The Samaritans
Samaritans
The Samaritans are an ethnoreligious group originating from the Israelites of the Ancient Near East.
Full Answer
What is the difference between a Jew and a Samaritan?
What Is The Difference Between Jewish And Samaritan? The site where God chose to build his dwelling is one of the most significant differences between the Samaritans and Jews. The Jews believe that God chose Mount Zion in Jerusalem, but Samaritans believe he chose Mount Gerizim near Shechem as well. Is The Torah The Same As The Jewish Bible?
Why were the Samaritans despised?
The Samaritans embraced a religion that was a mixture of Judaism and idolatry (2 Kings 17:26-28). Because the Israelite inhabitants of Samaria had intermarried with the foreigners and adopted their idolatrous religion, Samaritans were universally despised by the Jews.
Why was the Samaritan despised?
Why was the Samaritan despised? The Samaritans embraced a religion that was a mixture of Judaism and idolatry (2 Kings 17:26-28). Because the Israelite inhabitants of Samaria had intermarried with the foreigners and adopted their idolatrous religion, Samaritans were generally considered “half-breeds” and were universally despised by the Jews.
What did the Samaritans believe?
- Samaritan Chronicle, The Tolidah (Creation to the time of Abishah)
- Samaritan Chronicle, The Chronicle of Joshua (Israel during the time of divine favor) (4th century, in Arabic and Aramaic)
- Samaritan Chronicle, Adler (Israel from the time of divine disfavor until the exile)
What was a Samaritan in the Bible?
Samaritan, member of a community, now nearly extinct, that claims to be related by blood to those Israelites of ancient Samaria who were not deported by the Assyrian conquerors of the kingdom of Israel in 722 bce.
What did the Samaritans in the Bible believe?
Religious beliefs The Torah was given by God to Moses. Mount Gerizim, not Jerusalem, is the one true sanctuary chosen by Israel's God. Many Samaritans believe that at the end of days, the dead will be resurrected by the Taheb, a restorer (possibly a prophet, some say Moses). Resurrection and Paradise.
What did Jesus say about the Samaritans?
In Matthew, however, Jesus instructs his disciples not to preach to Gentiles or in Samaritan cities. In the Gospels, generally, "though the Jews of Jesus' day had no time for the 'half-breed' people of Samaria", Jesus "never spoke disparagingly about them" and "held a benign view of Samaritans".
Are Samaritans Hebrews?
In actuality, the Samaritans are a unique people whose history can be traced to Biblical times. They are not considered ethnically Jewish or Arab, despite the fact that Samaritans have lived in close proximity to both groups for thousands of years.
Why is the Good Samaritan parable in the Bible?
Summary. The Bible story of the Good Samaritan is a parable to demonstrate how we should “love our neighbors as ourselves.”. When others need our help the most, like the man beaten by robbers on the road, our love for neighbors is truly tested.
What does Jesus say about the Good Samaritan?
Jesus instructs us to be like the Good Samaritan, helping others in times of suffering, and not the Priest and Levite who neglected their neighbor. Read Bible verses relating to the Good Samaritan lesson below and may this story inspire you to love your neighbor as yourself just as the Good Samaritan. Also find related articles, videos, and audio ...
What does the Bible say about love?
1 John 4:7 - "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.". Leviticus 19:18 - "You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.". Bible /. Bible Stories.
What did Jesus say to Martha?
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” 38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.
What does Jesus say about love?
29 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'.
What does the Samaritan call themselves?
In Samaritan Hebrew, the Samaritans call themselves Shamerim (שַמֶרִים), which according to the Anchor Bible Dictionary, is derived from the Ancient Hebrew term meaning 'Guardians/Keepers/Watchers [of the Torah /Law]'.
What are the Samaritans called?
In the Talmud, a central post-exilic religious text of Rabbinic Judaism, the Samaritans are called Cuthites or Cutheans ( Hebrew: כּוּתִים , Kutim ), referring to the ancient city of Kutha, geographically located in what is today Iraq. Josephus 's Wars of the Jews also refers to the Samaritans as the Cuthites.
Why are the Samaritans called Samaritans?
This has accompanied controversy over whether the Samaritans are named after the geographic area of Samaria (the northern part of what is now globally known as the West Bank ), or whether the area received its name from the group. This distinction is controversial in part because different interpretations can be used to justify or deny claims of ancestry over this region, which has been deeply contested in modern times.
Why did the Samaritans convert to Islam?
