Jewish History – Ben Kohelet

Song of Songs: A Romantic Poem Not Written by Solomon?

Two fundamental questions surround the Song of Songs. Did Solomon actually write it, as Jewish tradition claims? And was the poem intended from the beginning as a metaphor for the…

Ben Kohelet September 7, 2026

Homepage Jewish History Myth Busting

A Miniature Exodus? The Levite Hypothesis

One of the most fascinating attempts to reconcile the biblical Exodus with archaeology is the Levite Hypothesis, proposed by Richard Elliott Friedman. Rather than viewing the Exodus as the migration…

Ben Kohelet June 16, 2026

Homepage Jewish History

Always in the Land: Tanakh’s Hidden Memory of Indigenous Israelite Origins (Part II)

In Part I, we explored a number of biblical traditions that seem to imply the Israelites had deep indigenous roots in Canaan, rather than the traditional exodus framework. In this…

Ben Kohelet June 9, 2026

Biblical Worldview Homepage Jewish History

On the (in)Sanity of Prophets

The biblical prophets can seem deeply strange. One prophet walks around naked for years. Another lies on his side for over a year and bakes bread over dung. Another marries…

Ben Kohelet June 7, 2026

Biblical Worldview Homepage Jewish History

Always in the Land: Tanakh’s Hidden Memory of Indigenous Israelite Origins

Table of contents: The traditional narrative The alternative narrative The children of Ephraim Menasseh’s Aramean concubine The Judah and Tamar narrative Hezron dies in Israel Caleb son of Hezron City…

Ben Kohelet May 10, 2026

Homepage Jewish History

Is Dan Originally a Philistine Tribe?

Some scholars propose that the tribe of Dan may have had foreign origins, possibly even emerging from among Israel’s later enemies—the Philistines. According to this theory, Dan was not originally…

Ben Kohelet January 12, 2026

Homepage Jewish History Jewish Holidays

Rethinking the Historical Shavuot Holiday

The traditional narrative The liturgy of the day sums up the modern view of the holiday by calling it “this day of Shavuot, the time of the giving of the…

Ben Kohelet June 1, 2025