The Three Pilgrimage Festivals or Shalosh Regalim ( Hebrew : שלוש רגלים , romanized : šāloš rəgālīm , or חַגִּים , ḥaggīm ), are three major festivals in Judaism —two in spring; Passover , 49 days later Shavuot (literally 'weeks', or Pentecost , from the Greek); and in autumn Sukkot ('tabernacles', 'tents' or 'booths')—when all Israelites who were able were expected to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem as commanded by the Torah . In Jerusalem, they would participate in festivities and ritual worship in conjunction with the services of the kohanim (priests) at the Temple.
127-515: All three coincide with important harvest times in the Land of Israel : Passover with the barley harvest, Shavuot with the harvesting of the wheat , and the eighth day of Sukkot marks the conclusion of the fruit harvest . After the destruction of the Second Temple , the actual pilgrimages are no longer obligatory upon Jews, and no longer take place on a national scale. During synagogue services ,
254-470: A Zionist , decided that the Hebrew transliteration should be used, followed always by the two initial letters of "Eretz Yisrael", א״י Aleph-Yod : He was aware that there was no other name in the Hebrew language for this land except 'Eretz-Israel'. At the same time he thought that if 'Eretz-Israel' only were used, it might not be regarded by the outside world as a correct rendering of the word 'Palestine', and in
381-561: A census of Israel and Judah, travelling in an anti-clockwise direction from Gad to Gilead to Dan , then west to Sidon and Tyre , south to the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites , to southern Judah and then returning to Jerusalem. Biblical commentator Alexander Kirkpatrick notes that the cities of Tyre and Sidon were "never occupied by the Israelites, and we must suppose either that
508-576: A Jewish state in Eretz-Israel, to be known as the State of Israel". Land of Canaan Canaan ( / ˈ k eɪ n ən / ; Phoenician : 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – KNʿN ; Hebrew : כְּנַעַן – Kənáʿan , in pausa כְּנָעַן – Kənāʿan ; Biblical Greek : Χαναάν – Khanaán ; Arabic : كَنْعَانُ – Kan'ān ) was a Semitic -speaking civilization and region of the Southern Levant in
635-627: A campaign to "Mentu", "Retjenu" and "Sekmem" ( Shechem ) is the Sebek-khu Stele , dated to the reign of Senusret III ( c. 1862 BC). A letter from Mut-bisir to Shamshi-Adad I ( c. 1809–1776 BC) of the Old Assyrian Empire (2025–1750 BC) has been translated: "It is in Rahisum that the brigands (habbatum) and the Canaanites (Kinahnum) are situated". It was found in 1973 in
762-455: A continuous yet small Jewish presence in the land, a strong sense of bondedness exists throughout this tradition, expressed in terms of people-hood; from the very beginning, this concept was identified with that ancestral biblical land or, to use the traditional religious and modern Hebrew term, Eretz Yisrael . Religiously and culturally the area was seen broadly as a land of destiny, and always with hope for some form of redemption and return. It
889-579: A geographical location. Nur Masalha argues that the biblical boundaries are "entirely fictitious", and bore simply religious connotations in Diaspora Judaism, with the term only coming into ascendency with the rise of Zionism . The Hebrew Bible provides three specific sets of borders for the " Promised Land ", each with a different purpose. Neither of the terms "Promised Land" (Ha'Aretz HaMuvtahat) or "Land of Israel" are used in these passages: Genesis 15:13–21 , Genesis 17:8 and Ezekiel 47:13–20 use
1016-564: A plan for development together with a map of the proposed homeland. The statement noted the Jewish historical connection with " Palestine ". It also declared the Zionists' proposed borders and resources "essential for the necessary economic foundation of the country" including "the control of its rivers and their headwaters". These borders included present day Israel and the occupied territories , western Jordan, southwestern Syria and southern Lebanon "in
1143-701: A precisely defined eastern border which included the Arabah and Jordan. Numbers 34:1–15 describes the land allocated to the Israelite tribes after the Exodus. The tribes of Reuben , Gad and half of Manasseh received land east of the Jordan as explained in Numbers 34:14–15 . Numbers 34:1–13 provides a detailed description of the borders of the land to be conquered west of the Jordan for
1270-757: A river or stream, as opposed to a wadi . A slightly more detailed definition is given in Exodus 23:31 , which describes the borders as "from the sea of reeds (Red Sea) to the Sea of the Philistines (Mediterranean sea) and from the desert to the Euphrates River", although the Hebrew text of the Bible uses the name, "the River", to refer to the Euphrates. Only the "Red Sea" (Exodus 23:31) and
1397-508: A settled life, but with bad luck or due to the force of circumstances, contributed a rootless element to the population, prepared to hire themselves to whichever local mayor, king, or princeling would pay for their support. Although Habiru SA-GAZ (a Sumerian ideogram glossed as "brigand" in Akkadian ), and sometimes Habiri (an Akkadian word) had been reported in Mesopotamia from
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#17328451752511524-503: A year to this day. Three times a year you shall hold a festival for Me: You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread—eating unleavened bread for seven days as I have commanded you—at the set time in the month of Abib, for in it you went forth from Egypt; and none shall appear before Me empty-handed; and the Feast of the Harvest, of the first fruits of your work, of what you sow in the field; and
1651-724: Is a direct translation of the Hebrew phrase ארץ ישראל ( Eretz Yisrael ), which occasionally occurs in the Bible , and is first mentioned in the Tanakh in 1 Samuel 13:19 , following the Exodus , when the Israelite tribes were already in the Land of Canaan . The words are used sparsely in the Bible: King David is ordered to gather 'strangers to the land of Israel' ( hag-gêrîm 'ăšer, bə'ereṣ yiśrā'êl ) for building purposes ( 1 Chronicles 22:2 ), and
1778-591: Is connected with the Greek word for "purple", apparently referring to the same product, but it is difficult to state with certainty whether the Greek word came from the name, or vice versa. The purple cloth of Tyre in Phoenicia was well known far and wide and was associated by the Romans with nobility and royalty. However, according to Robert Drews , Speiser's proposal has generally been abandoned. Retjenu (Anglicised 'Retenu')
1905-508: Is considered less credible because it was produced centuries later. Amorites at Hazor , Kadesh (Qadesh-on-the-Orontes), and elsewhere in Amurru (Syria) bordered Canaan in the north and northeast. (Ugarit may be included among these Amoritic entities.) The collapse of the Akkadian Empire in 2154 BC saw the arrival of peoples using Khirbet Kerak ware (pottery), coming originally from
