articlesforchristians

Israel was an association of twelve tribes, designated by the names of the ancestors from
Whom they were descended.

• Deut. 27:12-13
  • “These [tribes] shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people when you have crossed the Jordan: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin. 
  • These [tribes] shall stand on Mount Ebal to pronounce the curse [for disobedience]: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.

The historical origins of the tribal units may be traced to the Book of Genesis. Jacob, whose name was later changed to Israel (Gen. 32:28), was the father of 12 sons (Gen. 29:31-30:24; 35:18, 22-26).

• Gen. 32:27-29
  • So, He asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” And He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked Him, “Please tell me Your name.” But He said, “Why is it that you ask My name?” And He declared a blessing [of the covenant promises] on Jacob there. 

The sons of Jacob, excluding Levi and Joseph but including Joseph’s sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, were the ancestors of the later tribal units in the nation’s history. The development of the tribes begins with the events described in the Book of Exodus.

The sons of Jacob, together with their father and families, migrated to Egypt to join their brother Joseph and to escape the famine in Canaan.

• Gen. 46:1-27

They grew significantly in number.

• Exodus 1:1-7
  • Now these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; each came with his household: 
    • Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah; ³ Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin; ⁴ Dan and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. ⁵
  • All the descendants of Jacob were seventy people; Joseph was [already] in Egypt. 
  • Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation, but the Israelites were prolific and increased greatly; they multiplied and became extremely strong, so that the land was filled with them.

Then the descendants of Jacob’s sons left Egypt in the EXODUS under the leadership of Moses. They were joined by many who were not descendants of Jacob. The Exodus people are thus characterized as a “mixed multitude”.

• Exodus 12:37-39
  • Now the Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides [the women and] the children.  A mixed multitude [of non-Israelites from foreign nations] also went with them, along with both flocks and herds, a very large number of livestock. And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought from Egypt; it was not leavened, since they were driven [quickly] from Egypt and could not delay, nor had they prepared any food for themselves.
• Numbers 11:4
  • The rabble among them [who followed Israel from Egypt] had greedy desires [for familiar and delicious food], and the Israelites wept again and said, “Who will give us meat to eat?
    • rabble: A unique word found only here in the OT. It refers to the mixed multitude of non-Israelites who joined the exodus.

The number of dependents, those not of blood kinship, continued to increase as the tribal units developed.

• Moses’ father-in-law, whose clan joined Israel in the wilderness, was a Midianite.
  • Num. 10:29
    • Then Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are going to the place of which the Lord said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will be good to you, for the Lord has promised good [things] concerning Israel.” 
    • But Hobab [Moses’ brother-in-law] said to him, “I will not go; I will return to my own land and to my family.” ³¹ Then Moses said, “Please do not leave us, for you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you will serve as eyes for us [as we make our trek through the desert]. 
    • So, if you will go with us, it shall be that whatever good the Lord does for us, we will do the same for you.”
    • So they set out from the mountain of the Lord (Sinai) three days’ journey; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went in front of them during the three days’ journey to seek out a resting place for them. 
• Caleb, who figured prominently in the conquest of the land of Canaan, was called a Kenizzite.
  • Josh. 14:13-15
    •  So, Joshua blessed him and gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh as an inheritance. 
    • Therefore, Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, completely. 
    • The name of Hebron was formerly Kiriath-arba [city of Arba]; for Arba was the greatest man among the [giant-like] Anakim. Then the land had rest from war.
  • The Heritage of Caleb: A Deep Dive into His Ancestry
• Later the Calebites were given an inheritance among the tribe of Judah.
  • Josh. 15:13
    • Now to Caleb the son of Jephunneh Joshua gave a portion among the sons of Judah, as the Lord commanded him, namely, Kiriath-arba, Arba being the father of Anak (that is, Hebron).

The tribal confederation with its institutions reached its highest form during the period recorded in the books of Joshua and Judges. The rigidity of Israel’s tribal structure did weaken somewhat with the establishment of the United Kingdom under David and Solomon. But tribal organization and association was maintained throughout later biblical history.

• Luke 2:36
  • There was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old, and had lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage,
• Acts 4:36
  • Now Joseph, a Levite and native of Cyprus, who was surnamed ^[g]Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement),
• Rom. 11:1
  • I say then, has God rejected and disowned His people? Certainly not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 
    • This is Paul talking about his family linage.
• Heb. 7:14
  • For it is evident that our Lord descended from [the tribe of] Judah, and Moses mentioned nothing about priests in connection with that tribe.