I began reading Cecil Roth’s A Short History of the Jewish People. I recommend it without qualification — the broad sweep of history, with just enough detail, written in excellent prose.
Roth wrote many books, all of which deal with Jewish history. Tolkien met Roth and liked him; they worked together in World War II, watching the skies for enemy planes. Cecil Roth was the brother of Leon Roth, who was a philosophy professor and the author of Spinoza, Descartes, & Maimonides.1
Roth begins his history by discussing the origin of the Jews. He says that the Jews came from Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq); perhaps they left Mesopotamia because it was crowded, perhaps they left for religious reasons.
Abraham was the leader of the people who became the Jews. His spiritual outlook may have differed from that which prevailed in his native city (his native city was Ur, near the Euphrates River). The prevailing religion was polytheistic. “It was with the glimmering of something higher, and in the hope of attaining a more complete spiritual fulfillment, that Abraham is said to have left his country.” I’m reminded of Roger Williams leaving the Boston area in 1636 and coming to Rhode Island, because his religious views were different from those that prevailed in the Boston area.
Abraham moved south through Palestine “with his flocks and his herds,” taking refuge in Egypt during a time of famine, then returning to Palestine. Palestine was then known as “Canaan,” and the people were known as “Canaanites.” We can think of Abraham’s group as an extended family, with perhaps a few other people who shared his desire for a fresh start, or shared his religious views.
The next leader of the group is Isaac, Abraham’s son. Isaac’s son, Jacob, quarrels with his brother, Esau, and Jacob “returned to his mother’s kinsfolk in Mesopotamia.” Jacob started a family that eventually grew to twelve sons. “Many years later [Jacob] came back to Palestine with his growing family, and lived the life of a wandering sheik, as his father [Isaac] and grandfather [Abraham] had done.” The family is becoming a tribe — perhaps more than one tribe; Jacob’s twelve sons become the twelve tribes of Israel; Jacob himself is sometimes called “Israel.”
Another famine led to another sojourn in Egypt. One of Jacob’s sons, Joseph, had already established himself in Egypt, perhaps because Egypt was then ruled by a Semitic people called the Hyksos; perhaps the Hyksos were more friendly toward an outsider since they were outsiders themselves.
Roth says that the Hyksos lost power in Egypt in 1583 BC, and the position of the Jews in Egypt became precarious. “At last they were reduced to unqualified serfdom.” But they preserved their identity as Jews, perhaps because their religion “stood out in favorable contrast to the fantastic polytheism of their masters.”
Despite this “unqualified serfdom,” one of the Jews, Moses, was “brought up in the royal court.” He led the Jews out of Egypt, along with other oppressed peoples, perhaps including Egypt’s former rulers, the Hyksos. Since the Egyptians then controlled Palestine, Moses couldn’t lead his people to Palestine. So they lingered in the Sinai wilderness for forty years, while Moses “welded the jealous families into a people,” “inculcated a purer idea of monotheism,” and “laid down the basis of an advanced moral and ethical system.”
Moses was at least partly responsible for “the existence of the Hebrew people, with its distinctive literature, its laws, its ethics, and its religious code.” Even if there’s no solid evidence for the existence of Moses, Roth says it’s “necessary to assume” the existence of such a leader in order to account for what was achieved. It’s not necessary, however, to accept everything that tradition says about Moses. For example, tradition says that Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament, but modern scholarship rejects this tradition.
When Moses led the Jews out of Egypt, they settled in “the fertile strip on the eastern side of the Jordan.” After Moses died, Joshua led the Jews over the Jordan and into Palestine. The Jewish conquest of Palestine proceeded slowly, and it was “many generations” before they reached the coast. Some cities were controlled by the Egyptians, and occupied by Egyptian garrisons; the “original inhabitants” (Canaanites?) had some mountain strongholds. The Jews eventually managed to control pockets of Palestine, but these pockets were isolated from each other. Foreign foes often invaded, and overcame Jewish communities; rarely did the Jewish communities band together for common defense.
