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Critical Online Bible Study
The Neighbors of Ancient Israel
Lesson XIV
General
Ancient Israel was surrounded by a number of other nations and fought virtually every one of them at
some point in time. It was a rough and tumble neighborhood. In this lesson, we will take a brief look at
the nations around ancient Israel. These nations can be divided into two groups: the major empires
and the small kingdoms. The major empires included Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, two Greek
empires, the Ptolemaic (based in Egypt) and the Seleucid (based in Syria), and the Romans. The small
kingdoms included everyone else-- Ammon, Moab, Edom, Aram, and others. The kingdoms of Israel and
Judah were themselves among the small kingdoms.
Overview
1. The major empires that dominated ancient Palestine included the Egyptian, the Assyrian, the
Babylonian, the Persian, two Greek empires (the Ptolemaic and the Seleucid), and the Roman.
2. The major empires were either based on major rivers so as to support larger populations, or they
possessed exceptional leadership (the Greeks) or administrative skills (the Persians and Romans).
3. The smaller neighbors included nomadic groups such as the Amalekites, the Ishmaelites, the
Kenites, and the Midianites. All of these groups had disappeared by the 8th century BCE.
4. The agricultural societies included the Philistines, the Ammonites, the Arameans, the Edomites, the
Moabites, the Nabateans, the Phoenicians, and the Canaanites.
5. Although the Bible condemns the religion of the Canaanites, some Canaanitic mythological ideas
can be found in the Bible.
The Major Empires
The principle reason that these major empires became much larger and stronger than the smaller
kingdoms was their geography, or location along major rivers. The Nile River in Egypt and the Tigris and
Euphrates rivers in Mesopotamia enabled Egypt, Assyria, and Babylonia to grow more food and
therefore support much larger populations than what the smaller kingdoms could support. Although
neither Persia nor Greece developed along major rivers, they nonetheless became great empires for
other reasons. Note, however, that both Persia and the Greeks used mercenaries extensively.
Egypt. Ancient Egypt has a very long history that extended from c. 3150 BCE, when Menes united Upper
and Lower Egypt. Lower Egypt is generally considered to consist of the Nile Delta, or the area north of
Cairo, including Cairo itself. The area to the south is Upper Egypt. Although Menes united the two
areas, each area retained its own regalia and dialects. Egypt was called the land of the Two Kingdoms.
Egyptian civilization relied on the Nile and it stretched on either side of the Nile for 500 miles. An
enormous amount of material was left by the ancient Egyptians, so modern historians have been able to
reconstruct the history of ancient Egypt with considerable confidence.
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Since Lower Egypt is in the Nile Delta, and near the Mediterranean Sea, its weather is milder and wetter
than that of Upper Egypt.
The history of ancient Egypt is divided into dynasties, of which there were 31 before the Greek
Ptolemaic dynasty was established in the late 4th century BCE. The Romans conquered Egypt in 31 BCE
and it became a Roman province and the granary for the Roman Empire. The dynasties are grouped into
three kingdoms, Old, Middle, and New; three intermediate periods; and a late period. See the chart at
the end of the lesson.
The early Hebrews may have migrated to Egypt during the Fifteenth Dynasty (c. 1650 to c. 1550 BCE),
which was the first dynasty of the Hyksos, who were foreign invaders. The probable pharaoh of the
exodus was Merneptah, who reigned from c. 1212 to c. 1201 BCE as a member of the Nineteenth
Dynasty.
After the death of Solomon in c. 922 BCE, Judah was invaded by Shishak (Shoshenq I), who was a
member of the Twenty-second Dynasty (c. 943 to c. 716 BCE).
Necho was the pharaoh of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty who killed King Josiah of Judah in 609 BCE. The
Twenty-sixth Dynasty was the last native dynasty before Egypt was conquered in 525 BCE by the Persian
king, Cambyses. After the Persian empire fell to Alexander the Great, Egypt came under the control of
Ptolemy I Soter, one of Alexander’s generals. The Ptolemaic dynasty will be discussed below.
Egyptian religion was polytheistic and very
complex. It centered to a considerable degree on
the afterlife and maintenance of the afterlife. The
most important gods were Ra, or Aten, the sun
god, Amun, Anubis, Hathor, Horus, Isis, Mut,
Osiris, Ptah, and Set, but there were many others.
Although the religion of ancient Israel was not
significantly influenced by the Egyptians, there are
clearly parallels between Egyptian wisdom
literature and the wisdom literature of the Old
Testament.
In 1937, Sigmund Freud published Moses and
Monotheism in which he asserts that the
monotheism of Moses was adopted from the
monotheism of the heretical pharaoh, Akhenaten
IV (ruled c. 1351 to 1334 BCE), who promoted the
worship in Egypt of one god, the sun god Aten.
The Egyptian priesthood was strongly opposed to
Akhenaten and after his death, the traditional
polytheism returned. Scholars today discount
Freud’s theory.
Assyria. Assyria had its beginnings in the late 25th century BCE and it lasted as an empire until 608 BCE,
when it was destroyed by the Babylonians. It was centered along the upper Tigris River in what is now
northern Iraq. Its original capital was Asshur, but the capital was later moved to Nineveh. The Assyrian
empire had its ups and downs and it was not a significant factor in the history of ancient Israel until the
campaigns of Adad-nirari, who revived the Assyrian empire in the late 10th century BCE. Before this last
revival, Assyria had endured a period of weakness, which was part of the reason that David and
Solomon were able to extend and maintain their kingdom.
The first direct involvement by the kingdom of Israel with Assyria may have been at the battle of Qarqar
in 853 BCE. Although the Kurkh stele gives the victory to Shalmaneser III, there is reason to believe that
the battle was indecisive. The stele lists King Ahab of Israel as a member of the anti-Assyrian alliance,
but the Bible is silent about the battle of Qarqar.
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From c. 782 until c. 746 BCE, the Assyrian empire was weaker; this period is called the Interval, but in c.
