Misplaced Pages

#442557

177-560: Biblical mentions of Perizzites extend from the time of Abraham (Genesis 13:7) to the time of Ezra and Nehemiah ( Ezra 9 :1–2). According to Michael LeFebvre, Ezra's reference to the Perizzites does not imply that a group still known as Perizzites existed in the land in Ezra's time. It is instead to be understood as a literary reference by Ezra to passages such as Exodus 34:11–16, Exodus 33:2 and Deuteronomy 7:1–5, which prohibited intermarriage with

354-453: A Kenite element, since the nomadic Kenites are said to have long occupied the city, and Heber is the name for a Kenite clan. In the narrative of the later Hebrew conquest, Hebron was one of two centres under Canaanite control. They were ruled by the three sons of Anak ( b nê/y lîdê hāʿănaq ). or may reflect some Kenite and Kenizzite migration from the Negev to Hebron, since terms related to

531-635: A church , and then a mosque . With the exception of a brief Crusader control , successive Muslim dynasties ruled Hebron from the 6th century CE until the Ottoman Empire 's dissolution following World War I , when the city became part of British Mandatory Palestine . The 1929 riots and the Arab uprising of 1936–39 led the British government to evacuate the Jewish community from Hebron. The 1948 Arab–Israeli War saw

708-500: A tamarisk grove in Beersheba and called upon "the name of the L ORD , the everlasting God." As had been prophesied in Mamre the previous year, Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham, on the first anniversary of the covenant of circumcision. Abraham was "an hundred years old", when his son whom he named Isaac was born; and he circumcised him when he was eight days old. For Sarah,

885-499: A basic sense of 'unite' and connoting a range of meanings from "colleague" to "friend". In the proper name Hebron , the original sense may have been alliance . The Arabic name for Hebron, al-Khalīl , emerged as the city's actual name in the 13th century. Earlier Muslim sources refer to the city as Ḥabra or Ḥabrūn. The name al-Khalīl derives from the Qur'anic epithet for Abraham , Khalil al-Rahman ( إبراهيم خليل الرحمن ) "Beloved of

1062-490: A campaign to subdue rebellious sheiks in the Hebron area, and while doing so, allowed his troops to sack the town. Though it was widely rumoured that he secretly protected Abd ar-Rahman, the latter was deported together with other local leaders (such as Muslih al-'Azza of Bayt Jibrin ), but he managed to return to the area in 1848. According to Hillel Cohen, the attacks on Jews in this particular period are an exception that proves

1239-621: A confederated settlement of four families. The story of Abraham's purchase of the Cave of the Patriarchs from the Hittites constitutes a seminal element in what was to become the Jewish attachment to the land in that it signified the first "real estate" of Israel long before the conquest under Joshua. In settling here, Abraham is described as making his first covenant , an alliance with two local Amorite clans who became his ba'alei brit or masters of

1416-533: A courtyard from the small Karaite community, in which he established the Sephardic Abraham Avinu Synagogue . In 1659, Abraham Pereyra of Amsterdam founded the Hesed Le'Abraham yeshiva in Hebron, which attracted many students. In the early 18th century, the Jewish community suffered from heavy debts, almost quadrupling from 1717 to 1729, and were "almost crushed" from the extortion practiced by

1593-528: A covered tank outside the town. The Sanctuary stood on the town's southern border, enclosed by four walls. Barley was the primary crop, with abundant olives. Visitors were provided with bread, olives, lentils cooked in olive oil, and raisins. Hebron had numerous mills operated by oxen and mules, along with working girls baking bread. The hospitality extended to about three-pound loaves of bread and meals for every arriving person, including up to 500 pilgrims on certain days. The tradition survives to this day in

1770-505: A great nation, and will be "living on his sword". A well of water then appeared so that it saved their lives. As the boy grew, he became a skilled archer living in the wilderness of Paran . Eventually his mother found a wife for Ishmael from her home country, the land of Egypt. At some point in Isaac's youth, Abraham was commanded by God to offer his son up as a sacrifice in the land of Moriah . The patriarch traveled three days until he came to

1947-459: A group who is a direct descendant of the 1929 refugees urged the government to continue its support of Jewish settlement, and allow the return of eight families evacuated the previous January from homes they set up in emptied shops near the Avraham Avinu neighborhood. Beit HaShalom , established in 2007 under disputed circumstances, was under court orders permitting its forced evacuation. All

SECTION 10

#1732859149443

2124-497: A link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad via Ismail (Ishmael). Ibrāhīm is mentioned in 35 chapters of the Quran , more often than any other biblical personage apart from Moses . He is called both a hanif ( monotheist ) and muslim (one who submits), and Muslims regard him as a prophet and patriarch , the archetype of the perfect Muslim , and

2301-446: A nation, "because he is thy seed". Early the next morning, Abraham brought Hagar and Ishmael out together. He gave her bread and water and sent them away. The two wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba until her bottle of water was completely consumed. In a moment of despair, she burst into tears. After God heard the boy's voice, an angel of the Lord confirmed to Hagar that he would become

2478-528: A pattern for settlers in Bethlehem and Nablus. Many reports, foreign and Israeli, are sharply critical of the behaviour of Hebronite settlers. Sheik Farid Khader heads the Ja'bari tribe, consisting of some 35,000 people, which is considered one of the most important tribes in Hebron. For years, members of the Ja'bari tribe were the mayors of Hebron. Khader regularly meets with settlers and Israeli government officials and

2655-529: A place named Haran ( Hebrew : חָרָן Ḥārān ), where Terah died at the age of 205. According to some exegetes (like Nahmanides ), Abram was actually born in Haran and he later relocated to Ur, while some of his family remained in Haran. God had told Abram to leave his country and kindred and go to a land that he would show him, and promised to make of him a great nation, bless him, make his name great, bless them that bless him, and curse them who may curse him. Abram

2832-448: A progenitor of nations, because after 10 years of living in Canaan, no child had been born. Sarai then offered her Egyptian slave, Hagar , to Abram with the intention that she would bear him a son. After Hagar found she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress, Sarai. Sarai responded by mistreating Hagar, and Hagar fled into the wilderness. An angel spoke with Hagar at the fountain on

3009-601: A retaliation, a 29-year-old preacher from Hebron, Raed Abdel-Hamed Mesk, broke a unilateral Palestinian ceasefire by killing 23 and injured over 130 in a bus bombing in Jerusalem. In 2007, the Palestinian population in H2 declined due to Israeli security measures such as extended curfews, strict restrictions on movement, the closure of Palestinian businesses and settler harassment. Palestinians are barred from using Al-Shuhada Street ,

3186-598: A righteous nation, especially since Abraham had claimed that he and Sarah were siblings. In response, God told Abimelech that he did indeed have a blameless heart and that is why he continued to exist. However, should he not return the wife of Abraham back to him, God would surely destroy Abimelech and his entire household. Abimelech was informed that Abraham was a prophet who would pray for him. Early next morning, Abimelech informed his servants of his dream and approached Abraham inquiring as to why he had brought such great guilt upon his kingdom. Abraham stated that he thought there

3363-577: A scene witnessed by representatives of the English, French and other Western consulates. After crushing all opposition, Kamil appointed Salama Amr, brother and rival of Abd al Rachman, as nazir of the Hebron region. Relative quiet reigned in the town for the next 4 years. In 1866, Hungarian Jews of the Karlin Hasidic court settled in Hebron. According to Nadav Shragai , Arab-Jewish relations were good, and Alter Rivlin, who spoke Arabic and Syrian-Aramaic,

3540-504: A shooting attack on the road to Hebron On March 27, 2001, a Palestinian sniper targeted and killed the Jewish baby Shalhevet Pass . The sniper was caught in 2002. Hebron is one of the three West Bank towns from which the majority of suicide bombers originate. In May 2003, three students of the Hebron Polytechnic University carried out three separate suicide attacks. In August 2003, in what both Islamic groups described as

3717-568: A significant role in the economic development of Jordan. Although a significant number of people relocated to Jerusalem from Hebron during the Jordanian period, Hebron itself saw a considerable increase in population with 35,000 settling in the town. During this period, signs of the previous Jewish presence in Hebron were removed. After the Six-Day War in June 1967, Israel occupied Hebron along with

SECTION 20

#1732859149443

3894-411: A son also of her". Abraham laughed, and "said in his heart, 'Shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear [a child]?'" Immediately after Abraham's encounter with God, he had his entire household of men, including himself (age 99) and Ishmael (age 13), circumcised. Not long afterward, during the heat of the day, Abraham had been sitting at

