Esarhaddon was king of Assyria and the son of Sennacherib. He is known in the Bible for resettling foreign peoples in Samaria after the fall of Israel, and for his campaign against Egypt. He is mentioned in connection with the murder of his father Sennacherib and as a powerful Assyrian ruler during the period of the divided kingdom.
Esarhaddon's father Sennacherib was killed by his own sons Adrammelech and Sarsechim while he was worshiping in the temple of his god. Esarhaddon then succeeded him as king of Assyria.
37While he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.
38One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king.
37While he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.
38One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king.
Under the Assyrian Empire's policy of forced deportations, people from various nations were settled in Samaria. Esarhaddon continued this policy that his predecessors had started.
2they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the families and said to them, "Let us build with you, for we seek your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here."
9From Rehum the commanding officer, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates—the judges, the envoys, the officials, the Persians, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites,
10together with the rest of the peoples whom the great and honorable Osnappar deported and settled in the city of Samaria and elsewhere in the province Beyond the River. And now:
2they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the families and said to them, "Let us build with you, for we seek your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here."
3But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of Israel's families answered them, "You have nothing to do with us in building a house for our God. We ourselves will build for the LORD, the God of Israel, just as King Cyrus, king of Persia, commanded us."
During Esarhaddon's reign, Judah under King Manasseh was a vassal state of Assyria. According to tradition, Manasseh was taken as a captive to Babylon by the Assyrian king.
11So the LORD brought against them the army commanders of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh captive with hooks, bound him with bronze shackles, and carried him off to Babylon.