745 BCE, Tiglath-pileser III (or Pul in the Bible) began a revival of Assyrian ascendancy. He conquered
Babylon and threatened Aram and Israel. In response, Rezin of Aram and Pekah of Israel formed an
alliance and tried to force Ahaz of Judah to join the alliance in the Syro-Ephraimite War. Ahaz appealed
to Tiglath-pileser and became an Assyrian vassal. Tiglath-pileser began the Assyrian policy of massive
deportations of defeated populations. The kingdom of Israel was finally destroyed in c. 721 BCE by
Shalmaneser V, the son of Tiglath-pileser and the majority of its inhabitants were deported (the “Ten
Lost Tribes of Israel”).
The kingdom of Judah survived this catastrophe, but barely. Shalmaneser V was succeeded by his
brother, Sargon II, and Sargon II was succeeded by Sennacherib, who besieged Jerusalem and received a
hefty from King Hezekiah (c. 701 BCE).
The Assyrian empire was able to maintain its strength until the rise of the neo-Babylonian empire under
Nabopolassar, the father of Nebuchadrezzar. The last capable Assyrian king was Ashurbanipal III, who
amassed a vast library of cuneiform clay tablets. This library has been a tremendous resource for
modern archeologist.
Nabopolassar captured the city of Asshur in 614 and Nineveh in 612. Despite the efforts by the
Egyptian pharaoh, Necho, to assist the Assyrians, the Assyrian empire ceased to exist in 608 BCE. The
Old Testament prophet, Nahum, celebrates the fall of Nineveh as the ancient Israelites viewed Assyria
with especial hatred. One reason, aside from deportations, was the cruel practice of publicly flaying
enemies.
The Assyrian religion had much in common with Babylonian religion; they were essentially one and the
same. The principle gods were Ashur, Enlil, Ishtar (or Astarte), Shamash, Tammuz, Sin, and Marduk (Bel
is a title, not a god). Each god was associated with a specific city, although they could be worshiped at
other locations.
Neo-B abylonia. The Babylonian empire also has ancient roots and one of its most famous kings was
Hammurabi (or Hammurapi) (ruled c. 1792 to c. 1750 BCE), who wrote the famous Code of Hammurabi.
As with the Assyrian empire, Babylonia was in a period of decline during the time of David and Solomon
and it did not really revive until Nabopolassar defeated the Assyrians. During the late 8th century BCE,
however, it was led by Merodach-baladan, who had sent ambassadors to Hezekiah (2 Kings 20:12-19).
The Assyrians were able to finally defeat Merodach-baladan in c. 702 BCE.
Nabopolassar died in 605 BCE, just before the famous battle of Carchemish, which was won by his
famous son, Nebuchadrezzar, against the Egyptians. The Egyptians had placed Jehoiakim on the throne
of Judah in 609 BCE, after the death of Josiah. After Carchemish, Jehoiakim became a vassal of the
Babylonians, who fought a later indecisive battle against the Egyptians at Migdal in 601 BCE. Perhaps
because of this battle, Jehoiakim decided to declare his independence. The Babylonians laid siege to
Jerusalem. Jehoiakim died of unknown causes and his son, Jehoiachin, surrendered to the Babylonians
three months later. The Babylonians then put Zedekiah on the throne of Judah, but Zedekiah later
revolted himself, perhaps on the belief that the Egyptians would assist him. The Babylonians returned
and destroyed Jerusalem in 587 BCE. Jewish inhabitants were deported in both 597 and 587 BCE to
Babylon.
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Nebuchadrezzar died in 562 BCE and his dynastic line was overthrown in 556 BCE by Nabonidus, who
spent much of his time at Tema in the Arabian desert. The day-to-day administration of the kingdom
was managed by his son, Belshazzar (see Daniel, chapter 5). Nabonidus was a proponent of the moon
god, Sin, as his mother was a priestess of Sin. Since the priesthood in Babylon strongly favored the god,
Marduk, Nabonidus and Belshazzar had few defenders when Babylon fell in 539 BCE to the Persians
under Cyrus the Great.
As mentioned above, the gods of Assyria and Babylonia were the same, more or less. What is
interesting, however, is that some the myths of these gods are perhaps reflected in some of the stories
in the Bible. There are certainly parallels between Enuma Elish, the Babylonian creation story, and the
creation accounts in Genesis. The Epic of Gilgamesh also parallels the story of Noah’s flood.
While in Babylonia, the Jewish community adopted the Babylonian calendar. The months of the Jewish
calendar are adopted from the names of the months in the Babylonian calendar. The Babylonians were
keen astronomers (and astrologers) and because of their records of eclipses and other astronomical
phenomena, historians have been able to reconstruct the chronology of ancient Babylonia and
subsequently, many of the events in the Bible.
Persia. Before conquering the Babylonians, Cyrus the Great (ruled c. 559 to c. 530 BCE) had conquered
the Medes, the Lydians, and most of the Ionian cities in western Asia Minor. A tolerant and generous
leader, he allowed the Jews (and other captive peoples) to return to their homeland in 537 BCE. (He is
called the “anointed one”, or Messiah, of God in Isaiah 45:1.) This began the long migration from
Babylon back to Jerusalem and the slow process of rebuilding the city and the Temple. Many Jews
elected to remain in Babylonia, where they had become successful merchants and scribes.
Cyrus was killed in battle in central Asia fighting the Massagetai and succeeded by his son, Cambyses,
who invaded Egypt and defeated Psamtik II. In the expedition against Ethiopia, an entire Persian army
disappeared; the remains of this army were discovered two years ago in the Egyptian desert. When
Cambyses died in 522 BCE, Darius, the satrap of Parthia, seized the throne. He waged many military
campaigns and conquered the Indus Valley. In 492 BCE, he invaded Greece, but he was stopped at
Marathon, north of Athens, in 490 BCE. He finished the organization of the Persian empire into
satrapies and standardized coinage, weights, and measures. He also allowed the Jews to rebuild the
Temple (c. 519 BCE) while simultaneously adopting Zoroastrianism as the Persian state religion.