4071-455: A thousand pieces of silver to serve as Sarah's vindication before all. Abraham then prayed for Abimelech and his household, since God had stricken the women with infertility because of the taking of Sarah. After living for some time in the land of the Philistines, Abimelech and Phicol , the chief of his troops, approached Abraham because of a dispute that resulted in a violent confrontation at

4248-727: A variety of non-Israelite peoples, including Perizzites, among others. The time during which Perizzites were most in conflict with the Israelites seems to be the time of Joshua into the early period of the Judges. According to the Book of Joshua , the Perizzites were in the hill country of Judah and Ephraim (Joshua 11:3, 17:14–15). According to 1 Kings 9:21, they were servants to Solomon . According to Hittitologist Trevor R. Bryce , "The Perizzites cannot be linked to any peoples or lands known from extra-biblical sources," but there are speculative links to

4425-732: A veil in order to pass as Muslim women and enter the Cave of the Patriarchs without being recognized as Jews. Minute descriptions of Hebron were recorded in Stephen von Gumpenberg's Journal (1449), by Felix Fabri (1483) and by Mejr ed-Din It was in this period, also, that the Mamluk Sultan Qa'it Bay revived the old custom of the Hebron "table of Abraham", and exported it as a model for his own madrasa in Medina . This became an immense charitable establishment near

4602-643: A wall...Then the King, after providing new shrouds, caused the place to be closed once more". Similar information is given in Ibn at Athir 's Chronicle under the year 1119; "In this year was opened the tomb of Abraham, and those of his two sons Isaac and Jacob ...Many people saw the Patriarch. Their limbs had nowise been disturbed , and beside them were placed lamps of gold and of silver." The Damascene nobleman and historian Ibn al-Qalanisi in his chronicle also alludes at this time to

4779-499: A well. Abraham then reproached Abimelech due to his Philistine servant's aggressive attacks and the seizing of Abraham's Well . Abimelech claimed ignorance of the incident. Then Abraham offered a pact by providing sheep and oxen to Abimelech. Further, to attest that Abraham was the one who dug the well, he also gave Abimelech seven ewes for proof. Because of this sworn oath, they called the place of this well: Beersheba . After Abimelech and Phicol headed back to Philistia , Abraham planted

4956-564: A while in the Negev after being banished from Egypt and came back to the Bethel and Ai area, Abram's and Lot's sizable herds occupied the same pastures. This became a problem for the herdsmen, who were assigned to each family's cattle. The conflicts between herdsmen had become so troublesome that Abram suggested that Lot choose a separate area, either on the left hand or on the right hand, that there be no conflict between them. Lot decided to go eastward to

5133-452: Is Isaac who receives "all Abraham's goods" while the other sons receive only "gifts". Most scholars view the patriarchal age , along with the Exodus and the period of the biblical judges , as a late literary construct that does not relate to any particular historical era, and after a century of exhaustive archaeological investigation, no evidence has been found for a historical Abraham. It

5310-468: Is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank , 30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Jerusalem . Hebron is capital of the West Bank's largest governorate , known as Hebron Governorate . With a population of 201,063 in the city limits, the adjacent metropolitan area within the governorate is home to over 700,000 people. Hebron spans across an area of 74.102 square kilometres (28.611 sq mi). It

5487-529: Is a strong opponent of both the concept of Palestinian State and the Palestinian Authority itself. Khader believes that Jews and Arabs must learn to coexist. A violent episode occurred May 2, 1980, when an Al Fatah squad killed five yeshiva students and one other person on their way home from Sabbath prayer at the Tomb of the Patriarchs . The event provided a major motivation for settlers near Hebron to join

Perizzites - Misplaced Pages Continue

5664-418: Is also promised that he will be the founder of a great nation. Abraham purchases a tomb (the Cave of the Patriarchs ) at Hebron to be Sarah's grave, thus establishing his right to the land; and, in the second generation, his heir Isaac is married to a woman from his own kin to earn his parents' approval. Abraham later marries Keturah and has six more sons; but, on his death, when he is buried beside Sarah, it

5841-640: Is both the biological progenitor of the Jews and the father of Judaism, the first Jew. His story is read in the weekly Torah reading portions, predominantly in the parashot : Lech-Lecha (לֶךְ-לְךָ), Vayeira (וַיֵּרָא), Chayei Sarah (חַיֵּי שָׂרָה), and Toledot (תּוֹלְדֹת). Hanan bar Rava taught in Abba Arikha 's name that Abraham's mother was named ʾĂmatlaʾy bat Karnebo. Hiyya bar Abba taught that Abraham worked in Teraḥ's idol shop in his youth. In Legends of

6018-523: Is home to numerous shopping malls. The Old City of Hebron features narrow, winding streets, flat-roofed stone houses, and old bazaars . It is recognized as a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO . Hebron is also known as a regional educational and medical hub. The name "Hebron" appears to trace back to two northwest Semitic languages , which coalesce in the form ḥbr , having reflexes in Hebrew and Amorite , with

6195-516: Is known as "Father Abraham" and emphasizes the patriarch as the spiritual progenitor of Christians. Some Christian theologians equate the "three visitors" with the Holy Trinity , seeing in their apparition a theophany experienced by Abraham (see also the articles on the Constantinian basilica at Mamre and the church at the so-called " Oak of Mamre "). Islam regards Ibrahim (Abraham) as

6372-568: Is largely concluded that the Torah , the series of books that includes Genesis, was composed during the early Persian period , c.  500 BC , as a result of tensions between Jewish landowners who had stayed in Judah during the Babylonian captivity and traced their right to the land through their "father Abraham", and the returning exiles who based their counterclaim on Moses and the Exodus tradition of

6549-615: Is on the "Sunday of the Forefathers" (two Sundays before Christmas), when he is commemorated together with other ancestors of Jesus . Abraham is also mentioned in the Divine Liturgy of Basil the Great , just before the Anaphora, and Abraham and Sarah are invoked in the prayers said by the priest over a newly married couple. A popular hymn sung in many English-speaking Sunday Schools by children

6726-571: Is specified in the Bible as a test; the other nine are not specified, but later rabbinical sources give various enumerations. In Christianity , Abraham is revered as the prophet to whom God chose to reveal himself and with whom God initiated a covenant (cf. Covenant Theology ). Paul the Apostle declared that all who believe in Jesus ( Christians ) are "included in the seed of Abraham and are inheritors of

6903-586: Is that the figure of Abraham must have been preeminent among the great landowners of Judah at the time of the Exile and after, serving to support their claims to the land in opposition to those of the returning exiles. According to Nissim Amzallag , the Book of Genesis portrays Abraham as having an Amorite origin, arguing that the patriarch's provenance from the region of Harran as described in Genesis 11:31 associates him with

7080-574: Is that the post-Exilic community devised the Torah as a legal basis on which to function within the Persian Imperial system; the second is that the Pentateuch was written to provide the criteria for determining who would belong to the post-Exilic Jewish community and to establish the power structures and relative positions of its various groups, notably the priesthood and the lay "elders". The completion of

7257-604: Is the third largest city in the country , followed by Gaza and Jerusalem . The city is often considered one of the four holy cities in Judaism as well as in Islam and Christianity . It is considered one of the oldest cities in the Levant. According to the Bible , Abraham settled in Hebron and bought the Cave of the Patriarchs as burial place for his wife Sarah . Biblical tradition holds that

Perizzites - Misplaced Pages Continue

7434-509: Is to "ensure the security of the Jewish settlers" and that Israeli "soldiers have acted with the utmost restraint and have not initiated any shooting attacks or violence". Hebron was the one city excluded from the interim agreement of September 1995 to restore rule over all Palestinian West Bank cities to the Palestinian Authority . IDF soldiers see their job as being to protect Israeli settlers from Palestinian residents, not to police

7611-459: Is too hard for God. Frightened, Sarah denied laughing. After eating, Abraham and the three visitors got up. They walked over to the peak that overlooked the 'cities of the plain' to discuss the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah for their detestable sins that were so great, it moved God to action. Because Abraham's nephew was living in Sodom, God revealed plans to confirm and judge these cities. At this point,

7788-768: The Coptic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East (with the full office for the latter), and on 9 October by the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod . In the introduction to his 15th-century translation of the Golden Legend 's account of Abraham, William Caxton noted that this patriarch's life was read in church on Quinquagesima Sunday . He is the patron saint of those in

7965-560: The Haram , distributing daily some 1,200 loaves of bread to travellers of all faiths. The Italian rabbi Obadiah ben Abraham Bartenura wrote around 1490: I was in the Cave of Machpelah, over which the mosque has been built; and the Arabs hold the place in high honour. All the Kings of the Arabs come here to repeat their prayers, but neither a Jew nor an Arab may enter the Cave itself, where the real graves of

