"The great God, he said, "has become one with his father. See the wand of succession. It has declared his choice."
The priests, the warriors, the many wives and children, fell upon their knees. Taharka heard again the voice of the sun priest.
"Taharka, child of the God, rise."
Something cold and smooth was being pressed into his hands.
It was the wand of the god.
"Take possession of the land, Taharka, soul of the Hawk, Beautiful Child of Ra, Son of the Sun, Bringer of the Nile, Lord of Kush, Great God of Napata and Meroe, and Pharaoh of Egypt."
Taharka had become a god. He had also received his punishment.
It is around 701 B. C. and Egypt is being ruled by the Kushite dynasty. Young Prince Taharka, interested in healing, is content to be the very minor royal son he is and leave the ruling to others. However, it is he and not the expected Prince Shabataka who succeeds to the throne of Kush and Egypt—a "divine" rulership—and he is no longer free to live his own life. Then a treacherous plot, long brewing, forces him to fly for his life.
Far from home, in the land of Judea, Taharka encounters two kings in conflict. One is the mighty Assyrian, Sennacherib, promising alliance; the other is Hezekiah, the Jew who trusts in Yahweh. Taharka, his own fate and that of his land in the balance, must choose with whom to live or die.
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