2 Brugsch, "History of Egypt" (Eng. Tr.) I, p. 158.
3 Brugsch, "History of Egypt" (Eng. Tr.), I, pp. 309-311.
4 Called Anab, "(the city of) grapes," in Josh. xi. 21.
5 The invention of the existing Masoretic system of vowel-points and accents is ascribed to Mokha of Tiberias (A.D. 570) and his son Moses, who are said to have based it on a system invented shortly before by Akha the Babylonian. Only a very few MSS. are known written in the Babylonian system of punctuation.
6 A coin from Gaza, of the fourth century B.C., is now in the British Museum, on one side of which is the figure of the Canaanitish Baal in a chariot of fire, but otherwise with the attributes of the Greek Zeus, and with the word YHU (_i.e._, Yahu or Yeho) written above him in old Phoenician letters.
7 The Assyrian inscriptions show that the true form of the name of the king of Damascus was Rezon, like that of the founder of the kingdom (1 Kings xi. 23), the Biblical form with _i_ being due to the same vocalic change as that in _Toi_ (2 Sam. viii. 9) by the side of _Tou_ (1 Chr. xviii. 9), or Hiram (1 Kings v. 1) by the side of Huram (2 Chr. ii. 11). Hezion in 1 Kings xv. 18 is probably a copyist's error for Rezon.
9 The name of Baladan in 2 Kings xx. 12 (and Isa. xxxix. 1) is due to the error of a copyist, like Berodach for Merodach. His eye must have run back to the name of Merodach-baladan in the preceding line. Merodach-baladan means "Merodach has given a son," and without "Merodach" would be incomplete.
10 "That day" in the A. V. should be corrected into "to-day" (Isa. x. 32).
11 The following chronological table will enable the reader to understand without difficulty the order of the events described in the preceding chapter:--
1130. Reign of Tiglath-Pileser I, in Assyria: campaigns in Syria and Cilicia.
900. Recovery of Assyria after a period of decline.
850. Campaign of Shalmaneser against Hadadezer (Ben-hadad II).
841. Campaign against Hazael; tribute paid to Shalmaneser by Jehu.
823. Shalmaneser II succeeded by Samas-Rimmon.
810. Samas-Rimmon succeeded by Rimmon-nirari.
804. Damascus captured by the Assyrians: tribute paid by Samaria.
781. Rimmon-nirari succeeded by Shalmaneser III.
745. April. Pul, who takes the name of Tiglath-Pileser II, usurps the Assyrian throne.