According to the historian Fayyad Altif, large numbers of Samaritans converted due to persecution under various Muslim rulers, and because the monotheistic nature of Islam made it easy for them to accept it. The Samaritans themselves describe the Ottoman period as the worst period in their modern history, as many Samaritan families were forced to convert to Islam during that time. Even today, certain Nabulsi family names such as Al-Amad, Al-Samri, Maslamani, Yaish, and Shaksheer among others, are associated with Samaritan ancestry.
How many generations of Samaritans were there?
Demographic investigations of the Samaritan community were carried out in the 1960s. Detailed pedigrees of the last 13 generations show that the Samaritans comprise four lineages:
Why did the number of Samaritans drop?
Though initially guaranteed religious freedom after the Muslim conquest of Palestine, Samaritan numbers dropped further as a result of massacres and conversions.
Where do Samaritans live in Israel?
Samaritans in the West Bank live in Qiryat Luza on Mount Gerizim, while those in Israel are concentrated in the city of Holon, just outside Tel Aviv. The Samaritans of Qiryat Luza hold dual Israeli and Palestinian Authority citizenship. Samaritans in Holon and Qiryat Luza today speak Hebrew and Arabic.
Which Septuagint agrees with the Samaritan?
The Septuagint (LXX) agrees with the Samaritan in approximately 1,900 of the six thousand variations from the Masoretic. Many of these agreements reflect inconsequential grammatical details, but some are significant. For example, Exodus 12:40 in the Samaritan and the Septuagint reads:
When did the Samaritans come to Israel?
Another view is that the event happened somewhere around 432 BCE, when Manasseh, the son-in-law of Sanballat, went off to found a community in Samaria, as related in the Book of Nehemiah 13:28 and Antiquities of the Jews by Josephus. Josephus himself, however, dates this event and the building of the temple at Shechem to the time of Alexander the Great. Others believe that the real schism between the peoples did not take place until Hasmonean times when the Gerizim temple was destroyed in 128 BCE by John Hyrcanus. The script of the Samaritan Pentateuch, its close connections at many points with the Septuagint, and its even closer agreements with the present Hebrew text, all suggest a date about 122 BCE.
How many instances of the Samaritan Pentateuch are there?
The critical apparatus accompanying the London Polyglot 's publication of the Samaritan Pentateuch lists six thousand instances where the Samaritan differs from the Masoretic Text. However, as different printed editions of the Samaritan Pentateuch are based upon different sets of manuscripts, the precise number varies significantly from one edition to another.
How many differences are there between the Samaritan and the Masoretic text?
Some six thousand differences exist between the Samaritan and the Masoretic Text. Most are minor variations in the spelling of words or grammatical constructions, but others involve significant semantic changes, such as the uniquely Samaritan commandment to construct an altar on Mount Gerizim. Nearly two thousand of these textual variations agree with the Koine Greek Septuagint and some are shared with the Latin Vulgate. Throughout their history, Samaritans have made use of translations of the Samaritan Pentateuch into Aramaic, Greek and Arabic as well as liturgical and exegetical works based upon it.
What type of text is found in the Dead Sea Scrolls?
Some Pentateuchal manuscripts discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls have been identified as bearing a "pre-Samaritan" text type. Wide agreement now exists among textual critics that the Samaritan Pentateuch represents an authentic ancient textual tradition despite the presence of some unique variants introduced by the Samaritans.
What is the Samaritan pentateuch?
The Samaritan Pentateuch, also known as the Samaritan Torah ( Hebrew: תורה שומרונית torah shomronit ), is a text of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, written in the Samaritan script and used as scripture by the Samaritans. It constitutes their entire biblical canon .
When was the Samaritan version of the Pentateuch revealed to the Western world?
: "When the Samaritan version of the Pentateuch was revealed to the Western world early in the 17th century... [footnote: 'In 1632 the Frenchman Jean Morin published the Samaritan Pentateuch in the Parisian Biblia Polyglotta based on a manuscript that the traveler Pietro Della Valle had bought from Damascus sixteen years previously.]"
Why did Jesus tell the story of the Good Samaritan?
When asked whom to regard as our neighbor, Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan precisely because Samaritans were despised. The apostles recognized that in the Church Samaritans must be accepted as equal to Jews.
Where is the parable of the Good Samaritan?
The Good Samaritan. This parable is found in Luke 10:25-37. A pharisee of the law questioned Jesus and asked what he must do to receive eternal life. When Jesus turned the question back to him, he had to say that the law stated that a person was to love God and love his neighbor as himself.