Darius was followed by his son, Xerxes I, who also invaded Greece. Although he captured and burned
Athens in 480 BCE, after defeating the heroic Spartans at Thermopylae, his fleet was destroyed in the
famous battle at Salamis. Xerxes watched the destruction of his fleet from his throne on a hill
overlooking the battle site. Xerxes returned to Persia and left his son-in-law Mardonius in Greece, but
Mardonius was killed the following year at Plataea. The Persian adventure in Greece was over.
Xerxes I was followed by his son, Artaxerxes I, who completed a peace treaty with Athens (448 BCE) and
who authorized Ezra to return to Jerusalem and Nehemiah to rebuild the walls.
The Persian empire was able to maintain its power until the appearance of Alexander the Great, who
defeated the last Persian king, Darius III, in 333 BCE at Issus.
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Zoroastrianism was the official religion of the Persian empire. It was started in the 6th century BCE by
Zoroaster (or Zarathustra). The creator god of Zoroastrianism is Ahura Mazda, who is all good, but the
world is involved in a cosmic struggle between good and evil. This dualism of good and evil may have
influenced Judaism before the time of Jesus and carried over into Christianity since this dualism is not
found in most of the Old Testament.
The Greeks
The Ptolemies. After the sudden death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE, his generals divided up his
kingdom among themselves. These generals are known as the Diadochi. Ptolemy seized Egypt and
started the Ptolemaic empire with its capital at Alexandria. In 319 BCE, he captured Jerusalem and
Judah became part of the Ptolemaic empire for 119 years. The Ptolemaic kings generally let the Jews
worship freely and many of them emigrated to Alexandria during this period.
Despite several wars with the Seleucid empire, based in Syria, the Ptolemaic empire lasted until 30 BCE,
when the Romans turned Egypt into a Roman province.
Ptolemy I Soter, Alexander’s general, wrote a history of the Alexander’s campaigns. Although the work
did not survive, the ancient writer, Arrian, whose works have survived, relied heavily on Ptolemy’s
eyewitness account.
The Ptolemaic rulers were also responsible for the establishment of the famous library at Alexandria.
Whenever a ship arrived in the harbor, it was searched for manuscripts. If any were found, they were
copied by a large staff of professional copyists. The original would be returned to its owner, but a copy
was deposited in the library. Although both Christians and Muslims have been blamed for destroying
the library, Plutarch reports that the library was accidently burned down by Julius Caesar in 48 BCE when
he scuttled his own ships. In 2004, a team of Egyptian and Polish archeologists said that they had found
the remains of the library.
Seleucids. Another general of Alexander was Seleucus, who seized Syria and Mesopotamia after some
help from Ptolemy. After several wars, Jerusalem was finally taken from the Ptolemies by Antiochus III
(“the Great”) after the battle of Panium (200 BCE). Antiochus was a generous ruler and granted
subsidies to the Temple in Jerusalem. He was defeated, however, by the Romans in 190 BCE at
Magnesia. Under the treaty of Apamea (188 BCE), the Seleucids were to pay a large indemnity to the
Romans. As collateral, the Romans took the younger son of Antiochus to Rome as a prisoner.
Antiochus was followed by his son, Seleucus IV Philopator, who sent Heliodorus to loot the Temple in
Jerusalem in order to pay the Roman indemnity. Seleucus was later murdered by Heliodorus (175 BCE).
In the meantime, Antiochus IV, who had been the prisoner in Rome, was able to escape and return to
Syria to claim the throne. He accepted a bribe from Jason and appointed him high priest in Jerusalem
(174 BCE). The sitting high priest, Onias III, was deposed and later murdered in Antioch (171 BCE).
Menelaus outbid Jason in 171 BCE and so he was then appointed as the high priest. Menelaus was a
Hellenist, or a strong proponent of Greek culture. With the full support of Antiochus, he began an
aggressive campaign to Hellenize Jerusalem.
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In the meantime, Antiochus IV invaded Egypt only to be forced by the Romans to withdraw. He then
descended on Jerusalem, pillaged the city and looted the Temple. Jewish customs and practices were
banned. An altar to Zeus was set up in the Temple courtyard where pigs were sacrificed (the
“abomination of desolation” in Daniel 11:31). This led to the Maccabean revolt and the Jews were able
to rededicate the Temple in 164 BCE, which is commemorated at Hanukkah.
After the death of Antiochus IV in 164 BCE, the Seleucid Empire gradually sank into civil war, which
allowed the Maccabees to eventually establish an independent Jewish kingdom under the Hasmoneans
(the actual family name of the Maccabees).
The Romans finally destroyed the Seleucid Empire in 83 BCE.
The Romans
Legend holds that the Roman state was found in 753 BCE. For much of its early history, it was ruled by
Etruscan kings. Around 508 BCE, however, the Romans revolted and established a republic led by a
senate, which consisted of wealthy landowners, or patricians. The period from 508 to 367 BCE is called
the Patrician Era and it was during this era that the Romans unified much of Italy under their rule. It
was also the time when the Romans began to develop the most efficient military force known to the
ancient world.
The lower classes (but not the slaves) were known as the plebeians. They began to demand a voice in
government and this led to the right of the plebeians to elect their own officials, called “plebeian
tribunes.”
Gradually, the tribunes and the senate became closer as wealthier plebeian politicians were appointed
to the senate. This led to the Conflict of the Orders (367 to 287 BCE) during which the plebeians
achieved political equality with the patricians. The status of the wealthier plebeians resulted in the
period of the New Nobility, a period of political stability that lasted until 133 BCE.
The Roman empire, after 100 BCE, used the letters of SPQR on its insignia. This stood
for Senatus Populusque Romanus, or “The Senate and People of Rome”.
The Roman republic was involved in several famous wars. The Pyrrhic War (280-275 BCE) against
Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus (in NW Greece) allowed Rome to complete the unification of the Italian
peninsula. The three Punic Wars (264-146 BCE) against Carthage established Rome as a naval power. It
was during the Second Punic War (218-201 BCE) that the famous Carthaginian general, Hannibal,
transported elephants across the Alps in an effort to attack Rome on its own soil. After the Third Punic
War (149-146 BCE), Carthage was completely destroyed.
