Nadav Na’aman, «Jebusites and Jabeshites in the Saul and David Story-Cycles» biblica, Vol. 95 (2014) 481-497 page 497

Vol 95 (2014)

Nadav Na’aman, «Jebusites and Jabeshites in the Saul and David Story-Cycles», Vol. 95 (2014) 481-497

This article re-examines the historical role of the Jebusites in the early monarchical period. The Jebusites, whose name is derived from the verb YBŚ («to be dry»), were a West Semitic pastoral clan that split into two segments, one settling in western Gilead and the other around Jerusalem. The two segments kept their tribal solidarity, as indicated by Saul’s campaign to rescue Jabesh-gilead. The Jebusite stronghold was one of Saul’s power bases, and David took it over. The biased description of David’s conquest influenced the way the Jebusites were presented in the late (Deuteronomistic) biblical historiography and in Israelite cultural memory.

See more by the same author

Page 497/497
«
‹
497

001_naman_co_481-497 13/02/15 11:21 Pagina 497 JEBUSITES AND JABESHITES IN THE SAUL AND DAVID STORY-CYCLES 497 SUMMARY This article re-examines the historical role of the Jebusites in the early monarchical period. The Jebusites, whose name is derived from the verb YBŚ (“to be dry”), were a West Semitic pastoral clan that split into two segments, one settling in western Gilead and the other around Jerusalem. The two segments kept their tribal solidarity, as indicated by Saul’s campaign to rescue Jabesh-gilead. The Jebusite stronghold was one of Saul’s power bases, and David took it over. The biased descrip- tion of David’s conquest influenced the way the Jebusites were pre- sented in the late (Deuteronomistic) biblical historiography and in Israelite cultural memory.