Omri - wikipedia Omri For other uses, see Omri ( disambiguation ). This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( May 2011 ) Omri King of Israel ( Samaria ) Omri from Guillaume Rouillé 's Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum Reign 884 BC -- 873 BC Predecessor Zimri, Tibni Successor Ahab Issue Ahab House House of Omri Omri ( Hebrew : עמרי ‬, Modern Omri Tiberian ' Ɔmrî ; fl. 9th century BC ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the sixth king of Israel. He was a successful military campaigner who extended the northern kingdom of Israel. Other monarchs from the House of Omri are Ahab, Ahaziah, Joram, and Athaliah. Like his predecessor, king Zimri, who ruled for only seven days, Omri is the second king mentioned in the Bible without a statement of his tribal origin : although some scholars speculate that Omri was from the tribe of Issachar, this is not yet confirmed by any scientific or historical evidence. Nothing is said in Scripture about the lineage of Omri. His name is either Amorite or Arabic in origin. Omri is credited with the construction of Samaria and establishing it as his capital. Although the Bible is silent about other actions taken during his reign, he is described as doing more evil than all the kings who preceded him. An alternative modern hypothesis maintains that, as founder of the House of Omri, an Israelite royal house, his kingdom formed the first state in the Land of Israel, and that Judah only achieved statehood later. Extrabiblical sources such as the Mesha Stele and the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III also mention his name ; however, in the case of the Black Obelisk the reference is to the dynasty named for Omri rather than to Omri himself. A minor thesis, argued by Thomas Thompson and Niels Peter Lemche, suggests that Omri may be a dynastic name indicating the apical founder of the Kingdom of Israel rather than one denoting an actual historical king. Contents 1 Struggle for the succession 2 Reign 3 Omri in archaeological sources 4 The Omride Dynasty 5 See also 6 References 7 External links Struggle for the succession According to the biblical narrative, Omri was `` commander of the army '' of King Elah when Zimri, `` commander of half the king 's chariots '', murdered Elah and made himself king. Instead, the troops at Gibbethon chose Omri as king, and he led them to Tirzah where they trapped Zimri in the royal palace. `` To avoid the certain tortures of capture, '' Zimri set fire to the palace and died after a reign of only seven days. Although Zimri was eliminated, `` half of the people '' supported Tibni in opposition to Omri. It took Omri four years to subdue Tibni and at last proclaim himself undisputed king of Israel. Reign Kings of Ancient Israel United Monarchy of Israel Saul Ish - bosheth David Solomon Rehoboam Northern Kingdom of Israel Jeroboam I Nadab Baasha Elah Zimri Omri Ahab Ahaziah Joram / Jehoram Jehu Jehoahaz Joash / Jehoash Jeroboam II Zechariah Shallum Menahem Pekahiah Pekah Hoshea Omri became king of Israel in the 31st year of Asa, king of Judah and reigned for 12 years, 6 years of which were in Tirzah. The biblical reference to the period of rivalry with Tibni is from the 27th year of Asa to the 31st year. William F. Albright has dated his reign to 876 -- 869 BC, while E.R. Thiele offers the dates of 888 BC to 880 BC for his rivalry with Tibni and 880 -- 874 BC for his sole reign. Initially, Omri 's capital was in Tirzah, which had been besieged and the royal palace had been burned down. The Jewish Encyclopedia suggests that `` the associations of Tirzah were so repellent and sanguinary, and the location so poor for a capital, that Omri purchased a new site '' for his residence. This was in Samaria, on a hill purchased from Shemer for two talents of silver ( about 60 kg ), where Omri built a new capital for the kingdom. Omri 's rule over Israel was secure enough that he could bequeath his kingdom to his son Ahab, thus beginning a new dynasty ( sometimes called the `` Omrides ' ), and his descendants not only ruled over the kingdom of Israel for the next forty years, but also briefly over Judah. Omri in archaeological sources The Mesha Stele. The fortress at Jezreel was situated on one of the main east - west routes through kingdom. Hugh Williamson believes it served not only a military function, but also a political one ; a very visible example of grandiose public works used as a means of social control and to assert claims of legitimacy. The Moabite Mesha stele ( on display in the Louvre ) indicates that Omri expanded his holdings to include northern Moab east of the Jordan River. It makes reference to the oppression of Moab by `` Omri King of Israel ''. Israel would later become identified in sources as the `` House of Omri '' ( Bit - Humria ), with the term `` Israel '' being used less and less as history progressed ( the other defining term for `` Israel '' is `` Samaria '', beginning in the reign of Joash ). Thomas L. Thompson ( The Bible in History ), however, interprets the Mesha stele as suggesting that Omri is an eponym, or legendary founder of the kingdom rather than an historical person. The Assyrian Black Obelisk in the British Museum has been interpreted as referring to Jehu `` son of Omri '', though that interpretation has been questioned. The omride dynasty Main article : Omrides In a scene from the Black Obelisk Jehu, designated Ia - ú - a mar Hu - um - ri - i ( Jehu of the land of people of Omri ) bows before Shalmaneser III. The short - lived dynasty founded by Omri constitutes a new chapter in the history of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It ended almost fifty years of constant civil war over the throne. There was peace with the Kingdom of Judah to the south, and even