Experience the Bible as you never have before on a Christian tour of Midian in Saudi Arabia! The Midianites were the descendants of Midian and therefore children of Abraham. The events at Shittim occasioned the injunction to vex Midian and smite them. 15 And the name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a … "[1], According to the Book of Genesis, the Midianites were the descendants of Midian, who was a son of Abraham and his wife Keturah: "Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. Together Moses and Zipporah had two sons. The people of Midian are mentioned extensively in the Quran. Salem Media Group. According to Karel van der Toorn, "By the 14th century BC, before the cult of Yahweh had reached Israel, groups of Edomites and Midianites worshipped Yahweh as their god. [36] The Hijaz are themselves treated as part of the Sarawat range, sensu lato. The couple were speared by Phinehas[18] and war against Midian followed. All these were the children of Keturah. It is in Midian that he married one of the two daughters of Jethro and worked for him for ten years. 31 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Before you die, make sure that the Midianites are punished for what they did to Israel.” [] 3 Then Moses told the people, “The Lord wants to punish the Midianites. Jokshan fathered Sheba and Dedan. The relationship of the Biblical Jethro to Islam and the Druze religion is controversial. strife, the fourth son of Abraham by Keturah, the father of the Midianites ( Genesis 25:2 ; 1 Chronicles 1:32 ). So it was not Allah who wronged them, but they used to wrong themselves.". Israel’s War against Midian. [21] At least one modern day movement, the Phineas Priesthood, has interpreted this story as a prohibition against miscegenation, despite the Midianites being closely related to the Israelites as descendants of Abraham, and Moses being married to a Midianite. And he said to the men of Succoth, Please give loaves of bread to the people at my feet, for they are weary; and I am chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian. [11], Midian was the son of Abraham. William J. Dumbrell, Midian: A Land or a League?, B. Rothenberg and J.Glass, "The Midianite Pottery," in, Tebes, "Pottery Makers and Premodern Exchange in the Fringes of Egypt: An Approximation to the Distribution of Iron Age Midianite Pottery,", George Mendenhall, "Qurayya and the Midianites," in, Peter J. Parr, "Further Reflections on Late Second Millennium Settlement in North West Arabia," in, Rothenberg, "Egyptian Chariots, Midianites from Hijaz/ Midian (Northwest Arabia) and Amalekites from the Negev in the Timna Mines: Rock drawings in the Ancient Copper Mines of the Arabah – new aspects of the region’s history II,", Also regarded as being of the Western Hajar, Highest mountain in the UAE, but the peak is in Oman, Due to the peak of Jebel Jais being in Oman, this mountain has the highest confirmed peak in the UAE, Highest confirmed peak in the Arabian Peninsula, International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Pulpit Commentary and Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Richard Burton's account of his travels in "The Land of Midian", List of mountains in the United Arab Emirates, ibn Abdullah ibn Abdul-Muttalib ibn Hashim, Current Ummah of Islam (Ummah of Muhammad), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Midian&oldid=999234800, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles with dead external links from January 2021, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox settlement with missing country, Pages using infobox settlement with no coordinates, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from January 2021, Pages using infobox mountain with deprecated parameters, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia with no article parameter, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. An earthquake seized them by night, and they were buried in their own homes, no longer to vex Allah's earth. She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. The Median Kingdom was made up largely of the Medes and can be located on the Bible Timeline Poster with History during 750 BC. But a supplementary detail is mentioned in [Quran] 26:189, 'the punishment of a day of overshadowing gloom,' which may be understood to mean a shower of ashes and cinders accompanying a volcanic eruption. They are considered to be either contiguous with the Hijaz Mountains to the south,[35] or a part of them. Midianites were a people dwelling south and east of Palestine. Beno Rothenberg,[10] the excavator of the site, suggested that the Midianites were making offerings to Hathor, especially since a large number of Midianite votive vessels (25%) were discovered in the shrine. Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian to execute the Lord’s vengeance on Midian. For the Yemeni mountain, see, A geographical place mentioned in the Torah. The question of the origin of the Midianites still remains open. Madyan was warned by the prophet Shuʿaib to repent of practicing polytheism, using false weights and measures and lying in wait along the road. And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah" (Genesis 25:1–2, King James Version).[2]. Thus a day of terror drove them into their homes, and the earthquake finished them. A Mosque in the area of Medina, possibly: This page was last edited on 9 January 2021, at 04:07. His five sons, Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abidah (R. V. \"Abida\"), and Eldaah, were the progenitors of the Midianites (Gen. xxv. William G. Dever states that biblical Midian was in the "northwest Arabian Peninsula, on the east shore of the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea", an area which he notes was "never extensively settled until the 8th–7th century B.C. [37][38], Haql on the coast of the Gulf of Aqaba between the Syrian region and Arabian and Sinai Peninsulas, with the Midian Mountains in the background, 1908 image of a mountain associated with Muhammad and Lawrence of Arabia, 40 mi (64 km) from Tabuk, This article is about a region or people referred to in the Bible and Quran. Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, is a devoted family man, well respected for his advice on governing and his benevolent leadership of the tribes of Midian. The Midianites are the descendants of Midian, just as it says in Genesis 25:1-3 where it was written, “Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. Midian (/ˈmɪdiən/; Hebrew: מִדְיָן‎ Mīḏəyān [mid.jaːn]; Arabic: مَدْيَن‎, romanized: Madyan; Greek: Μαδιάμ, Madiam)[a] is a geographical place mentioned in the Torah and Quran. Their second son was Eliezer, named in remembrance of God helping Moses to escape from Egypt after he had committed murder (Exodus 18:2–4). This name appears 39 times in 38 verses of the Bible. … 14 The name of the Israelite who was slain with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family. Genesis 36:35 Husham died, and Hadad, the son of Bedad, who struck Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his place. ( Numbers 31:22 ; Judges 8:21 Judges 8:24-26 ) We have here a wealthy Arab nation, living by plunder, delighting in finery; and, where forays were impossible, carrying ont he traffic southward into Arabia, the land of gold --if not naturally, by trade-- and across to Chaldea, or into the rich plains of Egypt. But they rejected Shuʿayb, and consequently were destroyed by a tremor (rajfa, v. 91). It is the name of a person and a place: Midian was the fourth son of Abraham by Keturah (Abraham’s wife after Sarah's death, Genesis 25:1-6).He had five brothers: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Ishbak, and Shuah ().Midian became the father of the Midianites (Genesis 25:2,4; 1 Chronicles 1:32). The most accurate accounts of Midian are Biblical. Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. In the Hebrew Bible, Jethro was Moses' father-in-law, a Kenite shepherd and priest of Midian, but different from Reuel. Midianite, in the Hebrew Bible ( Old Testament ), member of a group of nomadic tribes related to the Israelites and most likely living east of the Gulf of Aqaba in the northwestern regions of the Arabian Desert. 