Northern Nations - Japheth
Of the northern nations Madai represents the Medians and Javan the Ionians, and under this general name our chapter also includes Kittim (Cyprus), Dodanim--or rather, as it is read in 1 Chronicles 1:07, Rodanim (Rhodes), and the remoter lands of the Mediterranean, viz. Elishah (perhaps the Laconian coast and islands) and Tarshish, that is Turdetania in south-western Spain, which was known in the East at an early date from the Phoenician trade and colonies beyond the Straits of Gibraltar. The other names of the northern group are more or less obscure, but, so far as they can be compared with Assyrian Gimir in Asia Minor, probably in Cappadocia which is called Gamir in Armenian; Tubal (Assyrian Tabal) and Meshech (Ass Muski) are identified with the Tibareni and Moschi of Herodotus, in the mountains southeast of the Black Sea. Tubal and Meshech appear again in Ezekiel 27:13 as trading with Tyre in bronze and slaves. Togarmah supplied horses and mules which would suit either Armenia or northern Asia Minor. Magog in Ezekiel 39 is the land of Gog, which appears along with other nations of the far north as the last and most formidable enemy of Israel and is generally taken to mean the Scythians; but it is not certain that the geographical horizon of the Hebrews extended north of Asia Minor across the Black Sea.

Southern Nations - Ham
Of the southern nations in Genesis 10: 6, 7, Cush is the dark-skinned race of Eastern Africa south of Egypt; to Cush verse. 7 reckons also the people of South Arabia (Yemen), which from very early times had a close connection with Africa and sent forth colonists to it. Mizraim is the usual Hebrew name for Egypt; Phut, which is repeatedly mentioned by the prophets is taken by ancient and probably sound tradition to mean the Libyans; and Canaan, the pre-Hebrew population of Palestine, includes the Phoenicians. The details in Genesis 10:8-19 appear to belong to a document originally distinct but not less ancient or valuable than the main scheme of the chapter.

Middle Nations - Shem
In the account of the middle nations or sons of Shem the nations included are Elam (Elymais and Susiana) on the Persian Gulf, Asshur (Assyria) north of Babylonia and mainly east of the Tigris, Arphaxad (Arrhapachitis), Lud (Lydia) and Aram, that is the Aramaeans or Syrians. There are a variety of minor peoples whose places cannot be determined with any certainty. 

This list covers the whole range of Hebrew geographical knowledge down to the time of the Captivity, and many of the remoter nations were known to the old Hebrews only through the Phoenician traders. Genesis 10; Ezekiel 27 The nations further to the east lay beyond their view; thus India (Sind, Heb. Hoddu) is first mentioned in Esther 1:1; for though Solomon's fleet on the Red Sea brought back Indian wares it is not certain that it went further than the ports of Southern Arabia, which from an early date were depots for the merchandise of India and East Africa; and Ophir is listed as part of Southern Arabia in Genesis 10:29. 

Geography
The land of Israel, from its geographical position, holds a very important place in the history of the ancient world. If we leave out of account the extreme East, which had quite separate existence, we find at the dawn of history two great centres of empire and civilisation. One of these was in the lower valley and Delta of the Nile, the other in the area of the Euphrates-Tigris valley. In each case a broad tract of very fertile country nourished a dense population and produced a life which encourages luxury and makes the progress of the arts possible. And in each case the absence of natural barriers in the shape of mountains and deserts, separating tribe from tribe and city from city, led at an early date to the formation of great kingdoms, rich and strong enough to engage in foreign conquest. 

Thus Egypt on the one hand, and Babylonia and Assyria on the other, are the main factors in the oldest history of Western Asia. Between them lay Syria and Canaan, broken up by natural causes into a number of small nations quite unable to cope with these empires, and therefore exposed in turn to the influence of each of the great powers, and forming the battlefield on which they ultimately fought for control. All communication, whether in peace or in war, between the rival empires of the Nile and the Two Rivers had to pass through Canaan, which was travelled from north to south by the trade routes connecting Asia with Africa.

