1.
Israel
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Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in the Middle East, on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea. The country contains geographically diverse features within its small area. Israels economy and technology center is Tel Aviv, while its seat of government and proclaimed capital is Jerusalem, in 1947, the United Nations adopted a Partition Plan for Mandatory Palestine recommending the creation of independent Arab and Jewish states and an internationalized Jerusalem. The plan was accepted by the Jewish Agency for Palestine, next year, the Jewish Agency declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied territories including the West Bank, Golan Heights and it extended its laws to the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem, but not the West Bank. Israels occupation of the Palestinian territories is the worlds longest military occupation in modern times, efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have not resulted in peace. However, peace treaties between Israel and both Egypt and Jordan have successfully been signed, the population of Israel, as defined by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, was estimated in 2017 to be 8,671,100 people. It is the worlds only Jewish-majority state, with 74. 8% being designated as Jewish, the countrys second largest group of citizens are Arabs, at 20. 8%. The great majority of Israeli Arabs are Sunni Muslims, including significant numbers of semi-settled Negev Bedouins, other minorities include Arameans, Armenians, Assyrians, Black Hebrew Israelites, Circassians, Maronites and Samaritans. Israel also hosts a significant population of foreign workers and asylum seekers from Africa and Asia, including illegal migrants from Sudan, Eritrea. In its Basic Laws, Israel defines itself as a Jewish, Israel is a representative democracy with a parliamentary system, proportional representation and universal suffrage. The prime minister is head of government and the Knesset is the legislature, Israel is a developed country and an OECD member, with the 35th-largest economy in the world by nominal gross domestic product as of 2016. The country benefits from a skilled workforce and is among the most educated countries in the world with one of the highest percentage of its citizens holding a tertiary education degree. The country has the highest standard of living in the Middle East and the third highest in Asia, in the early weeks of independence, the government chose the term Israeli to denote a citizen of Israel, with the formal announcement made by Minister of Foreign Affairs Moshe Sharett. The names Land of Israel and Children of Israel have historically used to refer to the biblical Kingdom of Israel. The name Israel in these phrases refers to the patriarch Jacob who, jacobs twelve sons became the ancestors of the Israelites, also known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel or Children of Israel. The earliest known artifact to mention the word Israel as a collective is the Merneptah Stele of ancient Egypt. The area is known as the Holy Land, being holy for all Abrahamic religions including Judaism, Christianity, Islam
2.
Book of Joshua
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The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Israel from the conquest of Canaan to the Babylonian exile. Almost all scholars agree that the book of Joshua holds little value for early Israel. Although Rabbinic tradition holds that the book was written by Joshua, transfer of leadership to Joshua A. Joshuas instructions to the people II, entrance into and conquest of Canaan A. Entry into Canaan 1. Reconnaissance of Jericho 2, establishing a foothold at Gilgal 4. Failure and success at Ai 3, renewal of the covenant at Mount Ebal 4. Other campaigns in central Canaan 5, summary list of defeated kings III. Division of the land among the tribes A, cities of refuge and levitical cities D. Summary of conquest E. De-commissioning of the eastern tribes IV, conclusion A. Joshuas farewell address B. Methodist writer Joseph Benson suggests that Gods revelation to Joshua comes either immediately after, God commissions Joshua to take possession of the land and warns him to keep faith with the Covenant. The Israelites cross the Jordan River through the intervention of God. The conquest begins in Canaan with Jericho, followed by Ai, after which Joshua builds an altar to Yahweh at Mount Ebal, the covenant ceremony has elements of a divine land-grant ceremony, similar to ceremonies known from Mesopotamia. The narrative then switches to the south, the Gibeonites trick the Israelites into entering into an alliance with them by saying they are not Canaanites, this prevents the Israelites from exterminating them, but they are enslaved instead. An alliance of Amorite kingdoms headed by the Canaanite king of Jerusalem is defeated with Yahwehs miraculous help of stopping the sun and the moon, the enemy kings were eventually hanged on trees. With the south conquered the narrative moves to the northern campaign, a powerful multi-national coalition headed by the king of Hazor, the most important northern city, is defeated with Yahwehs help and Hazor captured and destroyed. Chapter 11, 16–23 summarises the extent of the conquest, Joshua has taken the land, almost entirely through military victories. Joshua 11,18 asserts that the conquest took a long time - the Amplified Bible, anglican churchman Charles Ellicott thinks the war seems to have lasted seven years. The land then had rest from war, the list of the 31 kings is quasi-tabular, the king of Jerusalem, one, the king of Hebron, one, the king of Jarmuth, one, the king of Lachish, one
3.