2032-555: Is defined in detail in the exilic Book of Ezekiel as a land where both the twelve tribes and the "strangers in (their) midst", can claim inheritance. The name "Israel" first appears in the Hebrew Bible as the name given by God to the patriarch Jacob ( Genesis 32:28 ). Deriving from the name "Israel", other designations that came to be associated with the Jewish people have included the " Children of Israel " or "Israelite". The term 'Land of Israel' (γῆ Ἰσραήλ) occurs in one episode in
2159-476: Is less clear, as he states that the covenant is through Isaac, but also notes that Ishmael 's descendants, generally the Arabs , have held much of that land through time. Rabbinic literature portrays the Land of Israel as the "navel of the world": As the navel is in the middle of a human being, the Land of Israel is the navel of the world, as it is written: "dwellers of the navel of the earth". Just as Eretz Israel
2286-481: Is located in the centre of the world so is Jerusalem in the centre of Eretz Israel, the temple in the centre of Jerusalem, the holy of holies in the centre of the temple, the ark at the centre of the holy of holies, and right in front is the Foundation Stone of the whole of the universe. The Land of Israel concept has been evoked by the founders of the State of Israel . It often surfaces in political debates on
2413-459: Is not shared by most adherents of replacement theology (or supersessionism ), who hold the view that the Old Testament prophecies were superseded by the coming of Jesus, a view often repudiated by Christian Zionists as a theological error. Evangelical Zionists variously claim that Israel has title to the land by divine right, or by a theological, historical and moral grounding of attachment to
2540-716: Is only possible that the palace in Area AA might have been destroyed though this is not certain. While the monumental structures at Hazor were indeed destroyed, this destruction was in the mid-13th century BC long before the end of the Late Bronze Age began. However, many sites were not burned to the ground around 1200 BC including: Asqaluna , Ashdod (ancient city) , Tell es-Safi , Tel Batash , Tel Burna , Tel Dor , Tel Gerisa , Tell Jemmeh , Khirbet Rabud, Tel Zeror , and Tell Abu Hawam among others. Despite many theories which claim that trade relations broke down after 1200 BC in
2667-687: Is referred as "from the entrance of Hamath unto the brook of Egypt " ( 1 Kings 8:65 , 1 Chronicles 13:5 and 2 Chronicles 7:8 ). These biblical limits for the land differ from the borders of established historical Israelite and later Jewish kingdoms , including the United Kingdom of Israel , the two kingdoms of Israel (Samaria) and Judah , the Hasmonean kingdom , and the Herodian kingdom . At their heights, these realms ruled lands with similar but not identical boundaries. Jewish religious belief defines
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#17328451752512794-472: Is situated in the Land of Israel ... and speaks the Holy Tongue, and recites the shema in the morning and in the evening, is promised life in the world to come ." According to some Jewish religious authorities , every Jew has an obligation to dwell in the Land of Israel and may not leave except for specifically permitted reasons (e.g., to get married). There are also many laws dealing with how to treat
2921-582: Is the following. After the Iron Age the periods are named after the various empires that ruled the region: Assyrian , Babylonian , Persian , Hellenistic (related to Greece ) and Roman . Canaanite culture developed in situ from multiple waves of migration merging with the earlier Circum-Arabian Nomadic Pastoral Complex , which in turn developed from a fusion of their ancestral Natufian and Harifian cultures with Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) farming cultures, practicing animal domestication , during
3048-456: Is the wilderness rather than the Jordan . Paul R. Williamson notes that a "close examination of the relevant promissory texts" supports a "wider interpretation of the promised land" in which it is not "restricted absolutely to one geographical locale". He argues that "the map of the promised land was never seen permanently fixed, but was subject to at least some degree of expansion and redefinition". On David 's instructions, Joab undertakes
3175-544: Is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon's hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe. 33 I will do this because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of
3302-831: The 6200 BC climatic crisis which led to the Neolithic Revolution/First Agricultural Revolution in the Levant . The majority of Canaan is covered by the Eastern Mediterranean conifer–sclerophyllous–broadleaf forests ecoregion. The first wave of migration, called Ghassulian culture, entered Canaan circa 4500 BC. This is the start of the Chalcolithic in Canaan. From their unknown homeland, they brought an already complete craft tradition of metalwork. They were expert coppersmiths; in fact, their work
3429-751: The Amarna letters (14th century BC) and several other ancient Egyptian texts. In Greek, it first occurs in the writings of Hecataeus (c. 550–476 BC) as " Khna " ( Χνᾶ ). It is attested in Phoenician on coins from Berytus dated to the 2nd century BC. The etymology is uncertain. An early explanation derives the term from the Semitic root knʿ , "to be low, humble, subjugated". Some scholars have suggested that this implies an original meaning of "lowlands", in contrast with Aram , which would then mean "highlands", whereas others have suggested it meant "the subjugated" as
3556-687: The Ancient Near East during the late 2nd millennium BC . Canaan had significant geopolitical importance in the Late Bronze Age Amarna Period (14th century BC) as the area where the spheres of interest of the Egyptian , Hittite , Mitanni , and Assyrian Empires converged or overlapped. Much of present-day knowledge about Canaan stems from archaeological excavation in this area at sites such as Tel Hazor , Tel Megiddo , En Esur , and Gezer . The name "Canaan" appears throughout
3683-458: The Arabah , are considered by some religious authorities to be outside the Land of Israel for purposes of Jewish law. According to these authorities, the religious laws do not apply there. Traditional religious Jewish interpretation, and that of most Christian commentators, define Abraham's descendants only as Abraham's seed through his son Isaac and his grandson Jacob . Johann Friedrich Karl Keil
3810-403: The Bible as a geography associated with the " Promised Land ". The demonym "Canaanites" serves as an ethnic catch-all term covering various indigenous populations—both settled and nomadic-pastoral groups—throughout the regions of the southern Levant . It is by far the most frequently used ethnic term in the Bible. Biblical scholar Mark Smith , citing archaeological findings, suggests "that
3937-543: The Book of Jubilees . Jewish tradition thus refers to the region as Canaan during the period between the Flood and the Israelite settlement. Eliezer Schweid sees Canaan as a geographical name, and Israel the spiritual name of the land. He writes: "The uniqueness of the Land of Israel is thus "geo-theological" and not merely climatic. This is the land which faces the entrance of the spiritual world, that sphere of existence that lies beyond
