Sepharvaim: Taken by Sargon, king of Assyria
(2 Kings 17:24; 18:34; 19:13; Isaiah 37:13) It
was a double city, and received the common name Sepharvaim, i.e.,
"the two Sipparas," or "the two booktowns." The Sippara on the east
bank of the Euphrates is now called Abu-Habba; that on the other bank
was Accad, the old capital of Sargon I., where he established a great
library.
(See SARGON)
The recent discovery of cuneiform inscriptions at Tel el-Amarna in
Egypt, consisting of official despatches to Pharaoh Amenophis IV. and
his predecessor from their agents in Palestine, proves that in the
century before the Exodus an active literary intercourse was carried
on between these nations, and that the medium of the correspondence
was the Babylonian language and script.
