Bedouin and Israelites in the Desert

Abstract

This chapter confirms the veracity of the biblical portrayal of the Israelites as nomads in the deserts and semi-arid areas of Canaan by examining the climatic conditions in these areas and comparing how both pre-modern Bedouin and the depicted early Israelites adjusted to them in their economic life. The low level of rainfall, its yearly irregularity, its monthly inconsistency, and its spotty, geographical dispersion, account for the fact that pre-modern Bedouin as well as the depicted ancient Israelites lived mainly as raisers of livestock rather than as farmers, each with the same type of water-preserving animals and the need to migrate with them from one spot of pasture to another. Similarities in the management of flocks by both communities are detailed, as are their common attempts at agriculture when conditions allowed.