The fourth book of the Torah is called (Heb) במדבר [bemidbar] = (Eng) in the wilderness. But for some reason, according to the Christian tradition, it is called as Numbers.

In this article we will discuss THE NUMBER of the Jews in Israel at different stages of history.

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THE YEAR 2015

The following table illustrates the information published by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. These data were relevant by the end of 2014.

quantity	age 0 – 19	age 20 – 44	older then 44	total
female	1,018,200	1,028,900	1,066,300	3,113,400
male	1,069,900	1,036,500	942,300	3,048,700
total	2,088,100	2,065,400	2,008,600	6,162,100
%	age 0 – 19	age 20 – 44	older then 44	total
female	16.5%	16.7%	17.3%	50.5%
male	17.4%	16.8%	15.3%	49.5%
total	33.9%	33.5%	32.6%	100.0%

 

The data have been taken here: http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/cw_usr_view_SHTML?ID=803

Please note that the number of the battle-ready men in the population was about 16.8%. If we exclude the Levites from this number, we’ll get about 15.5% – we will need this number below.

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BEG 12^TH CENTURY B.C.

The Exodus began in the early 12th century BC (read the articles “Cronology of the Fathers“).

One year after the beginning of the exodus Moses had counted the battle-ready men:

תורה, ספר במדבר

א,מה וַיִּהְיוּ כָּל-פְּקוּדֵי בְנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, לְבֵית אֲבֹתָם, מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וָמַעְלָה, כָּל-יֹצֵא צָבָא בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל.  א,מו וַיִּהְיוּ, כָּל-הַפְּקֻדִים–שֵׁשׁ-מֵאוֹת אֶלֶף, וּשְׁלֹשֶׁת אֲלָפִים; וַחֲמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת, וַחֲמִשִּׁים. א,מז וְהַלְוִיִּם, לְמַטֵּה אֲבֹתָם–לֹא הָתְפָּקְדוּ, בְּתוֹכָם.  {פ}

 

Bible, Book 4 Numbers, Chapter 1, Verses 45 – 47

⁴⁵ And all those that were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war in Israel; ⁴⁶ even all those that were numbered were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty. ⁴⁷ But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.

 

A simple calculation shows the number of the Jews:

603,550 / 15.5% * 100% ≈ 3,900,000

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BEG 10^TH CENTURY B.C.

King David ordered a census of the population:

כתובים, דברי הימים

א כא,ה וַיִּתֵּן יוֹאָב אֶת-מִסְפַּר מִפְקַד-הָעָם, אֶל-דָּוִיד; וַיְהִי כָל-יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶלֶף אֲלָפִים וּמֵאָה אֶלֶף אִישׁ, שֹׁלֵף חֶרֶב, וִיהוּדָה, אַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת וְשִׁבְעִים אֶלֶף אִישׁ שֹׁלֵף חָרֶב.

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Bible, 1 Chronicles, Chapter 21, verse 5

Joab gave up the sum of the numbering of the people to David. All those of Israel were one million one hundred thousand men who drew sword: and in Judah were four hundred seventy thousand men who drew sword.

 

A simple calculation shows the number of the Jews in kingdom of David:

1,570,000 / 15.5% * 100% ≈ 10,000,000

50 years later king Rahavaam divided the country into two separate states:

– the Kingdom of Judah – about 3,000,000 people.

- the Kingdom of Israel – about 7,000,000 people – those 10 tribes, that would be “lost” during the invasion of the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III and his successors between 731 and 701 years B.C. To find out where they were “lost”, read the articles “Full Circle” and “The Golden Triangle”.

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This article will be published in 2017

This article will be published in 2018

This article will be published in 2022. It will tell about the Jewish roots and kinship ties of the population of ancient Greece, Carthage, Etruria, and Rome.

 

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Having departed from Egypt, the Jews for 40 years were in Sinai at a distance of a hundred miles from the Pharaoh’s Palace. Why did Pharaoh not pursue them and try to bring them back to Egypt? What he has been busy with?

You will find answers in this article.

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EGYPT IN THE 18th – 17th CENTURIES BC

The beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. The main occupation of the Egypt’s population, concentrated along the Nile River, was agriculture.

In the middle of the 18th century BC Lower Egypt was conquered by the Hyksos (Hycsos, Ὑκσώς, Ὑξώς, هكسوس, חיקסוס, היקסוס,). The word “Hyksos” came to us from Ancient Greece in the 6th century BC. About how they called themselves, read in the article “Who are you, Pharaoh?”).

With the advent of the Hyksos, the Iron Age came to Egypt. New military equipment appeared: a relatively complex angular bow, different types of swords and daggers, a new kind of shield, chain armor and a metal helmet. The most important innovation is a two-wheeled chariot drawn by horses.

Figure 01

Having arrived in Egypt in chariots with iron weapons in their hands and in iron armor, the Hyksos seized power without a battle. The period of 1750 – 1550 BC is the reign of the 15th and the 16th dynasties of Pharaohs originating from the Hyksos.

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THE ADVENT OF JEWS TO EGYPT

In the middle of the 17th century BC the Jews are the forefather Jacob who was the son of Isaac, the grandson of Abraham and his 12 sons, as well as their women and children. Joseph (the eldest son of Jacob from Rachel), sold by his brothers, arrives in Egypt and comes into contact with Pharaoh.

Pharaoh (originally from the Hyksos!) takes a liking and trust for Joseph, much more than for the Egyptians around him, and therefore appoints him responsible for the economy of the whole state (see the article “Who are you, Pharaoh?”). Taking advantage of seven years of drought and impoverishment of the population, Joseph buys up Egyptian lands on the cheap in favor of Pharaoh, which causes even greater favor of Pharaoh.

In 1624 BC (see the article “Chronology of the Fathers”), the forefather Jacob’s family, driven by hunger, move from the land of Canaan to Egypt and, using the protection of Joseph, settle in the land of Goshen – the most fertile and livestock-friendly district.

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THE LAND OF GOSHEN – WHERE IT IS?

The following facts point to the position of the land of Goshen:

 תורה ספר בראשית

מה,י  וְיָשַׁבְתָּ בְאֶרֶץ-גֹּשֶׁן, וְהָיִיתָ קָרוֹב אֵלַי—אַתָּה, וּבָנֶיךָ וּבְנֵי בָנֶיךָ; וְצֹאנְךָ וּבְקָרְךָ, וְכָל-אֲשֶׁר-לָךְ

Torah, Book 1 Genesis, Chapter 45

¹⁰  And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast;

*   this area is up the Nile from Pharaoh’s Palace – that is why the basket with the newborn Moses sailed along the river to the Palace, at the feet of Pharaoh’s daughter.

*   this place is located to the west of the Red Sea – therefore the Jews, leaving from slavery to the east (to the Sinai desert), had to cross the Red Sea.

*   the Torah claims that this area was suitable for raising flocks and herds.