17, xxxi. Moses, on fleeing from Egypt, found refuge in the land of Midian, and became son-in-law of Jethro, the priest of Midian (Ex 2:15,21). And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. The Midianites had a chequered past in the history of Israel, originally being descendants of Abraham, and the ancestors of Moses’ wife Zipporah, but also turning to be hostile enemies to Israel. Abdullah Yusuf Ali in his commentary (1934) writes, "The fate of the Madyan people is described in the same terms as that of the Thamūd in verse 78 above. During the time of the Judges, Israel was oppressed by Midian for seven years[22] until Gideon defeated Midian's armies. Meaning: strife. Answer: After his wife Sarah died, Abraham married a woman named Keturah, who bore him six sons: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah ( Genesis 25:1–2 ). of Jethro was also known as Hobab (also pronounced as "Chovev"). It is believed the Midianites lived in southeastern Sinai and northwestern Arabia on the east shore of the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea. He was also identified as Hobab in the Book of Numbers 10:29. Jethro was a priest of Midian. Genesis 36:35 | View whole chapter | See verse in context And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Avith. [14] There, he married Zipporah, the daughter of Midianite priest Jethro[15] (also known as Reuel). Midian was a son of Abraham by his concubine Keturah. [30] The pottery is bichrome / polychrome style and it dates as early as the 13th century BC; its many geometric, human, and animal motifs are painted in browns and dark reds on a pinkish-tan slip. 'Companions of the Wood').[25][26][27][28]. Clines, David and John Sawyer, eds. "[9], An Egyptian temple of Hathor at Timna continued to be used during the Midianite occupation of the site (terminal Late Bronze Age / Early Iron Age); the Midianites transformed the Hathor mining temple into a desert tent-shrine. Jump to: Bible Study Tools [16] Moses asked Hobab, the son of Reuel, to accompany the Israelites travelling towards the promised land because of his local knowledge, but Hobab preferred to return to his homeland.[17]. A Midianite, familiar with the desert, acted as guide ("instead of eyes") to the children of Israel in their wilderness wanderings (Nu 10:29 ff). Copyright © 2021, Bible Study Tools. They were nomadic traders that are presumed to have intermarried with the Ishmaelites, hence the often interchanging of their designation, as in the story of Joseph being sold into slavery. The influence of the Midianties on the Israelites was clearly most evil, and directly tended to lead them from the injunctions of Moses. The "land of Midian," the place to which Moses fled after having killed the Egyptian, ( Exodus 2:15 Exodus 2:21 ) or the portion of it specially referred to, was probably the peninsula of Sinai. Zipporah's father was a priest of Midian as well as a shepherd. In addition to the discovery of post-holes, large quantities of red and yellow decayed cloth with beads woven into it, along with numerous copper rings/wire used to suspend the curtains, were found all along two walls of the shrine. 32-33). Judges 6:1 Then the sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord ; and the Lord gave them into the hands of Midian … In Midian Moses received his commission to Israel in Egypt (Ex 4:19). Moses was a Hebrew. Learn of the legendary children of Abraham and who they really were, according to the Bible. In Exodus, Moses' father-in-law is initially referred to as "Reuel" but then as "Jethro". The term \"Midian\" (), which seems to be derived from the Arabic root (= \"place of judgment\"), denotes also the nation of the Midianites, the plural form, , occurring only in Gen. xxxvii. Later writers have questioned the identified sanctuary-locations but supported the thesis of a Midianite league. And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Henoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. During that time, he married the daughter of the priest of Midian … The life of this hero of faith ended on a sad note. Please enter your email address associated with your Salem All-Pass account, then click Continue. The lands of Midian are mentioned in sura Al-Qasas (The Stories), verses 20-28, of the Quran as the place where Moses escaped upon learning of the Pharaoh conspiring to kill him. The Bible tells us Moses fled to “Midian”. [19] Some commentators, for example the Pulpit Commentary and Gill's Exposition of the Bible, have noted that God's command focused on attacking the Midianites and not the Moabites,[20] and similarly Moses in Deuteronomy directed that the Israelites should not harass the Moabites. Walk through the tombs where they may have been laid to rest. She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. Bearing gifts from Abraham, he and his brothers, each with his own household, moved off from Isaac into "the east country" ( … All rights reserved. Midianite pottery, also called Qurayyah Painted Ware (QPW), is found at numerous sites stretching from the southern Levant to NW Saudi Arabia, the Hejaz; Qurayyah in NW Saudi Arabia is thought to be its original location of manufacture. Elijah’s Cave on Jabal al-Lawz, the real Mount Sinai in Midian. Let’s look at eight things about Moses – who he was in the Bible and some details regarding his life. Midian. 