Is not Calno as Carehemish? A further proof of superiority, and ground of confidence, lay in the further fact, that the strongest cities had, one and all, succumbed to the Assyrian arms, and been laid in ruins to punish them for offering resistance.
Six such cities are mentioned—Calneh, probably Niffer, in Lower Mesopotamia; Carchemish, on the right bank of the Euphrates in Lat. 36° 30' nearly; Hamath, the "great Hamath" of Amos (Amos 6:2), in Coelesyria on the routes; Arpad, perhaps Tel-Erfad, near Aleppo; Damascus, and Samaria.
Calneh was one of the cities of Nimrod (Genesis 10:10), and, according to the LXX; was "the place where the tower was built." It may have been taken by Tiglath-Pileser in one of his expeditious into Babylonia.
Amos (Amos 6:2) speaks of it as desolate in his day. Carchemish (Assyrian Gargamis) was a chief city of the Hittites, and has been called "their northern capital." Long confounded by geographers with Circesium at the junction of the Khabour with the Euphrates, it has recently been proved to have occupied a far more northern position, and is now generally identified with the ruins discovered by Mr.
George Smith at Jerabis or Jerabhs. It was conquered by Sargon in B.C. 717, when "its people were led captive, and scattered over the Assyrian empire, while Assyrian colonists were brought to people the city in their place; Carchemish being formally annexed to Assyria, and placed under an Assyrian governor".
Hamath was originally a Canaanite city (Genesis 10:18). By the time of David it had become the scat of an independent monarchy (2 Samuel 8:9, 2 Samuel 8:10), and so continued until its reduction by the Assyrians.
We find it leagued with the Hittites, the Syrians of Damascus, and the Israelites against Assyria about B.C. 850. About B.C. 720 it was taken by Sargon, who beheaded its king, and probably reduced it to ruins.
The name remains in the modern Hamah, where many curious inscriptions have been recently dug up. Arpad was attacked by Tiglath-Pileser in the early part of his reign, and reduced to subjection. It revolted in conjunction with Hamath from Sargon, and was severely punished ('Ancient Monarchies,' l.
s.c.). Is not Samaria as Damascus? This mention of Samaria among the subjugated and ruined cities may undoubtedly be prophetic; but the connection with Carchemish, Hamath, and Arpad all of them towns reduced by Sargon within the years B.
C. 720-717—points rather to the verse being historical, and would seem to indicate that the date of the entire prophecy—verses 5-19—is subsequent to the capture of the cities, and so not earlier than B.
C. 716.