 תורה ספר בראשית

 מז,ה וַיֹּאמֶר פַּרְעֹה, אֶל-יוֹסֵף לֵאמֹר:  אָבִיךָ וְאַחֶיךָ, בָּאוּ אֵלֶיך. מז,ו אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, לְפָנֶיךָ הִוא—בְּמֵיטַב הָאָרֶץ, הוֹשֵׁב אֶת-אָבִיךָ וְאֶת-אַחֶיךָ:  יֵשְׁבוּ, בְּאֶרֶץ גֹּשֶׁן

Torah, Book 1 Genesis, Chapter 47

⁵ And Pharaoh spoke unto Joseph, saying: ‘Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee; ⁶  the land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and thy brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell … ‘

 Conclusion: the land of Goshen was located near the Nile Delta to the south of it, i.e. upstream.

Figure 02

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THE LAND OF GOSHEN IS FAIYUM

The region, referred to above, subsequently received a name Faiyum.

Faiyum is an oasis separated from the Nile valley by a chain of hills. This tectonic basin is located 44 m below sea level. The area of the oasis is about 1270 km². In the Faiyum Oasis there is the oldest hydrotechnical structure – Lake Qarun. Ancient authors considered it one of the wonders of the world. There are its descriptions by Herodotus, Diodorus, Strabo, Ptolemy and Pliny. Nowadays Lake Qarun has an area of about 200 square km. In ancient times it was much larger and was perceived by the ancient Jews as the sea, hence the name of the oasis of Faiyum derived from the word (Hebrew) בים [ba-yam] = (English) ‘at the sea’. The locals still call it the sea today – (Arabic) بحيرة قارون = the sea of Qarun.

The ancient Jews called the sea of Qarun (Hebrew) מורד [morad] = (English) ‘the lowland, the bottom, the descent’ – that is how its ancient Greek name Mоίριδος [moyridos] appeared. Therefore, in ancient literature this water reservoir is called Lake Moeridos or the Moerdois Sea. Eventually, the name of this reservoir in the Greek language has changed and then passed into European languages:

Μοίριδος [moyridos] → Μοῖρις [moyris] → (English) Moeris [moyris]

The canal that fills Lake Qarun with the waters of the Nile is called (Arabic) بحر يوسف [bahr yusuf] = (English) ‘the sea of Joseph’, in honor of Joseph, son of the forefather Jacob, who constructed it (see the article “About the Nature of Laws and the Laws of Nature”). It is to this channel that Qarun owes its birth and existence.

Figure 03

Over time, the Jews brought under cultivation the Nile Valley upstream, and settled oases suitable for cattle breeding, west of the Middle Nile.

Figure 04

It was in these places that the first inscriptions in the phonetic alphabet in the history of mankind were found which was the prototype of the modern European alphabets (see the article “Why does Europe Write Left-to-Right?”). Archaeologists attribute these inscriptions to the 16th century BC, i.e., namely, to the period of the settlement of Jews in these places.

In the Siwa Oasis, located at a distance of about 500 km west of the Faiyum Oasis, still live the descendants of the Jews, who some scholars consider to be one of the branches of the Berber people. There was an ancient building in this oasis, built in the middle of the 16th century BC, i.e. approximately 100 years after the arrival of the forefather Jacob’s family in Egypt. It was intended for cult purposes and played an important role in the fate of Alexander the Great – this is discussed in the article “Alexander the Great – him too?”. It is called the Temple of Amon. Amon was believed to be the god of the ancient Egyptians. In fact, the notion of Amon originated from the word (Hebrew) אמונה [emuna] = (English) ‘faith’. This building – “house of faith” – can be considered the oldest synagogue. It was exploded in 1895 by the Egyptian authorities.  Today there is another building in the Siwa Oasis, built in the 5th century BC and also called the Temple of Amon. This is a forgery, the purpose of which is to erase the true exploded temple from the memory of mankind.

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THE NUMBER OF JEWS IN EGYPT

The duration of the Jewish presence in Egypt is estimated by different scientists in different ways: from 210 to 430 years. The Torah clearly indicates a period of 430 years:

 תורה, ספר שמות

יב, מ  וּמוֹשַׁב בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֲשֶׁר יָשְׁבוּ בְּמִצְרָיִם—שְׁלֹשִׁים שָׁנָה, וְאַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה

Torah, Book 2 Exodus, Chapter 12

⁴⁰ Now the time that the children of Israel dwelt in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.

The number of male Jews fit for combat aged over 20 years a year after the beginning of the Exodus was 603,550 people, except for the Levites (Torah, Book 4 Numbers, Chapter 1, verses 17 – 47). The total number of Jews in Egypt before the beginning of the Exodus was about 3.9 million people (for further information please refer to the article “Numbers”).

A simple calculation shows:

* in order to reach such a number, about 4 children on the average survived in Jewish families, which is quite realistic.

* eighty years before the Exodus the total number of Jews was about 500,000 people – this number will prove useful to us further.

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EMIGRATION IN THE AEGEAN SEA AREA

The indigenous population of Egypt was not favorably disposed towards the Jewish people.

תורה, בראשית

מג,לא וַיִּרְחַץ פָּנָיו, וַיֵּצֵא; וַיִּתְאַפַּק–וַיֹּאמֶר, שִׂימוּ לָחֶם.  מג,לב וַיָּשִׂימוּ לוֹ לְבַדּוֹ, וְלָהֶם לְבַדָּם; וְלַמִּצְרִים הָאֹכְלִים אִתּוֹ, לְבַדָּם–כִּי לֹא יוּכְלוּן הַמִּצְרִים לֶאֱכֹל אֶת-הָעִבְרִים לֶחֶם, כִּי-תוֹעֵבָה הִוא לְמִצְרָיִם

Torah, Book 1 Genesis, Chapter 43

³¹ And he washed his face, and came out; and he refrained himself, and said: ‘Set on bread.’ ³² And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians, that did eat with him, by themselves; because the Egyptians might not eat bread of the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto Egypt.

Negative attitudes increased after the overthrow of the dynasty of Hyksos Pharaohs in 1550 BC by Pharaoh Ahmose I. The Jewish population, suspected of sympathizing with the Hyksos, did not enjoy the authorities’ favor. This situation forced the most initiative of the Jews to make the decision to emigrate.

In the late 17 century BC the Santorini volcano eruption destroyed the population of the Aegean Sea area – the Minoan civilization ceased to exist. The first Jewish refugees from Egypt appeared there in the 16th century BC.

Figure 05

These immigrants were shepherds. It is not surprising that one of the settlements founded by them was named (Hebrew) מִקְנֶה [mikne] = (English) ‘herd’. Later this settlement turned into a city (Greek) Μυκήνη [mikini] = (English) Mycenae.

In the city of Mycenae, a large community of Jews from the tribe of Dan ((Hebrew) דן [dan]) settled, which laid the foundation for the civilization that we call the Mycenaean civilization. A man from the Dan’s tribe is called in Hebrew דנאי [danai] – so in different languages the words Danaus, Danai, Danunite, Δαναοί, danaan, denyen, danunäer appeared.

