What is…
Hazor

Hebrew: חָצוֹר —transliteration: Chatsor —meaning: Meaning: enclosed; fortified

Tel Hazor. Photo © BiblePlaces.
Aerial view from the southeast of Tell Hazor, the excavated ruins of the upper city of ancient Hazor
Photos provided by ChristianAnswers Associate, BiblePlaces

Hazor was the name of 4 biblical places.


  1. Hazor near Merom

    Merom is the most well-known city of the Hazor area. It is near Lake Merom, where it was strategically located on ancient trade routes from the north, east and west. It was controlled by both the Canaanites and Israelites, and was a major military objective of various ancient kings from as far away as Egypt. It is now the largest archaeological site in Israel.

    “A stronghold of the Canaanites in the mountains north of Lake Merom (Joshua 11:1-5). Jabin the king with his allied tribes here encountered Joshua in a great battle. Joshua gained a signal victory, which virtually completed his conquest of Canaan (11:10-13).

    stable storehouse
    Excavated stable storehouse building in Hazor

    Citadel
    Excavated citadel found at Hazor, dating to the Iron Age

    This city was, however, afterwards rebuilt by the Canaanites, and was ruled by a king with the same hereditary name of Jabin. His army, under a noted leader of the name of Sisera, swept down upon the south, aiming at the complete subjugation of the country.

    This powerful army was met by the Israelites under Barak, who went forth by the advice of the prophetess Deborah.

    The result was one of the most remarkable victories for Israel recorded in the Old Testament (Joshua 19:36; Judges 4:2; 1 Samuel 12:9). The city of Hazor was taken and occupied by the Israelites.

    It was fortified by Solomon to defend the entrance into the kingdom from Syria and Assyria. When Tiglath-pileser, the Assyrian king, invaded the land, this was one of the first cities he captured, carrying its inhabitants captive into Assyria (2 Kings 15:29)…” —Matthew G. Easton

    Tell Hazor—satellite view

    ChristianAnswers.Net’s archaeology Team Member, Associates for Biblical Research, has been doing extensive research at Hazor:

    Summary of biblical events at Hazor near Lake Merom

    1. Hazor was a heathen idolatrous Canaanite city.

    2. Conquered and burned by Joshua in his victory over a league of northern Canaanite cities at Lake Merom (Joshua 11:1-11).

    3. City came under the ownership of the tribe of Naphtali (Joshua 19:36).

    4. Later, Hazor was again taken by Canaanites.

    5. Deborah delivered Israel from the oppression of the King of Hazor and “king of Canaan” (Jabin) and his general Sisera (Judges 4-5). Hazor was again part of the kingdom of Israel.

    6. King Solomon fortified Hazor to control the northern portion of the “Way of the Sea” (1 Kings 9:15).

    7. Destroyed by Ben-Hadad I of Damascus when he invaded Israel at King Asa’s invitation (1 Kings 15:18).

    8. Rebuilt by Israelites (possibly by Omri or Ahab).

    9. Hazor destroyed for the last time by Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser III in 733 BC (2 Kings 15:29). The Israelites were taken captive to Assyria.

    Why Dig Hazor?

    Hazor is an important and impressive site. In fact, Hazor is the largest archaeological site in Israel. This 200-acre city consists of two parts, the Upper City, or Acropolis, and the Lower City. The next largest cities, apart from Jerusalem, are Gezer and Lachish at 18 acres. Hazor is eleven times the size of these cities!

    For the student of the Bible, Hazor has an impressive amount of Biblical history and the archaeological remains to go along with it.

    The first mention of Hazor in the Bible is in Joshua 11.

    “Joshua turned back at that time and took Hazor, and struck its king with the sword; for Hazor was formerly the head of all those kingdoms. And they struck all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them. There was none left breathing. Then he burned Hazor with fire. But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, except Hazor only, which Joshua burned” (11:10-11, 13; cf. 12:19).

    The first Israeli excavator of Hazor, Yigel Yadin, and the present excavator, Amnon Ben-Tor, believe the burn level of the Late Bronze II period is evidence of Joshua’s destruction.

    Hazor was allotted to the tribe of Naphtali (Joshua 19:36) and is mentioned in the account of Judges 4 and 5, the story of Deborah and Barak (Judges 4:2-3, 24).

    Solomon’s gate
    Excavated ruins of Solomon’s six-chambered gate at Hazor

    Yadin excavated a very impressive six-chambered gate dating to the 10th century BC and built by King Solomon. Similar gates from this period were discovered at Megiddo and Gezer. Yadin connected this phenomenon with a passage in the Scriptures,

    “And this is the reason for the labor force which King Solomon raised to build: to build the house of the LORD, his own house, the Millo, the wall of Jerusalem, Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer” (1 Kings 9:15).