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4064-741: The Brook of Egypt (see debate below) to the Mediterranean Sea. The territory defined by these borders is divided into twelve strips, one for each of the twelve tribes. Hence, Numbers 34 and Ezekiel 47 define different but similar borders which include the whole of contemporary Lebanon , both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and Israel , except for the South Negev and Eilat . Small parts of Syria are also included. The common biblical phrase used to refer to
4191-624: The Egyptian Empire and Hittite Empire. Later still, the Neo-Assyrian Empire assimilated the region. According to the Bible, the migrant ancient Semitic-speaking peoples who appear to have settled in the region included (among others) the Amorites , who had earlier controlled Babylonia. The Hebrew Bible mentions the Amorites in the Table of Peoples ( Book of Genesis 10:16–18a). Evidently,
4318-610: The Euphrates are mentioned to define the southern and eastern borders of the full land promised to the Israelites. The "Red Sea" corresponding to Hebrew Yam Suf was understood in ancient times to be the Erythraean Sea , as reflected in the Septuagint translation. Although the English name "Red Sea" is derived from this name ("Erythraean" derives from the Greek for red), the term denoted all
4445-651: The First Babylonian Empire , which lasted only as long as his lifetime. Upon his death the Amorites were driven from Assyria but remained masters of Babylonia until 1595 BC, when they were ejected by the Hittites. The semi-fictional Story of Sinuhe describes an Egyptian officer, Sinuhe, conducting military activities in the area of "Upper Retjenu " and " Fenekhu " during the reign of Senusret I ( c. 1950 BC). The earliest bona fide Egyptian report of
4572-508: The Hyksos , they became the dominant power. In Egyptian inscriptions, Amar and Amurru ( Amorites ) are applied strictly to the more northerly mountain region east of Phoenicia, extending to the Orontes . Archaeological excavations of a number of sites, later identified as Canaanite, show that prosperity of the region reached its apogee during this Middle Bronze Age period, under the leadership of
4699-526: The Israelite culture largely overlapped with and derived from Canaanite culture ... In short, Israelite culture was largely Canaanite in nature." The name "Canaanites" is attested, many centuries later, as the endonym of the people later known to the Ancient Greeks from c. 500 BC as Phoenicians , and after the emigration of Phoenicians and Canaanite-speakers to Carthage (founded in
4826-545: The New Testament ( Matthew 2:20–21 ), where, according to Shlomo Sand , it bears the unusual sense of 'the area surrounding Jerusalem'. The section in which it appears was written as a parallel to the earlier Book of Exodus . Genesis 15:18–21 describes what are known as "Borders of the Land" ( Gevulot Ha-aretz ), which in Jewish tradition defines the extent of the land promised to the descendants of Abraham, through his son Isaac and grandson Jacob. The passage describes
4953-546: The Shmita (Sabbatical year); tithing laws such as the Maaser Rishon ( Levite Tithe ), Maaser sheni , and Maaser ani (poor tithe); charitable practices during farming, such as pe'ah ; and laws regarding taxation. One popular source lists 26 of the 613 mitzvot as contingent upon the Land of Israel. According to Menachem Lorberbaum , the consecrated borders of the Land of Israel understood by returning exiles differed from both
5080-663: The Southern Levant . Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan , the Promised Land , the Holy Land , and Palestine . The definitions of the limits of this territory vary between passages in the Hebrew Bible , with specific mentions in Genesis 15 , Exodus 23 , Numbers 34 and Ezekiel 47 . Nine times elsewhere in the Bible, the settled land is referred as " from Dan to Beersheba ", and three times it
5207-680: The Zagros Mountains (in modern Iran ) east of the Tigris . In addition, DNA analysis revealed that between 2500–1000 BC, populations from the Chalcolithic Zagros and Bronze Age Caucasus migrated to the Southern Levant. The first cities in the southern Levant arose during this period. The major sites were 'En Esur and Meggido . These "proto-Canaanites" were in regular contact with the other peoples to their south such as Egypt , and to
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5334-446: The 9th century BC), was also used as a self-designation by the Punics (as "Chanani" ) of North Africa during Late Antiquity . The English term "Canaan" (pronounced / ˈ k eɪ n ən / since c. 1500 , due to the Great Vowel Shift ) comes from the Hebrew כנען ( Kənaʿan ), via the Koine Greek Χανααν Khanaan and the Latin Canaan . It appears as Kinâḫna ( Akkadian : 𒆳𒆠𒈾𒄴𒈾 , ki-na-aḫ-na ) in
5461-463: The Amarna letters of Pharaoh Akhenaten c. 1350 BC. In these letters, some of which were sent by governors and princes of Canaan to their Egyptian overlord Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV) in the 14th century BC, are found, beside Amar and Amurru ( Amorites ), the two forms Kinahhi and Kinahni , corresponding to Kena and Kena'an respectively, and including Syria in its widest extent , as Eduard Meyer has shown. The letters are written in
5588-506: The Amorites played a significant role in the early history of Canaan. In Book of Genesis 14:7 f ., Book of Joshua 10:5 f ., Book of Deuteronomy 1:19 f ., 27, 44, we find them located in the southern mountain country, while verses such as Book of Numbers 21:13, Book of Joshua 9:10, 24:8, 12, etc., tell of two great Amorite kings residing at Heshbon and Ashteroth , east of the Jordan. Other passages, including Book of Genesis 15:16, 48:22, Book of Joshua 24:15, Book of Judges 1:34, regard
5715-408: The Aramaic Targums ) understand this as referring to the Nile ; more precisely the Pelusian branch of the Nile Delta according to Halevi—a view supported by Egyptian and Assyrian texts. Saadia Gaon identified it as the "Wadi of El-Arish", referring to the biblical Sukkot near Faiyum . Kaftor Vaferech placed it in the same region, which approximates the location of the former Pelusian branch of
5842-485: The Assyrians during this period. Under Thutmose III (1479–1426 BC) and Amenhotep II (1427–1400 BC), the regular presence of the strong hand of the Egyptian ruler and his armies kept the Amorites and Canaanites sufficiently loyal. Nevertheless, Thutmose III reported a new and troubling element in the population. Habiru or (in Egyptian) 'Apiru, are reported for the first time. These seem to have been mercenaries, brigands, or outlaws, who may have at one time led
5969-417: The Book of Genesis, the land was first promised by God to Abram 's descendants; the text is explicit that this is a covenant between God and Abram for his descendants ( Gen 15:18–21 (NIV) : "On that day the LORD made a covenant"). Abram's name was later changed to Abraham, with the promise refined to pass through his son Isaac and to the Israelites , descendants of Jacob , Abraham's grandson. This belief