The Denyen became navigators. They maintained close business and military cooperation with the Jews from other tribes scattered on the shores and islands of the Mediterranean. Addressing each other, the Jews used the word (Hebrew) אחי [ahi] = (English) ‘my brother’, as many Israelis do nowadays. Therefore, in the literature, the Jews of the Diaspora of those times were called achaeans, aχαιοί, achaei, achivi.

The Achaeans, who settled in the Mediterranean region in the 16th and 13th centuries BC, founded many settlements and became the basis of that friendly local population, which, 500 years later, at the end of the 8th century BC absorbed a huge amount of Israelis fleeing from the invasion of the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III (for further information please refer to the article “Full Circle”).

In the course of military and commercial operations, the Denyen greatly expanded the boundaries of their habitat:

-   northward to the area of the future Macedonia;

-   to the north-east in the area of the Marble and Black seas. The siege and capture of Troy were part of this action, described afterwards about 700 years in the poem “The Odyssey” by Homer;

-   eastward along the coast of Asia Minor. To the north of Cyprus, the Denyen founded the state of Danuna. The large city of Adana = (Aramaic) אדנא [adana] = (Hebrew) הדן [hadan] = (English) the Dan) still exists in Turkey.

Figure 06

The Denyen founded many settlements on the shores of the Black Sea, where they carried on a vigorous trade with the Scythians (the legend of the Golden Fleece). These relations laid the foundation for the friendship that reunited these peoples at the end of the 8th century BC in the period of the escape of the Denyen from the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III (for further information please refer to the article “Full Circle”).

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EUROPE IN THE 15th – 13th CENTURIES BC

The population of Europe in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC was extremely scarce and it was in primitive state. It was engaged exclusively in survival – gathering and primitive hunting. The nomadic way of life prevented the development of technologies related to settled life, such as agriculture, construction technology, metal processing and so on.

The appearance of Jewish refugees from Egypt on the shores of the Mediterranean led to a civilizational leap. Aborigines flocked to the settlements – sources of food, and settling nearby, they learned from the settlers. Many settlements became the basis for future cities. For instance, one of them, named (Hebrew) משלה [mashala] = (English) ‘dominant’ turned many years later into the city of Marseille in France.

Figure 07

Settlements founded by the Achaeans and the Denyen on the Apennine peninsula are now called the Villanova culture. After 500 years, they became strongholds at the founding of the city of Rome and the cities of the Etruscans  (for further information please refer to the article “The Golden Triangle”).

 By the end of the 13th century BC the union of the Denyen and the Achaeans turned into a powerful military trade monopoly possessing:

–   great experience in developing territories and establishing settlements;

–   detailed information on navigation in the Mediterranean and Black Seas;

–   a well-trained and organized army and navy.

Someday all this disappeared!!!

Where and why?

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DECISIVE DECREE

In 1550 BC the 16th dynasty of Hyksos Pharaohs was overthrown. The 17th dynasty, which originated from ethnic Egyptians, ascended the throne.

A while later in 1279 BC the ruler of Egypt became Ramesses II the Great. During his reign, events took place that changed the fate of the Jewish people.

In 1274 BC there was the Battle of Kadesh between the armies of Egypt and the Hittite Empire (please further refer to the article “And They Made Their Lives Bitter”). Consequently, Ramesses II was forced to return to Egypt “getting cold feet”.

       In this battle the Denyen and Achaeans’ troops, equipped with chariots and iron weapons, took the side of the Hittites. In the Pharaoh’s opinion, they caused his defeat.

At that time the Jewish population of Egypt reached half a million people (see above). Ramesses II understood that in the case of a large-scale war, the Jews of Egypt would act on the side of their relatives, the Denyen and the Achaeans.

Gripped by fear, he issued a decree that was unprecedented in its cruelty:

 תורה, ספר שמות

א,ט וַיֹּאמֶר, אֶל-עַמּוֹ:  הִנֵּה, עַם בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל–רַב וְעָצוּם, מִמֶּנּוּ.  א,י הָבָה נִתְחַכְּמָה, לוֹ:  פֶּן-יִרְבֶּה, וְהָיָה כִּי-תִקְרֶאנָה מִלְחָמָה וְנוֹסַף גַּם-הוּא עַל-שֹׂנְאֵינוּ, וְנִלְחַם-בָּנוּ

א,טז וַיֹּאמֶר, בְּיַלֶּדְכֶן אֶת-הָעִבְרִיּוֹת, וּרְאִיתֶן, עַל-הָאָבְנָיִם:  אִם-בֵּן הוּא וַהֲמִתֶּן אֹתוֹ, וְאִם-בַּת הִוא וָחָיָה.

 Tora, Book 2 Exodus, Chapter 1

⁹ And he said unto his people: ‘Behold, the people of the children of Israel are too many and too mighty for us; ¹⁰ come, let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there befalleth us any war, they also join themselves unto our enemies, and fight against us, …

¹⁶ and he said: ‘When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, ye shall look upon the birthstool: if it be a son, then ye shall kill him; but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.

In the history of the Jews a period began, identified with Egyptian slavery.

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TWO EGYPTS

During the reign of the pharaohs Ramesses II and his son Merneptah, the central authority in Egypt was strong. With the death of Merneptah in 1202 BC, Egypt plunged into the turmoil of dual power. Upper Egypt was under the rule of a man named Amenmesse, Lower Egypt – under the authority of Pharaoh Seti II.

Egypt was called Misr in the languages of that time – Assyrian, Akkadian, Aramaic. This name migrated from Aramaic to Arabic مِصرَ [misr] and survived till the present day.

And only in Hebrew the name of this country מצרים [mitsraim] takes the dual form, for instance:

-   (Hebrew) אוזן [ozen] = ear → (Hebrew) אוזנים [oznaim] = two ears

-   (Hebrew) כנף [kanaf] = wing → (Hebrew) כנפים [knafim] = two wings

-   (Hebrew) מצר [mitsr] = Egypt → (Hebrew) מצרים [mitsraim] = two Egypts

The events preceding the Exodus from Egypt occurred at a time when Egypt was divided into two authority zones: Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt (see below). This fact was preserved in the collective memory of the Jews as the dual name of Egypt.

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WHO ARE YOU, AMENMESSE?

As stated above, in Upper Egypt, a man named Amenmes ruled.

German Egyptologists M. Georg and R. Krauss note that there are a variety of parallels between the history of the Amenmesse’s government, recreated in accordance of archaeological researches, and the biblical story of Moses in Egypt:

-   Rolf Krauss, Untersuchungen zu Konig Amenmesse: Nachtrage, SAK 24 (1997), pp.161-184

-   Georg, M (2000), “Mose – Name und Namenstraeger. Versuch einer historischen Annaeherung” in “Mose. Aegypten und das Alte Testament”, edited by E. Otto, Verlag Katholisches Bibelwerk, Stittgart

-   Rolf Krauss, “Das Ratsel Moses-Auf den Spuren einer Erfindung biblischen”, Ullstein Verlag, Munchen 2001

The reader is recommended to pay attention to the following facts:

-   The forefather Jacob settled in the land of Goshen, and then his descendants settled upstream of the Nile. Upper Egypt is the area of the Jewish resettlement (see above).