Between Canaan and Egypt there lay only a short desert, offering no great obstacle to invasion, while between Canaan and the Assyrians and Babylonians the way was long and indirect, and great cities had to be conquered before the empire of the Two Rivers could come into contact with Palestine. Hence the relations of Canaan with Egypt go back to patriarchal times, while Assyria hardly came into direct contact with Israel till the eighth century B.C. 

Egyptians
The kingdom of Egypt is officially called 'Upper and Lower Egypt'. Upper Egypt is called Pathros in the Bible with Thebes for its capital. Lower Egypt embraced the Delta and the district of Memphis (Noph, but in Hosea 9:6 Moph), was formed by the union under a single Pharaoh of a number of districts. These districts were often divided into territories by rival leaders.

The internal policy of the Pharaohs through many centuries was directed to overcome these forces of disunity and strengthen their own rights by a well organised central administration and by the promotion of a state religion, which united all the local gods in a single pantheon, or even represented them as merely various forms of the supreme sun-god Ra, whose offspring the Pharaohs claimed to be. Pharaoh was given divine status, church and state were closely knit together, and the priests formed a most influential class and as strong supporters of the throne. Genesis 47:22

Under strong sovereigns this system had marvellous success. The system of forced labour, which was not too oppressive if confined to the season when agriculture was suspended, enabled the rulers to execute great public works, canals for irrigation, strong cities for defence, and royal monuments--especially tombs and temples--that are still among the wonders of the world.

Religion
The most prominent of all Egyptian deities, was Osiris, the god of the dead. There was more thought in their religion on the life after death. The safety of the soul after death was believed to depend on the care taken of the dead body. Hence the practice of embalming and the pains spent on providing safe and splendid tombs. The great pyramids themselves, the oldest of Egyptian monuments, are only the tombs of early kings whose chief care in this life was to provide homes for themselves in the life to come.

The Pyramid builders, who reigned at Memphis at least three thousand years before Christ, were followed by a series of princes who reigned with great splendour in Thebes. Then came a time of decay and foreign invasion, when the land was conquered by the Hyksos or Shepherd Kings. Who these were is unknown; to judge by their portrait statues they were not Semites, and in manners they became quite Egyptian. But they probably came from the East and opened a way into Egypt to many Semites, especially Canaanites, for from their time the signs of Canaanite influence on the Egyptian language and religion are significant. 

It was probably under the later Hyksos that the Hebrews settled in Goshen. The Hyksos were at length expelled by a revival of the Theban kingdom 17th dynasty; their last stronghold fell before Ahmes Amosis the first king of the eighteenth dynasty, and then Egypt entered on a career of Asiatic conquest under a series of warlike kings. Thothmes III., the greatest king of this dynasty, was master of all Syria, advanced victoriously to the Euphrates and even took tribute from Mesopotamia; and the cuneiform tablets found at Tell el-Amarna, containing despatches from Mesopotamian princes to later Pharaohs, show that Egyptian influence was dominant as far as the Euphrates for several generations after the victories of Thothmes. There was no organised Egyptian empire in Asia, the Pharaohs being content to form alliances with the local kings and receive gifts from them. Gradually, as the 18th dynasty drew to a close amidst internal troubles, the foreign influence of Egypt was narrowed and the Cheta or Hittites formed a power in Syria which seems to have been allied with Egypt on equal terms, while Canaan and Phoenicia were still dominated by Egyptian influence.

Hittites
The name seems to be the same as the Biblical Heth. The Hittites were a non-Semitic people from Asia Minor speaking an Indo-European language. The Hitties also inhabited several large city states in northern Syria. The Hittites had moved into the Asia Minor region about 2300-2000 B.C. The major city of importance was Hattusas.

Their military activity was generally confined to small raids along the boarders of its territory, with the exception of one major campaign against Babylon about 1600 B.C. During the reign of Suppiluliumas I (Christ. 1380-1340) the Hittites began an invasion of Northern Syria establishing vassal city states, loyal to the Hittites penetrated as far as Hamath.. Their great enemy during this time was the Egyptians who also sought control of Syria. However more and more they needed each others help and in 1284 B.C. Ramesses II of Egypt and Hattusilis III of Hatti formed a treaty as protection against the Assyrians. The Empire came to a close with the invasion of 'Sea Peoples' from Greece and the destruction of the famous city state of Ugarit.

