page_title: Kenites
section_title: In the Bible
hierarchical_section_title: Kenites / In the Bible
context_page_description: According to the Hebrew Bible, the Kenites were a nomadic tribe in the ancient Levant. The Kenites were coppersmiths and metalworkers. They played an important role in the history of ancient Israel. One of the most recognized Kenites is Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, who was a shepherd and a priest in the land of Midian. Judges 1:16 says that Moses had a father-in-law who was a Kenite, but it is not clear from the passage if this refers to Jethro. Certain groups of Kenites settled among the Israelite population, including the descendants of Moses' brother-in-law, although the Kenites descended from Rechab maintained a distinct, nomadic lifestyle for some time.
  Kenite is a rendition of Hebrew קֵינִי Qeyniy. According to Gesenius, the name is derived from the name Cain. According to A. H. Sayce, the name ‘Kenite’ or Qéní, is identical to an Aramaic word meaning a smith, which in its turn is a cognate of Hebrew Qayin, with the meaning ‘a lance’.
  According to the Kenite hypothesis, Yahweh was historically a Midian deity, and the association of Moses' father-in-law with Midian reflects the historical adoption of the Midianite cult by the Hebrews.
context_section_description: The Bible mentions the Kenites as living in or around Canaan as early as the time of Abraham. (Genesis 15:18-21) At the Exodus, Jethro and his clan inhabited the vicinity of Mount Sinai and Horeb. (Exodus 3:1) Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, was a Kenite (Judges 1:16) resident in the land of Midian. Judges 1:16 says that his descendants "went up from the City of Palms with the men of Judah to live among the people of the Desert of Judah in the Negev near Arad."   The "City of Palms" appears to be Zoara or Tamar in the upper Arabah.
  However, in Exodus 3:1 Jethro is said to have been a "priest in the land of Midian" and a resident of Midian (Numbers 10:29). This has led many scholars to believe that the terms are intended (at least in parts of the Bible) to be used interchangeably, or that the Kenites formed a part of the Midianite tribal grouping. The Kenites journeyed with the Israelites to Canaan (Judges 1:16); and their encampment, apart from the latter's, was noticed by Balaam.
  At a later period, some of the Kenites separated from their brethren in the south, and went to live in northern Canaan (Judges 4:11) where they lived in the time of King Saul. The kindness which they had shown to Israel in the wilderness was gratefully remembered. "Ye showed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt," said Saul to them (1 Samuel 15:6); and so not only were they spared by him, but David allowed them to share in the spoil that he took from the Amalekites.
  Other well-known Kenites were Heber, the husband of Jael, and Rechab, the ancestor of the Rechabites.
caption: Zipporah and her sister, from a painting by Sandro Botticelli
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