6096-426: The Egyptian crown to the Hittite Empire under Suppiluliuma I (reigned c. 1344–1322 BC). Egyptian power in Canaan thus suffered a major setback when the Hittites (or Hat.ti) advanced into Syria in the reign of Amenhotep III, and when they became even more threatening in that of his successor, displacing the Amorites and prompting a resumption of Semitic migration. Abdi-Ashirta and his son Aziru, at first afraid of
6223-457: The Feast of Booths—all your males shall appear before your God יהוה in the place that [God] will choose. They shall not appear before יהוה empty-handed, 17 but each with his own gift, according to the blessing that your God יהוה has bestowed upon you. In his vision of a restored Jerusalem, the prophet Isaiah refers to Zion as "the city of our appointed feasts,". Zechariah foretells a messianic era when all nations will come to Jerusalem for
6350-409: The Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in the results of your work from the field. Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Sovereign, יהוה . You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread—eating unleavened bread for seven days, as I have commanded you—at the set time of the month of Abib, for in the month of Abib you went forth from Egypt. Every first issue of
6477-423: The Feast of Weeks, of the first fruits of the wheat harvest; and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Sovereign יהוה, the God of Israel. 1 Observe the month of Abib and offer a passover sacrifice to your God יהוה, for it was in the month of Abib, at night, that your God יהוה freed you from Egypt. 9 You shall count off seven weeks; start to count
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#17328451752516604-428: The Ghassulians belonged to the West Asian haplogroup T-M184 . The end of the Chalcolithic period saw the rise of the urban settlement of 'En Esur on the southern Mediterranean coast. By the Early Bronze Age other sites had developed, such as Ebla (where an East Semitic language , Eblaite , was spoken), which by c. 2300 BC was incorporated into the Mesopotamia -based Akkadian Empire of Sargon
6731-405: The Great and Naram-Sin of Akkad (biblical Accad). Sumerian references to the Mar.tu ("tent dwellers", later Amurru , i.e. Amorite ) country west of the Euphrates River date from even earlier than Sargon, at least to the reign of the Sumerian king, Enshakushanna of Uruk , and one tablet credits the early Sumerian king Lugal-Anne-Mundu withholding sway in the region, although this tablet
6858-442: The Habiri. Apparently this restless warrior found his death at the siege of Gina . All these princes, however, maligned each other in their letters to the Pharaoh, and protested their own innocence of traitorous intentions. Namyawaza, for instance, whom Etakkama (see above) accused of disloyalty, wrote thus to the Pharaoh, Behold, I and my warriors and my chariots, together with my brethren and my SA-GAZ , and my Suti ?9 are at
6985-416: The Hebrew transliteration of the word "Palestine" פלשתינה (Palestina) followed always by the two initial letters of "Eretz Yisrael", א״י Aleph-Yod. The Land of Israel concept has been evoked by the founders of the State of Israel . It often surfaces in political debates on the status of the West Bank , referred to in official Israeli discourse as the Judea and Samaria Area . The term "Land of Israel"
7112-403: The Hittites at Kadesh in 1275 BC, but soon thereafter, the Hittites successfully took over the northern Levant (Syria and Amurru). Ramses II, obsessed with his own building projects while neglecting Asiatic contacts, allowed control over the region to continue dwindling. During the reign of his successor Merneptah , the Merneptah Stele was issued which claimed to have destroyed various sites in
7239-446: The Hittites, afterwards made a treaty with their king, and joining with the Hittites, attacked and conquered the districts remaining loyal to Egypt. In vain did Rib-Hadda send touching appeals for aid to the distant Pharaoh, who was far too engaged in his religious innovations to attend to such messages. The Amarna letters tell of the Habiri in northern Syria. Etakkama wrote thus to the Pharaoh: Behold, Namyawaza has surrendered all
7366-486: The Hurrian city of Nuzi in the early 20th century appear to use the term "Kinaḫnu" as a synonym for red or purple dye , laboriously produced by the Kassite rulers of Babylon from murex molluscs as early as 1600 BC, and on the Mediterranean coast by the Phoenicians from a byproduct of glassmaking. Purple cloth became a renowned Canaanite export commodity which is mentioned in Exodus . The dyes may have been named after their place of origin. The name 'Phoenicia'
7493-411: The Late Bronze Age state of Ugarit (at Ras Shamra in Syria ) is considered quintessentially Canaanite, even though its Ugaritic language does not belong to the Canaanite language group proper. A disputed reference to a "Lord of ga-na-na " in the Semitic Ebla tablets (dated 2350 BC) from the archive of Tell Mardikh has been interpreted by some scholars to mention the deity Dagon by
7620-404: The Lord, that I will make for the house of Israel, and for the house of Judah, a new testament: not according to the testament that I settled for their fathers in the day when I laid hold of their hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my testament, and I regarded them not, says the Lord." Augustine concludes that this other promise, revealed in the New Testament,
7747-406: The Moabites, and Molek the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in obedience to me, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my decrees and laws as David, Solomon's father, did. 34 "'But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon's hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who obeyed my commands and decrees. 35 I will take
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#17328451752517874-415: The Nile. 19th century Bible commentaries understood the identification as a reference to the Wadi of the coastal locality called El-Arish . Easton's, however, notes a local tradition that the course of the river had changed and there was once a branch of the Nile where today there is a wadi. Biblical minimalists have suggested that the Besor is intended. Deuteronomy 19:8 indicates a certain fluidity of
8001-447: The area as the land of the ten named ancient peoples then living there. More precise geographical borders are given in Exodus 23:31 , which describes borders as marked by the Red Sea (see debate below), the "Sea of the Philistines" i.e. , the Mediterranean , and the "River", the Euphrates ), the traditional furthest extent of the Kingdom of David . Genesis gives the border with Egypt as Nahar Mitzrayim – nahar in Hebrew denotes
8128-444: The area which the Israelite tribes had their settlements". According to Anita Shapira , the term "Eretz Yisrael" was a holy term, vague as far as the exact boundaries of the territories are concerned but clearly defining ownership. The sanctity of the land ( kedushat ha-aretz ) developed rich associations in rabbinical thought, where it assumes a highly symbolic and mythological status infused with promise, although always connected to