-   During the period of dual power in Egypt, there appeared The Tale of Two Brothers (the Papyrus D’Orbiney), containing information about the power-sharing in the Upper and Lower Egypt between the brothers. According to the Torah, Moses was adopted by the daughter of Pharaoh Ramesses II (see the quote below), hence he was the half-brother of Pharaoh Seti II, Ramses II’s grandson.

-   European languages brought to us the following options for sounding of the name: Amenmes, Amenmesse, Amenmesses, Amenmoses. The Arabic language has preserved for us this name consisting of two words:

أمن مسه   [aman moshe] = master Moshe

-   Assuming that Amenmesse is Moses, it is not surprising that he acquired a significant (royal) influence precisely in Upper Egypt inhabited by Jews.

A cautious conclusion: the facts known to modern science suggest that Amenmesse is Moses.

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WHO ARE YOU, MOSES?

From the Torah we know that the real name of Moses is Moshe:

תורה, ספר שמות

ב,י וַיִּגְדַּל הַיֶּלֶד, וַתְּבִאֵהוּ לְבַת-פַּרְעֹה, וַיְהִי-לָהּ, לְבֵן; וַתִּקְרָא שְׁמוֹ, מֹשֶׁה, וַתֹּאמֶר, כִּי מִן-הַמַּיִם מְשִׁיתִהוּ

 Tora, Book 2 Exodus, Chapter 2

¹⁰ And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses, and said: ‘Because I drew him out of the water.’

From the passage we see that the word (Hebrew) משה [moshe] came from the word (Hebrew) מְשִׁיתִהוּ [moshitihu] = I drew him out.

How did the name Moses appear?

In the history of Egypt there were 5 pharaohs with the similar names, which nowadays are pronounced like that: Kamose, Ahmose, Thutmose, Rameses, Amenmeses.

Let us give the correct sound and meaning of these names:

-   Kamose → Ка moses → born by the god Ka

-   Ahmose → Ah moses → born by the moon

-   Thutmose → Thut moses → born by the god Thoth

-   Ramesses → Ra moses → born by the god Ra

-   Amenmesse → Amen moses → born by the Lord (this name is an evidence to faith in the One God)

The second part of the last-mentioned name, about 700 years later, migrated to the emerging Greek language in the form of (Greek) Mωϋσῆς, and from there, 2000 years later, to other languages:

(Greek) Μωυσής [mousis] → (English) Moses [mozes]

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THE TIME HAS COME

Approximately in 1202 BC, immediately after the death of the Merneptah, Moses decides to take the Jews from Egypt. However, the main concentration center of the Jewish population was in the land of Goshen, i.e. in the Faiyum area, located in the immediate vicinity of the palace of Pharaoh Seti II. To begin the Exodus, Moshe had to obtain the Pharaoh’s consent. There began a chain of arrangements described in the Torah in the form of a story of 10 executions. These negotiations lasted for several years and led to tension within the country. At different stages, they were probably accompanied by military actions. It is known that the capital of Upper Egypt, the city of Thebes, was captured by Pharaoh Seti II somewhere in 1198 BC.

Moses failed to persuade Seti II – he died in 1194 BC. After him, Pharaoh Siptah, a boy at the age of 10, ascended to the throne of Egypt.

Taking advantage of the lack of authority, Moses decided to seize the moment and the Exodus began. In 1194 BC (please refer to the article “Chronology of the Fathers”) the first group of Jews left Egypt, the details of the Exodus of which are described in the Torah – crossing the Red Sea, etc. The others followed it.

In the next 10 years in Egypt, three Pharaohs succeeded each other. They were busy holding power and, therefore, were not a threat to the Jews leaving Egypt for Sinai.

Figure 08

In 1184 BC Pharaoh Raameses III ascended to the throne of Egypt. The central power has grown stronger. Egypt’s area of interests again included the territories adjoining to it. In this period and until 1154 BC Jews settled in the Sinai desert that gave the opportunity to arrive for their congeners still remaining in Egypt. The question arises: why for 30 years Pharaoh Ramesses III did not try to return the slaves who were in Sinai at a distance of a hundred or two hundred miles from his palace?

The answer is: Pharaoh Ramesses III was busy with more important matters!

What are they?

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OPENING OF THE 2ND FRONT

Around 1184 BC the Jewish Diaspora (the Denyen and the Achaeans) performed coastal landing on the northern coast of Egypt with the aim of diverting the armed forces of the Pharaoh and allowing the Jews of Egypt to continue the Exodus.

Figure 09

In historical literature this action is called the “war of the Sea Peoples”. It lasted about 30 years (until the end of the Exodus).

Pharaoh Ramesses IV unreasonably argues (please refer to the Great Harris Papyrus) that his father Pharaoh Ramesses III defeated the Peoples of the Sea. This is not true!

The war of the Peoples of the Sea ceased in 1154 BC just as suddenly as it began. But the Denyen and Achaeans did not return to the Aegean Sea basin. It is well-known in a science that the Mycenaean civilization ceased to exist almost immediately – the so-called “Dark Ages” began on the territory of prehistoric Greece. No traces of people’s activity have been found in this area since the middle of the 12th century BC and up to the last third of the 8th century BC, that is, the writing has been lost for the period about 420 years, there are no traces of construction and land cultivation. According to the archaeologists’ terminology, the cultural layer corresponding to this period simply does not exist.

Where did the population of Greece disappear?

With the end of the Exodus from Egypt, the Jews left the Sinai desert and settled in the Promised Land – in Canaan. Specific measures for distracting military operations on the shores of Egypt were no longer needed – the Denyen and Achaeans ceased the “war of the Sea Peoples” and headed east to reunite with the rest of the people.

Figure10

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THE PROMISED LAND!

Having waited for the Exodus of most Jews from Egypt, in 1154 BC Moses decides to bring the people into Canaan. Joshua the son of Nun settles 12 tribes, dividing the country as follows:

Figure 11

The Denyen and Achaeans ceased fighting on the shores of Egypt at the same time and headed for Canaan’s shores.

The Achaeans landed west of the tribe of Judah’s land plot ((Hebrew) יהודה [ehuda]) and settled in five Philistine cities: Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, Ekron:

נביאים, ספר יהושוע

יג,ג מִן-הַשִּׁיחוֹר אֲשֶׁר עַל-פְּנֵי מִצְרַיִם, וְעַד גְּבוּל עֶקְרוֹן צָפוֹנָה — לַכְּנַעֲנִי, תֵּחָשֵׁב; חֲמֵשֶׁת סַרְנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים: הָעַזָּתִי וְהָאַשְׁדּוֹדִי הָאֶשְׁקְלוֹנִי הַגִּתִּי וְהָעֶקְרוֹנִי, וְהָעַוִּים 

Bible (King James)/Joshua, chapter 13

³ From Sihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: five lords of the philistines: the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites; also the Avites:

Some of these cities still exist (please refer to the article “Where is Hercules Buried?”).