Language
The Language of the Hittites was mixed among at least five different languages, including Indo-European, Sumerian and Addadian among others. It is the oldest known written Indo-European language and was recorded in a hieroglyphic script.

Religion
Biblical Gods
The god's of the Hittites were truly a pantheon of names. The Hittites spoke of their deities as 'the thousand gods.' The chief male God was the storm God and the head of the female god's was the solar God. Each king would designate his own deity and promote their worship among the people.

In the Old Testament there seems to be no reference to the Hittites living in Asia Minor. The Hittites mentioned throughout the Old Testament were descendants of the Hittites from Asia Minor who settled in Syria. Modern scholars have called them neo-Hittites. They generally refer to foreigners to Palestine and Syria. The Hittite Kings mentioned in 2 Kings 7:06,7 and 2 Chronicles 1:17 were rulers from Syria. The early date of the Mosaic Covenant can be verified by the similarities of the Biblical covenant at Sinai with the Hittite suzerainty treaties.

Philistines
The Philistines were an Aegean peoples who lived in coastal region of Philistia. They came from a region known as Caphtor from Crete and perhaps also from Caria, began to occupy the sea-coast south of Phoenicia. Amos 9:07; Jeremiah 47:4 Philistine pottery carries strong Mycenaean or Minoan markings. They are listed among the 'sea People' who swept through Syria and destroyed the Hittite empire and fought against the Egyptians. The Philistines are also identified with the Cherethites. Ezekiel 25:16; Zephaniah 2:5,6

The power of the Philistines league with its five cities, Ashdod, Gaza and Ashkelon on the coast, Gath and Ekron inland, was on the increase during the time of the Hebrew judges, and in the days of Saul they threatened to become lords of Canaan. At this time, they had become thoroughly influenced by Semitic language and religion. On the other hand the fact that they did not, like the Canaanites and Hebrews, practise circumcision, seems to show that they had never come under Egyptian influence. Though their power was broken by David they retained their national independence till they were conquered by Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria in 734 B.C.. They were the only nation that was not overthrown by the Judges. They continued to revolt against their foreign rule until they were permanently destroyed by king Nebuchadnezzar and carried off into captivity.

Religion
Biblical Gods
Ashtoreth or Asherah  Asherah figuraine, made from a mold discoverd at Nahariyeh, Israel.  Goddess of the sea and Baal's mother.  Manasseh king of Israel introduced it into worship.
Philistine religion played a significant role in Hebrew life. The three major Philistine gods were Dagon, Ashtoreth, and Baalzebub. There were temples of Dagon in Gaza , Ashdod and Beth-Shan. Judges 16:21; 1 Samuel 5:1-7 Temple of Ashtoreth in Ashkelon and temple of Baalzebub in Ekron. 1 Samuel 31:10; 2 Kings 1:1-16

Culture
While Scripture speaks of the people of the Philistines in a derogatory way they were still among the most cultured and sophisticated peoples of the region. Their pottery is complex for its time and they had a great cultural influence on Palestine. The Bible's emphasis is upon their negative influence in religion and idol worship. They were spoken of as 'the uncircumcised' as a term of derision by the Hebrews. However the threat of the Philistines drove Israel into a closer unity as a nation.

Phoenicians
The term Phoenician comes from a Greek word meaning Purple dye, which was a descriptive word describing the occupation of these people. Phoenicia is the coast land between Lebanon and the Mediterranean, extending from the Philistine territory of Ekron to the mouth of the Orontes. The major cities of importance were Tyre, Sidon, Acco, and Zarephath all along the coast.

The Phoenicians called themselves Canaanites, and their speech was similar to Hebrew, or as the Bible calls it, the language of Canaan. Isaiah 19:18 Phoenicia was the only part of Palestine which was not conquered either by the Hebrews or by the Philistines.