8255-437: The biblical and pre-exilic borders. By mapping the land in accordance with biblical traditions while simultaneously reflecting the extent of Jewish settlement in the region during their time, rabbinic literature not only sanctified the territory but also established a symbolic continuity that linked contemporary Jewish communities to their ancestors in biblical times. The Jerusalem Talmud, in tractate Shabbat, states: "Whoever
8382-407: The borders of the promised land when it refers to the possibility that God would "enlarge your borders". This expansion of territory means that Israel would receive "all the land he promised to give to your fathers", which implies that the settlement actually fell short of what was promised. According to Jacob Milgrom , Deuteronomy refers to a more utopian map of the promised land, whose eastern border
8509-467: The case of passports or certificates of nationality, it might perhaps give rise to difficulties, so it was decided to print 'Palestine' in Hebrew letters and to add after it the letters 'Aleph' 'Yod', which constitute a recognised abbreviation of the Hebrew name. His Excellency still thought that this was a good compromise. Dr. Salem wanted to omit 'Aleph' 'Yod' and Mr. Yellin wanted to omit 'Palestine'. The right solution would be to retain both. —Minutes of
8636-414: The cities of the king, my lord to the SA-GAZ in the land of Kadesh and in Ubi . But I will go, and if thy gods and thy sun go before me, I will bring back the cities to the king, my lord, from the Habiri, to show myself subject to him; and I will expel the SA-GAZ . Similarly, Zimrida , king of Sidon (named 'Siduna'), declared, "All my cities which the king has given into my hand, have come into
8763-411: The city of Hazor , at least nominally tributary to Egypt for much of the period. In the north, the cities of Yamkhad and Qatna were hegemons of important confederacies , and it would appear that biblical Hazor was the chief city of another important coalition in the south. In the early Late Bronze Age, Canaanite confederacies centered on Megiddo and Kadesh , before being fully brought into
8890-404: The disposal of the (royal) troops to go whithersoever the king, my lord, commands." Around the beginning of the New Kingdom period, Egypt exerted rule over much of the Levant. Rule remained strong during the Eighteenth Dynasty , but Egypt's rule became precarious during the Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties . Ramses II was able to maintain control over it in the stalemated battle against
9017-405: The early Israelites of the period of the " judges ", who sought to appropriate the fertile region for themselves. However, the term was rarely used to describe the Shasu. Whether the term may also include other related ancient Semitic-speaking peoples such as the Moabites , Ammonites and Edomites is uncertain. There is little evidence that any major city or settlement in the southern Levant
9144-426: The end of the Late Bronze Age. He has also demonstrated that trade with Egypt continued after 1200 BC. Archaeometallurgical studies performed by various teams have also shown that trade in tin , a non-local metal necessary to make bronze , did not stop or decrease after 1200 BC, even though the closest source of the metal were modern Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, or perhaps even Cornwall, England. Lead from Sardinia
9271-635: The entire land of the Israelites. The English expression " Promised Land " can denote either the land promised to Abraham in Genesis or the land of Canaan, although the latter meaning is more common. The border with Egypt is given as the Nachal Mitzrayim ( Brook of Egypt ) in Numbers, as well as in Deuteronomy and Ezekiel. Jewish tradition (as expressed in the commentaries of Rashi and Yehuda Halevi , as well as
9398-412: The feast of Sukkot . The Song of Ascents or pilgrim psalms ( Psalms 120-134) are associated with the pilgrims' journey to Jerusalem. Land of Israel Canaan State of Israel (1948–present) The Land of Israel ( Hebrew : אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל , Modern : ʾEreṣ Yīsraʾel , Tiberian : ʾEreṣ Yīsrāʾēl ) is the traditional Jewish name for an area of
9525-516: The fortress of Taru (Shtir?) to " Ka-n-'-na ". After the near collapse of the Battle of Kadesh , Rameses II had to campaign vigorously in Canaan to maintain Egyptian power. Egyptian forces penetrated into Moab and Ammon , where a permanent fortress garrison (called simply "Rameses") was established. Some believe the " Habiru " signified generally all the nomadic tribes known as "Hebrews", and particularly
9652-787: The future government of Palestine, of the Plan of Partition with Economic Union". The Resolution contained a plan to partition Palestine into "Independent Arab and Jewish States and the Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem". On 14 May 1948, the day the British Mandate over Palestine expired, the Jewish People's Council gathered at the Tel Aviv Museum, and approved a proclamation , in which it declared "the establishment of
9779-520: The hand of the Habiri." The king of Jerusalem , Abdi-Heba , reported to the Pharaoh: If (Egyptian) troops come this year, lands and princes will remain to the king, my lord; but if troops come not, these lands and princes will not remain to the king, my lord. Abdi-heba's principal trouble arose from persons called Iilkili and the sons of Labaya , who are said to have entered into a treasonable league with
9906-557: The help of a neighbouring king. The boldest of the disaffected nobles was Aziru , son of Abdi-Ashirta , who endeavoured to extend his power into the plain of Damascus . Akizzi , governor of Katna ( Qatna ?) (near Hamath ), reported this to Amenhotep III, who seems to have sought to frustrate Aziru's attempts. In the reign of the next pharaoh, Akhenaten (reigned c. 1352 to c. 1335 BC) both father and son caused infinite trouble to loyal servants of Egypt like Rib-Hadda , governor of Gubla (Gebal), by transferring their loyalty from
10033-510: The historical entitlement that Jews have to the whole Land of Israel. Ginsburgh's ideas about the need for Jewish control over the land has some popularity within contemporary West Bank settlements. However, there are also strong backlashes from the Jewish community regarding these ideas. The Satmar Hasidic community in particular denounces any geographic or political establishment of Israel, deeming this establishment as directly interfering with God's plan for Jewish redemption. Joel Teitelbaum
10160-504: The kingdom from his son's hands and give you ten tribes. 36 I will give one tribe to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name. According to Jewish religious law ( halakha ), some laws only apply to Jews living in the Land of Israel and some areas in Jordan , Lebanon, and Syria (which are thought to be part of biblical Israel). These include agricultural laws such as
