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Merari
According to the Torah, Merari (Hebrew: , ''Mərārî'') was one of the sons of Levi, and the patriarchal founder of the Merarites, one of the four main divisions among the Levites in Biblical times. The Hebrew word ''Merari'' means ''sad'', ''bitter'' or ''strong'' (in the sense that a dish with a bitter taste might be said to have a "strong" taste). The Merarites were charged with the transportation and care of the structural components of the tabernacle. Richard Elliott Friedman attributes the genealogy to the Book of Generations, a document originating from a similar religiopolitical group and date to the priestly source. According to some biblical scholars, the Torah's genealogy for Levi's descendants is actually an aetiological myth reflecting the fact that there were four different groups among the levites - the Gershonites, Kohathites, Merarites, anAaronids according to the Jewish Encyclopedia, ''Levite'' was originally just a job title, deriving from the Minaean word '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merarites
The Merarites were one of the four main divisions among the Levites in Biblical times. The Bible claims that the Merarites were all descended from the eponymous Merari, a son of Levi, although some biblical scholars regard this as a postdictional metaphor, providing an origin myth of the connectedness of the clan to others in the Israelite confederation;.''Jewish Encyclopedia'' The Bible ascribes a specific religious function to the Merarites, namely care of the framework - posts, crossbars, courtyard, tent pegs, etc. - of the sanctuary. This differentiation of religious activity between the Merarites and other Levites, in particular the Aaronids, is found only in the Priestly Code, and not in passages that textual scholars attribute to other authors. According to the Book of Joshua, rather than possessing a continuous territory, the Merarites possessed several cities scattered throughout the geographic region of Gilead, as well as in the south of the Galilee, the latter bein ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merarite
The Merarites were one of the four main divisions among the Levites in Biblical times. The Bible claims that the Merarites were all descended from the eponymous Merari, a son of Levi, although some biblical scholars regard this as a postdictional metaphor, providing an origin myth of the connectedness of the clan to others in the Israelite confederation;.''Jewish Encyclopedia'' The Bible ascribes a specific religious function to the Merarites, namely care of the framework - posts, crossbars, courtyard, tent pegs, etc. - of the sanctuary. This differentiation of religious activity between the Merarites and other Levites, in particular the Aaronids, is found only in the Priestly Code, and not in passages that textual scholars attribute to other authors. According to the Book of Joshua, rather than possessing a continuous territory, the Merarites possessed several cities scattered throughout the geographic region of Gilead, as well as in the south of the Galilee, the latter being q ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Levi
Levi (; ) was, according to the Book of Genesis, the third of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's third son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Levi (the Levites, including the Kohanim) and the great-grandfather of Aaron, Moses and Miriam. Certain religious and political functions were reserved for the Levites. Origins The Torah suggests that the name ''Levi'' refers to Leah's hope for Jacob to ''join'' with her, implying a derivation from ''yillaweh'', meaning ''he will join'', but scholars suspect that it may simply mean ''priest'', either as a loan word from the Minaean ''lawi'u'', meaning ''priest'', or by referring to those people who were ''joined'' to the Ark of the Covenant. Another possibility is that the Levites originated as migrants and that the name Levites indicates their ''joining'' with either the Israelites in general or the earlier Israelite priesthood in particular. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gershon
According to the Torah, Gershon ( he, גֵּרְשׁוֹן ''Gērǝšôn'') was the eldest of the sons of Levi, and the patriarchal founder of the Gershonites, one of the four main divisions among the Levites in biblical times. The Gershonites were charged with the care of the outer tabernacle including components such as the tent and its covering, screens, doors, and hangings. Biblical scholars regard the name as being essentially the same as "Gershom" ( ''Gēršōm''), which appears to mean "a sojourner there" (גר שם), and it is Gershom rather than Gershon who is sometimes listed in the Book of Chronicles as a founder of one of the principal Levite factions. The Torah names Gershon's sons as Libni and Shimei. Textual scholars attribute the genealogy to the Book of Generations, a document originating from a religiopolitical group similar to that behind the Priestly source, and at a similar date. According to some biblical scholars, the Torah's genealogy for Levi's descendan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kohath
According to the Torah, Kehath ( he, קְהָת, ''Qəhāṯ'') or Kohath was one of the sons of Levi and the patriarchal founder of the Kehathites, one of the four main divisions of the Levites in biblical times. In some apocryphal texts, such as the ''Testament of Levi'' and the Book of Jubilees, Levi's wife, Kehath's mother, is ''Milkah'', a daughter of Aram. Onomastics According to biblical scholars, the meaning of Kehath's name is unknown, though it may derive from an Aramaic word meaning ''obey''. In the Testament of Levi, Kehath's birth when his father Levi was 35 years old was accompanied by a vision of Kehath "on high in the midst of all the congregation"; in the vision, Kehath's name is given as meaning "the beginning of majesty and instruction" and prophesies his being raised above his siblings. Genealogy In the ''Book of Exodus'', Kehath has four sons, Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. Amram marries Jochebed and sires Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. Although some Greek and L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kohathites
