EDOM
(UDUMI)
The
kingdom was supposedly founded by a branch of the early Israelites,
taking in the territory centred around Mount Seir from the Brook
of Zered to the Sinai Peninsula (the Negev desert and the Arabah
Valley, near the Dead Sea and in modern Jordan). The border between
Edom and its Moabite neighbour to the north was the Wadi Zered,
while the kingdom's capital was at Bozrah (modern Buseirah in Jordan),
a pastoral city to the south-east of the Dead Sea.
The
name Edom has a connection with the colour red, with 'red rock'
after the region's reddish sandstone perhaps being the favourite
reason (note the red cliffs of Seir, for example). To the later
Assyrians the state was Udumi, while in Latin it was Idumea. All
seem to be variations of the Egyptian name which mean 'the red land'.
Akkadian
sources which date to the kingdom's earliest years of existence
mention nomadic groups along the Trans-Jordanian highlands whom
they term the Shutu. These groups extend deep into Mesopotamia,
probably occupying the edges of the habitable zone there. Speculation
about the Shutu mentions that the name may be a variant of the Egyptian
term 'Shasu', Semitic cattle-herding nomads who operated in a clan
system with tribal chieftains. While the historical identity of
these Shutu is unknown, they have been linked to the Moabites and
Ammonites.
It
seems the Edomites and the Moabites remained in Canaan while the
Israelites supposedly emigrated to Egypt in the seventeenth century
BC, and both kingdoms fought against their return around four hundred
years later. Edomite succession was apparently not hereditary. Instead
it may have been elective (the practise is not unknown in ancient
Syria and Canaan). A good source of wealth was the fact that Edom
lay along the 'King's Highway', an important north-south trade route
between Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia.
While
the Canaanite occupants of Palestine to the south-west are usually
accepted as the source for the Hyksos invaders of Egypt in about
1700 BC, Edom has been put forward as an alternative candidate.
Some scholars refuse to believe Edom existed as a state at all,
while there is little evidence of a settled society before the eleventh
century BC.
(Additional
information from Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times, Donald
Redford (Princeton University Press, 1992), and from Early Israel
and the Surrounding Nations, A H Sayce.)
c.1700
BC :
Esau
: Son
of Isaac.
c.1700
BC :
According to the Old Testament, the Edomites under Esau displace
the apparently primitive Horites to claim their kingdom, probably
absorbing the previous population into their own. Mount Seir is
identified with a Horite leader of the same name, and the area may
have been of religious importance to them. The following clans form
the new Edomite nation: Timnah, Alvah, Jetheth, Aholibamah, Elah,
Pinon, Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, Magdiel, and Iram.
c.1680?
BC :
Eliphaz?
c.1660?
BC :
Teman
I
c.1640?
BC :
Bela
ben-Be'or : Ruled
from the city of Dinhabah.
c.1610?
BC :
Jobab
/ Yovav ben-Zerach : Son
of Zerah and great-grandson of Esau. Ruled from Bozrah.
17th
cent BC :
An
Egyptian execration text dated to the seventeenth century BC refers
to an 'Ayyab' as king of the Shutu. The name is possibly a variant
form of 'Job', with Jobab of Edom being a handy candidate. However,
tentative identification of the mysterious Shutu has linked them
with the Moabites and Ammonites to the north of Edom.
c.1580?
BC :
Husham
/ Chusham : Ruled
from the city of Temani.
c.1560?
BC :
Hadad
ben-Bedad : Ruled
from the city of Avith.
c.1540?
BC :
Samlah
/ Smlah : Ruled
from the city of Masrekah.
c.1520?
BC :
Saul
: Ruled
from the city of Rehoboth.
c.1480?
BC :
Baal-hanan
/ Ba'al hana ben-Akhbor
c.1460?
BC :
Hadar
: Ruled
from the city of Pau / P'ai.