The Denyen landed on the beach in the area of the modern city of Tel Aviv in order to reunite with its allied tribe of Dan. Nowadays this area is called Gush Dan.

Figure12

A curious reader can refer to the article “Full Circle” to get to know what happened afterwards.

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ON MACEDONIA

With the end of the war of the Sea Peoples, the islands and the coast of the Aegean Sea were practically deserted – the so-called “Dark Ages” of Greece began. However, in this territory there still remains a small Jewish population, which concentrated on the north-western tip of the Aegean Sea. This region is called in Hebrew מוקדון [mokdon] = (English) ‘concentration, focus’ till the present day. This word has passed to other languages in the form of Macedonia, Μακεδονία, Македония.

Figure13

The Jews of Mocdon performed their important role in 420 years – in 730 BC they sheltered the Denyen who had fled from the persecution of Tiglath-Pileser III, king of Assyria (this is discussed in the article “Full Circle”).

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ОN THE BERBERS

After the Exodus of most of the Jews to the east in Sinai, some of them remained in Egypt. A part of them, mostly residents of the western oases, eventually migrated to the west and became the basis of the Berber people who settled in the territories of northwestern Africa. About 1,000 years later, their ranks were replenished by the Jews who had escaped from Carthage destroyed by the Romans (this is described in the article “The Golden Triangle”).

The Berber alphabet called TIFINAGH is based on the ancient Hebrew alphabet.

The word “Berber” came to us from Greek. The Berbers call themselves “Amahag” or “Amazigh”.

The word “Amahag” originated from (Hebrew) עם החג [am ha-hag] = the people of the feast.

The word “Amazigh” originated from (Hebrew) עם הזיג [am ha-zig] = people behind the partition.

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THE SPARTANS – NOT THE SPARTIATES

The cities of prehistoric Greece were depopulated before 730 BC. Much later, around the 5th century BC, there appeared and was written a legend about the creation by Spartiates (not to be confused with the Spartans!) of the military state in Sparta during the “Dark Ages” with the extremely cruel laws established by Lycurgus (for example, killing of unhealthy and ugly babies). The Spartiates left us NO material evidences of their existence and there is no evidence of their contacts with the Jews of Mocdon at that time, therefore the authenticity of this story is doubtful.

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SUMMARY

1. In 1194-1154 BC about 3.9 million Jews left Egypt and settled in the Promised Land called Canaan.
2. During the same period, the Jews of Diaspora (the Denyen and Achaeans nicknamed by the Egyptians “the Sea Peoples”) left the territory of prehistoric Greece, as well as many settlements on the islands and on the shores of the Mediterranean, and joined the rest of the people in Canaan.
3. A certain number of Jews moved to the west and set the basis of the Berbers.
4. The Jews remaining in Egypt concentrated in the Faiyum area and subsequently sheltered the Jews who were fleeing from various cataclysms that overtook them in Canaan, such as the invasion of Tiglath Pileser III, king of Assyria, in the late 8th century BC (read a little about this in the article “Ev and Kiev – History Repeats Itself”), as the invasion of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II in the early 6th century BC, or the invasion of the hellenized Assyrians in the 3d – 2nd centuries BC, etc.

Figure14

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In the beginning was the Word

About 4,000 years ago the necessity to write appeared, which meant providing other people with information not through spoken word, but by written word. The first attempt to do so was by pictograms (drawings). Writers of the past were probably very proud of themselves, however, we understand that their ability to describe qualities and emotions was poor.

Picture 01

The pictograms developed into hieroglyphs. In addition to drawings of subjects those images carried descriptive information. Each hieroglyph had its specific meaning, and the quantity of such hieroglyphs was growing.

Picture 02

Disadvantages of such writing:

• There are more than 500,000 words in any modern language. The need to remember thousands of hieroglyphs is an impossible task for most people. The profession of hieroglyph writer/reader was a very respectable one and demanded long years of training, so people, in general, were completely deprived of such opportunity.
• Each hieroglyph makes sense only within the group of people who have agreed upon the meaning of this hieroglyph. A person not from this group wouldn’t understand this hieroglyph. Therefore, hieroglyphs were not suitable for information exchanging between different groups of people.

Hieroglyphs were written in all directions, but the most prevalent were right-to-left and top-to-bottom. The reason for that is simple: these directions were more comfortable for the right-handed person, writing on a stone with a chisel in his left hand and a hammer in his right hand.

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I write what I hear

(Here it’s recommended to read the article “Exodus: Behind the Scenes“).

In the middle of the 17^th century B.C. forefather Yaakov’s family moved from Knaan (Canaan) to Egypt. The Jews were taking active part in economic and trade activities. Hieroglyphs and pictograms were absolutely unsuitable for making records. That is why special characters that made it possible to WRITE DOWN SOUNDS OF HUMAN SPEECH were invented. It was the first phonetic alphabet.

In the beginning, each character of this alphabet consisted of a consonant and vowel combination, i.e. was an open syllable. Here is one version of the character list (not all have been understood yet):

Picture 03

There are 88 characters in this list. Actually, their quantity can vary from 50 to 100 at different stages of research and in different researchers. Like in almost all languages nowadays, each consonant could be combined with one of 5 vowels for an open syllable formation, for example:

Pa, Po, Pu, Pi, Pe.

We can see on the picture the inscription made in the 16^th century B.C. It was found in Egypt at the Wadi el-Hol (the Sandy Gulch). It is the oldest inscription written in phonetic alphabet ever found. Such a way of writing is called today a linear script because of writing along the horizontal line, unlike the previous forms of writing with hieroglyphs which have been written in all directions.

Picture 04

The Wadi el-Hol is in Egypt about 500 km from Cairo upstream the Nile River, approximately near the mythical Land of Goshen or to the South from it, i.e. in the area where the Jews used to live in the 16^th century B.C.

Picture 05

The linear syllabic script has been improving during the 16^th and 14^th centuries B.C. In the 13^th century B.C. there was a revolutionary jump in the development of such writing –we’ll talk about it below.

After deposition of the 16^th dynasty of Hyksos Pharaohs (hycsos, Ὑκσώς, היקסוס) in 1550 B.C. the attitude of the authorities and local people towards the Jews became hostile (read the article “Who are you, Pharaoh?“). That is why the Jews began to emigrate from Egypt to different regions of the Aegean Sea, Crete, Cyprus, and Sicily, as well as to other areas of the Mediterranean Sea coast.

Picture 06

The Jews lived in these areas during the period between 1550 and 1208 B.C. and, naturally, brought with them the linear syllabic script. A lot of documents with different versions of such writing have been found in excavations of the Minoan and Mycenaean periods.