By 1200 BC, the Jews controlled Palestine. The “old monotheistic ideals” were alive, though there were occasional lapses. The Jews were an agricultural people; commerce was “in the hands of Canaanite traders.”
In the Old Testament, the first five books are called The Books of Moses; they’re followed by the Book of Joshua, then the Book of Judges; the two Books of Kings come later. Likewise, Roth says that the era of “judges” in Jewish history precedes the era of kings. “Judges” were respected figures who had the power to judge; one might call them tribal leaders, or tribal elders, or military leaders. Deborah, Ehud, Gideon, and Jephtha were prominent in the “age of Judges,” and often tried to repel invaders from east of the Jordan.
The Jewish domain extended from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south. About halfway down is Shiloh, “the sentimental center of the country,” where the “Ark of the Covenant” was kept (the Ark of the Covenant was a gold-covered chest containing the Tablets of the Law, i.e., the Ten Commandments). Shiloh is near where the Jews crossed the Jordan and entered Palestine from the east, under the leadership of Joshua.
At the end of the era of judges (c. 1100 BC), Palestine was composed of separate Jewish communities. Roth compares the situation to England around 800 AD, when there were separate Anglo-Saxon communities:
| There was in each case a rudimentary sense of solidarity, fostered by a common blood and a common faith. The stimulus and the agonies of a universal danger were necessary to weld the scattered tribes into a people. In the one case [i.e., in England] it was provided by the incursions of the Danes. In the other, it came from a maritime people strikingly similar to them — the Philistines. |
The Philistines came from “Crete and the coast-lands of Asia Minor.” First they attempted an incursion into Egypt, but were defeated in 1194 BC. Then they turned their attention to Palestine, using ships, and also troops marching overland.
The Philistines had iron weapons, which were superior to the bronze weapons of their foes. They established five city-states in what is now southwestern Israel: Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath; these five city-states are sometimes called the Philistine Pentapolis. The Philistine domain “commanded the high-road between Asia and Africa.” They gave their name to the region: “Palestine” comes from “Philistine.”
Two Israelites became famous battling the Philistines:
- Samson, who has superhuman strength, but loses his strength when his hair is cut, and becomes a prisoner of the Philistines
- David, who slays Goliath and later becomes king
Once the Philistines were established along the coast, they began pushing inland, staging raids against the closest Israelite tribe, Dan. When the people of Dan could no longer cope with these raids, they re-located to the extreme north of Palestine.
Threatened by the Philistines, the Israelite tribes banded together. They even tried bringing the Ark of the Covenant into battle with them. But nothing worked, defeat followed defeat, the Ark was captured. Roth writes,
| For many years to come, Israel lay under the Philistine heel.... The country was completely disarmed. Even the smiths were deported; and when the simplest agricultural implement became blunt, it was necessary to take it down to the coast to be sharpened, at a heavy price. By this means, the invaders hoped to maintain the initial advantage which they derived from their superior weapons. |
The capture of the Ark “undermined the influence of the corrupt priesthood,” and elevated the prophet Samuel. Samuel realized that the Israelites needed a strong central government to repel the Philistines; they needed a king, though this was “contrary to immemorial tradition.” One might compare Samuel to the American Founding Fathers, who realized that the states needed a strong central government. As the Founding Fathers needed to balance the claims of rival states, so Samuel had to choose a king without alienating any of Israel’s tribes.
Meanwhile, the Ammonites, who lived east of the Jordan River, attacked Israelite settlements east of the Jordan. No one came to the assistance of the attacked settlements, until “a courageous Benjaminite farmer named Saul took it upon himself to assume the leadership. There was a sudden counter-raid across the Jordan, and the enemy was repulsed. Saul seemed to be marked by heaven as the national leader. With Samuel’s approval, he was proclaimed king by the people.”
Saul and his followers began a guerrilla war against the Philistines. The first blow was struck by one of Saul’s sons, Jonathan, who slew a Philistine official. “Saul and his followers, familiar with every fold of the land, were able to fall upon enemy detachments when they were least expected.... Eventually, the country was cleared almost entirely of the Philistine forces.” But the Philistines still had their coastal realm, they were still a threat.
