So סוֹא
Egyptian pharaoh to whom King Hoshea sent messengers.
Who is So in the Bible?
So was an Egyptian pharaoh mentioned in 2 Kings 17:4 to whom King Hoshea of Israel sent messengers around 732-722 BC. Hoshea, the last king of the northern kingdom of Israel, sought an alliance with So to help him resist the growing power of Assyria, against whom Israel was paying tribute. This diplomatic effort was interpreted as rebellion by the Assyrian king Shalmaneser, who responded by attacking Israel, capturing Hoshea, and laying siege to Samaria for three years. The fall of Samaria marked the end of the northern kingdom and the deportation of its people to Assyria. So's exact historical identity remains uncertain, though some scholars identify him with the founder of Egypt's XXVth Dynasty, highlighting the political desperation of Israel's final king in his failed attempt to preserve his kingdom.
Biography
So, mentioned in 2Ki.17.4, was an Egyptian pharaoh during the reign of King Hoshea of Israel (732-722 BC). Hoshea, the last king of Israel before the Assyrian conquest, sought to establish an alliance with Egypt to counter the growing threat of Assyria. The biblical text states that Hoshea sent messengers to So, indicating an attempt at diplomatic relations. However, this action was seen as a rebellion against Assyria, to whom Israel was paying tribute. As a result, the Assyrian king Shalmaneser attacked Israel, captured Hoshea, and besieged the capital city of Samaria for three years. The city eventually fell, and the people of Israel were deported to Assyria, marking the end of the northern kingdom of Israel. The identity of So is not certain, but some scholars suggest that he may have been Osorkon IV, a pharaoh of the 22nd Dynasty of Egypt, who ruled from Tanis in the Nile Delta region.
In Scripture
1 biblical book2 Kings 1 verse
- 2 Kings 17:4
"But the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea had conspired to send envoys to King So of Egypt, and that he had not paid tribute to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore the king of Assyria arrested Hoshea and put him in prison."
Names & Aliases
| Form | Language | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Named | Hebrew | סוֹא |
Encyclopedia Article
ISBE 1915 (Public Domain) So
o founded the Ethiopian dynasty, the XXVth of Egyptian kings. His date is given as 715-707 BC (Flinders Petrie, History of Egypt, III, 281 ff), but we may suppose that before his accession to the throne he was entitled to be designated king, as being actually regent. To this So, Hoshea, king of Israel, made an appeal for assistance to enable him to throw off the yoke of the Assyrian Shalmaneser IV (2Ki 17:3). But Hoshea's submission to So brought him no advantage, for Shalmaneser came up throughout all the land and laid siege to Samaria. Not long after the fall of Samaria, So ventured upon an eastern campaign, and was defeated by Sargon, the successor of Shalmaneser, in the battle of Raphia in 720 BC.
Literature
Flinders Petrie, History of Egypt, III, 281 ff; McCurdy, HPM, I, 422; Schrader, COT, I, 261.
T. Nicol.
sop (borith; the King James Version sope): Borith is a derivative of bor, "purity," hence, something which cleanses or makes pure. Soap in the modern sense, as referring to a salt of a fatty acid, for example, that produ