Trade and Influence
Potteryfrom the period of the Divided kingdom, Beersheba, Israel.
Situated on the coast they were a sea People who traded extensively with the Mediterranean ports. The principle export of the Phoenicians were lumber, purple dye, glassware and pottery. They established trading stations or colonies all over the Mediterranean, Egypt Isaiah 23:3 and even at Tarshish in Spain beyond the Straits of Gibraltar. The colonisation of North Africa and Spain began soon after the Hebrews entered Canaan, and may have been aided by the Canaanites being pushed out by Israel.

The Egyptians had a great influence on the Phoenicians. It was from Egypt that they learned to make glass and enamel. The Phoenician alphabet, was derived from the Egyptian hieroglyphics.

The Israelites in Canaan soon formed friendly relations with the Phoenicians, who supplied a market for their wheat and other produce. Ezekiel 27:17 This alliance was profitable to both parties and was carefully maintained by the ablest Hebrew kings, David, Solomon, Ahab. During the reign of Hiram I king of Tyre (c. 981-947 B.C. ) Israel was supplied with the materials and craftsmen to build the Temple and David's palace. 1 Kings 5 Hiram did much for the adornment of his own capital and rebuilt the temples of the two chief Tyrian deities, Melcarth, the Baal of Tyre , and his female partner Astarte. All through Canaan the traders were not Israelites but Phoenicians; in Hebrew a 'Canaanite' means a tradesman. Hosea 12:7 There was a colony of Phoenician merchants outside the walls of Jerusalem down to the days of Josiah. Zephaniah 1:11

King Hiram's alliance with Israel resulted in the temporary opening of the Red sea to a joint navy of the two powers which gave a new trade-way to South Arabia and perhaps to India. The next king of Tyre mentioned in the Bible is Ethbaal or Ithobal . 1 Kings 16:31 He was the father-in-law of Ahab, who was priest of Astarte, and came to the throne by slaying his predecessor in a time of much internal disorder. His reign was long and prosperous 887-855 B.C., but the end of Tyrian greatness was near. The Assyrians were approaching the Mediterranean, and from 876 onwards the Phoenicians found it necessary to appease them by occasional payments of tribute. From the middle of the following century however Assyria aimed at permanent conquest, and Tyre had its full share in the bloody and persistent warfare that followed, suffering a five years' siege from Shalmaneser, about the same time as the siege of Samaria 724-720 B.C. 

King Shalmaneser III  Assyrian king who reigned from 858-824 B.C. First Assyrian King to invade Israel. 

The Assyrian power on the Mediterranean coast was never complete; revolts broke out from time to time, and about 650 B.C. Phoenicia seems to have been again independent, but with crippled resources and power; her Spanish colonies had fallen away Isaiah 23:10 and the Greeks had begun to press hard on the Phoenicians in the islands of the Mediterranean and to supplant Tyre in the Egyptian trade. Still Tyre was strong enough to resist Nebuchadnezzar for thirteen years 587--574 and apparently able to negotiate easy terms. Ezekiel 29:17 In 538 it passed from the Chaldaeans to the Persians, and about the same time Carthage declared its independence. The Persians generally treated the Phoenicians with favour on account of the importance of their fleet to the empire, and left them a great measure of self government. The extinction of Phoenician nationality may be dated from the fall of Tyre before Alexander the Great in 332 B.C.

Ammonites
Ammonite Tombs in Jordan
Lot's younger daughter who had a child by her own father named Ben-'Ammi became the ancestor of the Ammonites. Genesis 19:38 They were a race of people closely linked to the Israelites and divided into two nations of Ammon and Moab. The Ammonites settled east of Mount Gilead, from the Jabbok southwards, and in the time of the Judges they laid claim to the Israelite settlements in Gilead Judges 11, but were driven out by Jephthah and again by Saul. 1 Samuel 10

They regained their independence, however, soon after David's death and maintained it, as allies of their Aramaean neighbours and bitter enemies of Israel, till they fell under the power of Assyria and Chaldaea. Amos 1:13; Zephaniah 2:8; 2 Kings 24:2; Ezekiel 25:2 The Ammonites were just as hostile to the Jews after the Captivity. Nehemiah 4; Micah 5 Even under foreign rule the obstinate little nation retained its individuality for two centuries after Christ, till it disappeared absorbed by the advance of the Arabs. The capital Rabbath Ammon received a Greek colony and the name of Philadelphia from Ptolemy Philadelphus, but the old name reappears in the modern Amman. 