Picture 07

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22

If we take any language and remove the vowels from words, it won’t, in most cases, lead to misunderstanding of the text, but will considerably shorten it. Let’s try to write this sentence by removing the vowels, except those at the beginning and at the end of words and the vowel “o”.

Lt’s try to wrte ths sntnce rmovng the vowls, excpt those at the bgnnng and at the end of words and vowl “o”. A lttle strnge at frst, bt thn if you gt usd to it, qte clr.

The Jews have been writing and reading this way for more than three thousand years. The structure of Hebrew, where practically all roots of words consist of three consonants, makes the understanding considerably easier. Such a way of writing saves time, paper, and ink, as well as developing variational thinking.

By the end of the 13^th century B.C., i.e. by the time of the Exodus from Egypt, having removed all unnecessary characters, the Jews created the alphabet consisting of 22 letters. Here it is:

Picture 08

Dear reader! Stop and look at the picture above!!! Before your eyes is the greatest invention in the history of mankind! The invention of wheel, gunpowder, penicillin and the Internet is insignificant in comparison with it. This is a universal way of spreading information all over the world. Without it the mankind developing would have stopped 3200 years ago.

This alphabet had the following revolutionary advantages:

1.   It allowed writing down ANY combination of sounds IRRESPECTIVE OF the language that a person was speaking and even without understanding the meaning.

2.   It was available to EACH person for studying within a few days, i.e. it opened the gates to education to all people.

The 10 Commandments were written on the Tablets of the Covenant by these letters (read the article “On the laws of nature and on the nature of laws“).

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The Alphabet Export to Europe

(Here it’s recommended to read the article “Full Circle“).

Between 1194 and 1154 B.C. the Exodus took place. The Jews left Egypt and settled in Canaan.

During the next 450 years immortal masterpieces such as The Torah, The Psalms of King David, Solomon’s Song of Songs, and a great variety of others were written in Hebrew using this alphabet. And what were the people of Europe doing while the Jews were learning to read and  write, building Jerusalem and arguing about morality stated in 10 Commandments?

The Europeans of those times were walking around the woods wearing animal skins, getting food by picking mushrooms and berries, as well as by primitive hunting, and living in caves. They worshiped the stones and lightning. All this could go on and on, BUT…

In 732 B.C. Assyrian king Tiglath Pileser III began the invasion to Canaan. The war lasted for 31 years. During this period a significant amount of Jews escaped from Canaan and settled on the coast of the Mediterranean.

Picture 09

The number of refugees reached millions of people (read the article “Numbers“). Most of them settled in the Aegean Sea coastline and islands. That was the end of dark ages of Greece.

Immigrants have also brought the alphabet to the Aegean Sea region. That was the beginning of the European aducation.

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Development of Writing Technologies

In the 7^th – 5^th centuries B.C. there was no paper. People used ceramic, papyruses, and animal skin for writing.

Writing on specially treated animal skin was the most convenient. That skin processing technology has remained up to now. It is used while making the klaf – a piece of skin with  the “Hear, O Israel!” prayer which is put inside the mezuzah. The same technology has been used and is being used nowadays for making the Torah scrolls.

The bigger a piece of skin was, the more information could be written on it and therefore, the more value it had.

Reading from a big piece of skin had one uncomfortable disadvantage – it was necessary to turn your head while moving from line to line. To overcome this discomfort between the 6^th and the 5^th centuries B.C. a tendency to change the direction of writing every line appeared and was developed. This means that one line was written right-to-left, the next left-to-right, and so on. For example:

Picture 10

It’s unusual for us, but after minimal training quite acceptable.

Bidirectional writing system (boustrophedon) had existed together with right-to-left writing for about 200 years. Then, at the end of the 5^th century B.C., there was a new technological jump: skin processing technology became much cheaper, big pieces of skin lost their value, and people started cutting them for small rectangular pieces. The need for bidirectional writing has disappeared. However, there was no quick-drying ink that time, so while writing right-to-left a right-handed person often wiped off this writing.

As a result, at the end of the 5^th century B.C. the left-to-right writing direction became predominant.

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The Greek Alphabet

Writing direction changing has lead to changes in the form of some letters of the Hebrew alphabet. That’s how the Greek alphabet was created. See the following table for comparison:

 Picture 11

1.   Some letters just changed the direction. In Greece they were written from left to right instead of from right to left: bet, gimel, he (hey), kaf, resh.

2.   Some letters turned 90º: alef, dalet, lamed, shin.

3.   Some letters didn’t change or changed a little: chet, tet, nun, ayin, vav.

4.   3 letters were added: phi, chi, psi.

5.   In general names of letters didn’t change, but they were adjusted to pronunciation.

This Greek alphabet has become “father” of the East European alphabets.

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The Latin Alphabet

(Here it’s recommended to read the article “The Golden Triangle”)

Escaping from Tiglath Pileser III some of the Jewish refugees settled on the west banks of the Apennine Peninsula and along the Tiber River. They founded 12 cities. This group called itself (Aram) ראשנא [rashna] = (Heb) הראשונים [harishonim] = (Eng) the first, pioneers. During the same period the city of Rome appeared and developed to the South from Rashna. The first seven kings of Rome were rashna. After about 150 years the Romans began to call rashna the nickname “etruscan”.

Commercial and cultural contacts of Rashna with the Jews of the Aegean Sea were very close, therefore during the period from the 7^th to 4^th centuries B.C. the alphabet of Rashna has experienced the same evolutionary changes as the Greek alphabet (see above). The Latin alphabet was the result of this process. Since the end of the 5^th century B.C. people of the Apennine Peninsula have been writing in Latin from left to right for the same reason as in Greece.

Latin has become a source of West European languages and alphabets: Romanian, Italian, French and Spanish, from which, in their turn, other West European languages have developed.

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Why didn’t the Romans Speak Roman?

The Germans speak German, the Russians speak Russian, the Arabs speak Arabic. Why did the Romans speak Latin, but not Roman?

There is a word לשון [lashon] = language in Hebrew. In language of Rashna this word has been changed:

lashon → lathon → lathin → latin

That is why the Romans called their language as latin = (eng) language.

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The Alphabet Development in Hebrew

As stated above, the ancient Hebrew alphabet appeared and developed during the time of Egyptian slavery. At the beginning of the 12^th century B.C. the Jews brought it to Canaan.

At the end the 8^th century B.C., when millions of Jews settled in the Mediterranean Sea coasts, the alphabet experienced some changes there. Those who stayed in Canaan continued using the old alphabet.

In 586 B.C. the king of Babylon Nebuchadnezzar II destroyed Jerusalem and took the Jewish intellectual elite as captives. In Babylonian captivity the Jews had the possibility of living according to the laws of their religion and culture. During this period the FORM of letters in the Hebrew alphabet has changed under the influence of Aramaic writing: so-called square letters appeared. The quantity and meaning of letters remained the same.