Joshua
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Joshua /ˈdʒɒʃuə/ or Jehoshua is the central figure in the Hebrew Bibles Book of Joshua. According to the books of Exodus, Numbers and Joshua, he was Moses assistant and his name was Hoshea the son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, but Moses called him Yehoshua the name by which he is commonly known. The name is shortened to Yeshua in Nehemiah, according to the Bible he was born in Egypt prior to the Exodus. According to the Hebrew Bible, Joshua was one of the spies of Israel sent by Moses to explore the land of Canaan. In Numbers 13, 1–16, and after the death of Moses, he led the Israelite tribes in the conquest of Canaan, according to Biblical chronology, Joshua lived between 1355 and 1245 BCE, or sometime in the late Bronze Age. According to Joshua 24,29, Joshua died at the age of 110, Joshua also holds a position of respect among Muslims. According to Islamic tradition, he was, along with Caleb, all Muslims also see Joshua as the leader of the Israelites, following the death of Moses. Some Muslims also believe Joshua to be the attendant of Moses mentioned in the Qurān, before Moses meets Khidr, the English name Joshua is a rendering of the Hebrew language Yehoshua, meaning Yahweh is salvation. The vocalization of the second name component may be read as Hoshea—the name used in the Torah before Moses added the divine name, Jesus is the English of the Greek transliteration of Yehoshua via Latin. In the Septuagint, all instances of the word Yehoshua are rendered as Ἰησοῦς, thus, in Greek, Joshua is called Jesus son of Naue to differentiate him from Jesus Christ. This is also true in the Slavic languages following the Eastern Orthodox tradition, Joshua was a major figure in the events of the Exodus. He was charged by Moses with selecting and commanding a group for their first battle after exiting Egypt, against the Amalekites in Rephidim. He later accompanied Moses when he ascended biblical Mount Sinai to commune with God, visualize Gods plan for the Israelite tabernacle and receive the Ten Commandments. Joshua was with Moses when he descended from the mountain, heard the Israelites celebrations around the Golden Calf, and broke the tablets bearing the words of the commandments. However, when Moses returned to the mountain to re-create the tablets recording the Ten Commandments, Joshua was not present, according to Joshua 1, 1-9, God appointed Joshua to succeed Moses as leader of the Israelites along with giving him a blessing of invincibility during his lifetime. The first part of the book of Joshua covers the period when he led the conquest of Canaan, at the Jordan River, the waters parted, as they had for Moses at the Red Sea. The first battle after the crossing of the Jordan was the Battle of Jericho, Joshua led the destruction of Jericho, then moved on to Ai, a small neighboring city to the west. However, they were defeated with thirty-six Israelite deaths, the defeat was attributed to Achan taking an accursed thing from Jericho, and was followed by Achan and his family and animals being stoned to death to restore Gods favor
4.
