Hazor lay in the north of Canaan, in a strategic position between Mesopotamia and Egypt. According to the book of Joshua, it was the capital of all the Canaanite kingdoms of that region.
It was there that Joshua faced the largest coalition of kings ever gathered against Israel. After the victory, he returned, conquered the city, and burned it, something he did not do to any other city built on the hills.
Centuries later, a king named Jabin ruled again in Hazor and oppressed Israel for twenty years, until he was subdued with the help of Deborah and Barak.
Solomon rebuilt and fortified Hazor as part of his great royal works, alongside Megiddo and Gezer, a sign of the strength and organization of the united kingdom.
In the end, Hazor fell before the Assyrian empire, and its people were deported. A reminder that no human stronghold withstands God’s judgment when the covenant is broken.
