Bible Dictionary
Asnapper
Asnapper was an Assyrian official who settled foreign colonists in the cities of Samaria after the Assyrian conquest. He is often identified with the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, though the identification is uncertain.
Definition
Asnapper was the official or ruler associated with settling foreign colonists in the cities of Samaria. He is probably identifiable with an Assyrian official, though the identification is not certain.
Biblical Usage
Asnapper is mentioned in Ezra 4:10 in connection with the resettlement of Samaria.
Historical Background
He is identified variously as a general of Esarhaddon or, probably, Assur-bani-pal, son and successor of Esarhaddon. Assur-bani-pal was a patron of literature, formed a large clay-tablet library at Nineveh, conquered Elam, and ruled during a period of rebellion and imperial weakening.
Scripture References
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Probably the same as Assur-bani-pal (Sardanapalos of the Greeks), styled the “great and noble” (Ezra 4:10), was the son and successor (B.C. 668) of Esar-haddon (q.v.). He was “luxurious, ambitious, and cruel, but a magnificent patron of literature.” He formed at Nineveh a library of clay tablets, numbering about 10,000. These are now mostly in the British Museum. They throw much light on the history and antiquities of Assyria. Assur-bani-pal was a munificent patron of literature, and the conqueror of Elam. Towards the middle of his reign his empire was shaken by a great rebellion headed by his brother in Babylon. The rebellion was finally put down, but Egypt was lost, and the military power of Assyria was so exhausted that it could with difficulty resist the hordes of Kimmerians who poured over Western Asia. (See NINEVEH.)
Smith's Bible Dictionary
(swift), mentioned in (Ezra 4:10) as the person who settled the Cutheans in the cities of Samaria. He was probably a general of Esarhaddon. (B.C. 712.)
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>as-nap'-er. See OSNAPPAR.</p>