“All the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David sealed a covenant with them in Hebron before Hashem (G-d), and they anointed David as King over Israel” (2 Samuel 5:3)
By Nosson Shulman, Licensed Tour Guide
Unbeknownst to most, Hebron was the capital of Israel prior to Jerusalem becoming the eternal capital. During the first 7 years of his reign, King David ruled from Hebron. In his 7th year, King David planned a military operation that would change world history forever: the conquest of Jerusalem. He and his men headed north on today’s highway 60 and captured the holy city, making it Israel’s capital forever.
After the conquest of Jerusalem, Hebron is mentioned much less frequently in the Bible, although we know from Archeology that it continued to be an important administrative center. It was also one of the 6 cities of refugees.
When the righteous King Hezekiah and his kingdom of Judah was threatened with annihilation by the Assyrians (see events from 2 Kings: 17-18) he mobilized all of his resources, including collecting the materials needed to build fortification walls.
Based on archeological finds, it appears that King Hezekiah designated 4 cities as regional capitals, to collect materials in preparation for war with Assyria from the surrounding areas. One of these cities was Hebron.
