the Fourth Week of Advent
Click here to join the effort!
Bible Encyclopedias
Menahem
Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature
or Men´ahem (consoler), sixteenth King of Israel, who began to reign B.C. 772, and reigned ten years. Menahem appears to have been one of the generals of King Zechariah. When he heard the news of the murder of that prince, and the usurpation of Shallum, he was at Tirzah, but immediately marched to Samaria, where Shallum had shut himself up, and slew him in that city. He then usurped the throne in his turn; and forthwith marched to Tiphsah, which refused to acknowledge his rule. Having taken this place after a siege, he treated the inhabitants with a degree of savage barbarity, which, as Josephus remarks (Antiq. ix. 11. 1), would not have been pardonable even to foreigners. He adhered to the sin of Jeroboam, like the other kings of Israel. In his time the Assyrians, under their King Pul, made their first appearance on the borders of Palestine; and Menahem was only able to save himself from this great invading power at the heavy price of 1000 talents of silver, which he raised by a tax of 50 shekels from every man of substance in Israel. This was probably the only choice left to him; and he is not therefore to be blamed, as he had not that resource in the treasures of the temple of which the kings of Judah availed themselves in similar emergencies. Menahem died in B.C. 761, leaving the throne to his son Pekahiah ().
Public Domain.
Kitto, John, ed. Entry for 'Menahem'. "Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature". https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/kbe/m/menahem.html.
