Babylonian Chronicle (ABC 5); 2 Kgs 18–19; 2 Kgs 24:10–17
- Debated
Scholars debate whether Samaria fell in 722 or 721 BC, and whether to credit Shalmaneser V or his successor Sargon II.2 Kgs 17:3–6