The descendants of Jacob’s son Benjamin occupied one of the smallest of the Israelite tribal allotments–measuring a mere 27 miles (43 km) wide by 14 miles (23 km) high–yet the significance of all the biblical events that took place within it is immense. Benjamin was the location of the Israelites’ very first battles to conquer […]
Category Archives: Old Testament
Nebuchadnezzar’s Final Campaign against Judah
2 Kings 24-25; Jeremiah 39 The final collapse of the southern kingdom of Judah as an independent nation came at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon in 586 B.C. Judah had already become a vassal of Egypt in 609 B.C. when King Josiah was killed by Pharaoh Neco at Megiddo (see “Josiah Battles […]
Othniel Rescues Israel
Joshua 15:13-19; Judges 1:11-15; 3:8-11 Though Scripture affords Othniel son of Kenaz a mere six verses to detail his accomplishments, the significance of what he accomplished should not be underestimated. Othniel is first mentioned during the initial conquest of the land, and it is noted that he was the son of Kenaz, the younger brother […]
The Kenites at Jabez
Author’s Note: This article and the accompanying maps grew out of research on the genealogies of the tribe of Judah, Jabez, the Kenites, and the Rechabites provided by Nancy Dawson (independent scholar and author of the book, All the Genealogies of the Bible, Zondervan Academic, 2023) and location identifications provided by Chris McKinney (Director of […]
The Setting of Ruth
Ruth 1-4 The story of Ruth is set in the time of the Judges, a few generations before the birth of King David. While much animosity often existed between Israel and Moab (Judges 3:12-30; 10:6-12:7; 2 Samuel 8:2; 10; 2 Kings 3:4-27; 2 Chronicles 20; see also Nations across the Jordan River map), other times […]