1. One of the most important cities in the Holy Land. The ruler of Hazor is mentioned in the Egyptian Execration Texts of the 19th century B.C. During the period of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom the city was a renowned political and commercial center remaining important in the era of the New Kingdom. Hazor's status is well defined in the Bible: Jabin, its king, headed a coalition of all the kings of the north formed to fight Joshua (Josh 11:1-5), but "Joshua turned back at that time and took Hazor, and struck its king with the sword; for Hazor was formerly the head of all those kingdoms. And they struck all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them. There was none left breathing. Then he burned Hazor with fire" (Josh 11:10-11). After the conquest Hazor was allotted to Naphtali (Josh 19:36); it was one of the royal cities in Solomon's kingdom (I Kgs 9:15). Hazor was apparently one of the cities conquered by Ben-Hadad of Damascus (I Kgs 15:20; II Chr 16:4). The city was rebuilt by Omri and destroyed in the course of the campaign of Tiglath-Pileser III in 732 B.C. (II Kgs 15:29), it was still in ruins when Jonathan the Hasmonean camped in the Valley of Hazor on his way to the north (I Macc 11:67).
The city of Hazor has been identified at the huge mound of Tell Hazor 9 miles (14 km) north of the Sea of Galilee. The ancient site comprises an elevated mound extending over an area of 30 acres (12.5 ha), and a lower city 175 acres (73 ha) large, 3,000 feet (910 m) long and 2,100 feet (640 m) wide. The earliest settlement at the Lower City is from the mid-18th century B.C. This large area was encompassed by an earthen rampart, by which it was fortified. In order to study this enormous area, the site was excavated in nine different sections. In some of these, sacred compounds were uncovered including a temple built in the 17th-16th centuries B.C. In the 15th century B.C. the floor of the temple was raised; the courtyard at its front was surrounded by a wall and adjoined by another paved court containing a high place, in whose vicinity cult objects and bones from animal sacrifices have been found. Among the cultic objects there was a clay liver, used in divination. In the 14th century B.C. the plan of the temple was entirely changed. It had consisted of a porch with two pillars, a hall and a Holy of Holies. The interior of the porch and the Holy of Holies was lined with smooth basalt orthostats, one in the form of a lion. This temple was continuously used until the 13th century B.C. when the city was destroyed by Joshua. In other sections houses were discovered with infant burials in clay jars placed under the floors.
In order to study the history of settlement on the higher mound a deep section was made. A settlement was built on bedrock in the Early Bronze Age II-III (29th-24th century B.C.) and henceforth, the site was continuously occupied until the Hellenistic period (2nd century B.C.) for about 2,000 years.
Solomon fortified the city with a casemate wall comprising a most imposing gate, of the same type he built at Megiddo and Gezer. During the period of the Israelite house of Omri the casemate wall was replaced by a solid wall. The Israelite citadel was destroyed by Tiglath-Pileser III. The Assyrians, and the Persians and the Hellenistic rulers after them, built their own fortresses on the site.
The Israelite city of Hazor was served by a magnificent water supply system. The spring, on which the city depended, was situated at the lower slope of the mound, outside the city's fortifications. In order to reach it safely in times of emergency, a large shaft (40 � 55 feet (12 � 17m) as its upper end) was excavated near the wall. From the bottom of the shaft a tunnel (15 � 15 feet) (5 � 5m) led down to the spring a distance of more than 90 feet (c. 30 m). At the end of the tunnel a small pool was made for the collection of water. This system is dated to the 10th century B.C.
Recent excavations since 1990 have been clarifying the earlier archaeological work at the site. Although limited remains were uncovered from the Early Bronze Age, the city flourished in the Middle Bronze Age and Late Bronze Age with an intervening destruction layer (late 14th century). Originally the razing of the Late Bronze Age city was attributed to the Israelites (Josh 11:10), but the recent excavations indicate uncertainty about the date of this destruction. The impressive remains of gates and fortifications are still attributed to the 10th century and to Solomon (1 Kgs 9:15), even though some have attemted to lower their date of construction to the 9th century.
2. A city of Judah in the Negeb. It may be identified with el-Jabariyeh, about 9 miles (19.5 km) southeast of el-Auja.
3. Same as HEZRON
4. A Benjamite city outside Jerusalem, resettled after the Exile. The name is preserved in nearby Khirbet Hazzur.
5. A place in the Arabian desert. Jeremiah 49:28-33 prophesies its conquest by Nebuchadnezzar.
Concordance
HAZOR 1:
Josh 11:1, 10-11,13; 12:19; 19:36. Judg 4:2, 17. I Sam 12:9. I Kgs 9:15. II Kgs 15:29
HAZOR 2:
Josh 15:23
HAZOR 3:
Josh 15:25
HAZOR 4:
Neh 11:33
HAZOR 5:
Jer 49:28, 30,33
