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To•lᵊd•otꞋ 2nd Eve

ca. B.C.E. 2000
Famine Drives Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ To Border of Greco-Minoan Philistia1
 Gᵊrâr (Tel Haror)
Gᵊrâr2 (Tël Ha•rorꞋ2), southwest of Khë•vᵊr•onꞋ, between Hellenist Greco-Minoan Philistia1 and Bᵊeir ShëvꞋa and showing Mo•âvꞋ ( cor­rupt­ed to "Moab") and Am•ōnꞋ (corrupted to "Ammon" and Arabized to Amman), capital of modern Jordan. (Hammond)

In the wake of a famine in ËrꞋëtz Yi•sᵊrâ•eilꞋ (distinct from the first famine that occurred during the lifetime of Avᵊrâ•hâmꞋ), Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ went toward Gᵊrâr2 — of Avi-mëlꞋëkh, who was mëlꞋëkh of the Hellenist Greco-Philistines.1

Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ envisaged ä' saying to him, "Don't go down to Mi•tzᵊraꞋyim. Neighbor in the âꞋrëtz that I will tell you. Reside in this âꞋrëtz and I will be with you. And I will bless you because to you and your seed shall I give these lands. So I will uphold the oath that I swore to Avᵊrâ•hâmꞋ, your father. And I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens and all of the goy•imꞋ of the land shall bless themselves in your seed; the product of Avᵊrâ•hâmꞋ hearkening to My Voice, watch-guarding My Watch-guard of My Mi•tzᵊw•otꞋ and My Khuq•otꞋ — My Tor•ōtꞋ."3

Fearing Hellenist Greco-Philistine Avi-mëlꞋëkh
Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ Dissimulates Ri•vᵊq•âh As His Sister
Gerar (lodging) Tel Haror
Gᵊrâr ("lodging"), modern Tel Ha•rorꞋ in the NëgꞋëv of Yi•sᵊr•â•eilꞋ near the ancient Hellenist Greco-Minoan Philistine (modern Gaza) border.

So Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ settled in Gᵊrâr.2 The men there inquired about his woman.4 And Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ told them she was his sister, because he was terrified to say "my woman," 4 lest the men there might kill him in order to have Ri•vᵊq•âh, because she was so good-looking.

One day, as Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ prolonged his stay there, Avi-mëlꞋëkh, mëlꞋëkh of the Hellenist Greco-Philistines, leaned out of his window, he noticed Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ playing flirtatiously with his woman, Ri•vᵊq•âh; not like one would play with his sister. So Avi-mëlꞋëkh summoned Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ and demanded, "Whereas Ri•vᵊq•âh is your woman, how is it that, behold, you told me that she's your sister?!?"

"I said it lest I would die over her," Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ replied.

Gᵊrâr2
Nakhal Gerar Park
Click to enlargeNaꞋkhal Gᵊrar Park

"What have you done to us?" thundered Avi-mëlꞋëkh. "One of my kindred almost went to bed with your woman. So you have brought guilt upon us!" Then Avi-mëlꞋëkh issued a proclamation to all of his kindred saying, "No one may touch this man or his woman, under penalty of death!"

That year, Yi•tzᵊkhâqꞋ planted seeds in that land and yielded a hundredfold. Thusly did ä' bless him.


Optional parental preparation:

  1. Note 1 – Scientists have demonstrated that the Philistines were Mycenaean-Greeks, Hellenists long before Alexandria (not Arabs!); "Sea People" who first migrated from Pilos (hence, Pilos-tines) in the Mycenaean province of Greece, to Santorini-Thera (the Minoans) and, after the island-volcano blew up (ca. B.C.E. ), migrated to Crete and the coastlands of the southeastern Mediterranean – the Egyptian Delta, Sinai and Canaan where they established a number of cities they named Pilos, becoming known as Pilostines (Philistines). In Canaan, they established a new (pre-Alexandrian) Hellenist country called Pilostia (Philistia; modern Gaza). Return to text
  2. Note 2 –  Archeologists identify ancient (pre-Alexandrian) Hellenist Greco-Minoan Philistine1 Gᵊrâr with Teil Ha•rorꞋ Return to text
  3. Note 3 – Note that this is plural: Tor•âhꞋs, likely implying, even at this early juncture, written khuq•otꞋ Tor•âhꞋ distinct from oral mi•shᵊpât•imꞋ Tor•âhꞋ. Return to text
  4. Note 4 – There was no Hebrew term in Biblical times for "wife" as we know it today. Without any specific modifier, a female was a girl-child, young woman, woman, divorcée or widow. (Thus, unless otherwise specified, a woman was assumed to be married (a wife), just as a young woman was assumed to be a virgin.) Return to text

Questions you might anticipate that your child might raise and be prepared to discuss:

  1. What does "Greco-" mean? (Greek)
  2. What is Mi•tzᵊraꞋyim? (Egypt)
  3. Who were the Minoans?
  4. Who were the Philistines?
  5. What's a famine?
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