Amos 1:8

the inhabitant See on Amos 1:5.

from Ashdod Another of the five chief Philistine cities (Joshua 13:3; 1 Samuel 6:17 f.) is here specified, Ashdod, about 21 miles N.N.E. of Gaza, and 3 miles from the sea-coast. It was a strong fortress, and served also as a half-way station on the great caravan-route between Gaza and Joppa. According to Herodotus (ii. 157), when attacked by Psammetichus king of Egypt (c. 650 b.c.), it sustained a siege of 29 years, the longest on record: how severely it suffered on this occasion may be inferred from the expression -remnant of Ashdod" used shortly afterwards by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:20). But it recovered from this blow: it is alluded to as a place of some importance in the time of Nehemiah (Nehemiah 4:7); and it is mentioned frequently afterwards.

and him that holdeth the sceptre as Amos 1:5. The independent kings of the different Philistine cities are often mentioned in the Assyrian Inscriptions (cf. below).

from Ashkelon a third chief Philistine city, situated actually on the coast, in a rocky amphitheatre, about half-way between Gaza and Ashdod. In the Middle Ages it became the most considerable of all the Philistine fortresses, its position on the sea constituting it then the key to S.W. Palestine. In ancient times little that is distinctive is recorded of it; though it may be reasonably inferred to have been already important for purposes of marine communication with the West.

turn mine hand against Isaiah 1:25; Zechariah 13:7; Psalms 81:14.

Ekron a fourth chief city of the Philistines, situated inland, about 12 miles N.E. of Ashdod, and nearer the territory of Judah than any of the cities before mentioned. Ekron was the seat of a celebrated oracle, that of Baal-zebub (2 Kings 1:2); but otherwise it does not appear in the Old Testament as a place of great importance. Gath, the fifth chief Philistine city, is not named: either, as some suppose (see on Amos 6:2) it was already destroyed, or it is included implicitly in the expression -remnant of the Philistines," immediately following.

and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish i.e. whatever among them escapes the destruction announced in the previous clauses shall perish by a subsequent one: -remnant" (she"çrith), as Amos 5:15; Amos 9:12 &c. The rendering rest, i.e. those unmentioned in the previous enumeration (Jeremiah 39:3; Nehemiah 7:72), is less probable. The verse declares that the whole Philistine name will be blotted out.

saith the Lord God the Lord Jehovah (אדני יהוה), Amos" favourite title for God, occurring in his prophecy twenty times (Amos 1:8; Amos 3:7-8; Amos 3:11; Amos 4:2; Amos 4:5; Amos 5:3; Amos 6:8; Amos 7:1-2; Amos 7:4; Amos 7:4-6; Amos 8:1; Amos 8:3; Amos 8:9; Amos 8:11; Amos 9:8; and followed by God of hosts, Amos 3:13). It is likewise a standing title with Ezekiel, who uses it with great frequency. It is employed sometimes by Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Deutero-Isaiah, as well as here and there by other prophets; and also occurs occasionally in the historical books (as Genesis 15:2; Genesis 15:8; Joshua 7:7).

Successes, of at least a temporary character, gained against the Philistines by Uzziah and Hezekiah, are recorded in 2 Chronicles 26:6 f. and 2 Kings 18:8; but the foes from whom they suffered more severely were the Assyrians. Gaza was attacked by Tiglath-pileser (c. b.c. 734); its king Hanno was compelled to take refuge in Egypt; much spoil was taken, and a heavy tribute imposed (K.A.T[116][117] p. 256). In 711, Azuri, king of Ashdod, refused his accustomed tribute: the result was the siege by the Assyrian -Tartan," or general-in-chief, alluded to in Isaiah 20, which ended in the reduction of the city and exile of its inhabitants. Ten years later, in 701, Ashkelon and Ekron joined the Phoenician cities and Judah, in revolting from Sennacherib, and were both punished by the Assyrian king [118]. It seems, however, that though the power of the Philistines must have been seriously crippled by these blows, it was by no means destroyed: the kings of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and Ashdod are all named as tributary to Esarhaddon and Asshurbanipal (K.A.T[119][120] 356); oracles are uttered against the Philistines by several of the later prophets; their cities are mentioned as places of importance in the times of Nehemiah (Nehemiah 4:7; Nehemiah 13:23 f.) and the Maccabees. The passages in which other prophets foretell disaster for the Philistines chiefly at the hands of the Assyrians or the Chaldaeans should be compared: see Isaiah 11:14 (a picture of united Israel's successes against them in the ideal future), Isaiah 14:29-32; Jeremiah 25:20; Jeremiah 47; Zephaniah 2:4-7; Ezekiel 25:15-17; Zechariah 9:5-7.

[116] .A.T.… Eb. Schrader, Die Keilinschriften und das A. T., ed. 2, 1883 (translated under the title The Cuneiform Inscriptions and the O. T. 1885, 1888). The references are to the pagination of the German, which is given on the margin of the English translation.

[117] … Eb. Schrader, Die Keilinschriften und das A. T., ed. 2, 1883 (translated under the title The Cuneiform Inscriptions and the O. T. 1885, 1888). The references are to the pagination of the German, which is given on the margin of the English translation.

[118] See K.A. T. 2 pp. 397 ff., 291 ff.; or the writer's Isaiah, pp. 45, 67 f., 73.

[119] .A.T.… Eb. Schrader, Die Keilinschriften und das A. T., ed. 2, 1883 (translated under the title The Cuneiform Inscriptions and the O. T. 1885, 1888). The references are to the pagination of the German, which is given on the margin of the English translation.

[120] … Eb. Schrader, Die Keilinschriften und das A. T., ed. 2, 1883 (translated under the title The Cuneiform Inscriptions and the O. T. 1885, 1888). The references are to the pagination of the German, which is given on the margin of the English translation.