cooperation between the two rival states, while relations with neighboring Sidon to the north were bolstered by marriages negotiated between the two royal courts. This state of peace with two powerful neighbors enabled the Kingdom of Israel to expand its influence and even political control in Transjordan, and these factors combined brought economic prosperity to the kingdom. On the other hand, peace with Sidon also resulted in the penetration of Phoenician religious ideas into the kingdom and led to a kulturkampf between traditionalists ( as personified by the prophet Elijah and his followers ) and the aristocracy ( as personified by Omri 's son and heir Ahab and his consort Jezebel ). In foreign affairs, this period paralleled the rise of the Kingdom of Aram based in Damascus, and Israel soon found itself at war in the northeast. עמרי מלך ישראל -- `` Omri king of Israel '' as mentioned in the Moabite inscription. Most threatening, however, was the ascendancy of Assyria, which was beginning to expand westward from Mesopotamia : the Battle of Qarqar ( 853 BC ), which pitted Shalmaneser III of Assyria against a coalition of local kings, including Ahab, was the first clash between Assyria and Israel. It was the first in a series of wars that would eventually lead to the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC and the reduction of the Kingdom of Judah to an Assyrian tributary state. In 841 BC, the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III campaigned along the Mediterranean coast and forced Jehu to pay tribute. Assyrian kings frequently referred to Omri 's successors as belonging to the `` House of Omri '' ( Bit Hu - um - ri - a ). See also History of ancient Israel and Judah References Jump up ^ `` A History of Ancient Israel and Judah ''. James Maxwell Miller, John Haralson Hayes. 2006. Retrieved 2015 - 01 - 25. Jump up ^ Thiel, W., `` Omri '', The Anchor Bible Dictionary, p. 17, vol. 5, D.N. Freedman ( ed. ). New York : Doubleday ( 1992 ) Jump up ^ 1 Kings 16 : 25 ^ Jump up to : Lester L. Grabbe, ' The Kingdom of Israel to the Fall of Samaria : If We Had Only the Bible ', in Lester L. Grabbe, Ahab Agonistes : The Rise and Fall of the Omri Dynasty, A&C Black, 2007 pp. 54 - 99 p. 70 ; pp. 82 - 4 ( Lemche - Thompson hypothesis ) ^ Jump up to : `` Omri '', Jewish Encyclopedia ( 1906 ) Jump up ^ 1 Kings 16 : 21 - 22 Jump up ^ 1 Kings 16 : 23 Jump up ^ 1 Kings 16 : 15 Jump up ^ 16 : 23 Jump up ^ Edwin Thiele, The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings, ( 1st ed. ; New York : Macmillan, 1951 ; 2d ed. ; Grand Rapids : Eerdmans, 1965 ; 3rd ed. ; Grand Rapids : Zondervan / Kregel, 1983 ). ISBN 0 - 8254 - 3825 - X, 9780825438257 Jump up ^ 1 Kings 16 : 17 - 18 Jump up ^ Williamson, Hugh G.M., `` Tel Jezreel and the Dynasty of Omri '', Palestine Exploration Quarterly 128 : p. 49, ( 1996 ) Jump up ^ P. Kyle McCarter, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 216 ( Dec., 1974 ), pp. 5 - 7 Jump up ^ Edwin R. Thiele, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 222 ( Apr., 1976 ), pp. 19 - 23 Jump up ^ Cuneiform Parallels to the Old Testament - Robert William Rogers Jump up ^ Bezold, Carl ; King, L.W. ( 1889 ). Catalogue of the Cuneiform Tablets in the Kouyunjik Collection of the British Museum. British Museum Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan. ISBN 1145519350. Jump up ^ James B. Pritchard, ed., Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament ( 3rd ed. ; Princeton : Princeton University Press, 1969 ) 283. ISBN 0 - 691 - 03503 - 2 External links Smith 's Bible Dictionary : Omri Omri House of Omri Contemporary King of Judah : Asa Regnal titles Preceded by Zimri King of Israel Rival to Tibni : 885 BC -- 880 BC Sole reign : 880 BC -- 874 BC Succeeded by Ahab Rulers of Israel and Judah Davidic line Kings of Israel and Judah Kings of Judah Hasmonean and Herodian rulers Tribes of Israel The Twelve Spies Abimelech United monarchy Saul Ish - bosheth David Solomon Israel ( northern kingdom ) Jeroboam I Nadab Baasha Elah Zimri Tibni Omri Ahab Ahaziah Jehoram Jehu Jehoahaz Jehoash Jeroboam II Zechariah Shallum Menahem Pekahiah Pekah Hoshea Judah ( southern kingdom ) Rehoboam Abijam Asa Jehoshaphat Jehoram Ahaziah Athaliah Jehoash Amaziah Uzziah Jotham Ahaz Hezekiah Manasseh Amon Josiah Jehoahaz Jehoiakim Jeconiah Zedekiah Hasmonean dynasty Simon Thassi John Hyrcanus Aristobulus I Alexander Jannaeus Salome Alexandra Hyrcanus II Aristobulus II Antigonus II Mattathias Herodian dynasty Herod the Great Archelaus Antipas Philip the Tetrarch Salome I Agrippa Herod of Chalcis Agrippa II Bar Kokhba revolt Simon bar Kokhba See also List of Jewish leaders in the Land of Israel Italics indicate a disputed reign or non-royal title Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Omri&oldid=807824225 '' Categories : Kings of ancient Israel Kings of ancient Judah 9th - century BC biblical rulers Books of Kings 9th - century BCE Hebrew people Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from May 2011 All articles needing additional references All articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases Articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases from May 2016 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from May 2016 Articles needing more detailed references Talk Contents About Wikipedia Беларуская Brezhoneg Català Čeština Deutsch Ελληνικά Español فارسی Français Frysk 客家 語 / Hak - kâ - ngî 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Magyar Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Svenska Türkçe Українська اردو 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 30 October 2017, at 09 : 28. 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Question: where did omri build his new political capital
Answer: Samaria