DIFFICULTIES IN DETERMINING THE ETHNICITY OF PEOPLE IN SCRIPTURE

The ancient world did not have surnames as we use them, and people were often referred to as being in a certain category based on geography and were called by their first name and the distinguishing place of origin. (“Jesus of Nazareth” is an example.) Someone being described as “Ethiopian,” “Egyptian,” “Hittite,” “Hivite,” or “Canaanite” may tell us something about their geographic location or origin but may not tell us anything about their ethnic composition. For example, the land of Canaan was the land of the Hebrews before the Canaanites moved in, and there were Shemites (descendants of Shem) already living in the land of Canaan before the patriarchs arrived. "Canaanite" could mean a descendant of Canaan, a resident of the land of Canaan, or a merchant, depending on context, and context may not always clearly indicate which meaning applies. This and the uncertainty about which ethnic groups occupied which areas and when those ethnic groups occupied certain areas can lead one to believe an individual was a different ethnicity than what he was if one is not careful.

Consider a few examples:

·        Hagar was an Egyptian slave given to Abraham by the Pharoah of Egypt. (Genesis 12:16; 16:1) Hagar was not an ethnic Egyptian: Hagar is a Hebrew name and Egyptian slaves originated from foreign lands. (Note also that Genesis 21:21 does not say Hagar went to Egypt to get a wife for Ishmael. There were Egyptian trade routes that went through the Wilderness of Paran, which would explain how Hagar got Ishmael a wife that came from Egypt when Hagar and Ishmael lived in the Wilderness of Paran.)

·        Judah married a Shemite woman. (Genesis 38) Why does the text specify the name "Shuah," and how much evidence is there that Shuah the son of Keturah in Genesis 25:2 and Shuah in Genesis 38:2 is not the same person? (Note also that the word "daughter" can also mean granddaughter or great granddaughter. -Genesis 38:2, 12)

·        Tamar was a Shemite woman. (Genesis 38) Ancient rabbinical writings say that Tamar was a daughter of Shem (the son of Noah), who was a priest; this would explain the penalty prescribed by Judah. (Genesis 38:24; Leviticus 21:9; note that much of the Mosaic Law codified customs or practices already in vogue among Israelites. Also note that Shem was still alive when Jacob turned fifty, and it was not unknown for extremely old men to father children.)

·        Joseph's wife Asenath was the adopted daughter of Potipherah and the biological daughter of Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and the biological daughter of Shechem, the prince of the town with the same name. (Genesis 41:45)

·        The Bible specifies that Zipporah was a Midianite, and then later refers to her as Ethiopian because the Midianites lived near Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Empire sometimes extended to both sides of the Red Sea. (Exodus 2:15-21; Numbers 12:1)

·        Rahab was a woman of Hebraic (probably Midianite) ancestry. Consider: The name Rahab is distinctly Hebrew and predates the Book of Joshua. (Job 9:13; 26:12) Her comprehension of, and affinity toward, the God of Israel and her ease of communication with the spies. (Joshua 2) The spies agreed to spare Rahab and her family without any reservations. (Joshua 2:12-14; Deuteronomy 7:1-3; 20:16-17. Incidentally, Rahab was not a prostitute. The Bible does not say that Rahab was an harlot, it refers to her as Rahab the harlot. Rahab was an innkeeper, it was not common for a woman to be an innkeeper, and "harlot" was a title for female innkeepers. On the town wall at or near the city gate was the normal location for an inn, and her family living with her was typical of innkeepers.)

·        Did Boaz violate the command in Deuteronomy 23:3 by marrying Ruth? Ruth was an Israelite woman. Ruth 1:15-16 does indicate that Ruth and Orpah might have come from families that worshipped pagan deities, but this does not mean they were not Israelites. Israelites often worshipped the gods of the lands that they had taken and often tried to mix the worship of Jehovah and the worship of pagan deities. The land of Moab was the first land conquered by the Israelites after wandering in the wilderness, and the Amorites had already conquered and occupied the land of Moab when the Israelites came. (Numbers 21:25, 29) The Israelites conquered the land of Moab and killed everyone there. (Deuteronomy 2:32-34) Then the Israelites advanced into the land of Ammon and killed everyone there. (Numbers 21:33-35) After the Moabites and Ammonites were killed or driven out the entire area of the Jordan river was settled by the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and from that time onward that area was purely Israelite territory and Israelites living in the old lands of Moab and Ammon were often called Moabites or Ammonites (Consider that Anglo-Saxon Americans living in California today are called Californians, and being called Californians and living in a former Mexican territory does not make them Mexicans.). (Deuteronomy 3:12-16) Three hundred years later it was reported that the Israelites still had exclusive occupation of the lands of Moab and Ammon. (Judges 11:12-26) About one hundred and thirty years after the Israelites occupied the land of Moab, Elimelech and his wife and two sons left the land of Judah and “went to sojourn in the country of Moab,” which was occupied exclusively by the Israelites, and Elimelech’s sons married women of the country of Moab and one of them was Ruth. (Ruth 1:1-4; Numbers 21:25, 29, 31, 33-35; Deuteronomy 2:32-34; 3:12-16; 23:3; Judges 11:12-26)

·        Was Uriah born to ethnic Hittite (pagan) parents and then later in his life converted to Yahwism? Uriah “the Hittite” had a distinctly Hebrew name that means “Jehovah is my light.” (II Samuel 11:3)

·        Was the Ethiopian eunuch the first gentile convert? The Bible account does not say he was an ethnic Ethiopian and saying that he “had come to Jerusalem for to worship” implies that he was a Jew and was not a literal eunuch. (Acts 8:27; Deuteronomy 23:1) Castrated men were often important public officials who could be trusted to take care of the women’s quarters or the royal harem and other important duties. Over time the term eunuch was often an honourary title for public officials entrusted with important responsibilities, such as the royal treasury.

·        “Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek: Which was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium. Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.” (Acts 16:1-3) Was Timothy half-Jew and half-Greek? The word here rendered Greek can mean a Grecian or a person who speaks Greek. Hellenistic Jews were Greek-speaking natural Jews that adapted to gentile culture and neglected or forsook circumcision and other Jewish customs.