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If you get bored and skim through 2 Kings 15, you will miss a very significant detail in verse 19.
Pul, king of Assyria, came against the land, and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver so that his hand might be with him to strengthen the kingdom under his rule.
2 Kings 15:19 NASB
Menahem was the king of Israel which he accomplished by assassination. He was a brute of a king. We read about how he dealt with those who opposed him in verse 16.
As Menahem was on his way from Tirzah, he completely destroyed the city of Tappuah, its inhabitants, and the surrounding territory, because the city did not surrender to him. He even ripped open the bellies of all the pregnant women.
2 Kings 15:16 GNB
Yes, you read that correctly. He ripped open pregnant bellies of women. This was probably a visual expression of what happens when a city doesn’t “open up” to what the king wanted. So, we know that Menahem was a very evil brute.
The reason verse 19 is important is because it’s the first we’ve heard about Assyria since way back in Genesis 10. In the coming chapters, Assyria will grow into an unstoppable war machine. Pul, also known as Tiglath-Pileser III, was well-known for reforming the aggressive and powerful Assyrian army. Many historians believe that the Assyrians were probably among the first factions in history to make use of uniformed appearances for their military forces. Outside of being beneficial from a tactical standpoint, the uniformity in their armor gave them a patriotic zealousness that strengthened their morale and bonded their warriors.
The Assyrian army also employed a pairing system for archers which allowed one soldier to fire while the other blocked for both of them. They later employed a “spear bearer” who would be in charge of protecting the archer from any ground attacks while he was reloading. The efficiency of this strategy would prove to be invaluable in their battles.
Why is all this important? Menahem knew the strength of the Assyrians, and so when they came against Israel, he paid them off. Ironically, he used them as leverage against his own people in order to strengthen his own position as king.
Tiglath Pileser, the emperor of Assyria, invaded Israel, and Menahem gave him thirty-eight tons of silver to gain his support in strengthening Menahem’s power over the country. 20 Menahem got the money from the rich men of Israel by forcing each one to contribute fifty pieces of silver. So Tiglath Pileser went back to his own country.
2 Kings 15:19-20 GNB
Menahem gathered up money from rich men in Israel and paid Pul 38 tons of silver to become a vassal king. This is the equivalent of roughly 17 million dollars today. His payment meant that he would be under the authority of the Assyrians in order to avoid war, however, it also meant that he had the power to support his legitimacy as king. Of course, the people hated Menahem, but they could do little about it. The threat of allowing the Assyrian army to flatten them was enough for the rich men to cough up their money.
In the end, this was the difference between the kings who relied on God and those who sacrificed the welfare of their own people to benefit themselves personally. Menahem taxed the people heavily in order to buy his way out of this war. It was a far cry from the days of King David who relied solely on the Lord to defeat the enemies threatening Israel.
Here is one last interesting fact. Remember the story of Jonah and the big fish? That story took place in Nineveh, a city within Assyria during the time when Pul would have reigned. These Assyrians would have been the very people that Jonah despised when he warned of God’s pending judgment set to occur if there was no repentance!