Amorites
The Akkadian term is amurru which is often translated 'westerner' but which does not fully answer the meaning of the name. A god by this name has been discovered in cuneiform tablets from the regions of Syria, Assyria and Babylonia. One of his wives was Asherah. He is regarded as the storm god. While the name is the same the principal god of the Amorites was Dagon.

Biblical Gods

The term Amorite is used in various ways in the Old Testament. Sometimes it refers generally to a group of non-Israelites. Genesis 15:16 Later it came to mean a group of inhabitants in the south of Palestine but who were nomadic and moved around. Deuteronomy 1:19ff; Joshua 2:10; Numbers 21:21 They are described by Amos as tall as cedars and strong as oaks. Amos 2:9 The gods of the Amorites were the gods of Baal and Ashtartes which threatened the worship of Yahweh. Joshua 24:15; Judges 6:10 They seem to have been destroyed by Saul in 2 Samuel 21.

Moabites
The Moabites were the ancestors of Moab, the son of Lot who had given birth with his oldest daughter. Genesis 19:30-38

The Moabites to the south of Gilead were a larger nation, extending beyond the Arnon to the Arabah south of the Dead Sea. In the time of the Judges they acted with the Ammonites against Israel, and like them they were subdued by David 2 Samuel 8:2 and revolted soon after, but were again taken by Omri. The defeat and death of Ahab at Ramoth Gilead enabled their king Mesha to throw off the yoke once more. Jeroboam II subdued them for a time. 2 Kings 14:25; Isaiah 15;16 They then came under Assyrian and then Chaldaean rule, always retaining a bitter hatred to Israel. They were finally swallowed up by the Arabs, whose gradual advance on these regions is already foreshadowed in Ezekiel 25:8.

Moabite Stone
The revolt of the Moabites after the death of Ahab 2 Kings 1:1 is known to us in more detail from the famous Moabite Stone found in the year 1869 and now in Paris. It was a block of basalt which King Mesha inscribed with the record of his exploits and set up in the high-place which he built at Dibon in gratitude to his god Chemosh for the victory granted him over all his enemies. Chemosh was angry with his people and the land was enslaved for forty years. He then led them to victory again, and at the divine command Mesha smote the cities of Israel with determination and offered their spoil to the national god. Chemosh, we see, was felt to be the true divine king of Moab just as Jehovah was of Israel.

The language of the Moabite Stone is practically the Hebrew of the Old Testament, differing from it much less than even Phoenician does. All three are Canaanite dialects. The Canaanite influence on Moab is also seen in religion, especially in the worship of Baal-Peor. Numbers 23:1-4; 25:1-5

Edomites
Entrance into Petra or Edom
Looking at entrance into Petra from Al Khazneh Farun
Al Khazneh Farun
Entrance into Petra or Edom
Umm Al-Biyara or Sela 2 Kings 14:7
Petra or Edom
Bowl for sacrificial blood at Al Khazneh Farun, Petra
Ampitheatre & Cave-houses, Petra or Edom
Cave-dwellers, Petra or Edom
Entrance into Petra or Edom
Entrance into Petra or Edom
Bedouin tent on hill south of Petra or Edom
The term Edom comes from the name Esau referring to the red colour of the stew that was prepared for him. Genesis 25:30 Edom dwelt beyond Moab in and near the Arabah and runs from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Akaba. It was a mountainous waste land, whose inhabitants live mostly by the sword. Genesis 27:40

