Was Noah from the Bible a Israelite?

Answer 1

Answer: No, Noah was not JewishNo, the word "Jew" in The Bible always refers to the lineage of Jacob, a grandson of Noah. Noah was a great, great, great... grandfather of Jacob, therefore, Noah was not Jewish.

The lineage is as follows... Noah... Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jacob's 12 sons. Jacobs sons and their descendants are the Jews. Abraham was not a Jew, he was a Hebrew. None of Abraham's sons were Jews (not even Isaac).

Jacob's 12 sons are the beginning of the nation of Israel, the Jews.

Abraham Was A Hebrew (Not A Jew)Genesis 14:13 (KJV) And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram. Abrahm Had 3 Legal WivesAbraham had 3 legal wives: Sarah, Hagar, and Keturah. Each of one of these wives bare Abraham a son or sons. Hagar Bare IshmaelGenesis 16:3 (KJV) And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.

.

.

.

Genesis 16:15 (KJV) And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.

Sarah Bare IsaacGenesis 21:3 (KJV) And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.Keturah Bare Zimran, Kokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, ShuahGenesis 25:1 (KJV) Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah.

Genesis 25:2 (KJV) And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.

The Descendants Of IsaacIsaac had two children, Easau (the first born) and Jacob (the second born). The descendants of Esau are the Edomites and the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites. EsauGenesis 36:1 (KJV) Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom.

Genesis 36:8 (KJV) Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.

Genesis 36:19 (KJV) These are the sons of Esau, who is Edom, and these are their dukes.

Jacob

Genesis 32:28 (KJV) And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

Genesis 35:10 (KJV) And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel.

Jews In The BibleA Divided Kingdom

The first time the word "Jew" is used in the Bible is in the book of 2 Kings. After Israel became a divided nation the word "Jew" referred to the inhabitants of the kingdom of Judah, distinguishing it from the inhabitants of the kingdom of Israel.

2 Kings 16:6 (KJV) At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.

A Captive People

After the Babylonian captivity, the word "Jew" began to refer to Israelites from either kingdom, as demonstrated in Esther.

Esther 2:5 (KJV) Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;

Notice that the word "Jew" is associated with one of Jacobs sons, "Benjamin". In fact, in the Bible, the word "Jew" is always used to refer to someone who is part of one of the 12 tribes of Israel.

Jesus Is A JewJesus is a Jew. He is from the tribe of Judah, a son of Jacob.

Genesis 35:23 (KJV) The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun:

Jesus lineage (tracing his ancestry back to Judah) can be found in Matthew 1:1-16 and in Luke 3:23-38.

John 4:6 (KJV) Now Jacob's well was there. Jesustherefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.

John 4:7 (KJV) There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.

John 4:8 (KJV) (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)

John 4:9 (KJV) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.

ConclusionOnly Jacobs descendants can be considered Jewish. Noah is not Jewish because he is not a descendant of Jacob. He is Jacobs great, great, great... grandfather, therefore, he cannot be a Jew.

Abraham is the father of many nations. From Ishmael and Keturah came the Arab nations. From Isaac came the Edomites and the Israelites. Only through the Israelites (the sons of Jacob) come the Jewish people.

Jewish AnswerJews didn't become Jews until we received the Torah.Noah predated this event and therefore couldn't have been a Jew. However, according to Tanach (the Jewish Bible), there are 7 laws that provide the core rules as to how all of the nations of the world can live righteously, HaShem gave the first few laws with Adam and Chava and completed them with Noah. These 7 laws are called the Noahide laws.

The answer, "Jews didn't become Jews until we received the Torah.", is inconclusive. Is there, according to the Jews, any other criteria (outside of being a descendant of Jacob) for being a Jew? If so, please give the reference.

Answer 2

No as the name Israelite occurred after Jacob, grandson of Abraham, had his named changed to Israel and his 12 sons were known as the 12 Tribes of Israel - Israelites all.