The Kohathites were one of the four main divisions among the Levites in biblical times, the other three being the Gershonites, the Merarites, and the Aaronites (more commonly known as Kohanim). The Bible claims that the Kohathites were all descended from the eponymous ''Kohath'', a son of Levi. Overview The Torah ascribes a specific religious function to the Kohathites, namely care of the vessels and objects within the sanctuary: the Ark of the Covenant, Menorah, Table of Shewbread. According to the Book of Joshua, rather than possessing a continuous territory, the Kohathites possessed several cities scattered throughout the geographic region in the Kingdom of Israel south of the Jezreel Valley, and in the region north of the Galilee, the latter being an extremely large distance apart from the former: *in the territory of Ephraim: Shechem, Gezer, Kibzaim, and Beth-horon *in the western part of the territory of Manasseh: Taanach, Gat Rimon *in the territory of Dan: Eltekeh, Gi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gershonite
The Gershonites were one of the four main divisions among the Levites in Biblical times. The Bible claims that the Gershonites were all descended from the eponymous ''Gershon'' a son of Levi (not to be confused with Moses' son Gershom), although some biblical scholars regard this as a postdictional metaphor providing an aetiology of the connectedness of the clan to others in the Israelite confederation. '' Peake's Commentary on the Bible''''Jewish Encyclopedia'' The Bible lists 2 major family divisions of the Gershonites, the Libnites and the Shimeites (Numbers 3:21). The Bible ascribes a specific religious function to the Gershonites, namely care of the curtains, hangings, and ropes of the sanctuary. This differentiation of religious activity between the Gershonites and other Levites, in particular the Aaronids, is found only in the Priestly Code, and not in passages that textual scholars attribute to other authors. According to the Book of Joshua, rather than possessing a cont ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torah
The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the same as Pentateuch or the Five Books of Moses. It is also known in the Jewish tradition as the Written Torah (, ). If meant for liturgic purposes, it takes the form of a Torah scroll ('' Sefer Torah''). If in bound book form, it is called ''Chumash'', and is usually printed with the rabbinic commentaries (). At times, however, the word ''Torah'' can also be used as a synonym for the whole of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, in which sense it includes not only the first five, but all 24 books of the Hebrew Bible. Finally, Torah can even mean the totality of Jewish teaching, culture, and practice, whether derived from biblical texts or later rabbinic writings. The latter is often known as the Oral Torah. Representing the core of the Jewish spiri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myth
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), objectively true, the identification of a narrative as a myth can be highly controversial. Many adherents of religions view their own religions' stories as truth and so object to their characterization as myth, the way they see the stories of other religions. As such, some scholars label all religious narratives "myths" for practical reasons, such as to avoid depreciating any one tradition because cultures interpret each other differently relative to one another. Other scholars avoid using the term "myth" altogether and instead use different terms like "sacred history", "holy story", or simply "history" to avoid placing pejorative overtones on any sacred narrative. Myths are often endorsed by secular and religious authorities and are close ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minaean
The Minaean people were the inhabitants of the kingdom of Ma'in (Minaean: ''Maʿīn''; modern Arabic ''Maʿīn'') in modern-day Yemen, dating back to the 10th century BCE-150 BCE. It was located along the strip of desert called Ṣayhad by medieval Arab geographers, which is now known as Ramlat Dehem. The Minaean people were one of four ancient Yemeni groups mentioned by Eratosthenes. The others were the Sabaeans, Ḥaḑramites and Qatabānians. Each of these had regional kingdoms in ancient Yemen, with the Minaeans in the north-west (in Wādī al-Jawf), the Sabaeans to the south-east of them, the Qatabānians to the south-east of the Sabaeans, and the Ḥaḑramites further east still. History Nothing is known about the early history of this north Yemeni kingdom. The region later to be known as Ma’īn first enters history at the time of the Sabaean mukarrib Karib’il Watar I, and at that time consisted of a number of small city-states, which were under very strong S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Elliott Friedman
Richard Elliott Friedman (born May 5, 1946) is a biblical scholar and the Ann and Jay Davis Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Georgia. Friedman was born in Rochester, New York. He attended the University of Miami (BA, 1968), the Jewish Theological Seminary (MHL, 1971), and Harvard University (Th.M. in Hebrew Bible, 1974; Th.D. in Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, 1978). He was the Katzin Professor of Jewish Civilization: Hebrew Bible; Near Eastern Languages and Literature at the University of California, San Diego, from 1994 until 2006, whereupon he joined the faculty of the University of Georgia's Religion Department, where he is currently the ''Ann and Jay Davis Professor of Jewish Studies.'' Friedman teaches courses in Hebrew, Bible, and Jewish Studies. He is a winner of numerous awards and honors, including American Council of Learned Societies Fellow. He was a visiting fellow at the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
