Tribe Of Judah
 Tribes of Israel |
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The tribe of Judah is one of the twelve tribes of Israel. It is from this tribe that came from the kings of Israel , the lineage of David. The name of Judah , fourth son of Jacob , is written in Hebrew.
At its peak, it was the leading tribe of Judah , and spread over the greater part of the territory of the kingdom, except a small area north-east occupied by Benjamin and an enclave south-western occupied by Simeon.
Because of its size, the territory of the tribe of Judah was in practice divided into four distinct regions:
- The Negev (Hebrew , "South"): the southern part of the country, which perfectly suited to pasture.
- The Shephelah (Hebrew , "Low Country"): the coastal region, between the mountains and the Mediterranean , used for agriculture, particularly for cereals.
- The desert region arid received immediately to Dead Sea and was located below sea level, it was wild, and scarcely habitable, so that people and animals become unwanted elsewhere, such as bears, leopards, and off-the-law, had made their refuge. In Biblical times, this region was divided into three parts: the wilderness of Ein Gedi and the desert of Ma'on (Hebrew , "dwelling").
- The land of hills located between the high plateau and desert Shephelah, rocky slopes, but very fertile. This area was used for the production of wheat, olives, grapes and other fruits, and therefore the country's oil and wine.
Summary |
Origins
According to the Torah , the tribe was founded by Judah , the fourth son of Jacob and Leah , which she took the name, but some scholars see it as a vaticinium ex eventu, an eponymous metaphor providing an aetiology of relations with the tribe other members of the Israelite confederation . With Leah as a matriarch, the scholars argue that, for the authors of the biblical text, the tribe was part of the first Israelite confederation .
In the book of Joshua , from the land of Canaan , which goes to the tribe of Judah is described in Chapter 15 .
Like other tribes of Judah , the tribe of Judah is absent from the Song of Deborah . Traditionally it is explained due to the great distance of the southern kingdom, which prevented him from getting involved in the battle against the Canaanites , but Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman supporting an alternative explanation, that the kingdom South was simply a rural backward and unimportant at the time the poem was written.
Features
The tribe of Judah had a special place as main tribe of Judah, and from it came the rulers of that kingdom (except the last kings of Judah, the Hasmonean, who were Levites). It seems that the royal status of Judah is prophesied in the Blessing of Jacob, who announced that the club should not depart from Judah, nor the scepter out from between his feet ... although some scholars see it as a Vaticinium ex eventu, because they recall the poem of a few centuries after the Song of Deborah, at about -800 to 700. With the lineage of David among its members, the tribe also has within it and its ancestors David Boaz, Obed, and Jesse. According to Jewish beliefs, since the blessing seems to promise that Judah will forever govern the kingdom, the Messiah (Jewish) should be a member of that tribe.
Many other important personalities also belonged to the tribe. Some of the most important prophets who have left messages, including Isaiah and Amos, Habakkuk, Joel, Micah, Obadiah, Zechariah, and Zephaniah came from Judah. Subsequently, during the Babylonian exile, the exilarchs (officially recognized community leaders) came from this tribe, and when the exile ended, the tribe found in Zerubbabel (the head of the first Jews to return to this Judea had become), Shealtiel (a somewhat mysterious) and Nehemiah (one of the first and most important governors of Judea appointed by the Achaemenid). In Roman times, all holders of the position of Nasi (prince) after Shemaiah be said of the tribe of Judah, for all descendants of Hillel, whom it was said that the mother was of Davidic lineage (in Judaism, is the maternal line that was most important for ethnicity).
The lion is a symbol of the tribe of Judah (Rev. 5.5)
Later Destiny
As part of the kingdom of Judah, the tribe of Judah survived the destruction of Israel by the Assyrians, but knew the Babylonian Captivity. When it ended, the distinction between the tribes are lost in favor of a common identity. Since in the Kingdom of Judah, Simeon and Benjamin ran a very subordinate place, which is named Judah identity - hence came the word "Jews". According to tradition, most Jews today are from the tribe of Judah.
Notes
- 1 Samuel 24:1.
- Judges 1:16, Matthew 3:1.
- 1 Samuel 23:24.
- Jewish Encyclopedia.
- Jewish Encyclopedia.
- Joshua 15, trans. Segond
- The Story of Deborah is told in chapters 4 and 5 of the Book of Judges. Chapter 4 is a prose narrative, and chapter 5 of poetic form, is nicknamed the "Song of Deborah".
- In The Bible Unearthed , a book that cites the work of fifteen archaeologists.
Sources
- (In) This article is partially or entirely from the article in English entitled " Tribe of Judah "(see the list of authors )
See also
- (In) Tribe of Judah ( Jewish Encyclopedia )
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