The Hebrew Scriptures and the History of Israel

Israelite history and religion from the patriarchal period to the second temple contains a number of covenants, laws, prophecies, moral lessons, relations with Canaanite culture and larger empires like the Roman Empire (which eventually tore down the second temple under Titus). The history of the Israelites is contained within the pages of the Hebrew Bible or the scripture of the Old Testament, as Christians call it. This information reveals an evolution of a group of people and their relationship with their God as well as with other peoples in the areas where they settle. It contains extraordinary depictions of covenants between God and man, such as the Adamic covenant, that Abrahamic covenant, the Mosaic covenant, and the Davidic covenant. To Moses, the books of the Hebrew Bible tell us, God gave a set of laws -- 10 Commandments -- that the Israelites were meant to follow, and based on these laws, judges and codes were established for the Israelite community.

Moreover, prophets emerged from within this community, like the prophet Samuel and Isaiah, and prophecies about what was to come and what the Israelites should expect or look forward to in the future were made, and these events are discussed in the pages of the Old Testament. Samuel anointed Saul to be king of the Israelites and then he anointed David, who was a young child, and who is said to have slain the Philistine named Goliath, which made him into a hero of the Israelites, though not of Saul was envious of David.

The morality of the Israelites is also illustrated in the Hebrew Bible in the story of David, who had many wives, but when he had the husband of Bathsheba put at the front lines of the army so that he would be more likely to be killed in battle, this action was said to have displeased God and the he and the Israelites were punished as a result. Thus, there is some correlation among the Israelites between the law as indicated by 10 Commandments and the morality that was expected of them.

The Israelites relations with the Canaanites are described mostly in the books of Joshua and Judges. The Israelites drove the Canaanites out from the regions of the Promised Land following the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, as depicted in the book of Deuteronomy. When David chose Jerusalem as his city of power, he demonstrated his diplomatic skill and political sense: Jerusalem was "outside" Israel's 12 tribes and had geographically strategic position, too, being a midway point between the southern tribes of David's people and the northern tribes. Yet, distrust between north and south tribes following Solomon's reign of oppression led to political disunity between the central city of Jerusalem and the outlying tribes (the Kingdom of Israel). The prophets at this time preached that Yahweh is the righteous God of all and demanded ethical behavior.