In 133 BCE, the Gracchi came to power and instituted some political changes. Although the Gracchi did
not stay in power, the changes eventually led to a crisis and the establishment of the First Triumvirate in
61 BCE. It consisted of Pompey, Crassus, and Julius Caesar, but it ended in 49 BCE, when Caesar crossed
the Rubicon (in northern Italy) with his army and entered Rome unopposed.
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After Caesar’s assassination in 44 BCE, the Second Triumvirate was established. It consisted of Octavius
(Augustus), Lepidus, and Mark Antony and it served two five-year terms, ending in 33 BCE. After the
war between Octavius and Mark Antony, Octavius became the sole ruler of Rome. The republic was in
effect dead and Rome became an empire.
Augustus (as Octavius was later named) died in 14 CE. He was succeeded by Tiberius (ruled 14-37 CE),
Caligula (Germanicus) (ruled 37-41 CE), Claudius (ruled 41-54 CE), and Nero (54-68 CE).
Rome was not a factor in the history of ancient Israel until the 2nd century BCE, when it defeated
Antiochus III, the successors of whom looted the Temple in Jerusalem in order to pay the Roman
indemnity. The Romans destroyed both the Ptolemaic and Seleucid empires and finally, in 63 BCE under
Pompey, ended the independent Jewish kingdom of the Hasmoneans. Although initially ruled as a part
of the province of Syria, Judea and Galilee became part of the kingdom of Herod the Great in 37 BCE.
Herod was a vassal of the Romans, and without their support, he would probably have been
overthrown. When Herod died in 4 BCE, he was followed by his sons, Archelaus, who was given Judea,
and Herod Antipas, who was given Galilee. Archelaus was removed in 6 BCE, however, because of
cruelty and incompetence and Judea became a Roman province ruled by prefects and procurators, some
of whom were cruel or corrupt, or both.
Although the Romans were tolerant of Judaism, they were not tolerant of Jewish zealots who wanted an
independent Judea. After the revolt, which started in 66 CE, the Romans destroyed the Temple (70 CE)
and later, after a second revolt in 132 BCE, banned Jews from Jerusalem.
The Roman empire legalized Christianity with the Edict of Milan in 313 CE. Christianity became the only
legal religion of the Roman empire under Theodosius in 390 CE. The western Roman empire fell in 476
CE, but the eastern part (called the Byzantine empire by modern historians) lasted until the fall of
Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 CE.
The New Testament refers to Roman legions, army units of up 5,000 troops, and centurions, who
commanded units of 100 men.
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The Smaller Kingdoms
The Nomadic Groups
Note that the nomadic enemies of ancient Israel are
barely mentioned after the time of David. They were
essentially raiders and plunderers, but because they
were nomadic and living on the edge of the desert,
they could not support large populations. Eventually
the richer and more populous agricultural societies
were able to control or eliminate them by the 9th
century BCE. They are hardly mentioned at all by the
prophets.
Amalekites. The Amalekites were among the worst
enemies of the ancient Israelites. Deuteronomy
25:17-19 says,
Remember what the Amalekites did to you on your way out of Egypt, how they met you on
the road when you were faint and weary and cut off your rear, which was lagging behind
exhausted: they showed no fear of God. When the LORD your God gives you peace from
your enemies on every side, in the land which he is giving you to occupy as your
patrimony, you shall not fail to blot out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven.
The Amalekites were a nomadic people who lived in the Negeb. They were known for raiding the
villages of sedentary people including the ancient Israelites and the Philistines. They were also known
for ruthlessness. According to I Samuel 15, Saul decimated the Amalekites, although he failed to kill the
Amalekite king, Agag. This was done by Samuel.
When David was the chieftain of Ziglag, the village was pillaged by the Amalekites during David’s
absence. When David returned, he pursued the Amalekites and recovered those who had been
kidnapped as well as all of the stolen property (I Samuel 30).
In the book of Esther, Haman, the enemy of the Jews, is called an called a son of Hammedatha, an
Agagite (or Amalekite). During the reading of the book of Esther at the feast of Purim, Jews will hiss
when the name of Haman is read so that the memory of the Amalekites is blotted out.
The Israelites nearly eliminated the Amalekites and they disappeared from history by the 9th century
BCE. Those who survived probably were absorbed by other peoples.
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Ishmaelites. According to Genesis 25:12-18, the Ishmaelites were the descendants of Ishmael, the son
of Abraham through Hagar, Sarah’s slave. They were nomadic and eventually became assimilated with
other groups in northern Arabia to form the Arabs. They are not mentioned in the Bible after the reign
of David.
Kenites. Genesis 4:17-22 says that the Kenites were descendants of Cain through Tubal-cain and that
they were metal workers or coppersmiths. (Somehow they miraculously survived Noah’s flood.) A
nomadic tribe, they lived on the southern fringes of the area occupied by the tribe of Judah. From the
Biblical record, it is not clear if Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses was a Kenite; he is said to have been a
priest in the land of Midian. Some have speculated that the Kenites were a Midianite clan. They are
commended for the kindness that they showed the Israelites in the wilderness during the exodus.
Jethro may have been a priest of Yahweh and it is possible that the ancient Israelites adopted the
worship of Yahweh from the Kenites. Note that Moses was staying with Jethro and the Kenites at the
time he experienced God through the burning bush.
Midianites. The Biblical view of the Midianites is less favorable. According to Genesis, Midian was a son
of Abraham. Although the Bible mentions the land of Midian, scholars believe that the Midianites were
a league of tribes, not unlike the Israelites. The Kenites may have been a member of the league. They
were located in northwest Arabia along the eastern shore of the Gulf of Aqaba.
In the Bible, Joseph was sold by his brothers to either Midianites (Genesis 37:28, 36) or Ishmaelites
(Genesis 37:25-28). Moses fled to Midian after he killed the Egyptian official (Exodus 2:11-15) and
stayed there until God revealed himself to Moses in the burning bush and told him to return to Egypt to
lead the Israelites out of slavery (Exodus 3).