Why are the Samaritans despised?
Catholic.com provides an explanation of the relation between the Samaritans and other racial groups in the Bible: Because of their imperfect adherence to Judaism and their partly pagan ancestry, the Samaritans were despised by ordinary Jews. Rather than contaminate themselves by passing through the Samaritan territory, ...
Why did Peter and John go to Samaria?
Peter and John conducted a special mission to Samaria to confirm Samaritans who had already been baptized by Philip ( Acts 8:14-17 ). This initiation of the Samaritans was a middle stage between the preaching of the gospel to the Jews ( Acts 2) and the preaching of the gospel to full-blooded Gentiles ( Acts 10 ).
What did the Gospel of Jesus bring to Samaria?
However, the Gospel of Jesus Christ brought hope to Samaria. Upon the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the believers went out into all the world, bringing the Good News. “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there.
What does the history of Samaria remind us of?
The history of Samaria reminds us that no matter who you are or where you come from, there is Good News through Jesus Christ that is available to all of mankind.
Where did Jesus go in the story of the Samaritan woman?
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria. The story of the Samaritan woman begins as Jesus is in the Judean countryside with His disciples ( John 3:22 ). The passage tells us that Jesus had to pass through Samaria ( John 4:4) as He was going from Judea to Galilee.
Where in the Bible is the word "samaritan"?
Answer. A Samaritan in the Bible was a person from Samaria, a region north of Jerusalem. In Jesus’ day, the Jewish people of Galilee and Judea shunned the Samaritans, viewing them as a mixed race who practiced an impure, half-pagan religion. Samaritans, as a people distinct from the Jews, are first mentioned in the Bible during the time ...
When were the Samaritans first mentioned in the Bible?
Samaritans, as a people distinct from the Jews, are first mentioned in the Bible during the time of Nehemiah and the rebuilding of Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity ( Ezra 4:17; Nehemiah 2:10 ). Both Ezra 4 and a fifth-century BC Aramaic set of documents called the Elephantine Papyri point to a schism between the Jews ...
What did the Samaritans believe?
They had their own unique copy of the Pentateuch, the first five books of Moses, and believed they alone preserved the original Mosaic religion. Samaritans also had a unique religious system and established their primary worship site on Mount Gerizim. They considered the Jerusalem temple and the Levitical priesthood illegitimate.
Where did the Samaritans live in the New Testament?
In New Testament times, the Jews despised Samaritans and would have nothing to do with them. The Samaritans were still living primarily around Mount Gerizim ( John 4:1–42 ), but also kept to their own villages ( Matthew 10:5; Luke 9:52 ). Scripture mentions encounters with Samaritans in towns bordering Samaria ( Luke 17:11–19) and on roads between Jerusalem and Jericho ( Luke 10:29–37 ).
What are the holy days of Samaritans?
Samaritans observe several holy days including Passover; the Feasts of Unleavened Bread, Yom Kippur, and Tabernacles; and the “80 days of solemn assembly.” They also celebrate regular Sabbath services. Their most solemn annual festival, Passover, is held on Mount Gerizim with animal sacrifices as prescribed in the book of Deuteronomy.
What did Jesus say about Samaria?
In Acts 1:8, Jesus told His disciples that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, they would be His witnesses in Samaria. In Acts 8 the prophecy was fulfilled, and Samaria became an early mission field for the spreading first-century church: “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city” ( Acts 8:4–8 ).
Who was the hero in the parable of a man in need?
That’s when Jesus told His parable of a man in need, portraying the Samaritan as the hero in the story. In the lawyer’s eyes, the Samaritan was the least likely candidate to act lovingly and compassionately to his neighbor. As intended, the story shocked Christ’s audience of prejudiced Jews.
What did Jesus preach to the Samaritans?
In spite of the hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans, Jesus broke down the barriers between them, preaching the gospel of peace to the Samaritans ( John 4:6-26 ), and the apostles later followed His example ( Acts 8:25 ). Return to:
How many books did the Samaritans receive?
4. The Samaritans received only the five books of Moses and rejected the writings of the prophets and all the Jewish traditions.
Why were Samaritans considered half-breeds?
Because the Israelite inhabitants of Samaria had intermarried with the foreigners and adopted their idolatrous religion, Samaritans were generally considered “half-breeds” and were universally despised by the Jews. Additional grounds for animosity between the Israelites and Samaritans were the following: 1.
What tribes were the Samaritans?
