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Azekah- location profile

Location and Setting

• Situated on one of the many solitary hills in the Shephelah, Azekah was strategically located approximately 350 feet above the west end of the Valley of Elah. This position provided a commanding view of the local Shephelah region and the length of the entire Valley of Elah.
• Azekah’s closest neighboring city, Socoh, lay only two miles to the southeast along the southern hillside of the valley. The city of Hebron was located some eleven miles farther to the southeast.

Historical and Biblical Significance

• When the Amorite coalition joined forces to attack the Gibeonites who had established a covenant with Israel, Israel’s army came to the defense of their new covenant partners. The Amorites were badly defeated and were forced to flee for their lives. They were driven as far as Azekah, a perilous retreat during which the Lord brought large hailstones that caused even more deaths than the Israelite swords (Josh 10:6-11).
• During Saul’s reign, the Philistines, who inhabited the Coastal Plain, frequently attacked strategic Israelite cities and towns. Their purpose was to penetrate Israel’s territory, first by controlling the valleys of the Shephelah, and then, through them to reach the heartland of the Hill Country of Judah. It was important, therefore, to bar the Philistines from this eastward advance. On one occasion, the Philistines camped on the southern side of the Valley of Elah between the cities of Socoh and Azekah. Their strategy was for their giant hero, Goliath, to challenge an Israelite opponent. If Goliath won, the Philistines would win access to the Hill Country. David, the young shepherd boy understood that this was an affront to the God of Israel. He accepted the challenge and killed the giant with a stone from his sling (1 Sam 17:1).
• King Rehoboam fortified numerous cities to protect against invaders, one of which was Azekah. Not only was the city strengthened structurally, but it was also supplied with officers, food, oil, wine, shields, and spears (2 Chr 11:5-12).
• When Nebuchadnezzar established the Babylonian domination of Judah in 588-587 B.C., the southern outpost city of Azekah was one of the last remaining Judean cities to be taken (Jer 34:6,7). The Jews had arranged for relay communication between Lachish and Jerusalem by means of smoke signals at Azekah, fifteen miles from Jerusalem, and Lachish, thirty-five miles distant. Letter 4 of the Lachish Letters reads: "We were watching for the smoke signals of Lachish…because we do not see Azekah." This indicated that Azekah had already fallen to Nebuchadnezzar. Soon after this, Lachish would capitulate.

Bibliography

1. Helmbold, A.K. "Azekah" The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible. Ed. Merrill C. Tenney. 5 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1976.
2. Page II, Charles R. and Carl A. Volz. The Land and the Book: An Introduction to the World of the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993.