The Jewish nation

Text is written by MYRTLE LANGLEY

THE JEWISH PEOPLE trace their ancestry back to three ancient leaders known as the patriarchs: Abraham, his son Isaac, and his grandson Jacob. In their daily prayers, Jews still call themselves “children of Abraham”.

They call their nation Israel because God re-named Jacob, Israel. Their story began when Abraham left what is now Iraq in about 1800 BCE to settle in Canaan, the “Promised Land”, now known as Palestine or Israel. Later, Jacob`s sons went to Egypt.

Around 1250 BCE, their descendants, the Hebrews, were led out by Moses, in the journey known as the Exodus. On the way the God of the patriarchs appeared to Moses on Mount Sinai and made a covenant (agreement) with Israel. It was enshrined in the Ten Commandments, and later in the rest of the Torah, the “law of Moses”.

Ever since, this God-given religious law has been at the heart of Israel`s identity as a people. Jews see God as both the God of Israel, his “chosen people”, and also the creator and ruler of all that is, the God who controls history, all-powerful and all-loving.