8142-803: The Hivites and the Jebusites , who may have originated from a region called Que in Assyrian sources or Kue/Quoah in biblical sources. Canaanitic tribes settled in the south of Canaan between Hor and Negeb, although it is not mentioned in the genealogy in Gen. x. According to the Biblical references, Abraham, when he entered Canaan, found the Perizzites dwelling near the Canaanites (ib. xiii. 7), and God promised to destroy both these peoples (ib. xv. 20). Jacob reproved his sons because of

8319-577: The Israeli occupation of the West Bank . The 1997 protocol divided the city into two sectors—H1 Hebron, controlled by the Palestinian National Authority, and H2 Hebron , managed by Israeli authorities. All security arrangements and travel permits for local residents are coordinated between the Palestinian Authority and Israel via the COGAT . The Jewish settlers have their own governing municipal body,

8496-488: The Israelites . The Abraham cycle is not structured by a unified plot centered on a conflict and its resolution or a problem and its solution. The episodes are often only loosely linked, and the sequence is not always logical, but it is unified by the presence of Abraham himself, as either actor or witness, and by the themes of posterity and land. These themes form "narrative programs" set out in Genesis 11:27–31 concerning

8673-611: The Jewish Underground . In the 1980s Hebron, became the center of the Jewish Kach movement, a designated terrorist organization, whose first operations started there, and provided a model for similar behaviour in other settlements. On July 26, 1983, Israeli settlers attacked the Islamic University and shot three people dead and injured over thirty others. The 1994 Shamgar Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israeli authorities had consistently failed to investigate or prosecute crimes committed by settlers against Palestinians. Hebron IDF commander Noam Tivon said that his foremost concern

8850-428: The Jews and God ; in Christianity, he is the spiritual progenitor of all believers, whether Jewish or non-Jewish ; and in Islam , he is a link in the chain of Islamic prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad . As the namesake of the Abrahamic religions, Abraham is also revered in other Abrahamic religions, such as Druze Faith and Baháʼí Faith . The story of the life of Abraham as told in

9027-417: The Sassanid general Shahrbaraz in 614 when Khosrau II 's armies besieged and took Jerusalem. Jews were not permitted to reside in Hebron under Byzantine rule. The sanctuary itself however was spared by the Persians, in deference to the Jewish population, who were numerous in the Sassanid army . Hebron was one of the last cities of Palestine to fall to the Islamic invasion in the 7th century , possibly

SECTION 50

#1732859149443

9204-407: The Seljuk period , the community was headed by Saadia b. Abraham b. Nathan, known as the " haver of the graves of the patriarchs." The Caliphate lasted in the area until 1099, when the Christian Crusader Godfrey de Bouillon took Hebron and renamed it "Castellion Saint Abraham". It was designated capital of the southern district of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and given, in turn, as

9381-405: The Tribe of Judah as a whole, or specifically Caleb the Judahite. The town itself, with some contiguous pasture land, is then said to have been granted to the Levites of the clan of Kohath , while the fields of the city, as well as its surrounding villages were assigned to Caleb ( Joshua 21:3–12; 1 Chronicles 6:54–56 ), who expels the three giants, Sheshai , Ahiman , and Talmai , who ruled

9558-451: The old Jewish cemetery there. Sunni imam Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya (1292–1350) was penalised by the religious authorities in Damascus for refusing to recognise Hebron as a Muslim pilgrimage site, a view also held by his teacher Ibn Taymiyyah . The Jewish-Italian traveller, Meshullam of Volterra (1481) found not more than twenty Jewish families living in Hebron. and recounted how the Jewish women of Hebron would disguise themselves with

9735-437: The 10th century BCE. The orientalist Mario Liverani proposed to see in the name Abraham the mythical eponym of a Palestinian tribe from the 13th century BCE, that of the Raham, of which mention was found in the stele of Seti I found in Beth-She'an and dating back to 'around 1289 BCE. The tribe probably lived in the area surrounding or close to Beth-She'an , in Galilee (the stele in fact refers to fights that took place in

9912-435: The 1923 elections for a Legislative Council was made at the fifth Palestinian Congress , after it was reported by Murshid Shahin (an Arab pro-Zionist activist) that there was intense resistance in Hebron to the elections. Almost no house in Hebron remained undamaged when an earthquake struck Palestine on July 11, 1927. The Cave of the Patriarchs continued to remain officially closed to non-Muslims, and reports that entry to

10089-482: The 1976 mayoral election, which marked a shift in support towards pro-PLO nationalist leaders. Supporters of Jewish settlement within Hebron see their program as the reclamation of an important heritage dating back to Biblical times, which was dispersed or, it is argued, stolen by Arabs after the massacre of 1929. The purpose of settlement is to return to the 'land of our forefathers', and the Hebron model of reclaiming sacred sites in Palestinian territories has pioneered

10266-430: The Baptist ). In 1170, Benjamin of Tudela visited Hebron, referred to as in its Frankish name St. Abram de Bron . He mentioned the great church called St. Abram, which was once a Jewish place of worship during the time of Muslim rule. The Gentiles had erected six tombs there, claimed to be those of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah. The custodians collected money from pilgrims by presenting these tombs as

10443-410: The Bible anachronistically calls "the land of the Philistines ". While he was living in Gerar , Abraham openly claimed that Sarah was his sister. Upon discovering this news, King Abimelech had her brought to him. God then came to Abimelech in a dream and declared that taking her would result in death because she was a man's wife. Abimelech had not laid hands on her, so he inquired if he would also slay

10620-416: The Bible, among others the Israelites , Ishmaelites , Edomites , Amalekites , Kenizzites , Midianites and Assyrians , and through his nephew Lot he was also related to the Moabites and Ammonites . Abraham lived to see Isaac marry Rebekah , and to see the birth of his twin grandsons Jacob and Esau . He died at age 175, and was buried in the cave of Machpelah by his sons Isaac and Ishmael. In

10797-409: The Biblical Patriarchs lived in, this does not prove the historicity of Abraham narrative as these are the common Semitic names that were used in the later periods as well. Abraham's story, like those of the other patriarchs, most likely had a substantial oral prehistory (he is mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel and the Book of Isaiah ). As with Moses , Abraham's name is apparently very ancient, as

SECTION 60

#1732859149443

10974-440: The Cave of the Patriarchs for recreation and barbecues is off-limits for Arab Hebronites. Following the 1995 Oslo Agreement and subsequent 1997 Hebron Agreement , Palestinian cities were placed under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority , with the exception of Hebron, which was split into two sectors: H1 is controlled by the Palestinian Authority and H2 – which includes the Old City of Hebron – remained under

11151-443: The Committee of the Jewish Community of Hebron. The largest city in the southern West Bank, Hebron is chief commercial and industrial center in the region. It is a busy hub of trade, generating roughly a third of the area's GDP , largely due to the sale of limestone from quarries in its area. Hebron has a local reputation for its grapes, figs, ceramics, plastics, pottery workshops, metalworking and glassblowing industry. The city

11328-441: The Edomite God Qōs . Jews also appear to have lived there after the return from the Babylonian exile ( Nehemiah 11:25 ). During the Maccabean revolt , Hebron was burnt and plundered by Judah Maccabee who fought against the Edomites in 167 BCE. The city appears to have long resisted Hasmonean dominance , however, and indeed as late as the First Jewish–Roman War was still considered Idumean . The present day city of Hebron

11505-425: The Egyptian Sultan As-Salih Ayyub , managed to impose peace on the area. But soon after his departure, feuding broke out and in 1241 the Templars mounted a damaging raid on what was, by now, Muslim Hebron, in violation of agreements. In 1244, the Khwarazmians destroyed the town, but left the sanctuary untouched. In 1260, after Mamluk Sultan Baibars defeated the Mongol army, the minarets were built onto

11682-457: The Egyptian forces from Bethlehem to Hebron had been cut off from their lines of supply and Glubb Pasha sent 350 Arab Legionnaires and an armoured car unit to Hebron to reinforce them there. When the Armistice was signed, the city thus fell under Jordanian military control . The armistice agreement between Israel with Jordan intended to allow Israeli Jewish pilgrims to visit Hebron, but, as Jews of all nationalities were forbidden by Jordan into

11859-445: The Elamite army, who were already worn down from the Battle of Siddim . When they caught up with them at Dan , Abram devised a battle plan by splitting his group into more than one unit, and launched a night raid. Not only were they able to free the captives, Abram's unit chased and slaughtered the Elamite King Chedorlaomer at Hobah, just north of Damascus . They freed Lot, as well as his household and possessions, and recovered all of

