Concepts of Ancient Israel

I. What designates a Peculiar people?

Sources: TNK; Urbanization and Land Ownership in the Ancient Near East, Mark Hudson, editor; Landless and Hungry, B. Haring, editor; Illness and Health Care in the Ancient Near East by Hector Avalos; James Pritchard, Ancient Texts relating to the Old Testament (ANET).

Throughout Scripture YHWH states Israel should be a “peculiar and holy” people. He desired his statutes cause his people to become the mightiest, wealthiest, healthiest, and most honorable in all the earth. (Deut 4:6-8)

Ex 19:4-6 -  Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

Deut 14:2 -for thou art an holy people unto YHWH thy God, and YHWH hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.

Deut 26:18-19 - And YHWH hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto YHWH thy God, as he hath spoken.

Deut 7:6-8- For thou art an holy people unto YHWH thy God: YHWH thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. 7 YHWH did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: 8 But because YHWH loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he ha d sworn unto your fathers, hath YHWH brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

What ideology or concepts do these verses evoke for each us? What does it mean to be a “peculiar people”?

Throughout history people, societies, and religious groups have tried to be YHWH’s “holy people.”

· The Amish interpret YHWH’s command to go against society’s standards. They reject colored clothing, electricity, cars, and other modern conveniences and done a very “poor” dress.

· The Mennonites similarly use dress to distinguish their adherents- as women wear plain long blue jean skirts, long hair, and a head covering. Again, their dress appears quite “poorly.”

· Many Jews also use dress, lifestyle, and non-integration with the rest of the world to “separate” themselves from society. From the kippa (or yarmulke), to the beard, to the hair locks, and black dress, or the four-cornered jersey - one instantly knows a person is an orthodox “Jew.” In addition, the many rabbinic regulations regarding meals also separate the Jews from the rest of the world – they don’t eat milk and meat together; utensils that have come in contact with milk or meat must be sterilized in a particular method before they can be used again, special hand washing must occur before meals …..and I’m sure the rabbinic list probably goes on for ever.

· The New Testament also has a “take” on a holy or peculiar people, seeing God’s people equivalent with being “hated” by the world. If one is to be “of God” then the world will naturally loathe or despise that person. According to John 15:19 -  “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” This contrasts sharply against YHWH’s description of a holy people as “high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor.” (Deut 26:18-19) Whereas the NT has a peculiar people being hated and persecuted, YHWH’s peculiar people are praised and honored.

Are these examples of separating from “the world” what YHWH had in mind when he told Israel that she was to be a peculiar, special, and holy people unto him? Did he really intend for her to stand out like a sore thumb? In order to answer these questions it is important that we see how Israel , her laws and her customs compared with the nations around her. We have to look at history and archaeology to see what and who YHWH desired ancient Israel actually to be. I hope to demonstrate that 1). Israel was very contemporaneous with other nations. 2). With only minor deviations, Israel functioned just like the rest of the world!!! 3). What separated Israel were not her customs, her dress, her lack of social integration, or her rejection of technology, but her adherence to YHWH’s righteous Law.

YHWH intended for Israel ’s adherence to his statutes, judgments, laws, and ordinances to separate his people into a righteous and “perfect” or tamiym (Strong’s 8549) people (Gen 17:1 and Deut 18:13).  Here are the Facts regarding Israel ’s history:

II. Liturgy

Israel ’s Scriptures followed the literary format and style popular during the first and second millennium BCE. Egypt , Canaan, and Mesopotamia used wisdom literature such as Proverbs, often addressing their proverbs to their sons. Psalms were also used for Temple liturgy throughout the ancient world as archaeology has uncovered many kings’ praise to a particular god (such as Akenaten’s praise to Aten). Love songs, such as Solomon’s song for his Egyptian bride (Song of Solomon) are also well attested in both Egypt and Mesopotamia . These were the modes of recording and transmitting information three thousand years ago. They were society’s standards; similar to the way we use poetry, song, novels, research, or other modes of communication today.  What separated Israel ’s Liturgy from that of Egypt or Mesopotamia was not the modality- that is, the type of literary style – but the fact that Scripture’s liturgy – her words and concepts were based upon YHWH’s holy Law.

III. Battle customs:

Num 25:4 - And YHWH said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before YHWH against the sun, that the fierce anger of YHWH may be turned away from Israel .

Israel ’s practice of impaling is found throughout the ancient world. Assyrian inscriptions have left graphic images – especially the nation’s siege of Lachish – where captives were impaled in order to appease a particular god’s anger. Egypt followed this practice as well. Many times pictured reliefs such as these are captioned with phrases such as “praise to ‘name of god’”.