1453
- c.1200 BC :
Egypt reasserts its authority in the region by conquering territory
in the Levant, and while Edom may or may not be in its line of conquest,
it seems possible that it becomes a client state. In 1286/1258 BC
Ramses II of Egypt reaches a stalemate with the Hittites at the
Battle of Kadesh, after which the earliest known peace treaty is
signed in 1258 BC. Ramses limits his control to southern Palestine,
where he draws a firm and fortified boundary.
Chiefs
of Edom :
By
around 1200 BC, during the chaos prevalent throughout the eastern
Mediterranean coastal region, Egyptian control of the Levant had
weakened considerably. It seems that the Edomites regained a degree
of self-governance under a new 'dynasty' of chiefs, although whether
there was any relation between them is unknown. In fact, almost
nothing is known of them, other than through the Bible. When the
Israelites returned from Egypt, the king of Edom refused them access
via his territory, but did not fight them. However, both sides prepared
for a conflict they knew was coming.
c.1200
BC :
Timnah?
: Fought
the returning Israelites.
Aliah
Jetheth
Oholibamah
Elah
Pinon
Kenaz
Teman
II
Mibzar
fl
c.1015 BC :
Magdiel?
: Defeated
by Saul of Israel.
c.1015?
BC :
The
Edomites are defeated by the Israelite king, Saul, and are probably
made vassals.
fl
c.975 BC :
Iram?
: Defeated
by David of Israel. Last independent king of Edom.
c.975?
BC :
Forty
years after Saul's victory, Edom is defeated by King David and fall
directly under the rule of the kingdom of Israel. Governors are
placed in control of the former kingdom.
c.975?
BC :
Hadad
: Prince
of Edom. Escaped to Egypt.
c.928
BC :
When
the kingdom of Israel divides, Edom becomes a dependency of Judah.
fl
853 BC :
?
: Governor?
Allied to the king of Samaria.
853 BC :
The
governor or chief of Edom is a member of an alliance of states which
also includes Ammon, Arvad, Byblos, Damas, Egypt, Hamath, Kedar,
and Samaria. Together they fight Shalmaneser III of Assyria at the
Battle of Qarqar which consists of the largest known number of combatants
in a single battle to date, and is the first historical mention
of the Arabs from the southern deserts. Despite claims to the contrary,
the Assyrians are defeated, since they do not press on to their
nearest target, Hamath, and do not resume their attacks on Hamath
and Damas for about six years.
![Map of Canaan and Syria c.850 BC](Map850BC_full.jpg)
When
the Neo-Assyrian empire threatened the various city states of southern
Syria and Canaan around 853 BC, they united to protect their joint
territory - successfully it seems, at least for a time
c.847
BC :
The
king (or governor) of Edom, together with Jehoshaphat of Judah and
Joram of Samaria, form a coalition which attempts to retake Moab
by force, but despite some initial gains, the attempt is unsuccessful.
846/843
BC :
Edom
rebels against Jehoram of Judah. The rebellion is put down but Edom
is never completely subdued, and occasional flare-ups continue to
occur.
Five
kings of Edom are recorded by the Assyrians. All are known only
by the Assyrian translations of their Edomite names.
fl
c.745 BC :
Kaus-malaka
: At
the time of Tiglath-Pileser III.
fl
c.740 BC :
Aiarammu
: At
the time of Tiglath-Pileser III.
fl
c.735 BC :
Shalman
: At
the time of Tiglath-Pileser III.
724
BC :
Assyria conquers Edom. Two years later Moab, Philistia, Judah, and
Edom rebel against Assyrian overlordship. The rising is apparently
put down,
fl
c.700 BC :
Malik-rammu
/ Melek Ram : At
the time of Sennacherib.
fl
c.680 BC :
Kaus-gabri
/ Kaus Geber : At
the time of Esarhaddon.
612
BC :
Babylonia takes control of the region following the fall of Assyria.