12036-407: The Friend of God ". Besides Ishaq and Yaqub , Ibrahim is among the most honorable and the most excellent men in sight of God. Ibrahim was also mentioned in Quran as "Father of Muslims" and the role model for the community. The Druze regard Abraham as the third spokesman ( natiq ) after Adam and Noah , who helped transmit the foundational teachings of monotheism ( tawhid ) intended for

12213-462: The IDF. The Jewish settlement is widely considered to be illegal by the international community, although the Israeli government disputes this. Over the period of the First Intifada and Second Intifada , the Jewish community was subjected to attacks by Palestinian militants, especially during the periods of the intifadas; which saw 3 fatal stabbings and 9 fatal shootings in between the first and second Intifada (0.9% of all fatalities in Israel and

12390-434: The Iron Age (monarchic period) and that they contained an autochthonous hero story, as the oldest mentions of Abraham outside the book of Genesis ( Ezekiel 33 and Isaiah 51 ): do not depend on Genesis 12–26; do not have an indication of a Mesopotamian origin of Abraham; and present only two main themes of the Abraham narrative in Genesis—land and offspring. Yet, unlike Liverani, Finkelstein considered Abraham as ancestor who

12567-581: The Israeli courts. At the beginning of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War , Egypt took control of Hebron. Between May and October, Egypt and Jordan tussled for dominance in Hebron and its environs. Both countries appointed military governors in the town, hoping to gain recognition from Hebron officials. The Egyptians managed to persuade the pro-Jordanian mayor to support their rule, at least superficially, but local opinion turned against them when they imposed taxes. Villagers surrounding Hebron resisted and skirmishes broke out in which some were killed. By late 1948, part of

12744-542: The Israeli settlers. IDF soldiers are instructed to leave violent Israeli settlers for the police to deal with. Since The Oslo Agreement , violent episodes have been recurrent in the city. The Cave of the Patriarchs massacre took place on February 25, 1994, when Baruch Goldstein , an Israeli physician and resident of Kiryat Arba , opened fire on Muslims at prayer in the Ibrahimi Mosque , killing 29, and wounding 125 before

12921-520: The Jewish community out of Hebron as a precautionary measure to secure its safety. The sole exception was the 8th generation Hebronite Ya'akov ben Shalom Ezra, who processed dairy products in the city, blended in well with its social landscape and resided there under the protection of friends. In November 1947, in anticipation of the UN partition vote , the Ezra family closed its shop and left the city. Yossi Ezra has since tried to regain his family's property through

13098-402: The Jewish settlers were expelled on December 3, 2008. Immediately after the 1967 war, mayor al-Ja'bari had unsuccessfully promoted the creation of an autonomous Palestinian entity in the West Bank, and by 1972, he was advocating for a confederal arrangement with Jordan instead. al-Ja'bari nevertheless consistently fostered a conciliatory policy towards Israel. He was ousted by Fahad Qawasimi in

13275-425: The Jews , God created heaven and earth for the sake of the merits of Abraham. After the biblical flood , Abraham was the only one among the pious who solemnly swore never to forsake God, studied in the house of Noah and Shem to learn about the "Ways of God," continued the line of High Priest from Noah and Shem, and assigning the office to Levi and his seed forever. Before leaving his father's land, Abraham

13452-529: The Jews, just like the Jews'." By 1850, the Jewish population consisted of 45–60 Sephardic families, some 40 born in the town, and a 30-year-old Ashkenazic community of 50 families, mainly Polish and Russian, the Lubavitch Hasidic movement having established a community in 1823. The ascendency of Ibrahim Pasha led to a decline in the local glass industry. His plan to build a Mediterranean fleet led to severe logging in Hebron's forests, making firewood for

13629-570: The Kenizzites appear to be close to Hurrian . This suggests that behind the Anakim legend lies some early Hurrian population. In Biblical lore they are represented as descendants of the Nephilim . The Book of Genesis mentions that it was formerly called Kirjath-arba , or "city of four", possibly referring to the four pairs or couples who were buried there, or four tribes, or four quarters, four hills, or

13806-512: The Merciful" or "Friend of God". Arabic Al-Khalil thus precisely translates the ancient Hebrew toponym Ḥebron , understood as ḥaḇer (friend). Archaeological excavations reveal traces of strong fortifications dated to the Early Bronze Age , covering some 24–30 dunams centered around Tel Rumeida . The city flourished in the 17th–18th centuries BCE before being destroyed by fire, and

13983-506: The Patriarchs are; the Arabs remain above, and let down burning torches into it through a window, for they keep a light always burning there. . Bread and lentil, or some other kind of pulse (seeds of peas or beans), is distributed (by the Muslims) to the poor every day without distinction of faith, and this is done in honour of Abraham. The expansion of the Ottoman Empire along the southern Mediterranean coast under sultan Selim I coincided with

14160-826: The Quarter of the Corner Gate. In the late 19th century the production of Hebron glass declined due to competition from imported European glassware, although it continued to be popular among those who could not afford luxury goods and was sold by Jewish merchants. Glass ornaments from Hebron were exhibited at the World Fair of 1873 in Vienna . A report from the consul of the French Consulate in Jerusalem in 1886 suggests that glass-making remained an important source of income for Hebron, with four factories earning 60,000 francs yearly. While

14337-656: The Quarter of the Silk Merchant ( Harat al-Kazaz ), inhabited by Jews; the Mamluk-era Sheikh's Quarter ( Harat ash Sheikh ) to the north-west; and further north, the Dense Quarter ( Harat al-Harbah ). In 1855, the newly appointed Ottoman pasha ("governor") of the sanjak ("district") of Jerusalem, Kamil Pasha , attempted to put down a rebellion in the Hebron region. Kamil and his army marched towards Hebron in July 1855,

14514-534: The Torah and its elevation to the centre of post-Exilic Judaism was as much or more about combining older texts as writing new ones – the final Pentateuch was based on existing traditions. In the Book of Ezekiel , written during the Exile (i.e., in the first half of the 6th century BCE), Ezekiel , an exile in Babylon, tells how those who remained in Judah are claiming ownership of the land based on inheritance from Abraham; but

14691-502: The Turkish pashas. In 1773 or 1775, a substantial amount of money was extorted from the Jewish community, who paid up to avert a threatened catastrophe, after a false allegation was made accusing them of having murdered the son of a local sheikh and throwing his body into a cesspit. > Emissaries from the community were frequently sent overseas to solicit funds . During the Ottoman period,

14868-560: The United States. The majority of the Jewish population lived on the outskirts of Hebron along the roads to Be'ersheba and Jerusalem, renting homes owned by Arabs, a number of which were built for the express purpose of housing Jewish tenants, with a few dozen within the city around the synagogues. During the 1929 Hebron massacre , Arab rioters slaughtered some 64 to 67 Jewish men, women and children and wounded 60, and Jewish homes and synagogues were ransacked; 435 Jews survived by virtue of

15045-642: The West Bank) and 17 fatal shootings (9 soldiers and 8 settlers) and 2 fatalities from a bombing during the second Intifada, and thousands of rounds fired on it from the hills above the Abu-Sneina and Harat al-Sheikh neighbourhoods. On November 15, 2002, 12 Israeli soldiers were killed (Hebron Brigade commander Colonel Dror Weinberg and two other officers, 6 soldiers and 3 members of the security unit of Kiryat Arba) in an ambush . Two Temporary International Presence in Hebron observers were killed by Palestinian gunmen in

15222-566: The Zionists. Later, al-Khaṭīb became one of the few loyal followers of Haj Amin in Hebron. During the late Ottoman period, a new ruling elite had emerged in Palestine. They later formed the core of the growing Arab nationalist movement in the early 20th century. During the Mandate period, delegates from Hebron constituted only 1 per cent of the political leadership. The Palestinian Arab decision to boycott

15399-448: The adjoining field from Ephron the Hittite . After the death of Sarah, Abraham took another wife, a concubine named Keturah , by whom he had six sons: Zimran , Jokshan , Medan , Midian , Ishbak , and Shuah . According to the Bible, reflecting the change of his name to "Abraham" meaning "a father of many nations", Abraham is considered to be the progenitor of many nations mentioned in

15576-524: The ancient city-state of Mari , suggesting that the Genesis stories retain historical memories of the ancestral origins of some of the Israelites. The earliest possible reference to Abraham may be the name of a town in the Negev listed in a victory inscription of Pharaoh Sheshonq I (biblical Shishak ), which is referred as "the Fortress of Abraham", suggesting the possible existence of an Abraham tradition in