Answer. The Samaritans occupied the country formerly belonging to the tribe of Ephraim and the half-tribe of Manasseh. The capital of the country was Samaria, formerly a large and splendid city. When the ten tribes were carried away into captivity to Assyria, the king of Assyria sent people from Cutha, Ava, Hamath, ...
Why did the Samaritans worship idols?
These “Samaritans” at first worshiped the idols of their own nations, but being troubled with lions, they supposed it was because they had not honored the God of that territory. A Jewish priest was therefore sent to them from Assyria to instruct them in the Jewish religion.
What was Samaria's refuge?
3. Samaria became a place of refuge for all the outlaws of Judea ( Joshua 20:6-7; 21:21 ). The Samaritans willingly received Jewish criminals and refugees from justice. The violators of the Jewish laws, and those who had been excommunicated, found safety for themselves in Samaria, greatly increasing the hatred which existed between the two nations.
What did Jesus say about the Samaritans?
These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. John 4:4-30. And He had to pass through Samaria.
What did the Samaritan woman say to Him?
Therefore the Samaritan woman *said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman ?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
What did Josiah remove from the city of Samaria?
Josiah also removed all the houses of the high places which were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made provoking the Lord; and he did to them just as he had done in Bethel.
Who invaded Samaria in the ninth year?
Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land and went up to Samaria and besieged it three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and settled them in Halah and Habor, on the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
Where did the Levites collect money from?
They came to Hilkiah the high priest and delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the doorkeepers, had collected from Manasseh and Ephraim, and from all the remnant of Israel, and from all Judah and Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Jeremiah 41:4-5.
Who was over the household in Samaria?
Now the famine was severe in Samaria. Ahab called Obadiah who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly;read more. for when Jezebel destroyed the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water.)
Who wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem?
Now in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
Overview
Samaritanism
Samaritanism is centered on the Samaritan Pentateuch, which Samaritans believe to be the original and unaltered version of the Torah that was given to Moses and the Israelites on Mount Sinai. The Samaritan Pentateuch contains some differences from the Masoretic version of the Torah used in Judaism; according to Samaritan tradition, key parts of the Jewish text were fabricated by
Etymology
In Samaritan Hebrew, the Samaritans call themselves Shamerim (שַמֶרִים), which according to the Anchor Bible Dictionary, is derived from the Ancient Hebrew term meaning 'Guardians/Keepers/Watchers [of the Torah/Law]'.
Biblical Hebrew Šomerim (Arabic: السامريون, romanized: al-Sāmiriyyūn) 'Guardians' (singular Šomer) comes from the Hebrew Semitic root שמר, which means 'to watch, guard'.
Origins
Ancestrally, Samaritans claim descent from the tribe of Ephraim and tribe of Manasseh (two sons of Joseph) as well as from the Levites, who have links to ancient Samaria (now constituting the majority of the territory known as the West Bank) from the period of their entry into Canaan, while some Orthodox Jews suggest that it was from the beginning of the Babylonian captivity up to the Sa…
History
The narratives in Genesis about the rivalries among the twelve sons of Jacob are viewed by some as describing tensions between north and south. According to the Hebrew Bible, they were temporarily united under a United Monarchy, but after the death of Solomon, the kingdom split in two, the northern Kingdom of Israel with its last capital city Samaria and the southern Kingdom of Judah with it…
Genetic studies
Demographic investigations of the Samaritan community were carried out in the 1960s. Detailed pedigrees of the last 13 generations show that the Samaritans comprise four lineages:
• The priestly Cohen lineage from the tribe of Levi.
• The Tsedakah lineage, claiming descent from the tribe of Manasseh
Demographics
There were 1 million Samaritans in biblical times, but in recent times the numbers are smaller. There were 100 in 1786 and 141 in 1919, then 150 in 1967. This grew to 745 in 2011, 751 in 2012, 756 in 2013, 760 in 2014, 777 in 2015, 785 in 2016, 796 in 2017, 810 in 2018 and 820 in 2019.
