IJON

(Iʹjon).

One of the places taken by the military forces of Syria’s King Ben-hadad I about 962-961 B.C.E. during the reign of Baasha. (1 Ki. 15:20, 21; 2 Chron. 16:4) Nearly two centuries later Assyrian King Tiglath-pileser III conquered Ijon and exiled its population. (2 Ki. 15:29) Geographers generally link Ijon with Tell ed-Dibbin about twenty miles (c. 32 kilometers) N of Lake Huleh (now mostly drained). But some question this identification on the claim that surface exploration of the mound has not revealed any evidence of occupation in the period referred to in Scripture. However, those favoring the commonly proposed identification attribute the absence of such evidence at the base of Tell ed-Dibbin to the well-preserved ancient walls that have prevented spillage from the mound.