In Numbers 25:14-18, we are told that the Midianites were punished at Peor for allowing the marriage
of a Midianite woman, Cozbi, to an Israelite man. Chapter 31 of Numbers describes a holy war against
the Midianites and the purification of the Midianite women. In Judges 6 through 8, the victory of
Gideon with just 300 warriors over thousands of Midianites is described.
The Philistines
The Philistines were a non-Semitic people, who occupied the southwestern part of Palestine in what is
now Gaza. They were originally from either Cyprus or Asia Minor. They brought knowledge of iron
smelting to Palestine and maintained an iron-working monopoly for some time. Since they had arrived
in Palestine at approximately the same time as the exodus by the Israelites (1200 BCE), the two peoples
were often in conflict. The Philistines were evidently non-literate as no writing or epigraphs have
survived. They were, however, accomplished artisans. They were agriculturalists rather than nomads.
The Bible mentions the five cities of the Philistines: Ashdod, Askelon, Ekron, Gath, and Gaza. The
giant, Goliath, was from Gath (1 Samuel 17) and David was a vassal at Ziklag under Achish of Gath
before he became king of the Israelites after the death of Saul (1 Samuel 27:1-28:2).
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The Philistine religion was evidently adopted from the Canaanites. Egyptian texts contain references to
the Philistines, who disappeared from history in the 5th century BCE. They were absorbed by the
Babylonians and the Persians.
Most of the stories about the conflict with the Philistines is found in 1-2 Samuel. The Israelites were
defeated at the battle of Aphek and the Ark of the Covenant was captured by the Philistines, who
returned it after an outbreak of plague (probably bubonic). While in the hands of the Philistines, the Ark
was housed in the temple of Dagon at Ashdod. See 1 Samuel 4 through 6. Despite the Philistine
monopoly on iron-working (1 Samuel 13:19-22), Saul and his son, Jonathan, were able to defeat the
Philistines at Michmash (1 Samuel 13:1-14:46). According to 1 Samuel 17, David, as a warrior for Saul,
killed the giant Goliath of Gath. Saul’s final battle was against the Philistines and he was mortally
wounded at Mt Gilboa (1 Samuel 28:1-31:13). David also fought the Philistines and defeated them at
the battle of Baal-perazim and at the Vale of Rephaim (2 Samuel 5:17-26 and 21:18-22).
After David, the conflict with Philistines became much quieter. In 2 Chronicles 26:6, however, we are
told that Uzziah of Judah (ruled 783-742 BCE) broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod.
As with the other neighbors, the prophets had little regard for the Philistines. Isaiah warns the
Philistines not to celebrate the death of Ahaz (c. 715 BCE) as their time will come (14:28-32). Jeremiah
condemns the Philistines in chapter 47, Ezekiel at 25:15-17, Amos at 1:6-8, Zephaniah at 2:4-7, and
Zechariah at 9:5-7. Note that many of these condemnations are aimed at specific Philistine cities.
The Semitic Kingdoms
Ammonites. In Genesis 19:30-38, we are told that after Lot and his family had fled from Sodom and
Gemorrah, his daughters slept with their father so that they would have descendants. The result of
these incestuous unions were the Ammonites and the Moabites. It is likely that these peoples had very
different stories about their origins.
Ammon was centered east of the Jordan river valley and northeast of the Dead Sea. The area was
famous for its cattle industry; note the comparison in Amos 4:1 of the wealthy women of Samaria with
the “cows of Bashan.” Bashan was east of the Jordan River and part of Ammon.
Judges, chapter 11, tells the story of Jephthah the Gileadite, who went to war against the Ammonites
over a land dispute. He won the war, but lost his daughter (Judges 11:34-40). (In a continuing battle,
both Israel and Ammon claimed Gilead.)
Although Saul fought and defeated Nahash and the Ammonites at Jabesh-gilead (1 Samuel 11:1-11),
Nahash became an ally of David. When Nahash was succeeded by his son, Hanun, David sent envoys to
Hanun, but Hanun humiliated them, so David prepared for war. Realizing this, Hanun asked for help
from the Arameans, but then they fled before Joab and Abishai, the leaders of David’s warriors
(2 Samuel 10:1-19). After the arrival of the Assyrians in the 9th century BCE, the Ammonites were allies
of Israel at the battle of Qarqar (c. 850 BCE). They were no longer a major threat to the Israelites.
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The Ammonites worshiped the god Molech (“the loathsome god of the Ammonites,” 1 Kings 11:7).
Milcom may have been the same god, or a separate one. The Bible severely condemns the sacrifice of
children to Molech (Leviticus 18:21; 2 Kings 23:10). Since the Ammonites left no writing, our knowledge
of them, outside of the Bible, is derived from Assyrian texts that refer to them.
The Ammonites were viewed with considerable disdain by the ancient Israelites. No Ammonite was to
be allowed in the assembly of Israel down to the tenth generation (Deuteronomy 23:3). Although hardly
mentioned by Isaiah (11:14), they are condemned at Jeremiah 49:1-6, Ezekiel 25:1-11, Amos 1:13-15,
and Zephaniah 2:8-9. At Ezra 10, we are told that Ezra commanded the Jewish men to send away their
Ammonite wives.
Arameans. The Arameans were a semi-nomadic people who probably migrated from Mesopotamia and
lived in what is now Syria. According to Genesis 11:31-32, Terah, the father of Abram (Abraham), left Ur
of the Chaldees (in Mesopotamia) and settled in Haran in Syria. In Genesis 24, we are told that
Abraham’s servant, in seeking a wife for Isaac, went to Nahor, who lived in Aram-naharaim (in central
Mesopotamia). Jacob sought a wife from Laban, who lived in Harran. Most interestingly, however, is
Deuteronomy 26:5, where the priest, upon receiving the firstfruits of the soil, is commanded to say
before God, “My father was a wandering Aramean who went down to Egypt with a small company and
lived there until they became a great, powerful, and numerous nation.” Clearly, the ancient Israelites
considered themselves to be Arameans, perhaps only because they were both semi-nomadic.
The Arameans are mentioned in ancient texts from Ebla (c. 2300 BCE), Mari (c. 1900 BCE) and Ugarit (c.
