Where is the origin of the Gentiles?
Q. We are doing a Bible study on where exactly did the Gentiles become separate from the Jewish nation since we are all descendants of Adam and Eve. What race were Adam and Eve if any.
Adam and Eve being the first and only humans at the time, there was no such thing as race other than the human race. After God confused their tongues at the Tower of Babel, (Gen 11:1-9) they scattered over the face of the earth and the different races then developed.
The first time the term Jew is used in the bible is in Esther 2:5, which was written a little over 400 years BC. The term Jew referred to those who were members or descendants of the Kingdom of Judah after the kingdom was divided in the days of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon.
In the days of Christ, anyone who was not a Jew was considered a Gentile. Before they were called Jews they were known as Israelites, meaning descendants of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abram whom God called out of Ur of the Chaldees, (Gen 11:28).
The nation known as Israel or the Jews originated with Abram whom God called out of Ur of the Chaldees, later known as Babylon. God changed his name from Abram to Abraham, meaning father of many nations.
Abraham was the father of Ishmael whose mother was an Egyptian, he became the father of the Arab nations. Abraham was fathrer of Isaac whose mother was Sarah. Isaac had twin sons , Esau and Jacob.whose mother was Rebekah. .Jacob had 12 sons, by four women, his two wives, and their two maids. The twelve sons were named Reuben Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin, (Gen chapter 29 and 30).
Esau became the father of the Edomites, but the descendants of Jacob in time moved to Egypt where they were know as Hebrews.
Its interesting to note that Abraham also had six sons by his wife Keturah, (Gen 25:1) Of all the descendants of Abraham they were all considered Gentiles except the descendants of the twelve sons of Jacob, who became known as, in this order, Hebrews, (Gen 14:13, 39:14, 41:12, Ex2:11) as Israelites, (Deut. 5:1-3) and finally as Jews.
Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament about 1500 years BC and in Genesis 10 recording the generations of Noah:
Gen 10:1, 1Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. 2The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 4And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
Abraham was considered the first Hebrew:Gen 14:13, 13And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew;
In Egypt Joseph was called a Hebrew: Gen39:14,
After Israel, (Jacob) and his sons and their families moved to Egypt and grew into a multitude of people, God sent Moses to deliver them out of slavery. At Mt Sinai in the wilderness God gave the Law of Moses to the Israelites, and this law applied to no other nation on earth except those Israelites there at that time.
Deut. 5:1, 1And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them. 2The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. 3The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.
The Israelites conquered Canaan and became a powerful nation under Gods keeping. After the kings Saul, David and Solomon, Rehoboam became king. At this time the kingdom was divided. The ten northern tribes called Israel rebelled against Rehobaom and appointed their own king, Jereboam, and he led them into idolatry. In 721 BC the Assyrians conquered Irael and moved most of them out of their country and brought in foreigners. In time the Israelites that were left Intermarried and mixed with the foreigners and became known as Samaritans. The ten tribes known as Israel disappeared from history, (the ten lost tribes) The Southern tribe of Judah and part of the tribe of Benjamin known as the kingdom of Judah lasted a while longer before they also went into idolatry and God allowed them to be overrun by the Babylonians in 606 BC. These remnants of the Kingdom of Judah became known as Jews.
The apostle Paul was a Jew, an Israelite, a Hebrew:
Phil 3:4, Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: 5Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
In New Testament times anyone who was not a Jew was considered a Greek, a Barbarian or a Gentile.
Rom 1:16, 6For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Gal 3:28, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
LUKE was a Gentile.
