Changes

The patriarchal period begins with Abraham (Abram), who lived around the 1,800 BC. The life of Abraham is recorded in the [[Book of Genesis]]. According to Genesis, God called Abram to faith and obedience, calling him to leave his home of [[Ur]], and move to a land that He would show him. Abram, his wife Sarai (Sarah), and his extended clan then moved to the land of Canaan. In this land, God promised to bless him and make him a great nation (although Abraham was childless at the time). Trusting this promise, Abram journeyed down to Shechem, then to a spot between Bethel and Ai. He then moved to the oaks of Mamre in Hebron. The [[Bible]] tells us that Abraham trusted God, and God credited this to him as righteousness. Abraham's wife, Sarah, bore a son, Isaac, late in life. Isaac was the father of Jacob, who God renamed Israel. Jacob was the father of 12 sons, whose offspring became the 12 tribes of Israel.

===Slavery Abraham's wife, Sarah, bore a son, Isaac, late in life. Isaac was the father of Jacob, who God renamed Israel. Jacob was the father of 12 sons, whose offspring became the 12 tribes of Israel. One of his sons, Joseph, was sold into slavery to Egyptians by his brothers who were motivated by jealousy. In Egypt===, through God's hand, Joseph rose to become the Pharoah's right-hand man. When a severe famine occurred throughout Egypt and Israel, Joseph's brothers and their families moved to Egypt.

These stories are told in the book of [[Genesis]]. ===WanderingSlavery in Egypt and the Exodus=== The Israelite (Hebrew) people multiplied rapidly in Egypt but were forced into slavery by the Egyptian pharaohs. Of the 12 brothers who went to Egypt, each had sons who formed a clan - the twelve tribes of Israel. For approximately 400 years the Israelites suffered in Egypt, until [[Moses]] was born. After calling Moses to free the slaves, God miraculously rescued the Hebrew people bringing them into the [[Sinai]] region. It was here that the people received the [[Ten Commandments]]. These stories are told in the [[Book of Exodus]] (also [[Leviticus]], [[Numbers]] and [[Deuteronomy]])

[[Joshua]] succeeded Moses as the Hebrew leader and led the people into Canaan (Israel) conquering and destroying the people in that land under God's direction. Each tribe of Israel moved into its own designated area of Canaan. These stories are told in the [[Book of Joshua]]. ===[[Judges]]and United Monarchy=== The twelve tribes of Israel were initially united as one people. The country was initially led by judges – religious leaders appointed by God who dealt justice to the people and also took charge in case of war.  Later, the people of Israel insisted on having a king like the nations around them, and the judge Samuel appointed King Saul, who was followed by David and then his son Solomon.

Following the death of King Solomon, the kingdom of Israel underwent a schism, bisecting into the kingdom of Israel in the north, and the kingdom of Judah in the south (containing [[Jerusalem]]). This is described in 1 Kings 12. The remainder of the book [[1 Kings]] and all of the book [[2 Kings]] describes the history of Israel during this period of a divided kingdom. It explains from a theological view the political developments that occurred in this time. Both kingdoms progressively lost sight of God and began to follow pagan gods.