1300 BCE). These texts are older than the oldest texts in which the Hebrews, or the Israelites, are
mentioned.
Although Israel and Aram fought each other at times, the most serious threat to Aram was Assyria.
Although the Arameans had expanded during the 11th and 10th centuries BCE, the Assyrians began to
push back in the late 10th century under Adad-nirari II. Gradually, the Assyrians chipped away at the
Arameans until Damascus was captured, and the Aramean kingdom destroyed, by Tiglath-pileser III
around 725 BCE.
For centuries, Arameans had been either emigrating, or were deported, to Assyria and Babylonia. They
established sizable communities in Mesopotamia, including Aram-naharaim (“Aram of the two rivers”)
mentioned above in Genesis 24. In this migration, they took their language with them and it became
the lingua franca of the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Persians. It eventually became the language of
Palestine as well.
Although Arameans continued to form the majority of the population in Syria, they eventually mixed
with the Arabs and others, so that their identity has been lost.
The principle god of the Arameans was Hadad, a storm and rain god, who was later identified with the
Egyptian god Set, the Greek god Zeus, and the Roman god Jupiter.
Despite the connection of the patriarchs, Aram is nonetheless condemned in Isaiah 17, Jeremiah 49:2337, and Amos 1:3-5.
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Edomites. According to Genesis 25:30, the Edomites are the descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob,
the patriarch of the Israelites. “Edom” means red in Hebrew, probably because the area occupied by
the Edomites consisted of red sandstone. Note that Esau was born red, or born with red hair (Gen.
25:25. For most of Biblical history, the Edomites occupied the area to the south of the Dead Sea and of
Judah all the way to the Gulf of Aqaba. Since this is an arid area, they worked as nomadic shepherds.
They spoke a Semitic language. The capital city was Bozrah and the most important topographical
feature is Mt. Seir, which may have been the site of a shrine or temple.
The religion of the ancient Edomites is unknown. As a Semitic people, they may have worshiped the
gods in the Canaanitic pantheon. It is possible that they worshiped Yahweh, the god of Israel as the
worship of Yahweh may have originated in the area to the immediate south or east of Edom.
The descendants of Esau are listed in Genesis 36. They portrayed as a nomadic tribe in the
confrontation between Jacob and Esau in Genesis 33, but by the time of the exodus from Egypt, the
Edomites are an established nation in territory through which the Israelites requested passage. The
request was refused (Numbers 20:14-21).
Saul fought the Edomites (1 Samuel 14:47), but David slaughtered 18,000 of them in the Valley of Salt
and established garrisons on Edomite territory (2 Samuel 8:13-14). Under Solomon, Hadad the Edomite
led a revolt, but he was defeated and fled to Egypt. After staying in Egypt, he returned to Edom to lead
another revolt after which he became king (1 Kings 11:14-25). By the time of Jehoshaphat, Edom was
under the control of Judah, as 1 Kings 22:47 says that Edom was under the rule of Jehoshaphat’s viceroy.
During the reign of Jehoram of Judah (849-842 BCE), Edom successfully revolted and remained
independent until Amaziah (ruled 800-783 BCE)killed 10,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt (2 Kings
14:7). Despite this setback, Edom was not completely subdued.
The Edomites were allies of the Babylonians and they cheered when Jersualem was destroyed by the
Babylonians. Because of this and other incidents in the long history of confrontation between Judah and
Edom, there was little love lost. The oracles of Obadiah are directed against the Edomites and other
prophets spoke bitterly about them. See Isaiah 34, Jeremiah 49:7-22, Ezekiel 25:12-14, Joel 3:19, Amos
1:11-12, and Psalms 60:8 (108:9).
The Edomites drifted to the west during the Persian and Greek periods and occupied what had been
parts of southern Judah. They were later called Idumeans. During the reign of the Hasmonean king,
John Hyrcanus (ruled 134-104 BCE), they were conquered and forced to adopt Judaism. Herod the
Great was the son of an Idumean father (Antipater). The Idumeans were later absorbed by the Arabs
and disappeared from history.
Moabites. According to Genesis 19:30-38, the parents of Moab, the founding patriarch, were Lot and
one of his daughters through an incestuous relationship. More likely, the Moabites consisted of a group
of tribes with origins similar to those of other Semitic peoples. In Biblical times, they occupied the area
on the east side of the Dead Sea. They were semi-nomadic shepherds with some agriculture. The main
city of Moab was Dihon.
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The chief god of the Moabites was Chemosh, who is mentioned in the famous Mesha stone (c. 850 BCE).
The Moabites had been beaten in battle against the Israelites because Chemosh was displeased with his
people.
The first mention of the Moabites as a nation is found in Numbers 22-24, when Balak, the king of the
Moabites, summoned Balaam to curse the Israelites. This ultimately failed, but nonetheless Israelite
men married Moabite women and joined them in the worship of Baal of Peor. Moses ordered these
men to be put to death (Numbers 25:1-5).
Judges 11:17-18 says that the Israelites were refused passage by the Moabites and therefore stayed to
the east of Moabite territory. Despite this, Moses was himself buried in Moab, although the location is
unknown.
In the book of Judges 3, we are told that Ehud killed Eglon, the king of Moab, and 10,000 other
Moabites. Saul fought the Moabites (1 Samuel 14:47) and David conquered them (2 Samuel 8:2).
According to the book of Ruth, David’s great grandmother was Ruth, a Moabitess.
Moab was a vassal of the kingdom of Israel, but after the death of Ahab, it rebelled (c. 850 BCE).
Jehoram, the king of Israel, asked Jehoram of Judah if he would assist in the fight to recover Moab.
The battle went well for Israel until Mesha, the king of Moab, sacrificed his own son to Chemosh. This
was so shocking, they gave up the fight. See 2 Kings 3:4-27. This is the incident commemorated in the
famous Mesha stone.
Evidently, the Moabites were subsequently subdued by the Assyrians and later the Babylonians. They
continued as a nation into the Persian period as Ezra 9:1 and Nehemiah 13:23 condemned the marriages
between Jews and Moabite women. In a cold rainstorm, the Jewish men were required to divorce their
foreign wives and send them away. See Ezra 10 for the narrative about this.
