Midian
Encyclopedia
Midian Madyan , or Madiam ( for a Midianite) is a geographical place and a people mentioned in the Bible
and in the Qur'an
. It is believed to be in northwest Saudi Arabia
on the east shore of the Gulf of Aqaba
and the northern Red Sea
. Some scholars believe it to be somewhere in or around Sudan
as the Bible itself is unclear at times.
Some scholars say it was not a geographical area but a league of tribes. We are also told that Midian was a son of Abraham
.
The modern Hebrew pronunciation, "Midyan", is the result of a normal vowel shift changing an "a" sound to an "i" sound (compare Miryam
in Hebrew versus Mariam in Greek or Maryam in Arabic).
to the deserts east of the Gulf of Aqabah, Edom and Moab.
The Midianites were nomadic shepherds who traveled in small bands with their goats and sheep and camels in the dry season and moved into larger groups during the lambing or wet season. They lived in tents of goat hair and ate mostly bread, baked in hot charcoals and sand, and dairy products. Their clothing was loose and baggy, both sexes wore tunics, those of the women being thinner with slits running through the sides and a veil covered the head.
. An Egyptian temple of Hathor
at Timna
continued to be used during the Midianite occupation of the site. However, whether Hathor or some other deity was the object of devotion during this period is impossible to ascertain.
Some historians suggest that the worship of Yahweh
originated in pre-Israelite peoples of the Levant
region, specifically in Midian. The Hebrew Bible mentions that Moses
first encountered God
as a burning bush in Midian. An Egyptian inscription also relates the Shasu
, who are described as living south of Palestine, with the name YHW.
, where the name appears in Arabic as Madyan.
Sura
9, verse 70 says "Has not the story reached them of those before them? - The people of Nuh (Noah), 'Ad, and Thamud, the people of Ibrahim (Abraham), the dwellers [literally, comrades] of Madyan (Midian) and the cities overthrown [i.e. the people to whom Lūt (Lot) preached], to them came their Messengers with clear proofs. So it was not Allah
who wronged them, but they used to wrong themselves."
In Sura 7 (Al-A`rāf
) Madyan is mentioned as one of several peoples who were warned by prophets to repent lest judgment fall on them. 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. Madyan was warned by Shu`ayb to repent of using false weights and measures and lying in wait along the road. But they rejected Shu`ayb, and consequently were destroyed by a tremor (rajfa, v. 91). 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. An earthquake seized them by night, and they were buried in their own homes, no longer to vex Allah's earth. But a supplementary detail is mentioned in [Qur'an] 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. Thus a day of terror drove them into their homes, and the earthquake finished them." (The volcano Hala-'l Badr
is in Madyan.)
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
and in the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
. It is believed to be in northwest Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
on the east shore of the Gulf of Aqaba
Gulf of Aqaba
The Gulf of Aqaba is a large gulf located at the northern tip of the Red Sea. In pre twentieth-century and modern sources it is often named the Gulf of Eilat, as Eilat is its predominant Israeli city ....
and the northern Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
. Some scholars believe it to be somewhere in or around Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
as the Bible itself is unclear at times.
Some scholars say it was not a geographical area but a league of tribes. We are also told that Midian was a son of Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
.
The modern Hebrew pronunciation, "Midyan", is the result of a normal vowel shift changing an "a" sound to an "i" sound (compare Miryam
Mary (given name)
Mary is a feminine given name, the English form of the name Maria, which was in turn a Latin form of the Greek names Μαριαμ, or Mariam, and Μαρια, or Maria, found in the New Testament. Both New Testament names were forms of the Hebrew name מִרְיָם or Miryam.The usual meaning given by various...
in Hebrew versus Mariam in Greek or Maryam in Arabic).
Geographical location and culture
Establishing the precise location of Midian is difficult, but the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Dictionary suggests that it may have extended from the eastern shores of the Sinai peninsulaSinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...
to the deserts east of the Gulf of Aqabah, Edom and Moab.
The Midianites were nomadic shepherds who traveled in small bands with their goats and sheep and camels in the dry season and moved into larger groups during the lambing or wet season. They lived in tents of goat hair and ate mostly bread, baked in hot charcoals and sand, and dairy products. Their clothing was loose and baggy, both sexes wore tunics, those of the women being thinner with slits running through the sides and a veil covered the head.
Religion
The Midianites through their apparent religio-political connection with the Moabites are thought to have worshipped a multitude of gods, including Baal-peor and the Queen of Heaven, AshterothAsherah
Asherah , in Semitic mythology, is a Semitic mother goddess, who appears in a number of ancient sources including Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu or Ashertu or Aserdu or Asertu...
. An Egyptian temple of Hathor
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
at Timna
Timna valley
The Timna Valley is located in southern Israel in the southwestern Arabah, approximately 30 km north of the Gulf of Aqaba and the town of Eilat...
continued to be used during the Midianite occupation of the site. However, whether Hathor or some other deity was the object of devotion during this period is impossible to ascertain.
Some historians suggest that the worship of Yahweh
Yahweh
Yahweh is the name of God in the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jews and Christians.The word Yahweh is a modern scholarly convention for the Hebrew , transcribed into Roman letters as YHWH and known as the Tetragrammaton, for which the original pronunciation is unknown...
originated in pre-Israelite peoples of the Levant
Levant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
region, specifically in Midian. The Hebrew Bible mentions that Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
first encountered God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
as a burning bush in Midian. An Egyptian inscription also relates the Shasu
Shasu
Shasu is an Egyptian word for pastoral nomads who appeared in the Levant and Arabia from the fifteenth century BCE all the way to the Third Intermediate Period. The name evolved from a transliteration of the Egyptian word š3sw, meaning "those who move on foot", into the term for Bedouin-type...
