The BibleGospel Companion

Tartan

תַּרְתָּן · tar.tan · H8661“a general (official title)” Hitchcock's 18692 mentions in 2 books, most in 2 Kings (1)

Who he was

The Tartan is mentioned in 2 Kings 18:17 and Isaiah 20:1 as a title of a high-ranking Assyrian military commander. In 2 Kings, the Tartan, along with the Rabsaris and the Rabshakeh, was sent by King Sennacherib of Assyria to Jerusalem to intimidate King Hezekiah and demand his surrender. In Isaiah, the Tartan was sent by Sargon king of Assyria to attack the city of Ashdod. The Tartan was likely second in command to the king and led major military campaigns. The title is of Akkadian origin and refers to the commander-in-chief of the Assyrian army.

Article: STEPBible, Tyndale House Cambridge · CC BY 4.0

Every mention

2 references, counted from STEPBible, Tyndale House Cambridge · CC BY 4.0 · verse text: World English Bible (public domain)

2 Kings 1 mention

2 Kings 18:17The king of Assyria sent Tartan, Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they came…

Isaiah 1 mention

Isaiah 20:1In the year that Tartan came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it;

What the dictionary says

An Assyrian word, meaning “the commander-in-chief.”

Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897)
Read the article →

Sources