Baasha of Israel
{{Short description|Third king of Israel}}
{{About||the Ammonite king|Baasha ben Ruhubi|the film|Baashha}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Baasha
| title =
| image = Baasha of Israel.png
| image_size =
| caption = Baasha from "Guillaume Rouillé's Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum
| succession = King of Israel (Northern Kingdom)
| reign = 909–886 BCE
| coronation =
| predecessor = Nadab
| successor = Elah
| royal house =
| regent =
}}
Baasha ({{langx|he|{{Script/Hebrew|בַּעְשָׁא}}}}, Baʿšāʾ{{px2}}) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the third king of the northern Israelite Kingdom of Israel. He was the son of Ahijah of the Tribe of Issachar. Baasha's story is told in {{bibleverse|1|Kings|15:16-16:7|NIV}}.
Reign
Baasha became king of Israel in the third year of Asa, king of Judah. ({{bibleverse|1|Kings|15:28|NIV}}) William F. Albright has dated his reign to 900–877 BCE, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates 909–886 BCE.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 Baasha came to power by murdering the previous king, Nadab, at Gibbethon, followed by the entire House of Jeroboam (Nadab's father and predecessor). Baasha had previously been a captain in Nadab's own army. Like many military leaders, he appears to have risen from obscurity. The Jewish Encyclopedia suggests that because he came from the tribe of Issachar, "he may have represented a local faction".[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2270-baasha "Baasha", Jewish Encyclopedia]
Over the course of his 24-year reign,{{bibleverse|1 Kings|15:33|KJV}} Baasha was at war with Asa, king of Judah. He allied Israel with Aram and endeavored to strangle Judah's trade by fortifying Ramah, a city five miles north of Jerusalem.[http://biblehub.com/commentaries/barnes/1_kings/15.htm Barnes' Notes on 1 Kings 15], accessed 26 October 2017 King Asa of Judah then bribed King Ben-hadad of Syria to switch sides and attack Israel, prompting the loss of extensive territory in Dan and Naphtali northwest of the Sea of Galilee. Baasha was forced to withdraw from Ramah. Asa of Judah utilized the materials of the abandoned fort for the fortification of his own frontier towns, Geba and Mizpah.
Though Baasha remained in power for life, he was not without his opponents. The prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani, foretold the destruction of his dynasty, which came to pass with the assassination of Baasha's son Elah.
References
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Reflist}}
{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|Tribe of Issachar
Contemporary Kings of Judah: Asa||||}}
{{s-reg|}}
{{s-bef|before=Nadab}}
{{s-ttl|title=King of Israel|years=909–886 BCE}}
{{s-aft|after=Elah}}
{{s-end}}
{{IsraeliteKings}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:10th-century BCE kings of Israel