Roth says that Saul proved to be a mediocre statesman, though he was an effective military leader. Tribal jealousies resurfaced; Saul was from the tribe of Benjamin, and “the powerful tribe of Judah found its eclipse by that of Benjamin insufferable.”
Meanwhile, David was still a popular favorite, renowned for defeating Goliath, and for his raids against the Philistines. Initially, David was on good terms with Saul, and with Saul’s son, Jonathan. Eventually, though, Saul resented David’s growing reputation. “Finding his life in danger, David escaped to his native district, the hill-country of Judah.”
Saul continued to pursue him, so David took refuge among his old foes, the Philistines, who may have been happy to see the Jews divided among themselves. In 1013 BC, Saul and Jonathan died at Mount Gilboa in a battle with the Philistines, prompting David to write an elegy:
A gazelle lies slain on your heights, Israel.
How the mighty have fallen!
Tell it not in Gath,
proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon,
lest the daughters of the Philistines be glad,
lest the daughters of the uncircumcised rejoice.
Mountains of Gilboa,
may you have neither dew nor rain,
may no showers fall on your terraced fields.
For there the shield of the mighty was despised,
the shield of Saul — no longer rubbed with oil.
From the blood of the slain,
from the flesh of the mighty,
the bow of Jonathan did not turn back,
the sword of Saul did not return unsatisfied.
Saul and Jonathan —
in life they were loved and admired,
and in death they were not parted.
They were swifter than eagles,
they were stronger than lions.
Daughters of Israel,
weep for Saul,
who clothed you in scarlet and finery,
who adorned your garments with ornaments of gold.
How the mighty have fallen in battle!
Jonathan lies slain on your heights.
I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother;
you were very dear to me.
Your love for me was wonderful,
more wonderful than that of women.
How the mighty have fallen!
The weapons of war have perished! (2 Samuel 1:19)
One of Saul’s sons, Ishbaal, succeeded him on the throne. The royal capital was no longer safe from the Philistines, so it was moved east of the Jordan.
David returned from his exile in the Philistine realm. Accompanied by “his seasoned veterans,” David established a base in southern Palestine, and was proclaimed king. The north was “restive under Ishbaal’s weak rule.” Ishbaal was assassinated, and in 1006 BC, David became king of all Israel.
Some passages from the Bible:
The Lord had said unto Abraham, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great....
And they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.... And the Canaanite was then in the land.... And Abraham journeyed, going on still toward the south. And there was a famine in the land: and Abraham went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land....
[After a dispute over his beautiful wife, Sarah, Abraham] went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had.... And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning....
And when Abraham was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abraham, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.... and thou shalt be a father of many nations....
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.... This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations....
And Sarah said unto Abraham, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abraham hearkened to the voice of Sarah. And Sarah Abraham’s wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abraham had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abraham to be his wife. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived....
And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Behold, thou art with child and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael. And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him....
And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac.... And the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age.... And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
And [God] said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.
And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
The Sacrifice of Isaac by Rembrandt
And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son....
[Abraham says to his servant] thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac....
And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water....
Behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up....
[Abraham’s servant says to Rebekah’s family] And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left. Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the Lord hath spoken....
Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people....
And Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the Lord. And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.
And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau’s heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.
And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because [Isaac] did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.
And Jacob sod pottage [i.e., cooked soup]: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage [i.e., red soup]; for I am faint....
And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright....
And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I. And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death: Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison; And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.
And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.
Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee. Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth: And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.
And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man: My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.
And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved. And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son: And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck: And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son? And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the LORD thy God brought it to me. And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.
And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him. And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am. And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine and he drank.
Govert Flinck, Rijksmuseum
Jacob steals Esau’s blessing, Rebekah looks on
And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son. And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed: Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.
And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that thy soul may bless me.
And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau. And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him?
....And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing. And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son? And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.
And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above; And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck. And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.
And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away; Until thy brother’s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence.
....And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?
And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother’s father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother’s brother. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.
And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padanaram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.... And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land....
Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east.... Rachel came with her father’s sheep; for she kept them. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s brother, and that he was Rebekah’s son: and she ran and told her father.
And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister’s son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house.... And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured.
And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.
And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her. And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her....
And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?
And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfil her week [i.e., spend a week in marriage ceremonies], and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.... And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years....
Rachel was barren.... And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb. And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach: And she called his name Joseph....
[Jacob has twelve sons with Rachel, Leah, and their maids. These twelve sons become the twelve tribes of Israel. Below is a map of the twelve tribes. “The tribe of Levi was set apart for religious duties and did not receive a specific territory. Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, each became the heads of their own tribes, effectively giving Joseph a double portion among the tribes.”2]
Below is a mosaic of the twelve tribes:
| Asher | A tree (they were farmers who grew olive trees) |
| Dan | Scales of justice (“Dan” means “judge” in Hebrew) |
| Judah | Kinnor, cithara and crown, symbolizing King David |
| Reuben | Mandrake (Genesis 30:14) |
| Joseph | Palm tree and sheaves of wheat, symbolizing his time in Egypt |
| Naphtali | Gazelle (Genesis 49:21) |
| Issachar | Sun, moon and stars (1 Chronicles 12:32) |
| Simeon | Towers and walls of the city of Shechem |
| Benjamin | Jug, ladle, and fork |
| Gad | Tents, symbolizing itinerant herders |
| Zebulun | Ship (they border the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean) |
| Levi | Priestly breastplate |
And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country. Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee....
And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee. And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock, And said unto them, I see your father’s countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me. And ye know that with all my power I have served your father. And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me....
Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels; And he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten... for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan. And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled. So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river [i.e., over the Euphrates], and set his face toward the mount Gilead [i.e., toward the hills east of the Jordan River].
And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled. And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days’ journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead. And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount: and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead. And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword? Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from me; and didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, and with harp? And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou hast now done foolishly in so doing.
It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad....
And Jacob was wroth, and chode with Laban: and Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my trespass? what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me?
This twenty years have I been with thee... and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night.... In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes. Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times.
Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.
And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born? Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee.
And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap: and they did eat there upon the heap.
And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed. And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have cast betwixt me and thee: This heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm.
The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac. Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount. And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed, and returned unto his place.
And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.... And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now: And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.
And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.
Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands; And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.
And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee.... Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother; Two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams, Thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals. And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants,
Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove. And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee? Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob’s; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us.
And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him. And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me.
So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company. And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok. And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when [the man, i.e., the angel] saw that he prevailed not against him, [the angel] touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
detail from Jacob Wrestling with the Angel, by Delacroix
And [the angel] said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.... And he blessed him there. [Note on “Israel”: “The name is clearly a title of victory, from a root meaning ‘to persevere.’”]
And as [Jacob] passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him.... And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two handmaids. And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost.
And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant.
Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came near, and bowed themselves: and after came Joseph near and Rachel, and they bowed themselves.
And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I met? And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself. And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it.
And [Esau] said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.
I went to a talk by Sebastian Junger, who was discussing his new book, In My Time of Dying: How I Came Face to Face with the Idea of an Afterlife. In 2020, Junger was at home with his family on Cape Cod, when his pancreatic artery ruptured, and he lost so much blood that he almost died. As he was hovering near death, the doctors were on his right, and he saw on his left a black pit, a black tunnel, and above that, his deceased father saying, “It’s alright, come and join me, you’ll be okay.”
But Junger didn’t want to die and join his father. Junger said to the doctor, “Hurry, I’m going.” Those who have near-death experiences often speak of encountering people who have died, and often see a black tunnel, or a bright light.
A couple days before this experience, Junger dreamed that he had died, and was hovering above his family.
Junger is best known for his bestseller, The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea, which deals with a fishing boat caught in a fierce storm; all six men on the boat die. As I said in an earlier issue,
| the “ghosts” of the men of the “perfect storm” were seen often in the town by many witnesses. One visited his three-year-old son and gave him a vivid account of how he died. The author himself, Junger, had a lucid dream in which he visited the crew on a beach and received their blessing for his book. |
Despite the link between Perfect Storm and Junger’s latest book, Junger didn’t mention Perfect Storm, and no one in the audience asked him about it. I would think that his earlier experiences would make him receptive to life-after-death, but he described himself as an uncompromising atheist, a rationalist.
After his brush with death, Junger felt depressed, he couldn’t escape the presence of death; it was difficult for him to mingle with his family. This seems to be a pattern; Junger says that there’s a high divorce-rate among survivors of near-death experiences (NDEs).
Junger’s new book considers the evidence for life-after-death, and also looks at the arguments against life-after-death. He says that he holds a middle position, which draws on quantum physics and argues that the whole universe has a kind of consciousness. I have a strong interest in quantum physics, and I think it’s filled with philosophical significance, but I don’t think it throws much light on life-after-death.
Sebastian Junger shouldn’t be confused with Ernst Junger, who was a German writer and a WorldWarOne veteran.
A couple miles from my house is a nice hotel where illegal immigrants are housed — at my expense, at taxpayer expense. Recently three illegal immigrants committed an armed robbery not far from the hotel.
Coming soon to a neighborhood near you: murder and mayhem, at your expense, courtesy of Biden’s open border. My neighbor bought a gun, he doesn’t feel safe in his own house.
Republicans aren’t opposed to immigration per se, they want legal, organized immigration, based on the country’s needs. Do we need 50,000 nurses? Do we need 25,000 doctors? Do we need 75,000 programmers? If so, we should tell our consulates around the world to encourage people with these skills to come to the U.S. This is organized immigration; this is immigration that benefits the nation.
Biden’s open border is wild immigration, and a high percentage of Americans doubtless oppose wild immigration. The Democrats deserve to lose in November because of their wild policies. Their policies are about party interest, not national interest; their policies damage the nation.
When people are murdered by illegal immigrants, their corpses should be piled at the gates of the White House. They’ve died as a direct result of Democratic policies, they’ve died as part of a Democratic strategy to obtain power by changing demography. Democrats must have known that their policy would lead to murder, but they were willing to sacrifice these victims in order to obtain power. These victims should be remembered, their names should be inscribed on monuments.
Democrats like to call Trump a convicted felon. Trump’s Guilty verdict reminds me of O. J. Simpson’s NotGuilty verdict. As the jurors in the Simpson case were biassed in favor of Simpson, so the jurors and the judge in the Trump case were biassed against Trump. In both cases, Democrats exulted at the miscarriage of justice.
Simpson’s guilt was obvious; he himself all-but-admitted his guilt in an interview. Despite his obvious guilt, Democrats rejoiced when he was exonerated; they wanted him back out on the street, where he could commit more crimes — and in fact, he did commit more crimes.
Fareed Zakaria — no friend of Trump — said the case was only brought against Trump as a way to strike at Trump; the case would not have been brought against anyone else. Democrats twisted the justice system for partisan reasons, all the while accusing Republicans of undermining the rule of law.
The assassination attempt against Trump was a clear failure by the Secret Service. Was the woman in charge of the Secret Service the best person for the job? Or is this another example of the way Biden & Co. make appointments, not based on merit, but based on gender and race?
© L. James Hammond 2024
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| Footnotes | |
| 1. | Roth’s book is sometimes called A Bird’s-Eye View of Jewish History. A later edition is called A History of the Jews From Earliest Times to the Six Day War; this edition is abridged, I don’t recommend it. I downloaded Roth’s book from archive.org, which is a useful site, and a free site. The earlier version (1948) can be downloaded, the latest version (1969) can be viewed at archive.org but not downloaded. back |
| 2. | Quote from ChatGPT, in response to “What were the 12 tribes of Israel?” back |