Here the Edomites were preceded by the Horites or ' Cave-dwellers,' whom they conquered but did not entirely destroy. Deuteronomy 2:12 From Genesis 36:2 where for Hivvite it should read Horite, it appears that the Edomites inter-married with the Horites, but also with the Hittites (i.e. Canaanites) and with the Ishmaelites, so that they formed a sort of intermediate race between the inhabitants of Palestine and the Arabs of the Syrian and Sinaitic deserts. Genesis 36:20-24 

They were a crude and warlike people, and though conquered and almost exterminated by David rose again under Hadad in Solomon's reign. 1 Kings 11:14 They maintained their national existence sometimes under kings who were Judaean vassals, and sometimes, especially between the reigns of Joram and Amaziah as an independent state. 2 Kings 8:20; 14:7 The possession of Edom was of consequence to Judah because Elath on the Gulf of Akaba was the port for the Red Sea trade, while the Stronghold of Sela (Petra) was probably already an important point on the overland route to Arabia. Elath was finally lost to Judah in the time of Ahaz. 2 Kings 16:6 The Edomite king Causmalak paid tribute to Tiglath-Pileser III along with his neighbours of Ammon and Moab.

The Edomites were noted above all the other enemies of the Jews for their brutality and cruelty. Obadiah 1:10; Ezekiel 25:8-12; Lamentations 4:21; Amos 2:1 The Israelites had to pass through this territory upon entering the land of Canaan. They were eventually subdued and assimilated into Judaism by John Hyrcanus in 126 B.C.. It was one of these Edomite families from which the Herodian dynasty sprang up. It is worth pointing out that of all of Israel enemies, Edom was the only nation that was not extended a word of mercy from God.

Amalekites
The Amalekites lived in the desert region of Paran between Ezion-Geber and the Mediterranean. Genesis 25:18 Amalek was the grandson of Esau, one of the sons of Eliphaz. Genesis 36:15; 1 Chronicles 1:36 They were at constant war with the Hebrews from the time of Moses, Exodus 17:8 until their power was broken by Saul and David. 1 Samuel 15:1ff; 27:8; 30:1; 2 Samuel 8:12 The last biblical record of them is in the reign of Hezekiah as a small band of bandits. 700 B.C. 

Kenites
Kenite means a metal smith or worker. They were a semi-nomadic people who lived in the Sinai. This was the tribe of Moses's Father-in-law, who attached themselves to Judah and settled in the Judean wilderness. Judges 1:16; 4:11 Because they were a nomadic people they moved around making their exact location at any given time nearly impossible. Abraham was promised their land in his inheritance. Genesis 15:19 The Kenites as their name suggests were workers of metal, likely copper and bronze as it was the Philistines who controlled the iron works. 1 Samuel 13:19 It appears that by the post exilic period the nomadic existence of the Kenites was given up for a more communal life as scribes. 1 Chronicles 2:55

Arabians
The Arabians generally refer to the nomadic people of northern Arabia. They are called 'people of the East' in the Old Testament. In biblical times the term Arabian did not refer to the southern nomadic tribes but only to the many tribes or peoples of northern Arabia. Many of the Arabian tribes would include the Midianites, Amalekites, Ishmaelites, Kenites and others. Joseph was sold to Arab merchants in a caravan. Genesis 37:25-28 They are linked to Abraham through the children of Keturah and Ishmael. 

During the time of Moses and the early conquest they were generally linked to the Midianites. Exodus 2:15 During the time of Saul and David the territory of Arabia was controlled by the people of Sheba. 1 Kings 9:26-28 It was the Queen of Sheba who visited Solomon to trade goods for wisdom. 1 Kings 10:1-13 They were conquered by the Assyrians under Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. (605-562 B.C.) The defeat of the Kedarites (Arabs) is prophesied in Jeremiah 49:28-29. After the fourth century the region was dominated by the Nabateans.

