And Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not.
The king named is Tiglath-Pileser II, who rose to power in 745 B.C. after a 36-year pause in Assyrian conquests marked by weak kings, insurrections, and revolts, and whose vigor restored the empire's strength. The verse belongs to the dark period of King Ahaz's reign, when Judah was in a condition of sin and distress. The account of Ahaz's trespass to which it belongs is given in 2 Chronicles 28:19-25.
Ahaz's dependence on Assyria followed his refusal to trust the Lord. His appeal to Assyria brought no relief or help, for the Assyrian king came against him and distressed and oppressed him and made his situation worse, but strengthened him not. Although the Assyrian king took Damascus and freed Ahaz from the Syrians, he did not help him against the Edomites or Philistines.
To pay Assyria, Ahaz stripped wealth from the temple and palace and gave the royal and temple treasures to the Assyrian king, receiving little help for the great price paid. The episode involved defiling the temple's holy precincts and altering its furnishings to meet Assyrian demands.
The king named is Tiglath-Pileser II, who rose to power in 745 B.C. after a 36-year pause in Assyrian conquests marked by weak kings, insurrections, and revolts, and whose vigor restored the empire's strength. The verse belongs to the dark period of King Ahaz's reign, when Judah was in a condition of sin and distress. The account of Ahaz's trespass to which it belongs is given in 2 Chronicles 28:19-25.
Ahaz's dependence on Assyria followed his refusal to trust the Lord. His appeal to Assyria brought no relief or help, for the Assyrian king came against him and distressed and oppressed him and made his situation worse, but strengthened him not. Although the Assyrian king took Damascus and freed Ahaz from the Syrians, he did not help him against the Edomites or Philistines.
To pay Assyria, Ahaz stripped wealth from the temple and palace and gave the royal and temple treasures to the Assyrian king, receiving little help for the great price paid. The episode involved defiling the temple's holy precincts and altering its furnishings to meet Assyrian demands.