28, 36 (in the latter passage seems to be a scribal error for ) and Num. During the Baal-Peor episode, when Moabite women seduced Israelite men, Zimri, the son of a Simeonite chief, got involved with a Midianite woman called Cozbi. The word 'Madyan' appears 10 times in it. So the Midianites originated from this Midian, who, as we have seen, was a son of Abraham which therefore actually made Jethro and Moses distant cousins. [13], Moses spent 40 years in voluntary exile in Midian after killing an Egyptian. They settled in “the land of the east” (Genesis 25:6). George Mendenhall suggested that the Midianites were a non-Semitic confederate group,[6] and William Dumbrell maintained the same case: We believe that Haupt's proposal is to be adopted, and that Midian, rather than depicting a land, is a general term for an amorphous league of the Late Bronze Age, of wide geographical range, who, after a series of reverses, the most prominent of which are recorded in Judges 6–7, largely disappeared from the historical scene…[7], It is uncertain which deities the Midianites worshipped. (strife ), a son of Abraham and Keturah, ( Genesis 25:2 ; 1 Chronicles 1:32 ) progenitor of the Midianites, or Arabians dwelling principally in the desert north of the peninsula of Arabia. In the Bible, Zipporah was the daughter of Jethro (or Reuel), “the priest of Midian” (Exodus 3:1; 2:18).She was a “Cushite woman” (Numbers 12:1) or Ethiopian woman. Michael Homan observes that the Midianite tent-shrine at Timna is one of the closest parallels to the biblical Tabernacle. The people are also called ʾaṣḥabu l-ʾaykah (Arabic: أَصْحَابُ ٱلْأَيْكَة‎, lit. So have our men prepare for battle. "Midianite" pottery is found in its largest quantities at metallurgical sites in the southern Levant, especially Timna. [12] Abraham's great grandson Joseph, after being thrown into a pit by his brothers, was sold to either Midianites or Ishmaelites. (Genesis 25:1-2). The Midian Mountains (Arabic: جِبَال مَدْيَن‎, romanized: Jibāl Madyan) are a mountain range in northwestern Saudi Arabia. Midian is named after the son of Abraham and Keturah. After Sarah died, Abraham married Keturah, who bore six sons, one of whom was Midian (Genesis 25:1–6). Some scholars claim that the Biblical Jethro could not have been the father/founder of the Druze religion as the Biblical Jethr… In Surah 7 (Al-ʾAʿrāf), Madyan is mentioned as one of several peoples who were warned by prophets to repent lest judgment fall on them. Elath, on the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba was suggested[by whom?] 1-4; I Chron. Jethro advised Moses on establishing a system of delegated legal decision-making. Some scholars have suggested that the name "Midian" does not refer to geographic places or to a specific tribe,[3][4] but to a confederation or "league" of tribes brought together as a collective for worship purposes. Through their apparent religio-political connection with the Moabites they are thought to have worshipped a multitude, including Baal-peor and the Queen of Heaven, Ashteroth. 2. Midian was the location of Moses’ 40-year exile from Egypt, circa 1486-1446 BC (based on biblical chronology). A small bronze snake with gilded head was also discovered in the naos of the Timna mining shrine, along with a hoard of metal objects that included a small bronze figurine of a bearded male god, which according to Rothenberg was Midianite in origin. All these are the sons of Keturah. The story of Madyan is the last, coming after that of Lot preaching to his people (referring to the destruction of the Cities of the Plain). In anger he punished Succoth and Penuel for not helping in his war against the Midianite kings When the people wanted to make Gideon their king, he refused, but took gold from them and made an ephod, a sacred vestment, probably to commemorate the victory. Of those before them ] ( also known as Reuel ). [ 25 ] [ 27 ] 26. Were speared by Phinehas [ 18 ] and war against Midian followed see, a geographical place mentioned in Quran! Daughters of Jethro ( also known as Hobab in the Book of Numbers 10:29 presumed to been! 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