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The Israelites were the dominant cultural and ethnic group living in the southern Levant in Biblical times, composing the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Modern Jews claim descent from the Tribes of Israel.
The English word Israelite derives from ישר×ל (Standard Yisraʾel Tiberian YiÅ›rÄʾēl), referring to the name given to Jacob (Genesis 32:28), which is traditionally translated as he struggles with God. Thus, his descendants are called the People of Israel, or Israelites.
Israelite vs. Jew
Main article: Who is a Jew?
In English the term Israelite typically denotes the ancient people of the Biblical period descended directly from Jacob (Israel) while Jew is used for any person of Jewish identity regardless of historical period or ancestry.
The Twelve Tribes
 1759 map of the initial tribal allocations - the actual territories occupied by the tribes during the United Monarchy and afterwards was somewhat different The Israelites were traditionally divided into family lines each called a shevet or mateh in Hebrew meaning literally a staff or rod. The term is conventionally translated as "tribe" in English although the divisions were not small isolated distinct ethnic groups in the modern sense of the term.
Development of the twelve tribes
Jacob\'s sons
Jacob had twelve sons: Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Gad, Issachar, Joseph, Judah, Levi, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon and Zebulun. The Israelites were thus naturally divided into twelve tribes according to paternal descent from Jacob\'s twelve sons.
Camps following the exodus
Following the exodus from Egypt, the Israelites were divided into thirteen camps (machanot in Hebrew) according to paternal descent: Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Ephraim, Gad, Issachar, Judah, Levi, Manasseh, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon and Zebulun. Joseph\'s two sons Ephraim and Manasseh were honoured by having a camp established for the descendents of each. Thus the house of Joseph was henceforth divided into two tribes: Ephraim and Manasseh. Additionally Aaron and his descendents although descended from Levi were appointed as priests (kohanim) and came to be considered a separate division to the Levites.
The division of the land
The tribes were assigned territories following the conquests of land under Moses and Joshua. Moses assigned territories to Reuben, Gad and a portion of Manasseh on land east of the Jordan which they had conquered. Joshua assigned territories to Judah, Ephraim and the rest of Manasseh on land west of the Jordan which they had conquered. The tribe of Manasseh thus came to be divided into two parts by the Jordan each part referred to as a half-tribe (chatzi-shevet) of Manasseh, the part lying east of the Jordan being referred to as the half-tribe of Manasseh in Gilead. Following the conquest of the remainder of Canaan, Joshua assigned territories to Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Issacher, Naphtali, Simeon and Zebulun. The land of Judah was considered too large for that tribe alone and Simeon was assigned a portion within the land of Judah instead of its own territory in the newly conquered land. As the Levites and Aaronite priests played a special religious role ministering to the people they were not given their own territories but were instead assigned cities to live in within the other territories. Dan was assigned territory lying between Ephraim and Manasseh but was later displaced and subsequently settled in territory to the north of Naphtali.
The Kingdom of Judah consisted of Judah, Simeon, Benjamin, and the parts of Levi within those lands, while the Kingdom of Israel contained Reuben, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Manasseh, Ephraim, and the remainder of Levi.
Critical views
The Biblical account is viewed by Bible critics as an aetiological postdiction rather than as history, and neglects to acknowledge changes in the membership of the tribal confederation[Peake\'s commentary on the Bible]. The changing form of the Israelite confederation is, according to textual and Biblical scholars, evident from the variation in the treatment and appearance of each tribe between various Biblical passages[ibid]. In particular is the text of three Biblical poems - the Song of Deborah, Blessing of Jacob, and Blessing of Moses - with the Song of Deborah being the oldest and Blessing of Moses the youngest[ibid].
The tribes which later became the Kingdom of Judah (Judah and Simeon) are unmentioned in the oldest poem, and when Simeon does appear it is as a scattered group, rather than a clear territorial entity[ibid]. Israel Finkelstein et al. have concluded from their findings that the territory occupied by these tribes was little more than a rural backwater compared with the remainder of Canaan, too insignificant for the remaining tribes to form a confederation with, until well after the 9th century BC [Israel Finkelstein The Bible Unearthed].
