Judith יְהוּדִית
A Hittite woman who married Esau
Who is Judith in the Bible?
Judith was a Hittite woman who married Esau, the son of Isaac and Rebekah, when he was forty years old (Genesis 26:34). She was the daughter of Beeri the Hittite and one of two Hittite wives Esau took, the other being Basemath, daughter of Elon. The biblical account notes that these marriages caused considerable grief to Isaac and Rebekah because the Hittites were Canaanites outside the covenant community, and God had forbidden the Israelites from intermarrying with them (Deuteronomy 7:1-4). Judith's brief mention in Scripture illustrates Esau's disregard for his family's spiritual convictions and foreshadows the divisions that would characterize his line in contrast to the line of Jacob.
Biography
Judith is mentioned in Gen.26.34 as one of the wives of Esau, the son of Isaac and Rebekah. She was the daughter of Beeri the Hittite and is described as a Hittite woman.
The context of the passage is the account of Esau's marriages, which caused grief to his parents (Gen.26.34-35). Esau, at the age of forty, married Judith and another Hittite woman named Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite (Gen.26.34).
These marriages were a source of bitterness to Isaac and Rebekah because the Hittites were not part of the covenant people of God (Gen.26.35). The Hittites were one of the Canaanite tribes that inhabited the Promised Land before the Israelites, and God had commanded the Israelites not to intermarry with them (Deu.7.1-4).
Esau's choice to marry Hittite women demonstrated his disregard for the covenant and his parents' wishes, setting the stage for the conflict between him and his brother Israel (or 'Jacob'), who was chosen by God to inherit the covenant promises (Gen.25.23; 27.1-29).
Family
In Scripture
1 biblical book ; 1 with study contentGenesis 1 verse
- Genesis 26:34
"When Esau was forty years old, he took as his wives Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite."
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Names & Aliases
| Form | Language | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Named | Hebrew | יְהוּדִית |
Encyclopedia Article
ISBE 1915 (Public Domain) Judith
ealthy, courageous, and patriotic widow who delivered Jerusalem and her countrymen from the assault of Holofernes, the general of Nebuchadnezzar who had arranged the expedition which aimed at making Nebuchadnezzar the object of universal human worship.
The 8th and following chapters of the book describe her actions which resulted in the cutting off of the head of Holofernes, the rout of the Assyrian army, and the deliverance of the Jews.
See JUDITH, BOOK OF.
|| I. NAME
IICanonicity
IIIContents
IVFact or Fiction?
VDate
1Probably during the Maccabean Age
2Other Opinions
(1) Invasion of Pompey
(2) Insurrecti