The Israelites

 

·        Of all the ancient Near Eastern civilizations, the Israelites contributed most directly to our Western heritage.

·        Their Holy scriptures comprise the Old Testament in the Christian Bible.

·        The Bible has probably had the single greatest influence on the religion, ethics, and literature of the West.

·        Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all rooted in its ideas.

·        The Old Testament has a very personal meaning for the Hebrews because it recounts the story of their experiences from the patriarch Abraham down to the state reestablished after the return of the Jews from exile in Babylonia.

·        This narrative history was first communicated orally and then written down over a period of a thousand years.

·        Although the Old Testament contains many myths and legends, archaeological findings have confirmed its basic historical authenticity.

 

Early Hebrew History

 

  • According to the Old Testament, Abraham, the founder of the Hebrew people, came from “Ur of the Chaldeans” in Sumer.
  • He was probably the patriarch of a nomadic tribe that worshipped a clan god.
  • The Bible stories of the Creation, Fall, and expulsion from Eden, Flood, and Tower of Babel all echo earlier Mesopotamian myths, thus lending support to the account of the Hebrews’ Mesopotamian origins.
  • Around 1800 B.C., Abraham and his family migrated from Ur to Haran, where the god Yahweh appeared to the childless Abraham and told him to move again to Canaan (Palestine) where he would make a great nation of Abraham’s descendants.
  • This was Yahweh’s first covenant with his Chosen People.

 

The Mosaic Covenant

 

·        Around 1700 B.C. Abraham’s grandson. Jacob, and his family, perhaps motivated by the scarcity of food, led a group of Hebrews to Egypt, where they prospered under the mild rule of the Hyksos.

·        After the Egyptians expelled these foreign rulers, however, the Hebrews were enslaved.

·        Perhaps at the time of Ramses II a new leader, Moses, arose to conduct them out of Egypt.

·        The Egyptian Exodus and forty years of wandering in the desert constituted a period of great trial for the Hebrews, but also one in which their cohesiveness as a people and their knowledge of their unique relationship with God were strengthened.

·        The covenant between God and the Hebrews was reaffirmed.

·        God presented Moses with the Ten Commandments and other laws that set down what God expected of his Chosen People.

·        He again promised to deliver the Hebrews to a “land flowing with milk and honey.”

 

The Period of the Judges

 

  • Although Moses led his people to within sight of the Promised Land of Canaan, it was left to his successors to conquer the land.
  • This was probably accomplished slowly by infiltration and drawn-out struggle, although modern research supports the Biblical account of Joshua’s stunning victory at Jericho.
  • During this period, the Israelites were organized into twelve tribes each headed by clan leaders called Judges who were responsible for waging wars and interpreting the legal code which grew out of the Mosaic laws.
  • Contact with the more easy-going life of the Canaanites lured many Israelites away from the strict adherence to these laws.

 

The Israelite Monarchy

 

  • Beginning in the twelfth century B.C., a new foe confronted the Hebrews in Canaan.
  • The Philistines’ expansion throughout the land threatened the Israelites because, as autonomous tribes, they lacked the political unification necessary for effective action against a highly organized opponent.
  • Saul. Israel’s first monarch, Saul (c.1020-100 B.C.), won some impressive victories, but met with opposition among his own people.
  • The prophet Samuel, who had anointed Saul, warned against the dangers of monarchy and defended the old tribal confederacy.
  • Meanwhile the young shepherd boy David gained immense popularity as a soldier and musician at Saul’s expense.
  • The despondent Saul killed himself after being badly defeated by the Philistines.
  • David. David was proclaimed king c. 1000 B.C.
  • Ruling for forty years, he forged Israel into a great nation that encompassed almost all of Syria and Palestine.
  • He led his reorganized professional army to victory, ending the Philistine threat forever.
  • He established Israel’s first capital at Jerusalem and replaced the loose confederation of tribes with a strong central government in the hands of a king.
  • Solomon. David’s successor, Solomon (c.960-922 B.C.), continued his father’s policies.
  • Every man was required to serve in the army, pay taxes, and labor on Solomon’s gigantic building projects such as the temple and palace in Jerusalem.
  • His reign epitomized Israel’s wealth and glory.
  • The arts thrived under his patronage.
  • Yet heavy taxes, forced labor, and corrupt government fostered discontent.
  • The north especially resented the preeminence of the south.
  • After Solomon’s death in 922 B.C., the empire split into two kingdoms, Israel in the north and Judah in the south.

 

The Prophetic Age

 

  • A prolonged time of troubles descended upon the Israelites after the division of their nation.
  • During this period prophets arose who denounced Israel’s sins and called it back to purity of its earlier faith.
  • They interpreted the tragedies that befell the divided kingdom as an expression of divine will.
  • Fall of Israel. In 721 B.C. the Assyrians conquered Samaria, the capital of Israel, and deported thousands of Israelites to the region of Persia.
  • These became the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.
  • Exile of Judeans. Judah struggled on independently for over a century, but in 586 B.C. its capital, Jerusalem, fell to the Chaldeans.
  • During the Babylonian Captivity that followed, many Jews (so called from their kingdom, Judah) were dispersed throughout Egypt and Babylonia.
  • Even in exile, the Jews retained their faith in God and held fast to their traditions, laws, and nationalism.

 

Return to Jerusalem and Later History

 

  • With the ascendancy of the Persian Empire, the Jews were permitted to return to Jerusalem in 538 B.C. and to rebuild their temple, but they were later conquered by Alexander the Great and by Rome.
  • The Jews would not enjoy political independence again until the twentieth century.