15753-455: The angel of the Lord, and he saw behind him a "ram caught in a thicket by his horns", which he sacrificed instead of his son. The place was later named as Jehovah-jireh . For his obedience he received another promise of numerous descendants and abundant prosperity. After this event, Abraham went to Beersheba. Sarah died, and Abraham buried her in the Cave of the Patriarchs (the "cave of Machpelah"), near Hebron which he had purchased along with

15930-483: The area). The semi-nomadic and pastoral Semitic tribes of the time used to prefix their names with the term banū ("sons of"), so it is hypothesized that the Raham called themselves Banu Raham. Furthermore, many interpreted blood ties between tribe members as common descent from an eponymous ancestor (i.e., one who gave the tribe its name), rather than as the result of intra-tribal ties. The name of this eponymous mythical ancestor

16107-688: The biblical texts challenged these views; these arguments can be found in Thomas L. Thompson 's The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives (1974), and John Van Seters ' Abraham in History and Tradition (1975). Thompson, a literary scholar, based his argument on archaeology and ancient texts. His thesis centered on the lack of compelling evidence that the patriarchs lived in the 2nd millennium BCE, and noted how certain biblical texts reflected first millennium conditions and concerns. Van Seters examined

16284-530: The cave and prayed, praise be to God, (in gratitude) for everything. A royal domain, Hebron was handed over to Philip of Milly in 1161 and joined with the Seigneurie of Transjordan . A bishop was appointed to Hebron in 1168 and the new cathedral church of St Abraham was built in the southern part of the Haram. In 1167, the episcopal see of Hebron was created along with that of Kerak and Sebastia (the tomb of John

16461-576: The caverns. The mill at Artas was built in 1307, and the profits from its income were dedicated to the hospital in Hebron. Between 1318 and 1320, the Na'ib of Gaza and much of coastal and interior Palestine ordered the construction of Jawli Mosque to enlarge the prayer space for worshipers at the Ibrahimi Mosque. Hebron was visited by some important rabbis over the next two centuries, among them Nachmanides (1270) and Ishtori HaParchi (1322) who noted

16638-568: The chosen people of God . In Christianity, Paul the Apostle taught that Abraham's faith in God—preceding the Mosaic law —made him the prototype of all believers, Jewish or gentile ; and in Islam, he is seen as a link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad . In Jewish tradition, Abraham is called Avraham Avinu (אברהם אבינו), "our father Abraham," signifying that he

16815-484: The city and build a synagogue there. The name of the city was changed back to Al-Khalil . A Kurdish quarter still existed in the town during the early period of Ottoman rule. Richard the Lionheart retook the city soon after. Richard of Cornwall , brought from England to settle the dangerous feuding between Templars and Hospitallers , whose rivalry imperiled the treaty guaranteeing regional stability stipulated with

16992-486: The city square. However, Abraham's nephew, Lot, met with them and strongly insisted that these two "men" stay at his house for the night. A rally of men stood outside of Lot's home and demanded that Lot bring out his guests so that they may "know" ( v. 5) them. However, Lot objected and offered his virgin daughters who had not "known" (v. 8) man to the rally of men instead. They rejected that notion and sought to break down Lot's door to get to his male guests, thus confirming

17169-557: The city, Jerusalem's conqueror, Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab permitted Jewish people to return and to construct a small synagogue within the Herodian precinct. Catholic bishop Arculf , who visited the Holy Land during the Umayyad period , described the city as unfortified and poor. In his writings he also mentioned camel caravans transporting firewood from Hebron to Jerusalem, which implies there

17346-425: The city. Later, the biblical narrative has King David called by God to relocate to Hebron and reign from there for some seven years ( 2 Samuel 2:1–3 ). It is there that the elders of Israel come to him to make a covenant before Elohim and anoint him king of Israel . It was in Hebron again that Absalom has himself declared king and then raises a revolt against his father David ( 2 Samuel 15:7–10 ). It became one of

17523-492: The complaint was brought to Ezra that the priests and the Levites would not separate themselves from the Perizzites and the other peoples of the land (Ezra ix. 1). The view was formerly held that the Perizzites were a prehistoric tribe which became assimilated to the Canaanites when the latter invaded Canaan; but this is in contradiction to the fact that the Perizzites are not mentioned in the genealogy. More recent commentators are of

17700-613: The conventional view, some researchers found traces of Edomite presence after the 5th–4th centuries BCE, as the area became Achaemenid province , and, in the wake of Alexander the Great 's conquest, Hebron was throughout the Hellenistic period under the influence of Idumea (as the new area inhabited by the Edomites was called during the Persian , Hellenistic and Roman periods), as is attested by inscriptions for that period bearing names with

17877-465: The country, this did not occur. In December 1948, the Jericho Conference , held by Jordan, was convened to decide the future of the West Bank. Hebron notables, headed by mayor Muhamad 'Ali al-Ja'bari , voted in favour of becoming part of Jordan and to recognise Abdullah I of Jordan as their king. The subsequent unilateral annexation benefited the Arabs of Hebron, who during the 1950s, played

18054-476: The covenant . The Hebron of the Israelites was centered on what is now known as Tel Rumeida, while its ritual centre was located at Elonei Mamre . Hebrew Bible narrative also describes the city. It is said to have been wrested from the Canaanites by either Joshua , who is said to have wiped out all of its previous inhabitants, "destroying everything that drew breath, as the Lord God of Israel had commanded", or

18231-473: The crime of Shechem, inasmuch as he feared the Perizzites and the Canaanites (ib. xxxiv. 30). Moses promised the Israelites to bring them unto the place of the Perizzites and the Amorites (Ex. xxx. 8); and at a later time the tribes of Simeon and Judah conquered the Canaanites and the Perizzites (Judges i. 4). The Perizzites were among the tribes that were not subjected to tribute by Solomon (I Kings ix. 20–22), while

18408-553: The crossroads between the Dead Sea to the east, Jerusalem to the north, the Negev and Egypt to the south, and the Shepelah and the coastal plain to the west. Lying along trading routes , it remained administratively and politically dependent on Jerusalem for this period. After the destruction of the First Temple , most of the Jewish inhabitants of Hebron were exiled, and according to

18585-502: The dilapidated state of the patriarchs' tombs was restored to a semblance of sumptuous dignity. Ali Bey who, under Muslim disguise, was one of the few Westerners to gain access, reported in 1807 that, all the sepulchres of the patriarchs are covered with rich carpets of green silk, magnificently embroidered with gold; those of the wives are red, embroidered in like manner. The sultans of Constantinople furnish these carpets, which are renewed from time to time. Ali Bey counted nine, one over

18762-425: The discovery of relics purported to be those of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, a discovery that excited eager curiosity among all three communities in Palestine, Muslim, Jewish, and Christian. Towards the end of the period of Crusader rule, in 1166 Maimonides visited Hebron and wrote, On Sunday, 9 Marheshvan (17 October), I left Jerusalem for Hebron to kiss the tombs of my ancestors in the Cave. On that day, I stood in

18939-406: The early and middle 20th century, leading archaeologists such as William F. Albright and G. Ernest Wright and biblical scholars such as Albrecht Alt and John Bright believed that the patriarchs and matriarchs were either real individuals or believable composites of people who lived in the " patriarchal age ", the 2nd millennium BCE. But, in the 1970s, new arguments concerning Israel's past and

19116-402: The economy of other cities in Palestine was based on solely on trade, the economy of Hebron was more diverse, including agriculture and livestock herding, alone with glassware manufacturing and processing of hides. This was because the most fertile lands were situated within the city limits. Even so, Hebron had an image of being unproductive and an "asylum for the poor and the spiritual". While

19293-564: The entire West Bank, including Hebron, occupied and annexed by Jordan , and since the 1967 Six-Day War , the city has been under Israeli military occupation . Following Israeli occupation, Jewish presence was restored in the city. Since the 1997 Hebron Protocol , most of Hebron has been governed by the Palestinian National Authority . The city is often described as a "microcosm" of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and

19470-403: The entrance of his tent by the terebinths of Mamre . He looked up and saw three men in the presence of God. Then he ran and bowed to the ground to welcome them. Abraham then offered to wash their feet and fetch them a morsel of bread, to which they assented. Abraham rushed to Sarah's tent to order ash cakes made from choice flour, then he ordered a servant-boy to prepare a choice calf. When all

19647-562: The establishment of Inquisition commissions by the Catholic Monarchs in Spain in 1478, which ended centuries of the Iberian convivencia (coexistence). The ensuing expulsions of the Jews drove many Sephardi Jews into the Ottoman provinces, and a slow influx of Jews to the Holy Land took place, with some notable Sephardi kabbalists settling in Hebron. Over the following two centuries, there