10287-548: The land as where Jewish religious law prevailed and excludes territory where it was not applied. It holds that the area is a God-given inheritance of the Jewish people based on the Torah , particularly the books of Genesis , Exodus , Numbers and Deuteronomy , as well as Joshua and the later Prophets ( Exodus 6:4 : "I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, where they resided as foreigners"). According to
10414-531: The land of Canaan" is found on the Statue of Idrimi (16th century BC) from Alalakh in modern Syria. After a popular uprising against his rule, Idrimi was forced into exile with his mother's relatives to seek refuge in "the land of Canaan", where he prepared for an eventual attack to recover his city. The other references in the Alalakh texts are: Around 1650 BC, Canaanites invaded the eastern Nile delta , where, known as
10541-489: The land unique to Jews ( Parkes, James ). The idea that ancient religious texts can be warrant or divine right for a modern claim has often been challenged, and Israeli courts have rejected land claims based on religious motivations. During the League of Nations mandate period (1920–1948 ) the term "Eretz Yisrael" or the "Land of Israel" was part of the official Hebrew name of Mandatory Palestine . Official Hebrew documents used
10668-414: The land. The laws apply to all Jews, and the giving of the land itself in the covenant, applies to all Jews, including converts. Many of the religious laws which applied in ancient times are applied in the modern State of Israel; others have not been revived, since the State of Israel does not adhere to traditional Jewish law . However, certain parts of the current territory of the State of Israel, such as
10795-748: The late 13th century BC and ending close to the end of the 12th century BC. The reason for the Egypt's withdrawal was most likely political turmoil in Egypt proper rather than the invasion by the Sea Peoples , as there is little evidence that the Sea Peoples caused much destruction ca. 1200 BC. Many Egyptian garrisons or sites with an "Egyptian governor's residence" in the southern Levant were abandoned without destruction including Deir al-Balah , Ascalon , Tel Mor, Tell el-Far'ah (South) , Tel Gerisa , Tell Jemmeh , Tel Masos , and Qubur el-Walaydah. Not all Egyptian sites in
10922-471: The majority were Hurrian, although there were a number of Semites and even some Kassite and Luwian adventurers amongst their number. The reign of Amenhotep III , as a result, was not quite so tranquil for the Asiatic province, as Habiru/'Apiru contributed to greater political instability. It is believed that turbulent chiefs began to seek their opportunities, although as a rule they could not find them without
11049-611: The meeting on November 9, 1920. The compromise was later noted as among Arab grievances before the League's Permanent Mandate Commission. During the Mandate, the name Eretz Yisrael (abbreviated א״י Aleph-Yod ), was part of the official name for the territory, when written in Hebrew . These official names for Palestine were minted on the Mandate coins and early stamps (pictured) in English, Hebrew "(פלשתינה (א״י" ( Palestina E"Y ) and Arabic ("فلسطين"). Consequently, in 20th-century political usage,
11176-548: The name Amorite as synonymous with "Canaanite". The name Amorite is, however, never used for the population on the coast. In the centuries preceding the appearance of the biblical Hebrews, parts of Canaan and southwestern Syria became tributary to the Egyptian pharaohs , although domination by the Egyptians remained sporadic, and not strong enough to prevent frequent local rebellions and inter-city struggles. Other areas such as northern Canaan and northern Syria came to be ruled by
11303-544: The name of Egypt's province in the Levant, and evolved into the proper name in a similar fashion to Provincia Nostra (the first Roman colony north of the Alps, which became Provence ). An alternative suggestion, put forward by Ephraim Avigdor Speiser in 1936, derives the term from Hurrian Kinaḫḫu , purportedly referring to the colour purple, so that "Canaan" and " Phoenicia " would be synonyms ("Land of Purple"). Tablets found in
11430-409: The north Asia Minor ( Hurrians , Hattians , Hittites , Luwians ) and Mesopotamia ( Sumer , Akkad , Assyria ), a trend that continued through the Iron Age . The end of the period is marked by the abandonment of the cities and a return to lifestyles based on farming villages and semi-nomadic herding, although specialised craft production continued and trade routes remained open. Archaeologically,
11557-706: The northern border of modern Lebanon , eastwards (the way of Hethlon) to Zedad and Hazar-enan in modern Syria ; south by southwest to the area of Busra on the Syrian border (area of Hauran in Ezekiel); follows the Jordan River between the West Bank and the land of Gilead to Tamar ( Ein Gedi ) on the western shore of the Dead Sea; From Tamar to Meribah Kadesh ( Kadesh Barnea ), then along
11684-439: The official and diplomatic East Semitic Akkadian language of Assyria and Babylonia , though "Canaanitish" words and idioms are also in evidence. The known references are: Text RS 20.182 from Ugarit is a copy of a letter of the king of Ugarit to Ramesses II concerning money paid by "the sons of the land of Ugarit" to the "foreman of the sons of the land of Canaan ( *kn'ny )" According to Jonathan Tubb, this suggests that
11811-561: The people of Ugarit, contrary to much modern opinion, considered themselves to be non-Canaanite. The other Ugarit reference, KTU 4.96, shows a list of traders assigned to royal estates, one of the estates having three Ugaritans, an Ashdadite, an Egyptian and a Canaanite. A Middle Assyrian letter during the reign of Shalmaneser I includes a reference to the "travel to Canaan" of an Assyrian official. Four references are known from Hattusa: Ann Killebrew has shown that cities such as Jerusalem were large and important walled settlements in
11938-418: The physical world known to us through our senses. This is the key to the land's unique status with regard to prophecy and prayer, and also with regard to the commandments." Thus, the renaming of this landmarks a change in religious status, the origin of the Holy Land concept. Numbers 34:1–13 uses the term Canaan strictly for the land west of the Jordan, but Land of Israel is used in Jewish tradition to denote
12065-543: The pre-Israelite Middle Bronze IIB and the Israelite Iron Age IIC period ( c. 1800–1550 and c. 720–586 BC), but that during the intervening Late Bronze (LB) and Iron Age I and IIA/B Ages sites like Jerusalem were small and relatively insignificant and unfortified towns. Just after the Amarna period, a new problem arose which was to trouble the Egyptian control of southern Canaan (the rest of
12192-454: The region then being under Assyrian control). Pharaoh Horemhab campaigned against Shasu (Egyptian = "wanderers") living in nomadic pastoralist tribes, who had moved across the Jordan River to threaten Egyptian trade through Galilee and Jezreel . Seti I ( c. 1290 BC) is said to have conquered these Shasu, Semitic-speaking nomads living just south and east of the Dead Sea , from
