PHARAOH
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PHARAOH
homeward. Necho entered aa a conqueror into Jerusa- lem, placed the brother of Jehoahaz on the throne, and put the land to tribute. He then seems to have re- turned i" Egypt, carrying with him the dethroned king of Judah, who died in the land of Ids captivity. The expedition of Necho, which Scripture describes as hav- ing been made against tin- king of Assyria, Josephus Bays was directed against the Medes and Babylonians, who had at this time, according to him, captured Nin- eveh ( int. \. 5; see Rawlinson's Herod, i, 118. He- rodotus mentions this battle, relating that Necho made war against the Syrians, ami defeated them at Magdo-
lus, after which he k Cadytis,"a large city of Syria"'
(ii. 159 i. There can be no reasonable doubt that Mag- dolus is Megiddo, and not the Egyptian town of thai name [see Migdol], but the identification of Cadytis is difficult. It has been conjectured to be Jerusalem, and its name has been supposed to correspond to the ancient title, "the Holy," m""n. but it is elsewhere men- tinned by Herodotus as a great coast-town of Palestine near Egypt (iii, 5), and ii has therefore been supposed to be Gaza. The difficulty that Gaza is not beyond Megiddo would perhaps be removed if Herodotus be thought to have confounded Megiddo with the Egyp- tian Magdolus, or we may understand the term "coast" here used in a wide sense. (See Sir Gardner Wilkin- son's note to Herod, ii. 159, ed. Rawlinson.) It seems possible that Cadytis is the Hittite city Ketesh, on the ((routes, which was the chief stronghold in Syria of those captured by the kings of the eighteenth and nine- teenth dynasties. The Greek historian adds that Ne- cho dedicated the dress he wore on these occasions to Apollo at the temple of Branchidse (I. <:).
The power Of Egypt tinder Necbo at this period of
bis reign was very great From the composition of the army which he led tot iarchemish and left there in gar- rison (Jer. xlvi. 9), we gather that Ethiopia and Libya were at this time a part of his dominions. Eastward of Egypt his power extended to the (ireat River, and the Lydians. if not his subjects, were in strict lea-tie with him. This was the period of the fall of Assyria, and Egypt for a time succeeded to its rule on the west of the Euphrates (Wilkinson, i, 157). 'Ibis was ihat time of boasting in its military successes which Jere- miah describes in eh. xlvi. and he lakes occasion from it to predict the approaching overthrow of Egypt When this laud •■ rose up like a flood, and he .-aid, I will go up, and will cover the earth," the prophet in plain words spoke of approaching defeat in battle and utter humilia- tion as a nation. The power of Necho to the east of Egypt only lasted about four years. In the fourth year of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar, having conquered Nineveh, had leisure to turn his arms against Egypt Ai Oarchemish, which Necho had wrested from the As- syrians, the Babylonian army conquered that of Egypt Whether Necho was present at this contest does not appear. It- issue was that he was driven out of Asia and came into il no more (2 Kings xxiv. 7). It would seem to have been at a later period, however, that the uller humiliation of Egypt described by Jeremiah took
place, ii _i, the battle of Carchemish was one of those
decisive conflicts which changed for a period the his- tory of the world. The strength of Necho'- armies seems not to have lain in the native Egyptians, but in foreigners, whether subjects, allies, or mi rcenaries. They were Ethiopians, Libyans, and Lydians who fought « ith Nebuchadnezzar. Wilkinson place- the death of Necho shortly before the captivity of Jehoiakim (i. 167). It i- not certain, however, that Jehoiakim was carried away captive by Nebuchadnezzar. The book ••( Kings makes no mention of Buch an occurrence'. Josephus state- that he was put to death at Jerusalem < l»'. x. 6, 3). The second book of Chronicles only says (xx.wi, Co that he was put into fetters for the purpose of being brought to Babylon, [f Josephus's account is true, this purpose was not put into execution. Necho js famous
in history for other besides bis military exploits. The celebrated canal of Sue/, according to Herodotus (ii, 158 : Bee Wilkinson, i. 70 I, was ci mpletcd by this king. He is also stand by this historian to have circumnavi- gated Africa, a performance the credibility of which is disputed by him for the very reason that makes it to modem readers all but certainly true (Herod, iv, 62; see Wilkinson, i. 160; Sir ( '. Lewi-. Astronomy of the l orients, p. 317). Si e Necho.
11. Pharaoh-Hophra.—1bia i- the last of the Pha- raohs of whom mention i, made in the Bible. He is introduced to our notice in connection with the i Ii sing period of the Jewish monarchy, as attempting to ward off from ( rod's people the judgments brought upon them for their sins at the hand of Nebuchadm :zar (Jer. xxxvii, 7). He was on the throne of Egypt in the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah (2 Kings xxv, I), i. e. about !'..< '. 590, continued to reign when Ji rnsali m had been taken by the Babylonians, B.C. 588, and was to continue reigning until a signal destruction should fall upon him. ami In- was to sutler the loss of life at the hand of his enemii - (Jer. xliv, 30), a prediction fulfilled about five years subsequently in the invasion of Egypt by Nebuchaduezzar.alH.iii B.C. 582 (Joseph us, \i>t. \. '.'. 7). He ascended the throne about B.C. reigned for a period of nineteen years; bm Eusebius, according to Syncellus. makes his reign to have lasted twenty-five years (Bunsen, Egypt, i. 640 .