Deborah
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Deborah was a prophet of the God of the Israelites, the fourth Judge of pre-monarchic Israel, counselor, warrior, and the wife of Lapidoth according to the Book of Judges chapters 4 and 5. Judges chapter 5 gives the story in poetic form. This passage, often called The Song of Deborah, may date to as early as the 12th century BC and is perhaps the earliest sample of Hebrew poetry, in Hebrew, her name, דְּבוֹרָה, translates as bee. She is considered a saint in the Catholic Church, the Deborah number, a dimensionless number used in rheology, is named after her. In the Book of Judges, it is stated that Deborah was a prophet, a judge of Israel and she rendered her judgments beneath a date palm tree between Ramah in Benjamin and Bethel in the land of Ephraim. Some people today refer to Deborah as the mother of Israel, as she is titled in the biblical Song of Deborah, the people of Israel had been oppressed by Jabin, the king of Canaan, whose capital was Hazor, for twenty years. At the same time she states that the Lord God of Israel will draw Sisera to the River Kishon, Barak declines to go without the prophet. Deborah consents, but declares that the glory of the victory will therefore belong to a woman, as soon as the news of the rebellion reaches Sisera he collects nine hundred chariots of iron and a host of people. Then Deborah said, according to Judges 4,14, “Go and this is the day the Lord has given Sisera into your hands. Has not the Lord gone ahead of you. ”So Barak went down Mount Tabor, as Deborah prophesied, a battle is fought, and Sisera is completely defeated. He himself escapes on foot, while his army is pursued as far as Harosheth of the Gentiles, Sisera comes to the tent of Jael, and he lies down to rest. He asks for a drink, she gives him milk, the Biblical account of Deborah ends with the statement that after the battle, there was peace in the land for 40 years. Traditional Jewish chronology places Deborahs 40 years of judging Israel from 1107 BC until her death in 1067 BC, the Dictionary of World Biography, The Ancient World claims that she might have lived in the period between 1200 BC to 1124 BC. The Song of Deborah is found in Judges 5, 2–31 and is a hymn, sung by Deborah and Barak. Biblical scholars have identified the Song as one of the oldest parts of the Bible, dating somewhere in the 12th century BC, based on its grammar. However, some scholars have argued that the songs language. The song itself differs slightly from the events described in Judges 4, the song mentions six participating tribes as opposed to the two tribes in Judges 4,6 and does not mention the role of Jabin. After the death of Joshua, the tribe of Judah led the tribe of Simeon in a campaign against the Canaanites and Perizzites, then they marched against Kiriath-Arba and defeated three more kings
5.
Samson
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Samson is sometimes considered to be an Israelite version of the popular Middle Eastern Heracles figure. However, if Samsons long hair was cut, he would lose his strength, in some Jewish traditions, Samson is believed to have been buried in Tel Tzora in Israel overlooking the Sorek valley. There reside two large gravestones of Samson and his father Manoah and it is located between the cities of Zorah and Eshtaol. Samson is said to have lived during a time when the Hebrew Bible suggests God was disciplining the Israelites by giving them into the hand of the Philistines, Manoah was an Israelite from Zorah, from the family of the Danites, and his wife had been unable to conceive. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Manoahs wife and proclaimed that the couple would soon have a son, the Angel of the Lord stated that Manoahs wife was to abstain from all alcoholic beverages, and her promised child was not to shave or cut his hair. He was to be a Nazirite from birth, the wife believed the Angel of the Lord, her husband was not present, so he prayed and asked God to send the messenger once again to teach them how to raise the boy who was going to be born. After the Angel of the Lord returned, Manoah asked him his name, Manoah then prepared a sacrifice, but the Angel of the Lord would only allow it to be for God. He touched it with his staff, miraculously engulfing it in flames and this was such dramatic evidence of the nature of the Messenger that Manoah feared for his life, since it was said that no one could live after seeing God. However, his wife convinced him that, if God planned to slay them, in due time, their son Samson was born, and he was raised according to the provisions. When he was an adult, Samson left the hills of his people to see the cities of the Philistines. He fell in love with a Philistine woman from Timnah, whom he decided to marry, ignoring the objections of his parents, in the development of the narrative, the intended marriage was shown to be part of Gods plan to strike at the Philistines. According to the account, Samson was repeatedly seized by the Spirit of the Lord. The first instance of this is seen when Samson was on his way to ask for the Philistine womans hand in marriage and he simply grabbed it and ripped it apart, the spirit of God divinely empowering him. However, Samson kept it a secret, not even mentioning the miracle to his parents and he arrived at the Philistines house and became betrothed to her. He returned home, then back to Timnah some time later for the wedding. On his way, Samson saw that bees had nested in the carcass of the lion and he ate a handful of the honey and gave some to his parents. At the wedding feast, Samson told a riddle to his thirty groomsmen, if they could solve it, he would give them thirty pieces of fine linen and garments, but if they could not solve it, they would give him thirty pieces of fine linen and garments. The riddle was an account of two encounters with the lion, at which only he was present, The Philistines were infuriated by the riddle
6.