19824-486: The fief of Saint Abraham, to Geldemar Carpinel , the bishop Gerard of Avesnes, Hugh of Rebecques, Walter Mohamet and Baldwin of Saint Abraham. As a Frankish garrison of the Kingdom of Jerusalem , its defence was precarious being 'little more than an island in a Moslem ocean'. The Crusaders converted the mosque and the synagogue into a church. In 1106, an Egyptian campaign thrust into southern Palestine and almost succeeded

20001-661: The following year in wresting Hebron back from the Crusaders under Baldwin I of Jerusalem , who personally led the counter-charge to beat the Muslim forces off. In the year 1113 during the reign of Baldwin II of Jerusalem , according to Ali of Herat (writing in 1173), a certain part over the cave of Abraham had given way, and "a number of Franks had made their entrance therein". And they discovered "(the bodies) of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob", "their shrouds having fallen to pieces, lying propped up against

20178-478: The following years, but this has not found acceptance among scholars. By the beginning of the 21st century, archaeologists had stopped trying to recover any context that would make Abraham, Isaac or Jacob credible historical figures. Although the name Abram and Abraham are Semitic names and can be found in Babylonian tablets dating to Middle Bronze Age (MBA), which is a period that most biblical scholars believe that

20355-515: The form of the Takiat Ibrahim soup kitchen, which has been active in providing food for thousands over Ramadan, which coincided with food shortages during the 2024 Israel–Hamas war . Geniza documents from this period mention "the graves of the patriarchs" and attest to the presence of an organised Jewish community in Hebron. The Jews maintained a synagogue near the tomb and earned their livelihood accommodating Jewish pilgrims and merchants. During

20532-654: The general pillage of the town at least five were killed . In 1838, the total population was estimated at 10,000. When the government of Ibrahim Pasha fell in 1841, the local clan leader Abd ar-Rahman Amr once again resumed the reins of power as the Sheik of Hebron. Due to his extortionate demands for cash from the local population, most of the Jewish population fled to Jerusalem. In 1846, the Ottoman Governor-in-chief of Jerusalem ( serasker ), Kıbrıslı Mehmed Emin Pasha , waged

20709-517: The glass industry in Hebron, based on 26 kilns . In 1833, a report on the town appearing in a weekly paper printed by the London-based Religious Tract Society wrote that Hebron's population had 400 Arab families, had numerous well-provisioned shops and that there was a manufactory of glass lamps, which were exported to Egypt . Early 19th-century travellers also noticed Hebron's flourishing agriculture. Apart from glassware, it

20886-531: The goods from Sodom that had been taken. Upon Abram's return, Sodom's king came out to meet with him in the Valley of Shaveh , the "king's dale". Also, Melchizedek king of Salem ( Jerusalem ), a priest of El Elyon , brought out bread and wine and blessed Abram and God. Abram then gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything. The king of Sodom then offered to let Abram keep all the possessions if he would merely return his people. Abram declined to accept anything other than

21063-407: The hospitality industry. The Eastern Orthodox Church commemorates him as the "Righteous Forefather Abraham", with two feast days in its liturgical calendar . The first time is on 9 October (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar , 9 October falls on 22 October of the modern Gregorian Calendar ), where he is commemorated together with his nephew "Righteous Lot". The other

21240-495: The invading Elamite forces. The Elamite army came to collect the spoils of war, after having just defeated the king of Sodom's armies. Lot and his family, at the time, were settled on the outskirts of the Kingdom of Sodom which made them a visible target. One person who escaped capture came and told Abram what happened. Once Abram received this news, he immediately assembled 318 trained servants. Abram's force headed north in pursuit of

21417-544: The kilns scarce. At the same time, Egypt began importing cheap European glass. The rerouting of the hajj from Damascus through Transjordan reduced traffic to Hebron, and the Suez Canal (1869) precipitated a drop in caravan trade. The consequence was a steady deterioration of the local economy. At the time, the town was divided into four quarters: the Ancient Quarter ( Harat al-Kadim ) near the Cave of Machpelah; to its south,

21594-528: The land in and around Hebron belonging to the Tamīm al-Dārī waqf. In 1922, its population stood at 16,577, of which 16,074 (97%) were Muslim, 430 (2.5%) were Jewish and 73 (0.4%) were Christian. During the 1920s, Abd al-Ḥayy al-Khaṭīb was appointed Mufti of Hebron. Before his appointment, he had been a staunch opponent of Haj Amin , supported the Muslim National Associations and had good contacts with

21771-877: The larger audience. He is also among the seven prophets who appeared in different periods of history according to the Druze faith. In Mandaeism , Abraham ( Classical Mandaic : ࡀࡁࡓࡀࡄࡉࡌ , romanized:  Abrahim ) is mentioned in Book 18 of the Right Ginza as the patriarch of the Jewish people. Mandaeans consider Abraham to have been originally a Mandaean priest, however they differ with Abraham and Jews regarding circumcision which they consider to be bodily mutilation and therefore forbidden. Hebron Hebron ( / ˈ h iː b r ən , ˈ h ɛ b r ən / ; Arabic : الخليل al-Khalīl , pronunciation or خَلِيل الرَّحْمَن Khalīl al-Raḥmān ; Hebrew : חֶבְרוֹן Ḥevrōn , pronunciation )

21948-449: The local economy. As income from commerce declined and tax revenues diminished significantly, the Ottoman government left Hebron to manage its own affairs for the most part, making it "one of the most autonomous regions in late Ottoman Palestine." The Jewish community was under French protection until 1914. The Jewish presence itself was divided between the traditional Sephardi community, whose members spoke Arabic and adopted Arab dress, and

22125-456: The military control of Israel. Around 120,000 Palestinians live in H1, while around 30,000 Palestinians along with around 700 Israelis remain under Israeli military control in H2. As of 2009 , a total of 86 Jewish families lived in Hebron. The IDF ( Israel Defense Forces ) may not enter H1 unless under Palestinian escort. Palestinians cannot approach areas where settlers live without special permits from

22302-424: The more recent influx of Ashkenazi Jews . They prayed in different synagogues, sent their children to different schools, lived in different quarters and did not intermarry. The community was largely Orthodox and anti-Zionist. The British occupied Hebron on December 8, 1917; governance transited to a mandate in 1920. Most of Hebron was owned by old Islamic charitable endowments ( waqfs ), with about 60% of all

22479-415: The mount that God told him of. He then commanded the servants to remain while he and Isaac proceeded alone into the mount. Isaac carried the wood upon which he would be sacrificed. Along the way, Isaac asked his father where the animal for the burnt offering was, to which Abraham replied "God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering". Just as Abraham was about to sacrifice his son, he was interrupted by

22656-453: The narrative of the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible revolves around the themes of posterity and land. He is said to have been called by God to leave the house of his father Terah and settle in the land of Canaan , which God now promises to Abraham and his progeny. This promise is subsequently inherited by Isaac , Abraham's son, by his wife Sarah , while Isaac's half-brother Ishmael

22833-461: The opinion that the names "Perizi" and "Perazi" are identical, and that the Bible has included under the name "Perizzites" all stocks dwelling in unwalled towns. Abraham Abraham (originally Abram ) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions , including Judaism , Christianity , and Islam . In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between

23010-511: The other, upon the sepulchre of Abraham. Hebron also became known throughout the Arab world for its glass production, abetted by Bedouin trade networks that brought up minerals from the Dead Sea, and the industry is mentioned in the books of 19th century Western travellers to Palestine. For example, Ulrich Jasper Seetzen noted during his travels in Palestine in 1808–09 that 150 persons were employed in

23187-460: The patriarchal stories and argued that their names, social milieu, and messages strongly suggested that they were Iron Age creations. Van Seters' and Thompson's works were a paradigm shift in biblical scholarship and archaeology, which gradually led scholars to no longer consider the patriarchal narratives as historical. Some conservative scholars attempted to defend the Patriarchal narratives in

23364-477: The patriarchs Abraham, Isaac , and Jacob , along with their wives Sarah, Rebecca , and Leah , were buried in the cave. The city is also recognized in the Bible as the place where David was anointed king of Israel . Following the Babylonian captivity , the Edomites settled in Hebron. During the first century BCE, Herod the Great built the wall that still surrounds the Cave of the Patriarchs, which later became

23541-476: The plain of Jordan , where the land was well watered everywhere as far as Zoara , and he dwelled in the cities of the plain toward Sodom . Abram went south to Hebron and settled in the plain of Mamre , where he built another altar to worship God . During the rebellion of the Jordan River cities, Sodom and Gomorrah , against Elam , Abram's nephew, Lot, was taken prisoner along with his entire household by