Assyrian warriors impaling Jewish prisoners after conquering Jewish fortress of Lachish in 701 BCE. Part of a relief from the palace of Sennacherib , Niniveh, Mesopotamia ( Iraq ). Assyrian, 8th BCE. [ British Museum , London , Great Britain ;Photo Credit : Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY]

IV. Dress

A. Command for Fringes

As I’d mentioned at the beginning of this study, one point many people who have stepped out of mainstream religion feel sure separated Israel from the other nations were YHWH’s stipulations for dress, which included fringes (tizits-6734) and a blue ribbon bordering their garments.

Num 15:38 - Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes (tizits-6734) in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe (tizit-6734) of the borders a ribband of blue.

Deut 22:12 - Thou shalt make thee fringes (gedil-1434) upon the four quarters of thy vesture, wherewith thou coverest thyself.

Artist’s representation of Jehu in fringes based upon the Black Basalt bas-relief of Assyrian King Shalmaneser III, which pictures Jehu dress above (see below).

Both the words tizit (Strongs 6734) and gedil (1434) convey the idea of a fringe, whether tasseled or straight as in the above photo of Jehu. Throughout the Ancient world, nations used fringes upon the outskirts of their garments. Assyria and Babylon in particular had lush fringes surrounding the hem of their garments that eventually wound up to the waistline.

Assyrian King in fringes edged by red and blue ribbon.

Aristocracy donned this luxurious hem, but it can also be seen in the Philistine’s wardress. YHWH’s fringe stipulation did distinguish or separate Israel from Egyptian dress, which used no fringes on their garments. But more than anything fringes also identified YHWH’s people with wealth and prosperity.

Philistine warrior in traditional wardress with blue ribbon and fringe tassels. Based upon Rameses III’s relief at Karnak .

Deuteronomy 22:12 states that Israel ’s fringes should be placed on the “four quarters” or “four corners” of their garments. Tradition Judaism is rather misplaced to designate this type of dress as actually having four corners. The Hebrew Kanaph (Strongs 3671; BDB p. 489), translated “quarters” actually means the outer most edge or extremity. It has nothing to do with “corners,” rather it appears Scripture uses an idiom very popular during this era. Throughout the Near East the term “four rims of the earth” or “four edges of the earth” designated the outer most boundaries or edges of an Empire (ANET p. 276, 289). For instance, Adad-Nairari (810 BCE) states that he had made princes submit to his feet “within the four rims of the earth” (ANET p. 281). Did the king mean that the earth literally had 4 rims? No, this idiom expresses the concept of the outer most limit, edge, or extremity where Assyria had waged her campaigns. Likewise, Kanaph designated the outer limits of the garments Israel wore: hence, fringes and blue ribbons would have been placed on the outer most extremity of any garment the nation’s people wore, as seen in the photo of Israel ’s King Jehu or the Assyrian King. (As a side note: It seems that applying fringes to shirts, dresses, pants or other garment edges would fulfill this statute within the Law today).

The second part of Numbers’ 15:38 command stipulates that the Children of Israel should use some sort of blue band or ribbon on the edges of their garments. Drawings from Canaan , which date to 1550 BCE (Late Bronze Age) demonstrate that many Canaanites, especially the upper class, used blue and red bands around the bottoms of their garments. This colored ribbon also extended from their neck down to their hems. YHWH ordained this command during an era that blue and red trimmings were quite popular in the ancient world. So this particular command did not separate Israel ’s dress from that of the Canaanite, rather Israel would have looked very much like a wealthy Canaanite in their attire.

Canaanite garments (above) were trimmed in red or blue on the “outer most edges.”

Notice, both the command for fringes and for the blue ribbon entailed garments that were more expensive or costly than common garments. Blue, red, and purple dyes for the ribbon surrounding the hem of Israel ’s garments were extremely costly to make, and were usually reserved for royalty and nobility. (I’ve added an appendix with info on the different color dyes at the end of this study)

In order for Israel to obey this command, the nation – her people- would have to have wealth in order to afford to make or buy these expensive fringed and color banded garments. This may very well be the reason YHWH stated that he gave Israel his covenants in order to “have power to get wealth” (Deut 8:18). In order for Israel to have the wealth to afford to obey the Law, she would have to be obedient to his covenantal Law, which would in turn of course allow her to obey YHWH’s Law- a quite circular cause and effect relationship.

YHWH’s stipulations for the nation’s dress did not make her a peculiar people. Other nations (including the Philistines and the Assyrians) wore fringes and colored ribbons. While the outward appearance of dress did not make Israel a “peculiar, holy, or treasured people, ” her adherence to YHWH’s Law would make her into a treasure comparable to no other nation on earth.

B. Wool-linen

Scripture contains a prohibition against certain types of clothing in Leviticus and Deuteronomy.

Lev 19:19- Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woolen (Sha‘atnez -8162) come upon thee.

Deut 22:11 - Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts (Sha‘atnez –8162), as of woolen and linen together.