Levi
The Levites are not mentioned by the oldest poem; also, the parts of the Torah attributed by textual scholars to the Elohist, seem to treat Levite as a descriptive attribute for someone particularly suited to the priesthood, rather than as the designator of a tribe, and refers to Moses and Aaron as part of the Joseph group rather than being part of a tribe called Levi[This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain.]. Jahwist passages have more ambiguous language; traditionally interpreted as referring to a person named Levi they could also be interpreted as just referring to a social position titled levi[Jewish Encyclopedia]. In the Blessing of Jacob (later than the Song of Deborah), Levi is treated as a tribe, cursing them to become scattered; critics regard this as an aetiological postdiction to explain how a tribe could be so scattered, the simpler solution being that the priesthood was originally open to any tribe, but gradually became seen as a distinct tribe to themselves[ibid][Peake\'s commentary on the bible]. In the Priestly Source and Blessing of Moses, which textual scholars view as originating centuries later, the Levites are firmly established as a tribe, and the only tribe with the right to be priests.
Manasseh
Although Machir and Gilead, as individuals, are described in biblical genealogies as father and son, and as son and grandson of Manasseh, in the Song of Deborah Machir and Gilead are treated as the names of tribes which are different to one another[ibid]. Additionally, Manasseh is noticeable by its absence from the poem; in the Elohist and Jahwist texts Manasseh is also frequently absent, while Machir is clearly mentioned. Though there is a temptation to conclude that Machir is simply used in these passages as an older or alternative name for the tribe of Manasseh, in the Book of Numbers Machir is described as conquering a region named Gilead, and settling there, thus could only account for the eastern half tribe, and doesn\'t account for why Gilead is portrayed in the poem as a separate group to Machir[ibid].
Asher
From the point of view of textual scholars, Asher is quite indistinct as a tribe, having unclear geographic boundaries to the extent that it is uncertain whether Asher even had continuous territory [This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain.]. Sites which according to the bible were allocated to Asher, whose locations have since been identified, appear to be a distribution of settlements rather than a compact and well-defined tribal region[ibid].
Asher appears, throughout its history, to have been fairly disconnected from the other tribes of Israel, and seems to have taken little part in the antagonism portrayed in the Bible between the Canaanites and the other tribes[ibid]; as a result, scholars generally conclude that Asher consisted of certain clans that were affiliated with portions of the Israelite tribal confederation, but were never incorporated into the body politic[ibid].
In the biblical etymology, Asher is explained as meaning happy, however, biblical scholars disagree as to whether the name originates from an external or Canaanite source; the name is cognate with that of the chief Assyrian deity Asshur[ibid]. A group named Aseru, which were living to the west of the Galilee, in the 14th centur BC, is mentioned in Egyptian monuments of the period; though it is probable that the name of Asher derives from these Aseru, it is inconvenient for a literalist interpretation of the Bible under the traditional Biblical chronology, as it places Asher in Canaan before the Israelites left Egypt[ibid].
Gad
In these features, Gad, the full brother to Asher in the biblical genealogy, shares some similarities. Lands declared to be part of Gad in some parts of the text, such as Dibon, are declared to belong to other tribes, in other parts of the text[compare Numbers 33:45 with Joshua 13:15 et seq.]; similarly the boundaries are inconsistent between parts of the text[compare Joshua 13:24-27 to Joshua 13:15][Jewish Encyclopedia], and Gilead variously includes Gad[for example in Judges 5:17] and doesn\'t[2 Samuel 24:5 / Joshua 13:24 et seq.]. Furthermore, the Moabite Stone seemingly differentiates between the kingdom of Israel and the tribe of Gad, presenting Gad as predating Israel in the lands east of the Jordan[Jewish Encyclopedia]. This seems to indicate that Gad was originally a northwards-migrating nomadic tribe. As far as the name is concerned, it is likely that Gad took its name from Gad, the semitic god of fortune[Jewish Encyclopedia].
Dan
The tribe of Dan is suspected by some biblical scholars to have evolved from the Denyen, one of the groups of Sea Peoples[Yigael Yadin And Dan, Why Did He Remain in Ships]; thus the reason that in the time period in which the Book of Judges is set, the Song of Deborah describes the tribe of Dan as residing in ships, and another narrative describes how the tribe were without a fixed abode until they conquered Laish. The Philistines are also regarded by scholars as having been one of the Sea Peoples, specifically the Peleset, and so the particular enmity between the Philistines and Dan, as portrayed in the narrative of Samson, could simply be one in which each group views the other as traitors. In a similar vein to the etymological link between the term Philistine and the term Peleset, Denyen is thought by some scholars to be the origin of the name Dan, the biblical etymology being a later guess at the name\'s origin[ibid].