Half reside in modern homes at Kiryat Luza on Mount Gerizim, which is sacred t…
Christian sources: New Testament
Samaria or Samaritans are mentioned in the New Testament books of Matthew, Luke, John and Acts. The Gospel of Mark contains no mention of Samaritans or Samaria. The best known reference to the Samaritans is the Parable of the Good Samaritan, found in the Gospel of Luke. The following references are found:
• When instructing his disciples as to how they should spread the word, Jesus tells them not to vi…
Overview
The Samaritan Torah (Samaritan Hebrew: ࠕࠅࠓࠡࠄ ࠔࠌࠓࠉࠌ Tōrāʾ Shamaeriym; Hebrew: תוֹרה שַמֶרִים), also called the Samaritan Pentateuch, is a text of the Torah written in the Samaritan script and used as sacred scripture by the Samaritans. It dates back to one of the ancient versions of the Hebrew Bible that existed during the Second Temple period, and constitutes the entire biblical canon in Samaritanism.
Origin and canonical significance
Samaritans believe that God authored their Pentateuch and gave Moses the first copy along with the two tablets containing the Ten Commandments. They believe that they preserve this divinely composed text uncorrupted to the present day. Samaritans commonly refer to their Pentateuch as ࠒࠅࠔࠈࠄ (Qushta, Aramaic for "Truth").
Comparison with other versions
Manuscripts of the Samaritan Pentateuch are written in a different script than the one used in the Masoretic Pentateuch, used by Jews. The Samaritan text is written with the Samaritan alphabet, derived from the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet used by the Israelite community prior to the Babylonian captivity. During the exile in Babylon, Jews adopted the Ashuri script, based on the Babylonians' Ara…
Evaluations of its relevance for textual criticism
The earliest recorded assessments of the Samaritan Pentateuch are found in rabbinical literature and Christian patristic writings of the first millennium CE. The Talmud records Jewish Rabbi Eleazar b. Simeon condemning the Samaritan scribes: "You have falsified your Pentateuch...and you have not profited aught by it." Some early Christian writers found the Samaritan Pentateuch useful for textual criticism. Cyril of Alexandria, Procopius of Gaza and others spoke of certain words missin…
Derivative works
The Samaritan Targum, composed in the Samaritan dialect of Aramaic, is the earliest translation of the Samaritan Pentateuch. Its creation was motivated by the same need to translate the Pentateuch into the Aramaic language spoken by the community which led to the creation of Jewish Targums such as Targum Onkelos. Samaritans have traditionally ascribed the Targum to Nathanael, a Samaritan priest who died circa 20 BCE. The Samaritan Targum has a complex text…
Manuscripts and printed editions
Samaritans attach special importance to the Abisha Scroll used in the Samaritan synagogue of Nablus. It consists of a continuous length of parchment sewn together from the skins of rams that, according to a Samaritan tradition, were ritually sacrificed. The text is written in gold letters. Rollers tipped with ornamental knobs are attached to both ends of the parchment and the whole i…
See also
• Samaritan Hebrew
Bibliography
• Tsedaka, Benyamim, and Sharon Sullivan, eds. The Israelite Samaritan Version of the Torah: First English Translation Compared with the Masoretic Version. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2013. ISBN 978-0802865199 [1]
• Shoulson, Mark E, compiler. The Torah: Jewish and Samaritan versions compared (Hebrew Edition, 2008). Evertype. ISBN 1-904808-18-2 / ISBN 978-1-904808-18-3.
Who Were The Samaritans?
Where Was Samaria?
- Samaria as a city in the Bible was the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel. After Israel’s fall, Samaria as a region was in the central area of what used to be the northern kingdom. During the time of Jesus, Samaria was located between Galilee to the north and Judea to the south. Map of Samaria from Wikipedia: Kingdom of Israel (Samaria) at its peak in the 7th Century BCE Today, S…
The Good Samaritan
- This parable is found in Luke 10:25-37. A pharisee of the law questioned Jesus and asked what he must do to receive eternal life. When Jesus turned the question back to him, he had to say that the law stated that a person was to love God and love his neighbor as himself. However, the agitated pharisee wanted to excuse himself, so he asked, “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29). To thi…
Jesus and The Woman of Samaria
- The story of the Samaritan woman begins as Jesus is in the Judean countryside with His disciples (John 3:22). The passage tells us that Jesus had to pass through Samaria (John 4:4) as He was going from Judea to Galilee. This, in and of itself, was uncommon for Jews to do, as Samaritans were part Jew and part Gentile, and greatly disliked by both parties. John 4:5-6 says:…
What We Can Learn from Samaritans
- From the fall of the rebellious northern kingdom of Israel to a mixed idolatrous religion, to a people group hated by the Jews, the Samaritans had a rocky history. However, the Gospel of Jesus Christ brought hope to Samaria. Upon the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the believers went out into all the world, bringing the Good News. “Those who had been scattered pr…