Sha‘atnez (Strongs 8162) is what scholars call an Egyptian “loan-word,” meaning that the word originated in Egyptian language but was borrowed by the Hebrews. Sha‘atnez did not designate just any mixed fiber garment, rather it was a very specific term used to designate a particular cloth made from wool and linen that was used by the Egyptian priests. (SEE Lambdin, Thomas O., Egyptian Loan Words in the Old Testament (Journal of the American Oriental Society, 1953) p. 155. Koehler and Baumgartner’s, The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament also cites the aforementioned work, as well as others on Egyptian loan words; The Brown Driver Briggs, p. 1043, also recognizes this as an Egyptian word).

Contrary to orthodox theology, YHWH did not disallow the mixing of fibers, but disallowed a particular type of woolen and linen garment worn by Egypt ’s priests. All in all, Israel ’s dress did not distinguish her from the rest of the world, as she would have easily been recognized as royalty or nobility. What her dress did do for her was adorn her with the honor and nobility YHWH had promised in his Law and remind her to always obey his way of life:

Deut 26:18-19 - And YHWH hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto YHWH thy God, as he hath spoken.

Israel ’s statutes, laws, judgments, ordinances, dress, and other customs did not necessarily separate Israel from other societies, but the actual righteousness of the Law which she followed did. YHWH desired that his people be a royal and chosen people unto him whom other nations would praise and honor. She would be a royal priesthood as her honor and nobility that came from YHWH’s blessings (associated with obeying his Law) would cause the nation’s wealth, justice, fame, and praise to reach the “four rims of the earth.”

End of Part I

In Part II, we will examine Israel ’s Temple and its function. We’ll see areas where YHWH’s temple functioned quite similarly to other nations, but we’ll also begin to see the important areas where it distinguished itself, being different than any temple or priesthood, which existed in ancient times.

Discussion Questions:

1. What ideas come into your mind when you hear YHWH’s command for Israel to be a holy and peculiar treasure?

2. Why didn’t YHWH give Israel statutes, laws, and customs that would single them out and make the stand out as different than any other society?

3. Why did YHWH command Israel to wear expensive clothing?

4. How can we apply these commands today?

Appendix A- Dyes of the Ancient World

http://www.ancientroute.com/resource/cloth/dye.htm#Blue

Indigo (Polygonum tinctorum, Indigofera tinctoria)
Indigo has been in use for over 5000 years, and is known from the Neolithic Era of Europe . In India a different plant and different extraction method was used, but the resultant dye cake was the same. Indigo was prized for its fastness and it’s resistance to sunlight. Denim, incidentally, is dyed with indigo, although today it is synthetic indigo.

In India the cut-up plant is tied in bundles, packed in vats, and covered with clear fresh water. This is allowed to steep until a rapid fermentation sets in. When fermentation has almost ceased, 10-15 hours, the liquid is run into a second vat where it is agitated by paddles or men in the vats. The liquid turns from straw to golden yellow, green, then blue. At this point the indigo separates out in flakes. After settling, the liquid is drained off, and the pulpy mass is boiled and filtered through coarse cloth. The remaining ‘pulp’ is pressed to expel water, then cut into cakes and air dried.

PURPLE

Tyrian purple
Probably the most famous dye from antiquity, this purple dye has been called by many names, as Royal purple, but Tyrian purple is most common. It was a monopoly of the Phoenicians, their capital at Tyre , in Lebanon . From there came it’s name. It is presumed that the Tyrians invented the dye, although it’s manufacture far preceded written history.

The raw source for the dye is a tiny sack or gland in a shellfish called Murex. The mollusk is common to the coast of the Mediterranean, from Morocco all along the coast of North Africa to the Near East . There are many Phoenician sites along this coast where the shells still remain in huge heaps, as it took many hundreds of the shellfish to create one ounce of dye. These shell heaps, and the usual dye-vats also found nearby, are usually found down wind from the nearest village, as the odor of the decaying shellfish is overpowering.

After extracting the animal from it’s shell, the flesh is allowed to decay. After decomposition, the sack must be found and the fluid within extracted. This results in one or two drops per shell. This fluid, if allowed to stand in strong sunlight for a few hours, turns from light green, through blue, to finally stop at a reddish purple. The dye color is reddish purple, not the bright purple we are used to seeing in the movies. The reason Tyrian purple was so long in demand was it’s value as a status symbol.

Using the dye, or making it fast, was part of the secret which died with the fall of the Roman Empire . Long before then, substitute dyes were available which produced violet, lavender and purple in most of it’s shades. The best of these cheaper purple dyes came from lichens, and from madder. The light lavenders and violets came from a variety of plants, such as whortleberry, anchusa or black currant. While cheap, they were not overly color-fast, fading rather quickly.

RED

Cochineal
A scarlet red dye produced from the dried bodies of an insect found on the prickly pear cactus. The insects, very tiny insects, are collected in the wild, usually in otherwise barren areas. After drying, crushing, boiling and re-drying, a red powder dye remains. This dye is noted for its brilliance and fastness, and is still used in food coloring and cosmetics. It is expensive due to the labor involved in the collection.