Location
Overview
Lachish was the most important fortified city of Judah after Jerusalem, guarding the south-western approach to the kingdom. Its fall to Assyria was a defining crisis.
Conquest and fortification
Joshua captured Lachish in the southern campaign (Joshua 10:31–32). Rehoboam later made it a key fortress of the kingdom (2 Chronicles 11:9).
Sennacherib's siege
When Assyria invaded, Sennacherib "warred against Lachish" and made it his base, sending his officers from there to demand Jerusalem's surrender (2 Kings 18:14, 17; 2 Chronicles 32:9; Isaiah 36:2). The siege of Lachish is the one Old Testament battle depicted in detail by a foreign power's own monuments.
A place of refuge and judgment
King Amaziah fled to Lachish but was killed there (2 Kings 14:19), and Micah rebuked it as "the beginning of the sin to the daughter of Zion" (Micah 1:13). Jeremiah names it among the last cities to hold out against Babylon (Jeremiah 34:7).
Events Here
Sennacherib of Assyria besieges and captures Lachish
Scripture References
22 versesJoshua10 verses
Joshua 10:3
Wherefore Adonizedek king of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying,
Joshua 10:5
Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon, and made war against it.
Joshua 10:23
And they did so, and brought forth those five kings unto him out of the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon.
Joshua 10:31
And Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it:
Joshua 10:32
And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, which took it on the second day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein, according to all that he had done to Libnah.
Joshua 10:33
Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua smote him and his people, until he had left him none remaining.
Joshua 10:34
And from Lachish Joshua passed unto Eglon, and all Israel with him; and they encamped against it, and fought against it:
Joshua 10:35
And they took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.
Joshua 12:11
The king of Jarmuth, one; the king of Lachish, one;
Joshua 15:39
Lachish, and Bozkath, and Eglon,
2 Kings4 verses
2 Kings 14:19
Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem: and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there.
2 Kings 18:14
And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended; return from me: that which thou puttest on me will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
2 Kings 18:17
And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they were come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller's field. great: Heb. heavy
2 Kings 19:8
So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
2 Chronicles3 verses
2 Chronicles 11:9
And Adoraim, and Lachish, and Azekah,
2 Chronicles 25:27
Now after the time that Amaziah did turn away from following the LORD they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish: but they sent to Lachish after him, and slew him there. from: Heb. from after made: Heb. conspired a conspiracy
2 Chronicles 32:9
After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem, (but he himself laid siege against Lachish, and all his power with him,) unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem, saying, power: Heb. dominion
Nehemiah1 verse
Nehemiah 11:30
Zanoah, Adullam, and in their villages, at Lachish, and the fields thereof, at Azekah, and in the villages thereof. And they dwelt from Beersheba unto the valley of Hinnom.
Isaiah2 verses
Isaiah 36:2
And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem unto king Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field.
Isaiah 37:8
So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
Jeremiah1 verse
Jeremiah 34:7
When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah.
Micah1 verse
Micah 1:13
O thou inhabitant of Lachish, bind the chariot to the swift beast: she is the beginning of the sin to the daughter of Zion: for the transgressions of Israel were found in thee. inhabitant: Heb. inhabitress
Archaeology & History
Tel Lachish has yielded extraordinary finds: the great Assyrian siege ramp; the "Lachish reliefs" from Sennacherib's palace at Nineveh (now in the British Museum) showing the city's capture in 701 BC; and the "Lachish letters," ostraca from the final Babylonian siege. Few biblical sites are so richly documented.
People who appear here
Frequently asked about Lachish
Where is Lachish today?
Today, Lachish corresponds to Tel Lachish, Israel.
What happened at Lachish in the Bible?
Key biblical events at Lachish include sennacherib of assyria besieges and captures lachish.
Where is Lachish first mentioned in the Bible?
Lachish is first mentioned in Joshua 10:3.
How often is Lachish mentioned in the Bible?
Lachish is mentioned in 22 verses across 7 books: Joshua, 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Nehemiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah.
Why is Lachish important?
It was Judah’s second city and chief fortress. Sennacherib of Assyria besieged and captured it in 701 BC — a victory he immortalised in palace reliefs at Nineveh.
What are the Lachish letters?
Inscribed pottery sherds from Lachish written during the final Babylonian onslaught on Judah, giving a vivid, anxious eyewitness glimpse of the kingdom’s last days.