Samuel
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Samuel, is a leader of ancient Israel in the Books of Samuel in the Hebrew Bible. He is also known as a prophet by Christians and Muslims and his status, as viewed by rabbinical literature, is that he was the last of the Hebrew Judges and the first of the major prophets who began to prophesy inside the Land of Israel. He was thus on the cusp of two eras, according to the text of the Books of Samuel, he also anointed the first two kings of the Kingdom of Israel, Saul and David. Samuels mother was Hannah and his father was Elkanah, Elkanah lived at Ramathaim in the district of Zuph. His genealogy is found in a pedigree of the Kohathites and in that of Heman. According to the tables in Chronicles, Elkanah was a Levite - a fact not mentioned in the books of Samuel. The fact that Elkanah, a Levite, was denominated an Ephraimite is analogous to the designation of a Levite belonging to Judah, according to 1 Samuel 1, 1-28, Elkanah had two wives, Peninnah and Hannah. Peninnah had children, Hannah did not, jealous, Penninah reproached Hannah for her lack of children, causing Hannah much heartache. The relationship of Penninah and Hannah recalls that between Hagar and Sarah, Elkanah was a devout man and would periodically take his family on pilgrimage to the holy site of Shiloh. The motif of Elkanah and Hannah as devout, childless parents will reoccur with Zachariah and Elizabeth and the birth of John the Baptist, and with Joachim and Anna, on one occasion Hannah went to the sanctuary and prayed for a child. In tears, she vowed that were she granted a child, Eli, who was sitting at the foot of the doorpost in the sanctuary at Shiloh, saw her apparently mumbling to herself and thought she was drunk, but was soon assured of her motivation and sobriety. Eli was the priest of Shiloh, and one of the last Israelite Judges before the rule of kings in ancient Israel and he had assumed the leadership after Samsons death. Eli blessed her and she returned home, subsequently Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to Samuel. Hannahs exultant hymn of thanksgiving resembles in several points Marys later Magnificat, after the child was weaned, she left him in Elis care, and from time to time she would come to visit her son. According to 1 Samuel 1,20, Hannah named Samuel to commemorate her prayer to God for a child, called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the Lord. The Hebrew root rendered as asked in the KJV is sha’al, once it is even mentioned in the form sha’ul, Saul’s name in Hebrew. Biblical historian Michael Coogan suggests that Saul’s birth narrative was transferred to Samuel by the Deuteronomist historians, however, Gordon himself did not see this hypothesis as justified by the available evidence. According to the Holman Bible Dictionary, Samuel was a name in the Ancient Near East meaning, Sumu is God but understood in Israel as The name is God, God is exalted
7.
Mount Gerizim
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The mountain is one of the highest peaks in the West Bank and rises to 881 m above sea level,70 m lower than Mount Ebal. In Samaritan tradition, Mount Gerizim is held to be the highest, oldest and most central mountain in the world. The mountain is steep on the northern side, is sparsely covered at the top with shrubbery. A Samaritan village and an Israeli settlement are situated on the mountain ridge, the mountain is sacred to the Samaritans who regard it, rather than Jerusalems Temple Mount, as having been the location chosen by Yahweh for a holy temple. The passover is celebrated by the Samaritans on Mount Gerizim, according to classical rabbinical sources, in order to convert to Judaism, a Samaritan must first and foremost renounce any belief in the sanctity of Mount Gerizim. Moses instructed the Israelites, on first entering Canaan, to celebrate the event with ceremonies of blessings and cursings on Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal respectively. However, the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges argues that the face of Gerizim, the mount of blessing, is the fertile, the opposite face of Ebal. Recent Dead Sea Scrolls work supports the accuracy of the Samaritan Pentateuchs designation of Mount Gerizim rather than Mount Ebal as the sacred site, no attempts to explain this division of tribes either by their Biblical ethnology or by their geographical distribution have been generally accepted in academic circles. The text goes on to list twelve curses, which were to be pronounced by the Levite priesthood, scholars consider it plausible for the sanctuary to have been pre-Israelite. A straightforward etymology for Gerizim would give the meaning of mountain cut in