23718-449: The principal centers of the Tribe of Judah and was classified as one of the six traditional Cities of Refuge . As is shown by the discovery at Lachish , the second most important city in the Kingdom of Judah after Jerusalem, of seals with the inscription lmlk Hebron (to the king Hebron), Hebron continued to constitute an important local economic centre, given its strategic position on

23895-408: The prior community are mixed. Some support the project of Jewish redevelopment, others commend living in peace with Hebronite Arabs, while a third group recommend a full pullout. Descendants supporting the latter views have met with Palestinian leaders in Hebron. In 1997 one group of descendants dissociated themselves from the settlers by calling them an obstacle to peace. On May 15, 2006, a member of

24072-565: The promise made to Abraham." In Romans 4, Abraham is praised for his "unwavering faith" in God, which is tied into the concept of partakers of the covenant of grace being those "who demonstrate faith in the saving power of Christ". Throughout history, church leaders, following Paul, have emphasized Abraham as the spiritual father of all Christians. Augustine of Hippo declared that Christians are "children (or "seed") of Abraham by faith", Ambrose stated that "by means of their faith Christians possess

24249-722: The promises made to Abraham", and Martin Luther recalled Abraham as "a paradigm of the man of faith." The Roman Catholic Church , the largest Christian denomination, calls Abraham "our father in Faith" in the Eucharistic prayer of the Roman Canon , recited during the Mass . He is also commemorated in the calendars of saints of several denominations: on 20 August by the Maronite Church , 28 August in

24426-408: The prophet tells them they have no claim because they do not observe Torah. The Book of Isaiah similarly testifies of tension between the people of Judah and the returning post-Exilic Jews (the " gôlâ "), stating that God is the father of Israel and that Israel's history begins with the Exodus and not with Abraham. The conclusion to be inferred from this and similar evidence (e.g., Ezra–Nehemiah ),

24603-569: The reason why Hebron is not mentioned in any traditions of the Arab conquest. When the Rashidun Caliphate established its rule over Hebron in 638, the Muslims converted the Byzantine church at the site of Abraham's tomb into a mosque. It became an important station on the caravan trading route from Egypt, and also as a way-station for pilgrims making the yearly hajj from Damascus. After the fall of

24780-577: The rest of the West Bank , establishing a military government to rule the area. In an attempt to reach a land for peace deal, Yigal Allon proposed that Israel annex 45% of the West Bank and return the remainder to Jordan. According to the Allon Plan , the city of Hebron would lie in Jordanian territory, and in order to determine Israel's own border, Allon suggested building a Jewish settlement adjacent to Hebron. David Ben-Gurion also considered that Hebron

24957-404: The revered reformer of the Kaaba in Mecca . Islamic traditions consider Ibrāhīm the first Pioneer of Islam (which is also called millat Ibrahim , the "religion of Abraham"), and that his purpose and mission throughout his life was to proclaim the Oneness of God . In Islam, Abraham holds an exalted position among the major prophets and he is referred to as "Ibrahim Khalilullah", meaning "Abraham

25134-429: The rule, that one of the easiest place for Jews to live in the world were in the various countries of the Ottoman Empire. In the mid-eighteenth century, rabbi Abraham Gershon of Kitov wrote from Hebron that:"the gentiles here very much love the Jews. When there is a brit milah (circumcision ceremony) or any other celebration, their most important men come at night and rejoice with the Jews and clap hands and dance with

25311-429: The sanctuary. Six years later, while on pilgrimage to Hebron, Baibars promulgated an edict forbidding Christians and Jews from entering the sanctuary, and the climate became less tolerant of Jews and Christians than it had been under the prior Ayyubid rule. The edict for the exclusion of Christians and Jews was not strictly enforced until the middle of the 14th-century and by 1490, not even Muslims were permitted to enter

25488-543: The share to which his allies were entitled. The voice of the Lord came to Abram in a vision and repeated the promise of the land and descendants as numerous as the stars. Abram and God made a covenant ceremony, and God told of the future bondage of Israel in Egypt. God described to Abram the land that his offspring would claim: the land of the Kenites , Kenizzites , Kadmonites , Hittites , Perizzites , Rephaims, Amorites , Canaanites , Girgashites , and Jebusites . Abram and Sarai tried to make sense of how he would become

25665-407: The shelter and assistance offered them by their Arab neighbours, who hid them. Some Hebron Arabs, including Ahmad Rashid al-Hirbawi, president of Hebron chamber of commerce, supported the return of Jews after the massacre. Two years later, 35 families moved back into the ruins of the Jewish quarter, but on the eve of the Palestinian Arab revolt (April 23, 1936) the British Government decided to move

25842-423: The site had been relaxed in 1928 were denied by the Supreme Muslim Council . At this time following attempts by the Lithuanian government to draft yeshiva students into the army, the Lithuanian Hebron Yeshiva (Knesses Yisroel) relocated to Hebron, after consultations between Rabbi Nosson Tzvi Finkel , Yechezkel Sarna and Moshe Mordechai Epstein . and by 1929 had attracted some 265 students from Europe and

26019-472: The sterility of Sarah and 12:1–3 in which Abraham is ordered to leave the land of his birth for the land YHWH will show him. Terah , the ninth in descent from Noah , was the father of Abram, Nahor , Haran ( Hebrew : הָרָן Hārān ) and Sarah . Haran was the father of Lot , who was Abram's nephew; the family lived in Ur of the Chaldees . Haran died there. Abram married Sarah (Sarai) . Terah, Abram, Sarai, and Lot departed for Canaan , but settled in

26196-486: The survivors overcame and killed him. Standing orders for Israeli soldiers on duty in Hebron disallowed them from firing on fellow Jews, even if they were shooting Arabs. This event was condemned by the Israeli Government, and the extreme right-wing Kach party was banned as a result. The Israeli government also tightened restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in H2, closed their vegetable and meat markets, and banned Palestinian cars on Al-Shuhada Street. The park near

26373-403: The territory of the Amorite homeland. He also notes parallels between the biblical narrative and the Amorite migration into the Southern Levant in the 2nd millennium BCE . Likewise, some scholars like Daniel E. Fleming and Alice Mandell have argued that the biblical portrayal of the Patriarchs' lifestyle appears to reflect the Amorite culture of the 2nd millennium BCE as attested in texts from

26550-433: The thought of giving birth and nursing a child, at such an old age, also brought her much laughter, as she declared, "God hath made me to laugh, so that all who hear will laugh with me." Isaac continued to grow and on the day he was weaned, Abraham held a great feast to honor the occasion. During the celebration, however, Sarah found Ishmael mocking; an observation that would begin to clarify the birthright of Isaac. Ishmael

26727-436: The tombs of the Patriarchs. However, if a Jew offered a special reward, they would open an iron gate leading to a series of empty caves, until reaching the third cave where the actual sepulchers of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs were said to be located. The Kurdish Muslim Saladin retook Hebron in 1187 – again with Jewish assistance according to one late tradition, in exchange for a letter of security allowing them to return to

26904-410: The town". After the suppression of the Bar Kokhba revolt in 135 CE, innumerable Jewish captives were sold into slavery at Hebron's Terebinth slave-market. The city was part of the Byzantine Empire in Palaestina Prima province at the Diocese of the East . The Byzantine emperor Justinian I erected a Christian church over the Cave of Machpelah in the 6th century CE, which was later destroyed by

27081-554: The tradition found in the Book of Genesis no longer understands its original meaning (probably "Father is exalted" – the meaning offered in Genesis 17:5 , "Father of a multitude", is a folk etymology ). At some stage the oral traditions became part of the written tradition of the Pentateuch ; a majority of scholars believe this stage belongs to the Persian period, roughly 520–320 BCE. The mechanisms by which this came about remain unknown, but there are currently at least two hypotheses. The first, called Persian Imperial authorisation,

27258-407: The two other visitors left for Sodom. Then Abraham turned to God and pleaded decrementally with Him (from fifty persons to less) that "if there were at least ten righteous men found in the city, would not God spare the city?" For the sake of ten righteous people, God declared that he would not destroy the city. When the two visitors arrived in Sodom to conduct their report, they planned on staying in

27435-399: The uprising. The town was invested and, when its defences fell on August 4, it was sacked by Ibrahim Pasha's army. An estimated 500 Muslims from Hebron were killed in the attack and some 750 were conscripted. 120 youths were abducted and put at the disposal of Egyptian army officers. Most of the Muslim population managed to flee beforehand to the hills. Many Jews fled to Jerusalem, but during

