Philistines

The Philistines (/ˈfɪlᵻstiːnz/, /ˈfɪlᵻstaɪnz/, /fᵻˈlɪstᵻnz/, or /fᵻˈlɪstiːnz/;Hebrew: פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Plištim) were a people described in the Bible.

The Hebrew term "pelishtim" occurs 286 times in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible (of which 152 times in 1 Samuel), whereas in the Greek Septuagint version of the Hebrew Bible, the equivalent term phylistiim occurs only 12 times, with the remaining 269 references instead using the term "allophylos" ("of another tribe"). According to the Old Testament, the land of the Philistines was a pentapolis in southwestern Levant comprising the five city-states of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath, from Wadi Gaza in the south to the Yarqon River in the north.

The Bible portrays them at one period of time as among the Kingdom of Israel's most dangerous enemies.Biblical scholars have connected the Philistines to other biblical groups such as Caphtorim and the Cherethites and Pelethites, which have both been identified with Crete, and leading to the tradition of an Aegean origin, although this theory has been disputed.

Philistines (disambiguation)

The Philistines were a people who once occupied the south-western part of Canaan.

Philistines may also refer to:

See also