    4 room house
    4-room house excavated in ancient Hazor

    In the mid-8th century BC an extraordinary earthquake hit the Middle East. Amos (1:2) as well as Isaiah (2:19, 21) predicted this earthquake. Yadin discovered evidence for this earthquake in the 1950s in Area A.

    …Walls were uncovered that tilted to the south or east and collapsed floors were found. …The prophets warned the people to humble themselves because they were proud and haughty. If they did not, the prophets said, God would humble them with an earthquake (Isaiah 2). …Based on the archaeological evidence, it was determined that the magnitude of this quake measured at 8.2 on the Richter scale! That was a big quake.

    Standing stones found at Hazor.
    Standing stones found at Hazor

    Israel, the Northern Kingdom, did not heed the words of the prophets. Amos predicted that a greater judgment would fall on Israel if they did not return to the Lord. That judgment was an invasion by the Assyrians. In 732 BC, the Assyrian king, Tiglath-Pileser III invaded Israel.

    “In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria” (2 Kings 15:29; cf. Isa, 9:1).

    Hazor weapons
    Ancient metal weapons discovered in Hazor excavations.

    At one point during the excavation I was clearing a street level, the area supervisor called it a junkyard. Among other things, I found five arrowheads, one spear point and a sickle, all possibly associated with the Assyrian attack on the city in 732 BC. As I was digging, I was wondering to myself, why would God allow the Assyrians to attack Israel?

    I recalled the words of the prophet Isaiah,

    “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is my indignation. I will send him against and ungodly nation, and against the people of My wrath” (10:5, 6a).

    Basalt statue of a lion found in ancient Hazor (1). (click for larger view)
    Sculpture in basalt of a seated king or pagan deity. Discovered at Hazor (1).

    God used the Assyrians to chasten Israel in order to bring them back to Himself. They did not respond positively to the message of the prophets so they were taken into captivity (Leviticus 26:32-39; Deuteronomy 28:58-67).

    Interestingly enough, Yadin discovered partially eaten pigs underneath the Assyrian destruction level. This indicates that the Israelites were eating pork just prior to the destruction of the city, something the prophet Isaiah condemned because the Mosaic Law forbade it (Isaiah 65:1-4; 66:17, cf. Leviticus 11:7).”

    Author of above text: Gordon Franz, Associates for Biblical Research, —a Christian Answers Team Member

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  2. Hazor, a city in south Judah

    Now the cities at the far end of the tribe of the sons of Judah toward the border of Edom in the south were Kabzeel and Eder and Jagur, and Kinah and Dimonah and Adadah, and Kedesh and Hazor and Ithnan, Ziph and Telem and Bealoth, and Hazor-hadattah and Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor), —Josh. 15:21-25

  3. Hazor, a land or district in Arabia

    The prophet Jeremiah told of God’s plan for the land of Hazor.

    Concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down. Thus says Yahweh… “…O inhabitants of Hazor,” declares Yahweh; “For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you
    And purposed a purpose against you.
    Arise, go up against a nation which is at ease,
    Which inhabits its land securely,” declares Yahweh.
    “It has no gates or bars;
    They dwell alone.
    Their camels will become plunder,
    And their many cattle for spoil,
    And I will scatter to all the winds those who cut the corners of their hair;
    And I will bring their disaster from every side,” declares Yahweh.
    “Hazor will become a haunt of jackals,
    A desolation forever;
    No one will inhabit there,
    Nor will a son of man sojourn in it.” —Jeremiah 49:28-33 LSB excerpt

    Some suppose this is place is Jetor, that is Ituraea.

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  4. Hazor, a city inherited by the tribe of Judah

    The inheritance is mentioned in the Book of Joshua

    This is probably the same city as Kerioth. This place has been identified with el-Kuryetein, and has been supposed to be the home of Judas Iscariot. (See Kerioth.)

    …Kedesh and Hazor and Ithnan, Ziph and Telem and Bealoth, and Hazor-hadattah and Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor) —Joshua 15:23-25

    In the King James Version, “Kerioth and Hezron” (Joshua 15:25) should be “Kerioth-hezron” (as in the Revised King James Version), the two names being joined together as the name of one place (e.g., like Kirjath-jearim), “the same is Hazor” (Revised King James Version).

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Article Version: January 23, 2025