To the south of Phoenicia lay a small strip of land known as Canaan. Just as in the east- ern part of the Fertile Crescent, a series of peoples inhabited Canaan. At different times the Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Persians, Syrians, and other groups all conquered this area. One group of people who lived in Canaan were the Hebrews—the ancestors of modern Jews. They had a great influence on the region and on the history of the world. According to the Bible, the founder of the Hebrew people was Abraham. Abraham once lived in Sumer. He left there and led his people through the desert to the borders of northern Canaan. Modern Jews trace their heritage through Abraham’s grandson Jacob (also called Israel), whose twelve sons each established a tribe. These groups were known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
The Exodus.The descendants of Abraham left Canaan and traveled west into Egypt, probably to escape drought and famine. These Hebrews lived peacefully in Egypt for some time. Eventually, however, they fell from favor with the Egyptians. Some schol- ars believe that one group of Hebrews may have entered Egypt with the Hyksos in the 1700s B.C. When the Egyptians expelled the Hyksos in the 1200s B.C. they enslaved the Hebrews. The Hebrews were held as slaves for 400 years, during which time they suffered greatly.
The Hebrews were led out of slavery by a great leader,Moses.The biblical books of Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy tell the story of Moses. According to the Bible, Moses led the Exodus,the escape of the Hebrews from Egypt. The Hebrews fled into the deserts of the Sinai Peninsula, where they wandered in the wilderness.
The Main Idea
The Hebrews estab- lished a unique and influential religion based on ethical monotheism.
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How did the migrating Hebrews find a homeland? How did religious views affect Hebrew culture?covenant
ethical monotheism
Abraham
Twelve Tribes of Israel Moses Exodus Saul David Solomon Torah Judeo-Christian ethics
The ethical laws of Judaism, many of which were later adopted by Christians, still influence the beliefs of many Americans today. Use
or other current eventsources to find recent news stories about the Ten Commandments and the impact of Judeo- Christian ethics on society today. Record your findings
in your journal. Mount Sinai Mount Sinai is
located in the southern Sinai Peninsula. According to the Bible, this is where Moses received the written words that established the principles and beliefs of Judaism. It remains a biblical landmark today.
Why might Mount Sinai be an important place for followers of Judaism today?
The Ten Commandments.As the Bible tells it, Moses climbed to the top of Mount Sinai.When he returned to the Hebrews, he carried tablets bearing the Ten Command- ments. These commandments were the moral laws that the Hebrew god, Yahweh (YAH·way), had revealed to Moses. The first four commandments establish the Hebrews’ relationship with Yahweh. The rest of the commandments emphasize self-restraint and underscore the importance of family and human life. When the Hebrews agreed to follow these commandments, they entered into a covenant,or solemn agreement, with Yahweh.
Moses announced that Canaan was a land promised to his ancestors. He also said that Yahweh had sent him to found a holy nation. Inspired by his words, the Hebrews set out for Canaan. They wandered in the desert for many years, however, before finally entering the “prom- ised land.” They expected to find a land “flowing with milk and honey.”
The founding of Israel. The Hebrews who had come from Egypt joined those who had lived on the borders of northern Canaan. They remained a loose confederation of tribes bound together in part by the need to maintain a strong central shrine for the Ark of the Covenant—the container of Moses’s tablets. Leaders known as Judges ruled the various tribes in these years. Their task was to enforce God’s laws and settle disputes among the tribes. The Hebrews also sometimes acknowledged the author- ity of holy men known as prophets, who appeared from time to time to warn people that they were incurring God’s anger by straying from the terms of the covenant. The harsh wilderness life had hardened the Hebrews into tough desert tribes. However, establishing a homeland in Canaan nonetheless proved difficult for the Hebrews. People known as Canaanites held the northern Jordan Valley. Another group, the Philistines, lived along the southern coast. Both groups resisted the Hebrews and defended their lands in a struggle that lasted more than 200 years. The Hebrews first conquered the Canaanites. The Philistines, however, proved far more difficult to overcome. Over time, the Hebrews drove them closer to the seacoast, but they never succeeded in conquering the Philistines completely.
As nomads, the Hebrews had been divided into 12 tribes. During the years of fighting, the tribes united under one king. The first king of this united kingdom called Israel was Saul.Saul was succeeded by David,who formed a new dynasty. David conquered the village of Jerusalem, making it a capital and religious center.
1. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt. You shall have no other gods.* 2. You shall not make or
worship idols. 3. You shall not swear
falsely by the name of the Lord your God. 4. Remember the
Sabbath and keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother.
6. You shall not murder. 7. You shall not commit
adultery.
8. You shall not steal. 9. You shall not bear false
witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s belongings.”
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
The Founding of Israel, c. 900s B.C.
The kingdom of Israel, which reached the height of its size and power under Solomon, was divided after 922 B.C.
■ Skills Assessment: Places and RegionsAfter the mid- 900s B.C., which of the Hebrew kingdoms probably had great
access to seagoing trade and commerce?
*Some translations include this sentence in the second commandment.
According to the Bible, “God spoke, and these were his words:
Also beginning with David, the kings of Israel established a tradition of making a covenant with their people as well as with God. According to a biblical account of one king’s coronation,
“
Jehoida [the priest] solemnized the covenant between the Lord, on the one hand, and the king and the people, on the other—as well as between the king and the people—that they should be the people of the Lord.”
Benjamin Mazer, Biblical Israel: State and People Under the rule of David’s son and successor,Solomon,Israel reached the height of its wealth and power. Solomon sought to build peaceful, cooperative relations with the other leading powers of the region. One of his wives, for example, was a daughter of Egypt’s pharaoh. Solomon vastly increased Israel’s wealth through favorable trade policies with Arabia. The king used the riches gained from this trade to build a mag- nificent temple to God in Jerusalem. The temple became both the center of religious life in Israel and a symbol of the Israelite state.
Following Solomon’s death, unity within the Israelite kingdom was disrupted by struggles for political power. In the late 900s B.C. the 10 northern tribes revolted, and the kingdom split in two. The northern part remained the kingdom of Israel, with its capital at Samaria. The southern part, located around the Dead Sea, became the kingdom of Judah. Its capital was Jerusalem.
These two Hebrew kingdoms lacked the strength to withstand invasions from the east. In about 722 B.C. the Assyrians conquered Israel. They captured and enslaved many Hebrews. Later, in 587 B.C., the Chaldeans conquered Judah and destroyed Jerusalem. They destroyed Solomon’s temple and took the southern Hebrews captive. When Cyrus, the Persian king, conquered the Chaldeans, he allowed the Hebrews to return to their homeland. The Hebrews then rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem.
READING CHECK:Sequencing What events led to the Hebrews making Canaan their homeland?