Eventually, the Moabites were absorbed by the Nabateans and disappeared from history.
As with other nations, there was little love lost between the Moabites and the Israelites. They were
banned from the assembly of Israel down to the tenth generation (Deuteronomy 23:3). They are
condemned in Numbers 21:29, Isaiah 15 and 25:9-12, Jeremiah 48, Ezekiel 25:8-11, Amos 2:1-3, and
Zephaniah 2:8-9.
Nabateans. The Nabateans are not mentioned in the Bible, but they had an effect on Judea from the
time of the Second Commonwealth into the Roman period. The origin of the Nabateans is not well
known, but evidently they were a collection of tribes that included Ammonites, Arameans (Syrians), and
Moabites. Since Aramaic had become the principal language, it was the language of the Nabateans,
although the Nabateans had developed their own alphabet based on the Aramaic alphabet.
The Nabatean kingdom occupied the area to the east of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea and it
extended south into the Negev. The capital city was Petra, famous for its buildings carved into solid rock
cliffs. Although they engaged in some limited agriculture, the primary source of income came from
control of oases and trade routes.
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The Nabateans were allies of the Maccabees in the fight against the Seleucid Greeks, but after the
establishment of the Second Commonwealth under the Hasmoneans, they became erstwhile enemies.
The Hasmonean king, Alexander Janneus, conquered part of the Nabatean kingdom and forced its
inhabitants to convert to Judaism. The Roman intervention in Palestine under Pompey in 63 BCE was
motivated in part by the conflict between Judea and the Nabatean kingdom.
Eventually, the Nabateans became Roman allies and vassals and settled down into a life of commerce
and agriculture. In the 3rd century CE, they adopted Greek as their language and by the 4th century, most
of the Nabateans had converted to Christianity. After the Arabian conquest in the 7th century, the
Nabateans were gradually absorbed by the Arabs.
The Phoenicians (Tyre and Sidon). Phoenicians were a sea-faring people who lived along the coast of
what is now Lebanon. The three most important Phoenician cities were Tyre, Sidon, and Byblos,
although Byblos is not mentioned in the Bible. They were essentially merchants rather than conquerors.
The Phoenicians are credited with inventing the alphabet and they left the earliest written records from
the Levant, which includes Lebanon and Palestine. It was from the Phoenician alphabet that all western
alphabets are derived, whether Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic, Greek, Latin, or Cyrillic.
In addition to trade, the Phoenicians started some overseas colonies. The most famous was Carthage,
which was destroyed by the Romans at the end of the Third Punic War (146 BCE). Because of trade,
both Tyre and Sidon became very wealthy, a wealth condemned by the prophets of Israel.
The ancient Israelites did not fight Tyre or Sidon, but they did trade extensively with them. Solomon
made an agreement with Hiram to Tyre under which Hiram provided timber from the cedars of Lebanon
in return for wheat and oil (1 Kings 5:1-18). Solomon also gave Hiram 20 cities, but Hiram was not
satisfied with them (1 Kings 9:10-14).
The Phoenician religion included worship of Baal, a term meaning “Lord” and which could be used in
connection with several different gods. Jezebel, the daughter of Ethbaal of Tyre and whom king Ahab of
Israel married, was a proponent of Baal worship and fertility rites. In this, she was strongly opposed by
the prophet Elijah. Because of this and Naboth’s vineyard, Jezebel became a poster-child in the Bible for
wickedness. (See 1 Kings 19 to 21 and 2 Kings 9, where the demise of Jezebel is described.)
Isaiah condemns Tyre and Sidon in chapter 23, Ezekiel is particularly critical of Tyre and Sidon in
chapters 26 through 28, and both Joel (3:4-8) and Amos (1:9-10) condemn Tyre for selling Israelite slaves
(probably prisoners of war) to the Greeks.
Tyre was on an island just off the coast and almost invulnerable. Despite this, the Babylonians were able
to conquer it after a 13 year siege. Alexander the Great took the city after a seven month siege by
building a causeway to it. Tyre retained much of its independence as a Roman province. The modern
city is a Lebanese port.
Sidon was on the coast and more vulnerable than Tyre, so it was more frequently conquered. The
modern city is also a Lebanese seaport.
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Canaanites. The Canaanites were essentially Phoenicians who lived in Palestine. They spoke the same
language and held the same religious beliefs. The Canaanites, however, were farmers whereas the
Phoenicians were merchants and traders, although some of them were farmers.
For most of the second millennium BCE, the Canaanites were organized into independent city-states. At
times, they were vassals of Egypt. The Amarna letters from the 14th century BCE include letters from
some of these Canaanite vassals to the Egyptian pharaoh. Several verses in the Bible list groups such as
the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites (i.e., Exodus 33:2). All of these
groups were probably Canaanites, although there was a major Hittite empire in Asia Minor during the
2nd millennium BCE. The Jebusites lived in Jerusalem.
In Genesis 9:24-25, Noah pronounced a curse on Canaan under which the Canaanites would be slaves of
Shem (i.e., the Semites). Genesis 34 tells the story of the rape of Dinah by Shechemites, who were also
Canaanites. Despite these stories, however, the main conflict between the two groups really began with
the infiltration by the Israelites of Canaanitic lands. In Exodus 23:33, God tells the Israelites that he will
sow confusion and terror among the Canaanites so that they may be driven out, but he also says that
this process will occur little by little.
Although the Canaanites are vilified and their extermination demanded (see Numbers 21:1-3 and
Deuteronomy 13:12-18 and 20:10-18), the Canaanites were gradually absorbed into the population of
Israel. Of greater concern to the ancient prophets was the religion of the Canaanites. Despite the
efforts of the prophets and the priests, some aspects of Canaanite religion can be found in the Bible.