Origin and development of the Israelites
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According to the account in the book of Genesis, the term Israelite refers to their descent from Jacob, a patriarch who was renamed Israel by God[Genesis 32:28], though biblical scholars believe that the term has more to do with the matriarch Sarah, wife of Abraham, whose name is cognate with Israel[Peake\'s commentary on the Bible][This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain. Sarah]; Israel is the theophory of Isra in El, and in Hebrew, roots are triconsonantal, the roots of Isra and Sarah both being S-R-A. The Israelites are traditionally regarded as being the same as the Hebrews, since many passages in the Bible appear to make the equation, but textual scholars disagree as the term Hebrews only begins to be used in relation to the alleged band of outlaws led by David[Peake\'s commentary on the Bible]; the similarly named Habiru, attested in various ancient records, who may or may not be the Hebrews, appear to be a group wandering outlaws of mixed ethnicity[Carol A. Redmount, Bitter Lives: Israel in and out of Egypt\' in The Oxford History of the Biblical Word, ed: Michael D. Coogan, (Oxford University Press: 1999)].
The Torah portrays the Israelites as originating as the descendants of Jacob, the grandson of a migrant from Ur Kasidim (which most scholars believe refers to Ur, in Sumeria); the text then goes on to state that all of the Israelites migrated to Egypt, but were later enslaved there, until they eventually escaped and conquered Canaan, destroying the Canaanite culture that was there and replacing it with their own. However, due to a continuation of many archaeological elements of Canaanite culture in the Israelite era, lack of evidence for a systematic conquest, and lack of any abrupt appearance of new culture, some archaeologists believe that the Israelites simply arose as a subculture within Canaanite society[Israel Finkelstein, The Bible Unearthed].
The books of Samuel indicate that the Israelites eventually came to be governed by a United Monarchy, but just a few generations later split into two kingdoms, the Kingdom of Israel in the north, and Kingdom of Judah in the south. In the narrative, even during the United Monarchy, there are frequently civil wars between the forces of Israel and those of Judah, with the United Monarchy being represented only by one of these two. Israel Finkelstein et al., based on their archaeological investigations, have claimed that there were always distinct cultural divisions between the north and the south, roughly corresponding to the borders of Israel and Judah, with the south being very much the weaker and less significant of the two[Israel Finkelstein, The Bible Unearthed]; they conclude that the United Monarchy is a fiction[ibid].
The Kingdom of Israel was obliterated in the 720s BC, by the Assyrians under Shalmaneser V and then under Sargon II, who after conquering the land destroyed Samaria, its capital, and according to the bible deported most of the occupants into exile, with the southernmost tribe - Benjamin - managing to survive by joining the Kingdom of Judah; Assyrian chronicles of the time report that only a small number of people were deported. Assyrian policy was for the deportees to be scattered and assimilated into the Assyrian empire, and as a result the deported tribes lost their cultural identity, becoming traditionally known as the Ten Lost Tribes. The Kingdom of Judah survived until 586 BC, when Judah was conquered by Babylon, who ransacked Jerusalem, killed the heirs of the King of Judah before his eyes, gouged out the king\'s eyes so that would be the last thing he saw, and then deported the population into Babylonian Captivity.
Genetic evidence of common descent
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Patrilineal descent can be documented by analysis of the Y-chromosome, passed from father to son. Of the many variants, or haplogroups, of the Y-chromosome, haplogroups J1 and J2, both originating from the Middle East, are the most common among current Jewish males.
- J2 is found in 23% of Ashkenazi Jews and 29% of Sephardi Jews. It is equally common among Muslim Kurds, Central Turks, Georgians, Iraqis and Lebanese. A variant, called the Cohen Modal Haplotype, is present in about 80% of Cohanim, both Sephardi and Ashkenazi.
- J1 is found in 19.0% of Ashkenazim and 11.9% of Sephardim. It is more common among Arab populations, especially Arab Bedouins.
This genetic evidence supports a common patrilineal descent for about a quarter of current Jews, regardless of their geographic origin, and confirms the historical and Biblical concept of the People of Israel. Genetics also provides an objective test to confirm historical claims, as for example with the Lemba people (see below).
