Who Were the Israelites?• About 1200 BC empires around the

Mediterranean Sea fell (collapsed)• New people entered the region• Around 1000 BC people called

Israelites built a kingdom in Canaan• Canaan lies along the far eastern

shore of the Mediterranean Sea.

Monotheism

• The Israelite religion believed in one God

• Their religion became known as Judaism

• Those who followed Judaism became known as Jews

The First Israelites

• The first Israelites spoke Hebrew

• Earliest Israelites were herders

• According to the Hebrew Bible, they came from Mesopotamia and settled in Canaan

• Today Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan are where Canaan used to be

Actor, Charles Heston as Moses

In the 1956 movie, “The Ten Commandments.”

Who Was Abraham?• Abraham—Israelites believed they

all descended from Abraham– The Hebrew Bible tells us that Abraham

was told by God to leave Mesopotamia and travel to Canaan

– Once in Canaan, they were to worship one true God

– God promised the Israelites that Canaan would belong to Abraham and his descendents

Who Was Jacob?

• Jacob was Abraham’s grandson• Jacob was also called Israel

–Descendents of Jacob called themselves Israelites

• Jacob had 12 sons–When they grew up they separated to make The Twelve Tribes of Israel

Into Egypt…

• The Israelites lived in Canaan for about 100 years–Then a severe drought occurred and forced them to go into Egypt (..not a good idea!)

From Slavery to Freedom• In Egypt, Pharaoh needed slaves to

build his Pyramids—so he enslaved the Israelites

• To prevent rebellion, Pharaoh ordered first-born baby boys to be killed

• One mother sent her baby, Moses, down the Nile in a reed basket

• Baby Moses was found by the Pharaoh’s daughter and raised as her own child

Moses• As an adult, Moses believed God

wanted him to lead his people, the Israelites.

• With God’s help Moses tried to get Pharaoh to let the Israelites leave Egypt with their freedom

• God sent 10 plagues (great sicknesses) upon the Egyptians

• Eventually Pharaoh let the Israelites go

On Their Way Back to Canaan

• The Israelites had to travel through the Sinai Desert

• On Mount Sinai God spoke to Moses and gave him The Laws of God, or the Torah

• As part of the Torah, God gave Moses Ten Commandments all should live by

The Promised Land• It took the Israelites about 40 years to

return to Canaan

• Along the way Moses died—Joshua became their leader

• When they arrived in Canaan others were living there. The Israelites believed it was God’s plan that they should live there

• Joshua and the Israelites overtook the city of Jericho and regained Canaan

After Joshua Died…

• Israelites looked to judges for leadership• The judges were all men, except for one:

Deborah• Deborah arranged for one of the other

judge’s soldiers to attack the Canaanite King Jabin– Over time the Israelites drove them out– The Israelites built walls around their towns

The Phoenician Alphabet

• One group of Canaanites, the Phoenicians, were skilled sailors and traders

• While trading, the Phoenicians shared many ideas in other lands– One of their best ideas was for a

alphabet•Their alphabet helped others to keep

records and share ideas of their own

Test Your Memory

The End