12319-475: The region traversed by the enumerators is defined as reaching up to though not including [them], or that these cities were actually visited in order to take a census of Israelites resident in them". Ezekiel 47:13–20 provides a definition of borders of land in which the twelve tribes of Israel will live during the final redemption, at the end of days. The borders of the land described by the text in Ezekiel include
12446-634: The reign of the Sumerian king, Shulgi of Ur III , their appearance in Canaan appears to have been due to the arrival of a new state based in Asia Minor to the north of Assyria and based upon a Maryannu aristocracy of horse-drawn charioteers , associated with the Indo-Aryan rulers of the Hurrians , known as Mitanni . The Habiru seem to have been more a social class than an ethnic group. One analysis shows that
12573-508: The related passages describing the holiday being observed are read aloud from a Torah scroll on the bimah (platform) used at the center of the synagogue services. During the Jewish holidays in the state of Israel , many observant Jews living in or near Jerusalem make an effort to attend prayer services at the Western Wall , emulating the ancient pilgrimages in some small fashion. Samaritans make pilgrimages to Mount Gerizim three times
12700-481: The remaining tribes. The region is called "the Land of Canaan " ( Eretz Kna'an ) in Numbers 34:2 and the borders are known in Jewish tradition as the "borders for those coming out of Egypt". These borders are again mentioned in Deuteronomy 1:6–8 , 11:24 and Joshua 1:4 . According to the Hebrew Bible, Canaan was the son of Ham who with his descendants had seized the land from the descendants of Shem according to
12827-557: The ruins of Mari , an Assyrian outpost at that time in Syria . Additional unpublished references to Kinahnum in the Mari letters refer to the same episode. Whether the term Kinahnum refers to people from a specific region or rather people of "foreign origin" has been disputed, such that Robert Drews states that the "first certain cuneiform reference" to Canaan is found on the Alalakh statue of King Idrimi (below). A reference to Ammiya being "in
12954-514: The same phrasing is used in reference to King Solomon 's census of all of the 'strangers in the Land of Israel' ( 2 Chronicles 2:17 ). Ezekiel , although generally preferring the phrase 'soil of Israel' ( ' admat yiśrā'êl ), employs eretz Israel twice, respectively at Ezekiel 40:2 and Ezekiel 47:18 . According to Martin Noth , the term is not an "authentic and original name for this land", but instead serves as "a somewhat flexible description of
13081-521: The secular Jewish political movement of Zionism to adopt at the turn of the 20th century; it was used to refer to their proposed national homeland in the area then controlled by the Ottoman Empire . As originally stated, "The aim of Zionism is to create for the Jewish people a home in Palestine secured by law." The Biblical concept of Eretz Israel, and its re-establishment as a state in the modern era,
13208-415: The seven weeks when the sickle is first put to the standing grain. 10 Then you shall observe the Feast of Weeks for your God יהוה, offering your freewill contribution according as your God יהוה has blessed you. 13 After the ingathering from your threshing floor and your vat, you shall hold the Feast of Booths for seven days. 16 Three times a year—on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, on the Feast of Weeks, and on
13335-544: The so-called Syro-Hittite states and the Phoenician city-states. The entire region (including all Phoenician/Canaanite and Aramean states, together with Israel , Philistia , and Samaria ) was conquered by the Neo-Assyrian Empire during the 10th and 9th centuries BC, and would remain so for three hundred years until the end of the 7th century BC. Emperor-kings such as Ashurnasirpal , Adad-nirari II , Sargon II , Tiglath-Pileser III , Esarhaddon , Sennacherib and Ashurbanipal came to dominate Canaanite affairs. During
13462-467: The southern Levant were abandoned without destruction. The Egyptian garrison at Aphek was destroyed, likely in an act of warfare at the end of the 13th century. The Egyptian gate complex uncovered at Jaffa was destroyed at the end of the 12th century between 1134-1115 based on C14 dates, while Beth-Shean was partially though not completely destroyed, possibly by an earthquake, in the mid-12th century. References to Canaanites are also found throughout
13589-477: The southern Levant, including a people known as "Israel". However, archaeological findings show no destruction at any of the sites mentioned in the Merneptah Stele and so it is considered to be an exercise in propaganda, and the campaign most likely avoided the central highlands in the southern Levant. Egypt's withdrawal from the southern Levant was a protracted process lasting some one hundred years beginning in
13716-628: The southern Levant, there is ample evidence that trade with other regions continued after the end of the Late Bronze Age in the Southern Levant. Archaeologist Jesse Millek has shown that while the common assumption is that trade in Cypriot and Mycenaean pottery ended around 1200 BC, trade in Cypriot pottery actually largely came to an end at 1300, while for Mycenaean pottery , this trade ended at 1250 BC, and destruction around 1200 BC could not have affected either pattern of international trade since it ended before
13843-740: The state of Babylon in 1894 BC. Later on, Amurru became the Assyrian/Akkadian term for the interior of south as well as for northerly Canaan. At this time the Canaanite area seemed divided between two confederacies, one centred upon Megiddo in the Jezreel Valley , the second on the more northerly city of Kadesh on the Orontes River. An Amorite chieftain named Sumu-abum founded Babylon as an independent city-state in 1894 BC. One Amorite king of Babylonia, Hammurabi (1792–1750 BC), founded
13970-516: The status of the West Bank , which is referred to in official Israeli discourse as Judea and Samaria , from the names of the two historical Israelite and Judean kingdoms . These debates frequently invoke religious principles, despite the little weight these principles typically carry in Israeli secular politics. Ideas about the need for Jewish control of the land of Israel have been propounded by figures such as Yitzhak Ginsburg , who has written about
14097-654: The term "Land of Israel" usually denotes only those parts of the land which came under the British mandate. On 29 November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution ( United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181 (II)) recommending "to the United Kingdom, as the mandatory Power for Palestine, and to all other Members of the United Nations the adoption and implementation, with regard to