Hebrew Israelites (Black Jews, Black Hebrew Israelites)
Founded on the concept that the biblical Israelites were actually of a dark skin complexion commonly known as "black." The Hebrew Israelites believe themselves to be of a semitic stock originating from Jacob\'s twelve sons, and are the original descendants of the biblical Israelites by blood and seed, believing that modern Jews are actually descendants of the Kazars. However, DNA analysis has determined that modern Jews of the priesthood tribe -- or "Cohanim" -- share a common ancestor in Israel dating back about 3000 years, 1700 years older than the Khazar conversion to Judaism. This result is consistent for all Jewish populations around the world.[Hammer, M. F.; Karl Skorecki, Sara Selig, Shraga Blazer, Bruce Rappaport, Robert Bradman, Neil Bradman, P.J. Waburton, Monic Ismajlowicz (January 2 1997). "Y Chromosomes of Jewish Priests". NATURE, Volume 385. Article may be retrieved here]
The Hebrew Israelites claim that the word Jewish means merely pertaining to Judah and that the term Jew in itself was actually a mistranslation in the King James version of the Bible for Judah. Because of the mistranslation, the word Jew entered into common use. While it is correct that the Latin word Iudaeus does mean Judaean or from the land of Judaea, it should be noted that the etymology of the English word can be traced back to Middle English with evidence of use in Old English as well (see Etymology of the word Jew). The belief that the Israelites were black is based on the afro-centric view of Egyptian culture, which, coming from a pre-supposition that the ancient Egyptians were a dark skinned race, asserts that Moses and Joseph were both mistaken for Egyptians; and that, in consequences the Israelites must also have been black. It should be noted, however, that contemporary Ancient Egyptian iconography (for example, the images on the thrones of Tutankhamen and grave images) shows a people of olive brown complections and Hameo-Semitic features. Some claim that recent historical and genetic research into the origins of the Lemba tribe might lend support to the idea that members of that African tribe may have a Semitic origin.[citation needed].
Mainstream Judaism (Rabbanites)
In 539 BCE, the Persians (who had recently conquered Babylon) issued an edict (as inscribed on the Cyrus cylinder) allowing deportees to return to their homeland. Later Ezra was sent there and empowered to rebuild the Temple, and enforce a form of religion, which became Judaism, as according to the book he had in his hand; many textual scholars suspect that Ezra was the individual who redacted together the differing accounts and sources of the Torah into a single text (the Torah)[Richard Elliott Friedman, Who wrote the Bible]. By the end of this era, the returned deportees were culturally of a single common identity rather than a collection of multiple tribes, though the tribe of Levi maintained a distinction in accordance with their religious role. It is important to note that only the tribes of Judah, Levi, and Benyamin were deported to Babylon. Modern Jews thus are themselves the descendants of the Israelite tribes of Judah (Yehudah), Levi, and Benjamin that returned from Babylon.
Samaritans
Samaritans, once comparatively large, but now a very small ethnic and religious group (not more than about 700 persons[as of 2006]) living in the State of Israel and the West Bank, regard themselves as descendants of the tribes of Ephraim (named by them as Aphrime) and Manasseh (named by them as Manatch). Samaritans adhere to a version of the Torah, known as the Samaritan Pentateuch, which occasionally differs from the Masoretic text, and less so from the Septuagint, sometimes in important ways. Samaritans do not regard the Tanakh as an accurate or truthful history, regard only Moses as a prophet, have their own unique version of Hebrew, and do not regard themselves as part of Judaism. Since 539 BCE, many Jews have rejected outright the claims of the Samaritans to have descent from Ephraim and Manasseh, though some regard them as another sect of Judaism.
Karaites
Mainstream Judaism regards both the Tanakh and an Oral Law (codified and recorded in the Mishnah and Talmuds) as the foundation of their religion, morality, and other laws. the followers of Karaite Judaism are those who regard the Tanakh as scripture, but reject the Oral Law; the consequences, for example, being that Karaites do not require adherents to wear Tefillin in any form, but do require tekhelet in their Tzitzit, in contradistinction to Halacha. There are approximately 50,000 adherents of Karaite Judaism, most of whom reside in the modern state of Israel, but exact numbers are not known, as most Karaites have not participated in any religious censuses. Like the Samaritans, the division between themselves and Mainstream Judaism goes back many hundreds of years.
Rastafari
Rastas believe that the black races are the lost Israelites. They interpret the Bible as implying that Haile Selassie was the returned messiah, who would lead the world\'s peoples of African descent into a promised land of full emancipation and divine justice. Rastafarians believe they are jews by descent through Ras Tafari or Haile Selassie. Ras Tafari being a descendant of Solomon and Sheba vis Menelik. One Rastafari order named The Twelve Tribes of Israel, imposes a metaphysical astrology whereby Aries is Reuben, Aquarius is Joseph, etc. With his famous early reggae song The Israelites Desmond Dekker immortalised the Rastafari concept of themselves as the Lost Children of Israel. Though, the Black Rastafari claim to be descendents of Ham, the Old Testament of the Bible clearly states that Abraham is descended from Shem(Sem /Semitic)and therefore the Israelites would not be African descended(Ham).