The chief god in the Canaanite pantheon is El Elyon (“God Most High”), a term used for the God of the
Bible at Genesis 14:18 and Deuteronomy 32:8. El Elyon was the husband of Asherah and an amulet
dated in the 8th century BCE from Kuntillet ‘Arjud in the Shephelah region refers to “Yahweh and his
Asherah.” In Canaanite mythology, chaos is represented by a primordial serpent, Leviathan, who is slain
by Anat, the virgin goddess of war. In Isaiah 27:1, we are told that Yahweh (“the Lord”) will slay
Leviathan, that “twisting sea serpent.” Other references to a battle with a primordial sea monster
include Isaiah 51:9-10 and Psalms 74:13-14.
See the charts below of the Mesopotamian and Canaanite pantheons.
References: There is a vast amount of literature about the nations discussed in this lesson. A good
place to start for more information is a general reference work such as the Encyclopaedia Britannica
(which has an online edition) or even Wikipedia, although Wikipedia articles are sometimes a bit sloppy.
These general references list additional resources.
Albright, W F, Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan, Garden City NY, 1968.
Botsford, G W and Robinson, C A, rev. by Kagan, D, Hellenic History, 5th ed., London, 1969.
Brown, R E, Fitzmyer, J A, and Murphy, R E, The New Jerome Biblical Commentary,
“History of Israel,” § 75:65-77 (Englewood Cliffs NJ, 1990).
The Catholic Encyclopedia,New Advent, 2009.
Freedman, D N, ed., The Anchor Bible Dictionary, Doubleday, New York, 1992.
The Jewish Encyclopedia
Saggs, H W F, The Greatness That Was Babylon, Mentor Books, 1968.
Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses
God or Goddess
Relationships
Responsibilities
Ashur (Assur or Anshar)
God of Asshur (or Assur)
Adad (Hadad in Aramaic
and Ishkur in Sumerian)
God of Karkara – Husband
of Shala (grain goddess) –
Son of Sin and Ningal
God of Uruk
Chief god of Assyrian pantheon – Husband of Millisu
(Ninlil) and father of Ninurta and Zababa – Shown with
a winged disc with horns
Storm god – Depicted in human form with four horns –
Bull was his special animal
Anu
Dagon (or Dagan)
Ea (Enki)
Enlil
Ishara
Ishtar (Astarte)
Kishar
Marduk
Nabu
Nergal (Nirgal)
Ninlil (Sud)
Ninurta
Nisroch
Shamash
Sin (Nanna)
Tammuz
Tiamat
God of Ebla and Ugarit –
Principal god of Philistines
God of Eridu – Husband of
Ninhursag
God of Nippur – Son of
Anshar and Kishar –
Husband of Ninlil
Goddess of Nippur
Goddess of Uruk
God of Babylon
God of Borsippa
God of Cuthah
God of Sippar and Larsa
God of Ur and Harran
King of heaven (Sumerian) - Sky or heaven god – Several
consorts
Grain, fertility and fishing – Dagon is mentioned in
Judges 3:16, 1 Sam 5, and 1 Chr 10:10
Crafts, mischief, creation of life and man – Flood story
of Enki closely follows that of Noah – Involved in the
confusion of the languages of man
Breath, wind – Father of the gods
Oaths, treaties
Fertility, love, war, sex
Earth goddess
Chief god of Babylonian pantheon – consort is
Sarpanitum
Wisdom and writing – Consort is Tashmetum – Isa 46:1
Death, netherworld – 2 K 17:30
Air – married to Enlil
Agriculture
Sun
Moon
Food, vegetation – Ezek 8:14-15
Sea
Some of the stories to come from ancient Mesopotamian myth include the Enuma Elish, a
creation epic with some Biblical parallels. The Epic of Enki and Ninhursag is another creation
myth. The Epic of Gilgamesh gives the story of a great flood and Enmerkar and the Lord of
Aratta,explains why there are so many languages.
Canaanitic myths include those in the Baal cycle.
Gods and Goddesses of the Canaanites
God or Goddess
Relationships
Responsibility
Anat
Sister and putative mate
of Baal Hadad
Wife of El (or Elat) –
Children include Shachar
(dawn) and Shalem (dusk)
Identified with Ishtar
Wife of counterpart of
Baal
May have superseded El
as head of the pantheon
Virgin goddess of war and strife – Defeated the
dragon, Leviathan
Mother goddess
Asherah (Atharit, “walker
of the sea”)
Athtart (Astarte)
Baalat
Ba’al Hadad (“rider of the
clouds”)
Baal-Hammon
Chemosh
Dagon
El Elyon (El, “father of
years”)
Eshmun (Baalit Asclepsius)
Kotharat (Kathirat)
Kothar wa Hasis (“skillful
and clever”)
Lotan
Melqart (Baal-shamem,
“Baal of the heavens”)
Molech (Milcom?)
Mot (Mawat)
Nikkal-wa-Ib
Qadeshtu (“Holy One”)
Resheph
Shachar
Shalim
Shama-yim
Shapesh (Shapshu,
“luminary of the gods”)
Yam-nahar (Judge Nahar)
Yarikh
Moabite god
Father of Baal or Hadad –
Principle Philistine god
Husband of Asherah – God
of Jerusalem under
Melchizedek (Gen. 14:18)
Sanctuary at Sidon
Serpent ally of Yam
Sanctuary at Tyre
Sanctuary at Ammon
Husband of Nikkal-wa-Ib
Assisted Anat in the myth of Baal
Storm god – Baal cycle includes 1) the conflict with
Yam, god of the sea; 2) building of a palace or
temple; and 3) conflict with Mot, god of death – Baal
dies and rises again
God of fertility and renewer of all energies in the
Phoenician colonies of the W Mediterranean
God of crop fertility and grain
Creator of earth and man – Head of the pantheon
God or goddess of healing
Goddess of marriage and pregnancy
God of craftsmanship
God of the city, underworld, and the cycle of
vegetation
Putative god of fire
God of death – Not worshiped or given offerings
Goddess of orchards and fruit
Putative goddess of love and sacred prostitution
God of plague, healing, and the underworld
God of dawn
God of dusk
God of the heavens
Goddess of the sun – Sometimes equated with the
Mesopotamian sun god (or goddess), Shamesh
God of the moon