14224-406: The term "the land" (ha'aretz), as does Deuteronomy 1:8 in which it is promised explicitly to "Abraham, Isaac and Jacob... and to their descendants after them", whilst Numbers 34:1–15 describes the "Land of Canaan" (Eretz Kna'an) which is allocated to nine and half of the twelve Israelite tribes after the Exodus . The expression "Land of Israel" is first used in a later book, 1 Samuel 13:19 . It
14351-506: The territories actually settled by the Israelites (as opposed to military conquests) is "from Dan to Beersheba " (or its variant "from Beersheba to Dan"), which occurs many times in the Bible. The 12 tribes of Israel are divided in 1 Kings 11. In the chapter, King Solomon 's sins lead to Israelites forfeiting 10 of the 12 tribes: 30 and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam , "Take ten pieces for yourself, for this
14478-409: The title "Lord of Canaan" If correct, this would suggest that Eblaites were conscious of Canaan as an entity by 2500 BC. Jonathan Tubb states that the term ga-na-na "may provide a third-millennium reference to Canaanite ", while at the same time stating that the first certain reference is in the 18th century BC. See Ebla-Biblical controversy for further details. Urbanism returned and the region
14605-477: The vicinity south of Sidon". In 1920, the Jewish members of the first High Commissioner 's advisory council objected to the Hebrew transliteration of the word "Palestine" פלשתינה ( Palestina ) on the ground that the traditional name was ארץ ישראל ( Eretz Yisrael ), but the Arab members would not agree to this designation, which in their view, had political significance. The High Commissioner, Sir Herbert Samuel , himself
14732-525: The waters surrounding Arabia—including the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf , not merely the sea lying to the west of Arabia bearing this name in modern English. Thus, the entire Arabian peninsula lies within the borders described. Modern maps depicting the region take a reticent view and often leave the southern and eastern borders vaguely defined. The borders of the land to be conquered given in Numbers have
14859-471: The womb is Mine, from all your livestock that drop a male as firstling, whether cattle or sheep. But the firstling of an ass you shall redeem with a sheep; if you do not redeem it, you must break its neck. And you must redeem every male first-born among your children. None shall appear before Me empty-handed. Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor; you shall cease from labor even at plowing time and harvest time. You shall observe
14986-564: Was a basic tenet of the original Zionist program. This program however, saw little success until the British commitment to "the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people" in the Balfour Declaration . Chaim Weizmann , as leader of the Zionist delegation, at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference presented a Zionist Statement on 3 February. Among other things, he presented
15113-403: Was a foremost figure in this denouncement, calling the Land and State of Israel a vehicle for idol worship, as well as a smokescreen for Satan's workings. During the early 5th century, Augustine of Hippo argued in his City of God that the earthly or "carnal" kingdom of Israel achieved its peak during the reigns of David and his son Solomon. He goes on to say however, that this possession
15240-804: Was about to be fulfilled through the incarnation of Christ: "I will give my laws in their mind, and will write them upon their hearts, and I will see to them; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people." Notwithstanding this doctrine stated by Augustine and also by the Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Romans (Ch. 11), the phenomenon of Christian Zionism is widely noted today, especially among evangelical Protestants. Other Protestant groups and churches reject Christian Zionism on various grounds . Jewish religious tradition does not distinguish clearly between religious, national, racial, or ethnic identities. Nonetheless, during two millennia of exile and with
15367-411: Was conditional: "...the Hebrew nation should remain in the same land by the succession of posterity in an unshaken state even to the end of this mortal age, if it obeyed the laws of the Lord its God." He goes on to say that the failure of the Hebrew nation to adhere to this condition resulted in its revocation and the making of a second covenant and cites Jeremiah 31:31–32 : "Behold, the days come, says
15494-469: Was destroyed around 1200 BC. At Lachish , The Fosse Temple III was ritually terminated while a house in Area S appears to have burned in a house fire as the most severe evidence of burning was next to two ovens while no other part of the city had evidence of burning. After this though the city was rebuilt in a grander fashion than before. For Megiddo , most parts of the city did not have any signs of damage and it
15621-615: Was divided among small city-states, the most important of which seems to have been Hazor. Many aspects of Canaanite material culture now reflected a Mesopotamian influence, and the entire region became more tightly integrated into a vast international trading network. As early as Naram-Sin of Akkad 's reign ( c. 2240 BC), Amurru was called one of the "four quarters" surrounding Akkad , along with Subartu / Assyria , Sumer , and Elam . Amorite dynasties also came to dominate in much of Mesopotamia, including in Larsa , Isin and founding
15748-429: Was later seen as a national home and refuge, intimately related to that traditional sense of people-hood, and meant to show continuity that this land was always seen as central to Jewish life, in theory if not in practice. Having already used another religious term of great importance, Zion (Jerusalem), to coin the name of their movement, being associated with the return to Zion. The term was considered appropriate for
15875-649: Was still being imported to the southern Levant after 1200 BC during the early Iron Age. By the Early Iron Age , the southern Levant came to be dominated by the kingdoms of Israel and Judah , besides the Philistine city-states on the Mediterranean coast, and the kingdoms of Moab , Ammon , and Aram-Damascus east of the Jordan River, and Edom to the south. The northern Levant was divided into various petty kingdoms,
16002-604: Was the most advanced metal technology in the ancient world. Their work is similar to artifacts from the later Maykop culture , leading some scholars to believe they represent two branches of an original metalworking tradition. Their main copper mine was at Wadi Feynan . The copper was mined from the Cambrian Burj Dolomite Shale Unit in the form of the mineral malachite . All of the copper was smelted at sites in Beersheba culture . Genetic analysis has shown that
16129-529: Was the usual ancient Egyptian name for Canaan and Syria, covering the region from Gaza in the south, to Tartous in the north. Its borders shifted with time, but it generally consisted of three regions. The region between Ascalon and the Lebanon , stretching inland to the Sea of Galilee , was named Djahy , which was approximately synonymous with Canaan. There are several periodization systems for Canaan. One of them
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