Messianic Judaism
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Messianic Judaism considers Jesus as the Messiah called Moshiach, but regards itself as Jewish. Messianic Judaism comes in several forms, some of which accept core doctrines of Christianity and/or Judaism, and some which do not or only in degrees. It is frequently lead by individuals who ethnically are Jewish[citation needed], but many individuals who are not ethnically Jewish also attend the synagogues and meeting places of Messianic Judaism, especially those embracing the Two House Movement. Those adherents of Messianic Judaism who are not ethnically Jewish consider themselves as grafted in to the tribes of Israel, thus regarding themselves as Jewish and/or Israelite, in a similar way to how the descendants of Caleb and those of Ruth (great grandmother of King David) are treated by the Bible as being Jewish, despite both Caleb and Ruth not originally being Jewish by ethnicity. The relationship of Messianic Judaism to other forms of Judaism is sometimes politicised; mainstream Judaism does not consider the adherents of Messianic Judaism to be Jewish at all. However, the Southern Baptist Convention and the Assemblies of God movement actively encourage and aid the establishment of new Messianic Judaism congregations, as part of their efforts to evangelize to and convert the Jewish people.
Latter-day Saints
- See also: Mormonism and Judaism
The Latter Day Saint movement (commonly termed Mormons), a large collection of religious groups, the largest of which - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints - has over 12 million members, believe that through baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, they become "regathered" Israelites, either as recovered from the scattered seed of Israel, or as Gentiles adopted and grafted into Israel, and thus becoming part of the chosen people of God[Guide to LDS scriptural references on Israel]. These religious denominations derive from that started by Joseph Smith, Jr., and almost half of all members (termed Latter-day Saints by themselves) live in the United States, while the rest are scattered in countries on every continent all over the world; the movement does not strictly believe that they are ethnic Jews as such, but rather that Israelites can refer to many different cultures, on occasion including Jews[ibid]. They believe that certain Old Testament passages[Isaiah 2:2-4, 11:10-13] are prophecies implying that the House of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) will take a prominent role in the spread of the gospel to all of scattered Israel in the last days, and that the House of Judah (ie. Judah) also has a prominent role in the last days and during the Millennium[ibid].
European Christian Identity
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A number of groups claim to be the only true Israelites. These groups generally do not recognize the validity of Jews, or any other group that claims Israelite descent. (See for example, ) That is Jews who have been living in Mediterranean and Middle East. The Sephardim were exiled after the Babylonian exile, and also after the Rebellion in the year 70AD. Some have moved back to Safed, Israel in the last 1000 years.
English transcription of the Tribes names
Some English speaking Jewish groups view the pronunciation, English transcription, and Hebrew spelling, of the tribal names to be extremely important; these transcriptions and spellings are as follows:
- Reuben: ר×ובן, Standard Rəʾuven, Tiberian Rəʾûḇēn
- Simeon: שמעון, Standard Šimʿon, Tiberian Šimʿôn
- Levi: לוי, Standard Levi, Tiberian Lēwî
- Judah: יהודה, Standard YÉ™huda, Tiberian YÉ™hûá¸Äh
- Dan: דן, Standard Dan, Tiberian DÄn
- Naphtali: × ×¤×ª×œ×™, Standard Naftali, Tiberian NapÌ„tÄlî
- Gad: גד, Standard Gad, Tiberian GÄá¸
- Asher: ×שר, Standard AÅ¡er, Tiberian ʾĀšēr
- Issachar: יששכר, Standard Yissaḫar, Tiberian YiśśâḵÄr
- Zebulun: זבולן, Standard Zəvúlun, Tiberian Zəḇûlun
- Joseph: יוסף, Standard Yosef, Tiberian Yôsēp̄, containing the tribes:
- Manasseh: ×ž× ×©×”, Samaritan Manatch, Standard MÉ™naÅ¡Å¡e, Tiberian MÉ™naÅ¡Å¡eh
- Ephraim: ×פרי×, Samaritan Afrime, Standard Efráyim, Tiberian ʾEpÌ„ráyim / ʾEpÌ„rÄyim
- Benjamin ×‘× ×™×ž×™×Ÿ, Standard Binyamin, Tiberian BinyÄmîn
See also
References and notes
External links
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia |
