This page was migrated in July 2022 from my older website, biblicalambiguities.net. As such, it is subject to the biblicalambiguities-general-disclaimer and the biblicalambiguities-general-disclaimer.
22 July 2022 - 23 July 2022
The word Israel has, unfortunately, picked up too many definitions. In particular, two definitions tend to rub up against each other in confusing ways. In terms of the biblical narrative, the earliest use of the term Israel is as a new name for Jacob, and, by extension, a name for those descended from his twelve sons, who father the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
According to the biblical narrative, the monarchy, instituted with Saul and David, includes all the territory of the twelve tribes of Israel in this sense. Later, in the time of Rehoboam, the monarchy splits in two, into a southern half (Judah) and a northern half, Israel. And so in this sense "Israel" is only a part of the broader "Israel".
I will try, if I can remember, to phrase things in such a way as to avoid this confusion whenever possible. To this end, the phrase Northern Kingdom will refer to the Northern Kingdom, and United Monarchy will refer to the supposed united rule under Saul, David, and Solomon.
Finkelstein, Israel (2013). The Forgotten Kingdom: The Archaeology and History of Northern Israel.
As with other pages migrated from biblicalambiguities.net, this page may contain material paraphrased or even outright copied without direct attribution from the KJV, RV, ASV, JPS (1917), WEB, NHEB, Kittel's BH, the pre-1923 volumes of the ICC series, or the commentaries on Genesis of Dillmann, Skinner, and Driver. More details on this policy can be found here: biblicalambiguities-general-disclaimer and biblicalambiguities-translation-disclaimer.
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