587/586
BC :
After the conquest of Judah by Babylonia, the Edomites are allowed
to settle in Hebron, which the later Romans call Idumaea. They migrate
from their earlier homeland, possibly alongside the Moabites, although
the latter drift out of the historical record at this time.
Idumaea
(Edom) :
Following the Babylonian conquest of the Levant, large numbers of
people were shipped off to endure captivity. With good land having
been made available, the Edomites migrated northwards to settle
in Hebron, which the Romans called Idumea (the Moabites may similarly
have migrated northwards but they seem to have lost their identity
as a result). This movement allowed Arab tribes to venture northwards
from their desert territories, with the result that the Kedarites
and Nabatu became players in international politics during the seventh
and sixth centuries BC. The Edomites remained in Hebron and prospered,
for more than four centuries, independent from 539 BC to around
275 BC. After that they probably fell under Egyptian control, followed
by Seleucid and Roman rule. By the second century BC they possibly
made up the majority population of western Judea.
In 200-195 BC, in order to achieve his part of a treaty with Philip
V of Macedonia that was designed to carve up Egypt's colonial possessions,
Antiochus III of the Seleucid empire invaded Coele Syria. This triggered
the Fifth Syrian War which saw Ptolemaic General Scopas defeated
at Panion near the source of the River Jordan in 200 BC. This gained
Antiochus control of Palestine and Phoenicia (which included the
city of Miletus). The campaign ended in a peace deal in 195 BC which
gained for Antiochus permanent possession of southern Syria (which
included Idumaea), while Ammon took advantage of the shift in power
to declare its own independence.
(Additional information from Jewish War & Jewish Antiquities,
Flavius Josephus, and from External Links: Encyclopędia Britannica,
and Appian's History of Rome: The Syrian Wars at Livius.org,
and Diodorus of Sicily at the Library of World History (dead link).)
c.165
BC :
Idumaea gains its freedom from Seleucid rule, probably at the same
time as Judea achieves its own independence. This mirrors the rise
of the Nabataean kingdom elsewhere in the former Edomite territory.
160s
BC :
Gorgias
160
- 109 BC :
?
109
BC :
The Seleucid civil war continues through 111-109 BC, while Antiochus
IX and his ally, Ptolemy IX Soter of Egypt, support the Samarians
against John Hyrcanus of Judea, until Rome intervenes on the side
of the Jews and against Antiochus IX and the Samarians (of the former
northern Jewish kingdom of Samaria). At the same time, Idumaea is
drawn into the Hasmonaean kingdom, and governors are subsequently
appointed to administer the region.
c.100
- 78 BC :
Antipas
: Governor
of Idumaea.
78
- 43 BC :
Antipater
: Father
of Herod the Great of Judea. Governor of Idumaea.
c.43
- 35 BC :
Joseph
ben Antipater : Son.
Governor of Idumaea.
37
BC :
Under Roman rule, the Idumaean king of Judea, Herod the Great, is
granted the authority to appoint the governor of Idumaea, usually
a relative.
?
- 30? BC :
Costobarus
: Brother-in-law
of Herod the Great. Governor of Idumaea.
28
BC :
Costobarus is accused of treason by his wife and is presumably executed
by Herod. Idumaea is drawn directly under Judean control.
4
BC :
Rome assumes direct control of the region.
AD
66 :
The Idumaeans benefit from the First Jewish Uprising, having
governors of its own appointed from the revolutionary government
in Judea.
c.66
- 68 :
Niger
the Peraean
66
- 68 :
Joshua
ben Saphas ha-Kohen
66
- 68 :
Eleazar
ben Hananiah
AD
68 - 135 :
The uprising is crushed by Rome and the governors removed. The Idumaean
people disappear from historical records following the uprisings,
although the regional name of Idumaea is still in use for a time.
Much of the kingdom eventually forms the modern kingdom of Jordan.
Source
:
https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/
KingListsMiddEast/
CanaanEdom.htm#Chiefs