, who are described as living south of Palestine, with the name YHW.
Biblical references
- JosephJoseph (Hebrew Bible)Joseph is an important character in the Hebrew bible, where he connects the story of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in Canaan to the subsequent story of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt....
is sold by his brothers to Midianites - Midian was where MosesMosesMoses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
spent the forty years in voluntary exile after murdering the Egyptian - Moses married ZipporahZipporahZipporah or Tzipora is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as the wife of Moses, and the daughter of Reuel/Jethro, the priest or prince of Midian...
the daughter of Jethro, the priest of Midian - God instructs Moses to collect an army and destroy Midian
- Israel is oppressed by Midian during the time of the JudgesBook of JudgesThe Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
. Gideon is called by God to deliver Israel from Midian's armies.
In the Qur'an
The people of Midian are also mentioned extensively in the Qur'anQur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, where the name appears in Arabic as Madyan.
Sura
Sura
A sura is a division of the Qur'an, often referred to as a chapter. The term chapter is sometimes avoided, as the suras are of unequal length; the shortest sura has only three ayat while the longest contains 286 ayat...
9, verse 70 says "Has not the story reached them of those before them? - The people of Nuh (Noah), 'Ad, and Thamud, the people of Ibrahim (Abraham), the dwellers [literally, comrades] of Madyan (Midian) and the cities overthrown [i.e. the people to whom Lūt (Lot) preached], to them came their Messengers with clear proofs. So it was not Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
who wronged them, but they used to wrong themselves."
In Sura 7 (Al-A`rāf
Al-A'raf
Sura Al-A'raf is the seventh chapter of the Qur'an, with 206 verses. It is a Meccan sura. Its final verse, verse 206, requires a sajdah, or prostration.-Verses:...
) Madyan is mentioned as one of several peoples who were warned by prophets to repent lest judgment fall on them. The story of Madyan is the last, coming after that of Lot
Lot (Bible)
Lot is a man from the Book of Genesis chapters 11-14 and 19, in the Hebrew Bible. Notable episodes in his life include his travels with his uncle Abram ; his flight from the destruction of Sodom, in the course of which Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt; and the seduction by his...
preaching to his people (referring to the destruction of the Cities of the Plain. Madyan was warned by Shu`ayb to repent of using false weights and measures and lying in wait along the road. But they rejected Shu`ayb, and consequently were destroyed by a tremor (rajfa, v. 91). Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Hafiz Abdullah Yusuf Ali, CBE, FRSL was an Indian Islamic scholar who translated the Qur'an into English. His translation of the Qur'an is one of the most widely-known and used in the English-speaking world....
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. An earthquake seized them by night, and they were buried in their own homes, no longer to vex Allah's earth. But a supplementary detail is mentioned in [Qur'an] 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. Thus a day of terror drove them into their homes, and the earthquake finished them." (The volcano Hala-'l Badr
Hala-'l Badr
Hala-'l Badr is a volcano in north western Saudi Arabia situated at 27.25° N, 37.235° E.A number of scholars, including Charles Beke, Sigmund Freud, and Immanuel Velikovsky, have proposed that the biblical description of devouring fire on Mount Sinai refers to an erupting volcano; this possibility...
is in Madyan.)
See also
- YahwehYahwehYahweh is the name of God in the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jews and Christians.The word Yahweh is a modern scholarly convention for the Hebrew , transcribed into Roman letters as YHWH and known as the Tetragrammaton, for which the original pronunciation is unknown...
- BalakBalakBalak was king of Moab around 1200 BC. According to Book of Numbers 22:2, and the Book of Joshua 24:9, Zippor was the father of Balak.Book of Revelation 2:12 - 2:14 says about Balak:...
- EglonEglonEglon may refer to:*Eglon, Canaan, a Biblical city*Eglon , a Biblical king*Eglon, West Virginia, a community in the U.S. state of West Virginia*Eglon, Washington, a community in the U.S. state of Washington on the Kitsap Peninsula...
- IshmaelitesIshmaelitesAccording to the Book of Genesis, Ishmaelites are the descendants of Ishmael, the elder son of Abraham.-Traditional Origins:According to the Book of Genesis, Abraham's first wife was named Sarah and his second wife Hagar. However Sarah was old and barren, and could not conceive...
- Kedar
- History of ancient Israel and JudahHistory of ancient Israel and JudahIsrael and Judah were related Iron Age kingdoms of ancient Palestine. The earliest known reference to the name Israel in archaeological records is in the Merneptah stele, an Egyptian record of c. 1209 BCE. By the 9th century BCE the Kingdom of Israel had emerged as an important local power before...
- The Bible and historyThe Bible and historyThe Bible from a historical perspective, includes numerous fields of study, ranging from archeology and astronomy to linguistics and methods of comparative literature. The Bible may provide insight into pursuits, including but not limited to; our understanding of ancient and modern culture,...
Further reading
- Clines, David and John Sawyer, eds. "Midian, Moab and Edom: The History and Archaeology of Late Bronze and Iron Age Jordan and North-West Arabia". Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, Supplement Series, No. 24. Sheffield Academic Press, 1983.
External links
- Singer, Isidore and M. Seligsohn. "Midian and Midianites". Jewish EncyclopediaJewish EncyclopediaThe Jewish Encyclopedia is an encyclopedia originally published in New York between 1901 and 1906 by Funk and Wagnalls. It contained over 15,000 articles in 12 volumes on the history and then-current state of Judaism and the Jews as of 1901...
. Funk and Wagnalls, 1901–1906, which cites to: - Archaeology of Timna
- Another Timna archaeology site
- Richard Burton's account of his travels in "The Land of Midian"
- Spring of Harod - Ma'ayan Harod