After 70 years of the Babylonian captivity the Jews came back to Canaan and brought with them a new form of letters. This new form existed along with the ancient one for about 600 years, gradually replacing it. The last usage of ancient letters by the Jews appeared to be in 132 A.D. on Bar Kochba’s coins.

Square form of letters is the most widespread form used for writing in Hebrew nowadays.

In the following table the ancient and square forms of letters are compared.

Picture 12

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The Samaritan Alphabet

A lot of Jews still remained in the territory of the Kingdom of Israel after its capture by Tiglath Pileser III and his successors in 732-701 B.C. Part of them were taken to Assyria, and another part mixed with the Assyrian soldiers and immigrants. So that’s how a new nation evolved – the Samaritans.

The Samaritans still use the ancient Hebrew alphabet (with small changes). This picture was taken in 2013 in Samaritan settlement on the Grizim Mountain. “The Good Samaritan Center» is written on the board.

Picture 13

A person who reads in Hebrew can quickly learn to read in Samaritan.

Here is an exercise for those who can read in Hebrew and are interested to learn the Samaritan alphabet in 15 minutes. The names of 12 Tribes of Israel are written on these plates:

Picture 14

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The Berber Alphabet

The tribes of Berbers, with up to 6 million people nowadays, live in the desert regions of Libya and Algeria. They use the alphabet based on the ancient Hebrew alphabet. There are many versions of this phenomenon, but we’ll mention two of them:

1.   The Berbers are descendants of the Jews who came out of Egypt to the west during or after the Exodus (the 12^th century B.C.).

2.   The Berbers are descendants of the Jews who went to the desert from Carthage after its destruction by the Romans (in 146 B.C.).

Both versions can be right as they don’t conflict with each other.

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The Conclusion

A person walking down the road needs to see the place where he is going to put his foot but not the place he has already passed. Likewise, a person, while writing, needs to see the place of paper where he is going to write but not the place where he has already written something.

In conclusion, a right-handed person should write right-to-left in any language. With inventing of ballpoint pens and pencils the reasons for writing left-to-right, which had been actual 2.500 years ago, disappeared.

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Alexander the Great or Alexander the Macedonian or Alexander III of Macedon was born on 21^st  of July 356 BC.

Ascending  the throne of Macedonia in 336 B.C., Alexander reestablished order in his land and the near-by region, and started preparations for the march to the east. The conquest he made was enormous. If it existed today, Alexander’s empire would have been the sixth largest country in the world.

 

 

According to many historians, the purpose of Alexander’s  eastern campaign was to conquer Persia.   In this article we’ll share with the reader our doubts on the matter and will suggest a different opinion about the true purpose of this campaign.

 Alexander set off from Pella, the Macedonian capital, in the spring of 334 B.C. His army consisted of 35,000 soldiers. It was clear to all that such a number of soldiers is not sufficient for conquering, and all the more so, retaining and controlling such a large territory.

 Conclusion N1: The purpose of Alexander’s march was much more modest– he did not plan on capturing Persia. So where did he head for?

 After crossing the Hellespont Strait (Dardanelles nowadays) he went southeast along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Bypassing from the north the Cilicia, Alexander met the army of Darius III not far from the town of Issus. The Persian troops were defeated in this battle, and Darius escaped east. If the purpose of Alexander’s campaign was the conquest of Persia, then he definitely would have followed Darius in order to smash him. But instead he turned south.

 Conclusion N2:  Alexander did not yet intend to capture Persia during the battle of Issus.

 

 

Moving southward along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, Alexander besieged Tyre. The siege turned out to be a long one. Alexander sends to Jerusalem requests for reinforcement.

 Conclusion N3: The relationship between Macedonia and Jerusalem was established a long time before those events. There is an indication of an existing trust and a sense of long standing friendship between the two in sending requests for reinforcement.

 Jerusalem declines to send military aid to Alexander.

 Conclusion N4: The relationship between Macedonia and Jerusalem is not so simple, Jerusalem is not afraid to risk Alexander’s anger.

 After conquering Tyre, Alexander moves further southward and captures the town of Gaza.

 Leaving his entire army at the seaside, Alexander, accompanied by a small entourage ascends to Jerusalem. There, at the gates of Jerusalem, quite an unusual event takes place. It is described in different sources, including “The Antiquities of the Jews” by Flavius Josephus.

Quote: “… for Alexander, when he saw the multitude at a distance, in white garments, while the priests stood clothed with fine linen, and the high priest in purple and scarlet clothing, with his mitre on his head, having the golden plate whereon the name of God was engraved, he approached by himself, and adored that name, and first saluted the high priest. The Jews also did all together, with one voice, salute Alexander, and encompass him about; whereupon the kings of Syria and the rest were surprised at what Alexander had done, and supposed him disordered in his mind.” (Translated by William Whiston in 1737)

 Conclusion N5: Alexander was met with a welcoming party from Jerusalem that were waiting for his visit ,and they were confident he comes with friendly intentions, despite refusing his request for military aid during the siege of Tyre.

 Conclusion N6: Alexander considered the High-Priest to be his superior.

 These events take place in September 333 B.C. Alexander visits Jerusalem during the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashana , Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah. He brings a sacrifice for the Temple and converses with highly respected people of the city.

 Here we ask the reader to pay attention to these 3 facts:

1.  Alexander came to Jerusalem without the army, which he left at the shore of the Mediterranean Sea.
2. Alexander chose of his own free will to bow first before the High-Priest.
3. In Jerusalem Alexander stayed for a fairly long period without any guard, and this took place at a time when kings were shot like ducks, and almost none of them managed to live to old age.

 Conclusion N7: The relationship between Alexander and Jerusalem had a previous history which we are not privy to, and this relationship was based on mutual regard and trust of the highest level. It is possible that specifically his visit to Jerusalem was the original purpose of the eastern campaign.

 During his stay in Jerusalem Alexander collects information about the Exodus from Egypt and Babylonian captivity. He seems to find out something important about the history of his family. Just here and now Alexander decides to go to Egypt. This decision possibly had strategic, political or economic reasons also. But the main reason was completely different – we’ll mention it a few lines below.

 Conclusion N8: When leaving Jerusalem for Egypt Alexander did not yet plan to capture Persia.

 Egypt surrendered to Alexander without resistance. Alexander is busy with the logistics of a new-captured land, and he lays the foundation stone of the city of Alexandria. Afterwards he acts in a way that requires, if not an explanation then some speculation at least. While accompanied by a small entourage he goes out for a dangerous journey through 800 km of desert, in order to visit the Temple of Amun in the Siva Oasis.

 

 

The Temple was built in the Siva Oasis by Jewish shepherds in the middle of XVI century B.C., i.e., around 80-100 years after forefather Jacob’s resettlement in Egypt. The word Amun/Amuna does not have any meaning in the Ancient Egyptian language and was used as a synonym of the word God. In Hebrew, though   אמון/אמונה = [Eng] faith/trust. Presumably ancient Jews were using this building for the purpose of worship, i.e. it was their בית אמונה [beit emuna] = house of faith, or house of worship ,or in modern language, a synagogue. Perhaps, this was the first synagogue.