27612-501: The village of Abraham al-Khalil, with a strong fortress and a stone dome over Abraham's sepulchre. The mosque contained the tombs of Isaac, Jacob, and their wives. Surrounding the area were villages with vineyards producing exceptional grapes and apples. Hebron had a public guest house offering lentils and olive oil to both the poor and the rich. The guest house was established through the bequest of Prophet Muhammad's companions, including Tamim-al Dari, and received generous donations. It

27789-525: The way to Shur . He instructed her to return to Abram's camp and that her son would be "a wild ass of a man; his hand shall be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the face of all his brethren." She was told to call her son Ishmael . Hagar then called God who spoke to her " El-roi ", ("Thou God seest me:" KJV). From that day onward, the well was called Beer-lahai-roi, ("The well of him that liveth and seeth me." KJV margin), located between Kadesh and Bered. She then did as she

27966-451: The wealthy merchants of Nablus built fine mansions, housing in Hebron consisted of semi-peasant dwellings. Hebron was described as 'deeply Bedouin and Islamic', and 'bleakly conservative' in its religious outlook, with a strong tradition of hostility to Jews. It had a reputation for religious zeal in jealously protecting its sites from Jews and Christians, although the Jewish and Christian communities seem to have been an integral part of

28143-414: The wickedness of the city and portending their imminent destruction. Early the next morning, Abraham went to the place where he stood before God. He "looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah" and saw what became of the cities of the plain, where not even "ten righteous" (v. 18:32) had been found, as "the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace." Abraham settled between Kadesh and Shur in what

28320-423: Was 75 years old when he left Haran with his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and the substance and souls that they had acquired, and traveled to Shechem in Canaan. Then he pitched his tent in the east of Bethel , and built an altar which was between Bethel and Ai . There was a severe famine in the land of Canaan, so that Abram, Lot, and their households traveled to Egypt . On the way Abram told Sarai to say that she

28497-421: Was a major exporter of dibse , grape sugar, from the famous Dabookeh grapestock characteristic of Hebron. An Arab peasants' revolt broke out in April 1834 when Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt announced he would recruit troops from the local Muslim population. Hebron, headed by its nazir Abd ar-Rahman Amr, declined to supply its quota of conscripts for the army and suffered badly from the Egyptian campaign to crush

28674-444: Was a presence of Arab nomads in the region at that time. Trade greatly expanded, in particular with Bedouins in the Negev ( al-Naqab ) and the population to the east of the Dead Sea ( Baḥr Lūṭ ). According to Anton Kisa, Jews from Hebron (and Tyre ) founded the Venetian glass industry in the 9th century. Hebron was almost absent from Muslim literature before the 10th century. In 985, al-Muqaddasi described Hebron (Habra) as

28851-439: Was a significant migration of Bedouin tribal groups from the Arabian Peninsula into Palestine. Many settled in three separate villages in the Wādī al-Khalīl, and their descendants later formed the majority of Hebron. The Jewish community fluctuated between 8–10 families throughout the 16th century, and suffered from severe financial straits in the first half of the century. In 1540, renowned kabbalist Malkiel Ashkenazi bought

29028-452: Was appointed Jewish representative to the city council. During a severe drought in 1869–1871, food in Hebron sold for ten times the normal amount. From 1874, the Hebron district was administered directly from Istanbul as part of the Sanjak of Jerusalem. By 1874, when C.R. Conder visited Hebron under the auspices of the Palestine Exploration Fund , the Jewish community numbered 600 in an overall population of 17,000. The Jews lived in

29205-433: Was called Elohei Abraham, Elohei Yitzchaq ve Elohei Ya'aqob ("God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob") and never the God of anyone else. He was also mentioned as the father of thirty nations. Abraham is generally credited as the author of the Sefer Yetzirah , one of the earliest extant books on Jewish mysticism . According to Pirkei Avot , Abraham underwent ten tests at God's command. The Binding of Isaac

29382-425: Was constructed with the patronymic (prefix) Abū ("father"), followed by the name of the tribe; in the case of the Raham, it would have been Abu Raham, later to become Ab-raham, Abraham. Abraham's Journey from Ur to Harran could be explained as a retrospective reflection of the story of the return of the Jews from the Babylonian exile. Indeed, Israel Finkelstein suggested that the oldest Abraham traditions originated in

29559-483: Was fourteen years old when Abraham's son Isaac was born to Sarah. When she found Ishmael teasing Isaac, Sarah told Abraham to send both Ishmael and Hagar away. She declared that Ishmael would not share in Isaac's inheritance. Abraham was greatly distressed by his wife's words and sought the advice of his God. God told Abraham not to be distressed but to do as his wife commanded. God reassured Abraham that "in Isaac shall seed be called to thee." He also said Ishmael would make

29736-417: Was highly regarded as an excellent house of hospitality and charity in the realm of al-Islam. The custom, known as the 'Table of Abraham' ( simāt al-khalil ), was similar to the one established by the Fatimids . In 1047, Nasir-i-Khusraw described Hebron in his Safarnama as having many villages providing revenues for pious purposes. He mentioned a spring flowing from under a stone, with water channeled to

29913-436: Was his sister, so that the Egyptians would not kill him. When they entered Egypt, the Pharaoh's officials praised Sarai's beauty to Pharaoh , and they took her into the palace and gave Abram goods in exchange. God afflicted Pharaoh and his household with plagues, which led Pharaoh to try to find out what was wrong. Upon discovering that Sarai was a married woman, Pharaoh demanded that Abram and Sarai leave. When they lived for

30090-465: Was instructed by returning to her mistress in order to have her child. Abram was 86 years of age when Ishmael was born. Thirteen years later, when Abram was 99 years of age, God declared Abram's new name: "Abraham" – "a father of many nations". Abraham then received the instructions for the covenant of the pieces , of which circumcision was to be the sign. God declared Sarai's new name: " Sarah ", blessed her, and told Abraham, "I will give thee

30267-444: Was miraculously saved from the fiery furnace of Nimrod following his brave action of breaking the idols of the Chaldeans into pieces. During his sojourning in Canaan, Abraham was accustomed to extend hospitality to travelers and strangers and taught how to praise God also knowledge of God to those who had received his kindness. Along with Isaac and Jacob , he is the one whose name would appear united with God, as God in Judaism

30444-461: Was no fear of God in that place, and that they might kill him for his wife. Then Abraham defended what he had said as not being a lie at all: "And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife." Abimelech returned Sarah to Abraham, and gave him gifts of sheep, oxen, and servants; and invited him to settle wherever he pleased in Abimelech's lands. Further, Abimelech gave Abraham

30621-423: Was prepared, he set curds, milk and the calf before them, waiting on them, under a tree, as they ate. One of the visitors told Abraham that upon his return next year, Sarah would have a son. While at the tent entrance, Sarah overheard what was said and she laughed to herself about the prospect of having a child at their ages. The visitor inquired of Abraham why Sarah laughed at bearing a child at her age, as nothing

30798-497: Was resettled in the late Middle Bronze Age. This older Hebron was originally a Canaanite royal city. Abrahamic legend associates the city with the Hittites . It has been conjectured that Hebron might have been the capital of Shuwardata of Gath , an Indo-European contemporary of Jerusalem's regent, Abdi-Ḫeba , although the Hebron hills were almost devoid of settlements in the Late Bronze Age. The Abrahamic traditions associated with Hebron are nomadic. This may also reflect

30975-500: Was settled in the valley downhill from Tel Rumeida at the latest by Roman times. Herod the Great , king of Judea, built the wall that still surrounds the Cave of the Patriarchs . During the First Jewish–Roman War , Hebron was captured and plundered by Simon Bar Giora , a leader of the Zealots , without bloodshed. The "little town" was later laid to waste by Vespasian 's officer Sextus Vettulenus Cerialis . Josephus wrote that he "slew all he found there, young and old, and burnt down

31152-432: Was the one sector of the conquered territories that should remain under Jewish control and be open to Jewish settlement. Apart from its symbolic message to the international community that Israel's rights in Hebron were, according to Jews, inalienable, settling Hebron also had theological significance in some quarters. For some, the capture of Hebron by Israel had unleashed a messianic fervor. Survivors and descendants of

31329-407: Was worshiped in Hebron, which is too far from Beit She'an, and the oldest tradition of him might be about the altar he built in Hebron. Abraham is given a high position of respect in three major world faiths, Judaism , Christianity , and Islam . In Judaism, he is the founding father of the covenant, the special relationship between the Jewish people and God—leading to the belief that the Jews are

#442557