two, according to a Jewish midrash, one of these idols, in the shape of a dove, was later recovered by the Samaritans, and used in their worship on Mount Gerizim. After the end of the Babylonian Captivity, a schism between the Samaritans and Judaism developed, with the Samaritans, but not the Jews, regarding Mount Gerizim as the holy place chosen by God. Subsequently, in the Persian Period, the Samaritans built a temple there probably in the middle of 5th century BCE, the date of the Samaritan temple destruction, the 21st of Kislev, became a holiday for the Jews during which it is forbidden to eulogize the dead. You worship what you do not know, we worship what we know, nevertheless, the hour is coming, and it is now, when the true worshipers will worship the Father with spirit and truth. Eventually, when Christianity became the church of the Roman Empire. In 475 CE a Christian church was built on its summit, in 529, Justinian I made Samaritanism illegal, and arranged for a protective wall to be constructed around the church. As a result, the year, Julianus ben Sabar led a pro-Samaritan revolt. However, in 531, after Justinian enlisted the help of Ghassanids, the revolt was completely quashed, in 533 Justinian had a castle constructed on Mount Gerizim to protect the church from raids by the few disgruntled Samaritans left in the area. As a result of the church and previous Samaritan temple
8.
Aaron
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In the Hebrew Bible, Aaron was the elder brother of Moses and a Prophet of God. Islamic literature, which also considers Aaron a Prophet of God, knowledge of Aaron, along with his brother Moses, comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Bible and Qur’an. The Hebrew Bible relates that, unlike Moses, who grew up in the Egyptian royal court, Aaron, when Moses first confronted the Egyptian king about the Israelites, Aaron served as his brothers spokesman to Pharaoh. Part of the Law that Moses received from God at Sinai granted Aaron the priesthood for himself and his male descendants, Aaron died before the Israelites crossed the North Jordan river and he was buried on Mount Hor. Aaron is also mentioned in the New Testament of the Bible, according to the Book of Exodus, Aaron first functioned as Moses assistant. Because Moses complained that he could not speak well, God appointed Aaron as Moses prophet, at the command of Moses, he let his rod turn into a snake. Then he stretched out his rod in order to bring on the first three plagues, after that, Moses tended to act and speak for himself. During the journey in the wilderness, Aaron was not always prominent or active, at the battle with Amalek, he was chosen with Hur to support the hand of Moses that held the rod of God. When the revelation was given to Moses at Mount Sinai, he headed the elders of Israel who accompanied Moses on the way to the summit, while Joshua went with Moses to the top, however, Aaron and Hur remained below to look after the people. From here on in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, Joshua appears in the role of Moses assistant while Aaron functions instead as the first high priest. The books of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers maintain that Aaron received from God a monopoly over the priesthood for himself, the family of Aaron had the exclusive right and responsibility to make offerings on the altar to the God of Israel. The rest of his tribe, the Levites, were given subordinate responsibilities within the sanctuary, Moses anointed and consecrated Aaron and his sons to the priesthood, and arrayed them in the robes of office. He also related to them Gods detailed instructions for performing their duties while the rest of the Israelites listened, Aaron and his successors as high priest were given control over the Urim and Thummim by which the will of God could be determined. God commissioned the Aaronide priests to distinguish the holy from the common and the clean from the unclean, the priests were also commissioned to bless the people. In this way, the institution of the Aaronide priesthood was established, in later books of the Old Testament, Aaron and his kin are not mentioned very often except in literature dating to the Babylonian Exile and later. The books of Judges, Samuel and Kings mention priests and Levites, the book of Ezekiel, which devotes much attention to priestly matters, calls the priestly upper class the Zadokites after one of King Davids priests. It does reflect a two-tier priesthood with the Levites in subordinate position, a two-tier hierarchy of Aaronides and Levites appears in Ezra, Nehemiah and Chronicles. As a result, many think that Aaronide families did not control the priesthood in pre-exilic Israel
9.