 Note! After returning from this journey, Alexander wrote a will in which he stipulated his wish to be buried not in the Macedonian capital Pella, the city he was born in, and not in Alexandria, the city he founded , but next to this temple.

 Conclusion N9: Alexander already had gotten the idea of visiting the Temple of Amun during his stay in Jerusalem. Perhaps in Jerusalem he received information that this place had something to do with the history of his family.

 At the end of 332 BC Alexander raises his army and heads north. Passing through Damascus the army enters the northern part of Mesopotamia. Here on the first of October 331 B.C., next to the Jewish settlement of Gaugamella = (Heb) גב גמל [gav gamal] = (Eng) camel’s back. Alexander’s army fights and defeats the army of Darius III , which outnumbers his force more than double its size.

 

 

The Persian king Darius escapes east yet. Alexander does not pursue him, but directs the army south, towards Babylon and Susa (Shushan).

 Conclusion N10: After the victory of Gaugamella, Alexander still had yet intended to capture Persia.

 He goes to the place where a great many Jews were deported during the invasion of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar in 598-582 BC, that is, 250 years before the events described. It was a liberating campaign to Babylon – home of the Babylonian Talmud, and Susa, where Esther and Mordechai defeated anti-Semites, and Jews all over the world celebrate their victory on Purim.

 

 

By setting free Mesopotamia Alexander completed the first part of the eastern campaign.

Only now he went to conquer Persia. What for? Many will say: “In order to conquer Persia!” This answer does not seem justifiable to us. So far his conquests were not an end to itself – he walked in the footsteps of his ancestors, to the place where his nation dwelt, and to visit and set them free – this was a matter of high importance to him. What in the world was he searching in Persia and India? Were they not the lost tribes of Israel?

Alexander died of disease in Babylon on June 13, 323 BC, at the age of 33. His body was transported from Babylon to Alexandria, then the traces of it were lost and his place of burial is considered unknown.

The Temple of Amun in the Siva Oasis was blown up by the Egyptian authorities in 1897. Today there is another imposing facility in the Siva Oasis built in 5 BC and called the Temple of Amun. Its purpose is to gloss over the memory of the actual Temple.

 

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Alexander the Macedonian was not only a supreme leader in the battlefield, but also an outstanding liberal personality. He is portrayed more than once in literature as treating women and other religions with respect. In that way he distinguished himself from other governors at all times.

In 323 B.C. Alexander the Macedonian died. The Diadochi took advantage of his helpless descendants and started a power struggle in the Macedonian Empire. As a result of several wars the Empire collapsed, replaced by a few Hellenistic states that sprang on its territory. The greatest one was founded by Seleucus in 312 BC. 

 

We call them Hellenistic states, but proper ancient inhabitants of Balkans and Peloponnese treated them with disdain. The ancient Greece of 7-2 B.C. was a world center of science, technology, literature, art and democracy. Post Macedonian eastern states adopted Hellenistic religious rituals as a convenient tool to unify the nations enslaved to them. In other respects, the life of their rulers and aristocracy was known for its degeneration and disposition towards earthly pleasures, not to mention their complete rejection of democracy. To call them native carriers of Hellenistic culture would be a distortion of facts – therefore we’ll be referring to their culture as pseudo-Hellenistic in this article.

Imposing pseudo-Hellenistic culture upon the enslaved nations was one of the basic ways that Seleucid and Ptolemies would extend their power. Most of the nations submitted, but not all of them.

In 198 B.C., during a border conflict between the Seleucids and Ptolemies, Jews helped the Seleucid king Antiochus III the Great (ruled 222-187 BC) to expel the Egyptian garrison from Jerusalem. Also, they provided his army with food and equipment.  As a reward, Antiochus officially granted the Jews his permission to practice the religious traditions of their forefathers and bestowed upon the Jews a bill of rights. Thus Judea became the only non-Hellenized country within Seleucid Kingdom.

Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ruled 175-164 BC), the son of Antiochus III the Great, could not tolerate this situation, and came after with the enforced policy of imposing the pseudo-Hellenistic culture upon the Jews.

As a result rebellions spread all over the country between 172-170 BC.  In 170 B.C. Antiochus IV brought in troops to Jerusalem, thus violating the bill of rights. In 168 BC The Jewish Rebellion escalated in Judea,  an then  was violently suppressed  with the assistance of Jewish aristocracy. The pliancy of the few Jewish priests provoked Antiochus IV to make crucial decisions. He turned the Jerusalem Temple into a place of idol worship, climaxing with the ritual slaughter of  a pig at the altar in public.  That time in Jewish history was characterized by persecution, public executions, and violence.

Antiochus IV established new laws, inflicting punishment on everybody who practiced Jewish traditions.  Under the threat of massacre, that sometimes took place, people slowly gave in. Inspired by the success, Antiochus IV  in the year 167 BC enacted a law that forbade what for the Jews resembled the last sign of loyalty to their forefathers’ tradition – death penalty for anyone who circumcises his child. Death for both – father and son.

For those not well informed –  on the eighth day of his life every Jewish male infant undergoes the ceremony of BRIT MILAH (circumcision) – the rite that makes Jewish boy enter the covenant of the patriarch Abraham.

Every Jewish family with a newborn had only 8 days to choose – to abandon the customs of their forefathers’  OR to keep the covenant and for the rest of their lives (!)  to wake up every (!) morning and not to know whether will survive until the end of the day or not.

Dear reader! Look around. How many people near you will be able to survive such a trial? 20 %?  May be 5%?  Or 1% only?

Simple calculation gives the answer. Somewhere around 1 million Jews lived in Judea  during those days, and the number of battle-worth  men was about 130,000.

The table below, as based on the records of contemporaries, illustrates the correlation of two conflicting forces at different stages of war. 

 

Therefore at the beginning of rebellion around 0.5% (600 of 130,000) of battle-worth Jewish men joined the Hashmonaim, while at the best of times about 15% (20,000 of 130,000) of battleworthy men fought against the Seleucids.

Presumably only 0,5% were men who circumcised their sons and were ready to give up their lives and not betray the tradition of their forefathers.

Dear reader!  I ask you again to imagine and realize feelings of every Jewish family experiences during those eight days after the baby boy is born. The eight days of joy then turned into 8 dreadful days filled with the fear of death mixed with humiliation.  8 days of family debates when common sense in most cases won in favor of saving the life of the price of betrayal. 0.5% alone had passed the trial – they saved the Jewish nation in those bitter times. And 15% alone went into battle preferring death to assimilation.

Today is December the 16, 2014 – happy Hanukah!  Events described in this article took place 2,181 years ago and throughout all these years Jewish families light eight candles on Hanukah to commemorate those eight horrible days.

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