Hebrews

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Hebrews descendants of biblical Patriarch Eber;were people who lived in the Levant , which was politically Canaan . The Hebrews lived within this region in the 2nd millennium BCE and spoke a Canaanite dialect .

Origin

When the Tell el-Amarna archives were initially translated, some scholars eagerly equated the Habiru, described within the text, with the Hebrews,

in particular because they were said to be nomads, raiders, and outlaws, fitting well with the biblical description of the Hebrews under Joshua conquering canaan. Such religiously motivated conclusions proved to be hasty, and later study, taking into account linguistic research, and other ancient mentions of the Habiru, it is now considered that the term Habiru described a group of stateless foreigners who had banded together, and formed a counter culture rather than an invading force.

Other controversial theories hold that the Hebrews were the mysterious Hyksos, a semitic people, who gradually migrated into Egypt, eventually taking power from the extremely weak Pharaoh by force, and subsequently were expelled after many years, which matches up well with the biblical description of the Hebrews in Egypt.

Certain Christian groups sometimes use the term Hebrews to distinguish the Jews in ancient times that lived before the birth of Jesus from Jews that lived afterward. This distincion is part of the Christian doctrine that the favor bestowed upon the ancient Jews, as God's chosen people,

 

Hebrews

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Hebrews descendants of biblical Patriarch Eber;were people who lived in the Levant , which was politically Canaan . The Hebrews lived within this region in the 2nd millennium BCE and spoke a Canaanite dialect , although their culture was distinct from the local Canaanite culture.

Origin

When the Tell el-Amarna archives were initially translated, some scholars eagerly equated the Habiru, described within the text, with the Hebrews, in particular because they were said to be nomads, raiders, and outlaws, fitting well with the biblical description of the Hebrews under Joshua conquering canaan. Such religiously motivated conclusions proved to be hasty, and later study, taking into account linguistic research, and other ancient mentions of the Habiru, it is now considered that the term Habiru described a group of stateless foreigners who had banded together, and formed a counter culture rather than an invading force.

Other controversial theories hold that the Hebrews were the mysterious Hyksos, a semitic people, who gradually migrated into Egypt, eventually taking power from the extremely weak Pharaoh by force, and subsequently were expelled after many years, which matches up well with the biblical description of the Hebrews in Egypt.

Certain Christian groups sometimes use the term Hebrews to distinguish the Jews in ancient times that lived before the birth of Jesus from Jews that lived afterward. This distincion is part of the Christian doctrine that the favor bestowed upon the ancient Jews, as God's chosen people,