Jeremy Goldberg, «Two Assyrian Campaigns against Hezehiah and Later Eight Century Biblical Chronology», Vol. 80 (1999) 360-390

The massive Assyrian invasion of Judah in 701 (reflected in 2 Kgs 18,13b; 18,17–19,37) has apparently been confused with an earlier, limited invasion in Hezekiah’s 14^th year (reflected in 2 Kgs 18,13a.14-16; 2 Kgs 20; 2 Chr 32; Isa 22). Historically, this earlier campaign can best be dated to 712, when Sargon II apparently led the Assyrian royal guard on a Palestinian campaign. Chronologically, this dating fits perfectly with e.g. recent dating of the definitive fall of Samaria (2 Kgs 18,9: in Hezekiah’s 6^th year) to 720. 2 Kgs 18,9’s parallel dating to Hoshea’s 9^th year agrees with his apparent accession in 731 or 729. Dating Menahem’s death to 743 (as required, following biblical data, to avoid a triple overlap among Uzziah, Jotham and Ahaz) agrees with Eponym Chronicle evidence for this dating of 2 Kgs 15,19-20’s presumably already desperate fiasco, and is consistent with a plausibly composite 738 tribute-list naming Menahem. Combining these datings produces a workable later 8^th century biblical chronology.

Marduk-apla-iddina II (vv. 12-13). As widely accepted, the latter episode can hardly be set in (or after) 701, since this king fled from Babylon for the last time in 703¹¹.

        Since v. 13’s leisurely display of wealth to these messengers and vv. 17-18’s strictly long-term prophecy in response to this display¹² hardly fit with an impending invasion, it appears that 2 Kgs 20’s gift-bearing embassy occurred in the wake of its invasion — especially since this sequence is presumably implied by 2 Chr 32,22-23’s many explicitly post-invasion diplomatic gifts to Hezekiah. But setting 2 Kgs 20,12-19 in the wake of the invasion in 2 Kgs 18,13b; 18,17–19,37 / 701 (or later) appears contradicted by Hezekiah’s extensive display of wealth to this embassy in v. 13 (contrast 2 Kgs 18,13b; 19,29-31 and Sennacherib’s own claims of destruction, as well as archaeological confirmation [n.2 above] of a Judaean disaster in 701). This dating also appears very unlikely due to: (1) the continued plotting which the Babylonian embassy presumably implies (contrast Hezekiah’s shipment of tribute to Nineveh shortly after the 701 campaign), and (2) Hezekiah’s to all appearances extremely complacent response in v. 19 to Isaiah’s clear condemnation of this display in vv. 17-18¹³. On the other hand,