Assyrian ruler from 722-705 BC, Sargon was one of Assyria's greatest soldier and gave the empire seventeen years of its greatest accomplishment and glory, still witnessed by the wealth of archaeological materials he left behind. Sargon is mentioned only incidentally in Isa 20:1 to provide the date for Isaiah's prophecy recorded in this short chapter, even though he was the king responsible for the fall of Samaria (the siege of the city had begun under Shalmaneser III) and the deporatation of the northern tribes into fatal exile (he is, therefore, the un-named "king of Assyria" in 2 Ki 17:6).
Sargon's ancestry remains a matter of doubt. It is generally agreed that he was not of noble birth even though his immediate succession to the throne upon the death of Shalmaneser V went without any challenge. The reign of Shalmaneser was short which left the empire with many unresolved and confusing challenges—her many enemies as constant and irritating as flies that refuse to go away. From the Armenians in the north to the Egypt in the south, her vassals were raving to rebel. One of the most important of these was Merodach-Baladan of Babylon who rose in open revolt against Assyrian suzerainty at about this time. Sargon's able leadership, therefore, came welcome for the empire.
The first feather in his cap upon his succession was the capitulation of Samaria after years of siege begun under Shalmaneser. Though the fall of Samaria and the subsequent deporation of the northern tribes were probably the work of his generals (he did seem to have been present in Palestine), Sargon quickly took credit for it, boasting triumphantly,
The city Samaria I besieged, and twenty-seven thousand two hundred and ninety people, inhabitants of it, I took away captive. Fifty chariots in it I seized, but the rest I allowed to retain their possessions. I appointed my governor over them, and the tribute of the late king I imposed upon them.
Assyrian records show how, for most of the rest of his reign, he was putting out the fires of insurrections everwhere. His appearance at Ashdod, reported in Isa 20:1, was only one of them. The most serious, as already suggested above, was Babylon. By 709, when he took possession and was proclaimed king of Babylon, he had brought the empire back to security of confidence—in fact, the acme of Assyrian power—from the dangerous uncertainties of his ascension. His accomplishments, however, were not just military. He also founded the city of Nineveh, one of the most magnificent cities ever. He did not live long also to enjoy the fruits of his success. He died in 705, possibly murdered, and was succeeded by his son, Sennacherib.
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