Tirhakah

Ethiopian king who marched north to fight against the Assyrian army, thus diverting Sennacherib’s siege of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 19:9; Is 37:9). The report of Tirhakah’s intended invasion prompted the Rabshakeh’s second threat against Jerusalem, Hezekiah’s prayer for deliverance, and the subsequent divine destruction of the Assyrian army (2 Kgs 19:8–37). Tirhakah is almost certainly the Egyptian king Taharqa, who ruled from 689–664 BC during the 25th (Ethiopian) dynasty. Tirhakah probably served as commander of the army while he was crown prince, so that the reference to him as “king” refers to his then-future position.