Moses
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Moses is a prophet in Abrahamic religions. Also called Moshe Rabbenu in Hebrew, he is the most important prophet in Judaism and he is also an important prophet in Christianity, Islam, the Baháí Faith as well as a number of other Abrahamic religions. Moses Hebrew mother, Jochebed, secretly hid him when the Pharaoh ordered all newborn Hebrew boys to be killed in order to reduce the population of the Israelites. Through the Pharaohs daughter, the child was adopted as a foundling from the Nile river and grew up with the Egyptian royal family. After killing an Egyptian slavemaster, Moses fled across the Red Sea to Midian, God sent Moses back to Egypt to demand the release of the Israelites from slavery. Moses said that he could not speak with assurance or eloquence, so God allowed Aaron, his brother, to become his spokesperson. After the Ten Plagues, Moses led the Exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt and across the Red Sea, after which they based themselves at Mount Sinai, after 40 years of wandering in the desert, Moses died within sight of the Promised Land on Mount Nebo. According to archaeologist William G. Rabbinical Judaism calculated a lifespan of Moses corresponding to 1391–1271 BCE, Jerome gives 1592 BCE, the Biblical account of Moses birth provides him with a folk etymology to explain the ostensible meaning of his name. He is said to have received it from the Pharaohs daughter and she named him Moses, saying, I drew him out of the water. This explanation links it to a verb mashah, meaning to draw out, the princess made a grammatical mistake which is prophetic of his future role in legend, as someone who will draw the people of Israel out of Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea. Abraham Yahuda, based on the spelling given in the Tanakh, argues that it combines water or seed and pond, expanse of water, the Hebrew etymology in the Biblical story may reflect an attempt to cancel out traces of Moses Egyptian origins. The Egyptian character of his name was recognized as such by ancient Jewish writers like Philo of Alexandria and Josephus. Philo linked Mōēsēs to the Egyptian word for water, while Josephus, in his Antiquities of the Jews, claimed that the element, -esês. Hizkuni suggested she either converted or took a tip from Jochebed, the Israelites had settled in the Land of Goshen in the time of Joseph and Jacob, but a new pharaoh arose who oppressed the children of Israel. At this time Moses was born to his father Amram, son of Kehath the Levite, who entered Egypt with Jacobs household, his mother was Jochebed, Moses had one older sister, Miriam, and one older brother, Aaron. One day after Moses had reached adulthood he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew, Moses, in order to escape the Pharaohs death penalty, fled to Midian. There, on Mount Horeb, God revealed to Moses his name YHWH and commanded him to return to Egypt and bring his people out of bondage. Moses returned to carry out Gods command, but God caused the Pharaoh to refuse, from Egypt, Moses led the Israelites to biblical Mount Sinai, where he was given the Ten Commandments from God, written on stone tablets
10.
Gideon
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Gideon was the son of Joash, from the Abiezrite clan in the tribe of Manasseh and lived in Ephra. As a leader of the Israelites, he won a victory over a Midianite army despite a vast numerical disadvantage. The nineteenth-century Strongs Concordance derives the name Jerubbaal from Baal will contend, according to biblical scholar Lester Grabbe,6.32 gives a nonsensical etymology of his name, it means something like Let Baal be great. Likewise, where Strong gave the meaning hewer to the name Gideon, God chose Gideon, a young man from the tribe of Manasseh, to free the people of Israel and to condemn their idolatry. The Angel of the Lord, or the Lord’s angelic messenger came in the character, of a traveller who sat down in the shade to enjoy a little refreshment and repose and entered into conversation with Gideon. The narrative has echoes of the meeting between Abraham and the visitors who came to him in the trees of Mamre and promised Abraham and Sarah, in their old age. The Angel of the Lord greeted Gideon, The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor, God first instructed Gideon to send home those men who were afraid. Gideon invited any man who wanted to leave, to do so,22,000 men returned home and 10,000 remained, during the night, God instructed Gideon to approach the Midianite camp. There, Gideon overheard a Midianite man tell a friend of a dream in which a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and this was interpreted as meaning that God had given the Midianites over to Gideon. Gideon returned to the Israelite camp and gave each of his men a trumpet, divided into three companies, Gideon and the three hundred marched on the enemy camp. He instructed them to blow the trumpet, give a battle cry and light torches, as they did so, the Midianite army fled. Gideon sent messengers ahead into Israel calling for the Ephraimites to pursue the retreating Midianites, Gideon and the three hundred pursued Zebah and Zalmunna, the two Midianite kings. When he had asked for provisions in his pursuit, the men of Succoth, after capturing the two kings, Gideon punished the men of Succoth, and pulled down the tower of Peniel killing all the men there. Gideon then killed Zebah and Zalmunna as justice for the death of his brothers, the Israelites invited Gideon to become their king and to found a dynasty, but he refused, telling them that only God was their ruler. G. A. Gideon went on to make an out of the gold won in battle. Gideon had 70 sons from the women he took as wives. He also had a Shechemite concubine who bore him a son whom he named Abimelech, there was peace in Israel for 40 years during the life of Gideon. As soon as Gideon died of old age, the Israelites again turned to worship the false god Baal-Berith, the text of Judges 6–8 is a composite narrative, combining Jahwist, Elohist and Deuteronomic sources, with further interpolations and editorial comments of the Second Temple period
11.
