Hezion

Biblical Record

Hezion appears only once in the Bible, in 1 Kings 15:18. When Asa, king of Judah, came under pressure from Baasha, king of the northern kingdom of Israel, he took the silver and gold from the treasuries of the temple and the royal palace and sent them to Ben-hadad, the king of Syria (Aram) who reigned in Damascus. The text introduces this Ben-hadad as "the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria." All that Scripture reveals about Hezion is that he was a king of Aram, the father of Tabrimon, and the grandfather of Ben-hadad. The Bible contains no other record of his life or reign.

2 Chronicles 16:2, which recounts the same event, refers to Ben-hadad only as "king of Syria" and does not give his genealogy.

Significance Within Scripture

Hezion's name serves to establish Ben-hadad's royal lineage. This genealogy shows that in Asa's time an Aramean dynasty centered in Damascus was already in at least its third generation. Hezion does not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretation and Debate

Some scholars identify Hezion with Rezon, who seized Damascus and became king there in the time of Solomon (1 Kings 11:23–25). They point to the similar spelling of the two names and to the overlap in the time and place of their activity. Others regard the two as different individuals, and the question remains unsettled. The biblical text does not say whether they are the same person.

In the Korean Church

Because Hezion is named only within a genealogy, he is rarely treated on his own in sermons or Sunday school. He is typically mentioned only in passing, when the passage introducing Ben-hadad is read in sermons on King Asa's reliance on the king of Syria rather than on God.