Midianites
Midianite Temple at Timnah, Negev 1
Midianite Temple at Timnah, Negev 2
The Midianites occupied the territory east of the gulf of Aqabah. They dwelt in the desert regions as nomads. Their name comes from their ancestor Midian, the son of Keturah one of Abraham's wives. Genesis 25:6 This is where Moses went to live as he fled from his life from Pharaoh after killing an Egyptian servant. Exodus 2:15 Moses went to work for Jethro who was a priest of Midian and he married one of his seven daughters, Zipporah. Although the Midianites represented by Jethro were friendly to Moses they were not considered members of the covenant community and were hostile to Israel throughout their existence. Gideon overthrew the Midianites after a seven year conflict. Judges 6:1

After this their name is hardly mentioned, though their name was preserved down to the middle ages in the town of Madian Southeast of Elath on the Red Sea. Some scholars see the Kenites as the same people, but there is indication that the Kenites lasted longer. 1 Samuel 27:10

Arameans - Syrians
The territory of Aram consisted of the land Northeast of the sea of Galilee and north west of Mesopotamia. In the table of the nations in Genesis 10, Aram is mentioned as the son of Shem. The Arameans were not a well organised nation but rather a group of small independent city states linked together in a loose confederation in Syria and northern Palestine. One of their most important city states was Damascus. It was conquered by David but gained independence under Solomon and became the centre of a powerful kingdom, which pressed hard on Israel from the days of Ahab downwards, and reduced the house of Jehu to the merely nothing. When the Assyrian invaded Aram under the leadership of Tiglath-Pileser II and the Arameans lost their political independence. 

Aramaic
For Further Study see Languages Topic
Aramaic Alphabet
The Aramaic language which was already used in a great part of the empire of Nineveh, continued to spread into the life of the Assyrian and Persians. Aramaic was the diplomatic speech of Palestine in the time of Hezekiah and under the Persians it was the official language of the provinces west of the Euphrates even down into Egypt. In Palestine after the restoration the Jews themselves gradually forgot their old Hebrew and adopted Aramaic as the language of common life. The dialect called Hebrew in the New Testament is not the language of David and Isaiah, but a form of Aramaic, which at that time was the only Semitic language spoken in Asia outside of Arabia, and the literary language, used on inscriptions of North Arabia itself.

Assyrians - Babylonians
These two nations are dealt with under one title because they shared a common ancestry. They were the two major eastern empires, before which all the old states of Syria and Palestine fell one after another. Babylonia was that country on the lower course of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Babel or Babylon was the chief city.

Assyrians

Restored Nergal Gate, Nineveh, Babylon
Flock of Sheep in Nineveh, Babylon
Sennacherib's Palace, Nineveh, Babylon
Assyria or Asshur, occupied the Tigris valley to the north of Babylonia. Its boundaries cannot be exactly fixed, but its centre lay on the left bank of the Tigris, where the great city of Nineveh stood. Babylon and Nineveh were long rivals, but they had a common civilisation based to the south in the fertile crescent. Here the oldest kingdoms were formed which even predates Egypt with the cities of Babylonia older than those of Assyria. Genesis 10:10

The language of the Babylonians and Assyrian empires was Semitic, but in the southern country the Semites seem to have been preceded by another race from whom they acquired many things in their culture and religion, and to whom the origin of their peculiar cuneiform system of writing is generally ascribed.

Over the course of time the Assians became the stronger power, and after the Egyptians withdrew from Mesopotamia it began to extend its boarders. In the latter part of the twelfth century B.C. the great conqueror Tiglath-Pileser I carried his victorious arms over all the regions from Lake Van to the Euphrates and crossing that river penetrated as far as the Phoenician coast. But these conquests were not permanent, a period of deep decline followed. Their monuments with their inscriptions are silent for more than a century, and when they speak again about the close of the tenth century Assyria is engaged in re-establishing its lost control in Mesopotamia.

The great conqueror Asshurnazirpal (884-860) united his kingdom throughout the country of the Two Rivers to the borders of Babylonia, and took tribute from t he western princes as far as Phoenicia, while his successor Shalmanezer II made many wars beyond the Euphrates. In 854 B.C. he defeated a great confederation of Syrian states with Damascus as its head and in 842 he took tribute from Jehu King of Israel.