Tubas
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Tubas is a Palestinian city in the northeastern West Bank, located 21 kilometers northeast of Nablus, a few kilometers west of the Jordan River. A city of over 16,000 inhabitants, it serves as the economic and its urban area consists of 2,271 dunams. It is governed by a council of 15 members and most of its working inhabitants are employed in agriculture or public services. Jamal Abu Mohsin has been the mayor of Tubas since being elected in 2005, Tubas has been identified as the ancient town of Thebez /ˈθiːˌbɛz/, a Canaanite town famous for revolting against King Abimelech. It came under the British Mandate of Palestine in 1917, was annexed by Jordan after their capture of the town in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the Palestinian National Authority has had complete control of Tubas since the city was transferred to its jurisdiction in 1995. The citys name Tubas derives from the Canaanite word Tuba Syoys or illuminating star, Tubas was identified by Edward Robinson to be the Canaanite/Israelite town of Thebez mentioned in the Hebrew Bible in the Book of Judges. Thebez was ruled by King Abimelech of Shechem, when the people of Shechem revolted against him, Thebez joined the revolt. He had himself killed by the sword of his armour bearer to avoid the apparent shame of being killed by a woman, archaeological remains such as cemeteries and olive presses indicate that Tubas was inhabited during the Roman era of rule in Palestine. Jerome mentioned Thebez being 13 Roman miles east of Neapolis, besides the Biblical story, nothing has been known about Thebez before or after the revolt. In 1596 it appeared in the Ottoman tax registers as Tubas and it had a population of 41 households and 16 bachelors, all Muslim. Taxes were paid on wheat, barley, summer crops, olive trees, occasional revenues, goats, beehives, soon after being established in Tubas, Arabs from Najd, Syria, Transjordan, Hebron and nearby Nablus came to settle in the area. During this period, Tubas became the site of clashes between the Abd al-Hadi and Tuqan clans of Nablus and suffered incursions by Bedouins from areas east of the city. The Jarrar clan did not inhabit, but administrated Tubas, as it was located within the nahiya of Mashariq al-Jarrar, Tubas was one of the largest villages in the District of Nablus. Most of the inhabitants resided in houses or tents in order to work on their distant lands in the Jordan Valley and to graze their sheep. According to traveler Herbert Rix, compared to towns of its size in Samaria. Tubas, unlike the villages in the rest of the district, depended on livestock, livestock products included cheese, clarified butter, woolen rugs, tents, ropes, and cloth bags. In 1882 a boys school was established in the town, in 1877 Lieutenant Kitchener, of the Palestine Exploration Fund survey team, reported uncovering an Arabic inscription buried in the wall of the village mosque recording its building and dedication. He also wrote that the villagers had paid a bribe of £100 in gold to the Pasha of Nablus to avoid their young men being conscripted into the Turkish army fighting in Crimea and he noted that they would probably have to repeat the payment
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: J. Frederic McCurdy, Gerson B. Levi and Louis Ginzberg (1901–1906). "Abimelech". In Singer, Isidore; et al. Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company.