But for another century the Assyrians were mainly occupied uniting their power in the north and east, and no sustained attempt to incorporate Syria in the empire was made until Tiglath-Pileser II. (745-727 B.C.) After subduing Babylonia and breaking the power of the Alarodians in Armenia, he moved west. In 738 B.C. he took tribute from Damascus and Samaria, who revolted resulting in the destruction of Damascus and the taking of captives from Gilead and Naphtali and placing Judah under Assyrian rule. 2 Kings 15:19-29 

There was now no independent state lying between Assyria and Egypt. Egypt was now torn apart by war in their own region and could not intervene to stop the progress of the Assyians southward. With the death of Tiglath-Pileser, the Egyptians, with the help of Philistia and Samaria were able to push back the forces of the Assyrians. This consumed the entire reign of the Assyrian king Shalmanezer IV(727-722 B.C.) 

Over the next twenty years, the Assyrians would push down upon Palestine under the reigns of Sargon, and Sennacherib. Without the help of the Egyptians Palestine finally fell to the Assyrians at the great battle of Eltekeh. But Isaiah the prophet continued to direct King Hezekiah to put his faith in God and not surrender to the Assyrians. A great disaster fell upon Sennacherib's army and he was forced to return to Nineveh leaving Judah with some measure of self-government. 2 Kings 19:35 Sennacherib was assassinated in 681 B.C. and from this time on the Bible has little to say about the Assyrians. 2 Kings 19:37

However although the Assyrians were too powerful to destroy, they never were able to build up a stable political structure. They ruled by terror, crushing their enemies by fire and sword or weakening them by carrying their captives off into captivity to other parts of the empire. Their subjects never ceased to be the foes of their masters, and the whole course of the empire was marked by continual revolts.

Babylonians
Replical of Tower of Babel
Nebuchadnezzar's Palace, Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar's Palace, Babylon
Ishtar Gates, Babylon
Processional Way, Babylon
The Babylonians reached the height of their strength under Nebuchadnezzar. Pharaoh Necho of Egypt invaded Palestine and advanced to the Euphrates making Judah a servant in the process. 2 Kings 23:29 Nebuchanezzar defeated Pharaoh Necho at the great battle of Carchemish in 605 B.C. Jeremiah 46:2 The Babylonian empire stretched through Syria and Palestine to the Egyptian boarder. Jerusalem was destroyed during a second revolt against the Babylonians. Ezekiel 29:17

Nebuchadnezzar's chief concern in his reign of 44 years (605-561 B.C.) was to strengthen and beautify Babylon, whose walls and great temple of Bel were among the wonders of the ancient world. Daniel 4:30 With all this splendor the Babylonian empire was nothing more than a short epilogue to that of Assyria. They ruled by the same method of fear and brutality.

Cyrus's Cylinder
The Babylonian empire fell in 538 B.C. with little resistance to Cyrus King of Persia who gave the Jews permission to return to their homeland and rebuild the walls of the city of Jerusalem and repair the temple. Isaiah 45:1; Ezra 1:1

Canaanites
The Canaanites have their roots in Genesis 10:15-18 where they are mentioned as the ancestors of Canaan. While the early references placed the Canaanites in the Phoenician region and northern Israel, the later references speak of the Canaanites inhabiting the land west of the Jordan. Genesis 50:11; Joshua 7:9

The term Canaanite was a more general term that included many different tribes and peoples who lived in this territory. Genesis 10:15-19 list Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites, and others. It seems that during the period of the conquest that there were two major groups of people occupying Palestine at this time, the Canaanites and the Amorites. Numbers 21:1-23 The major Canaanite towns and cities were Megiddo, Jericho, Beth-shean, and Tyre.

The Canaanite culture was more advanced than Israel's and had a marked influence on the life of the Israelites. Unfortunately they were also influenced by their religion which drew them away from Yahweh to worship Baal and Astarte. The prophets were sent to call the people of Israel away from the idol worship and to renew their covenant faithfulness to God. Elijah gave the ultimate challenge in his statement 'How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him.' 1 Kings 18:21

For Further Study See Historical Books Background

Copyright © 1995 David Graves & Jane Graves, Electronic Christian Media