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  • From: "Alternate" <crequi AT ntlworld.com>
  • To: "B-Hebrew" <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [b-hebrew] Arpachshad
  • Date: Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:04:52 +0100

Has it ever been suggested that Arpachshad in Gen.10:22 is meant to represent Arabia? It seems to fit well in the Sons of Shem scheme where Arpachshad is the ancestor of the Sons of Joktan in southern Arabia, of the Sons of Ishmael in western Arabia and of the Israelites who have more immediately come from the fringes of Arabia.

Also it looks similar to the Arabah, a place which appears a number of times at the beginning of Deuteronomy (1:1, 1:7, 2:8, 3:17, 4:49) and is associated with the rift valley of the Jordan and the Dead Sea. I believe it means something like "wilderness, desert".

So my questions are these:
Is it possible that Arpachshad and Arabah are related in meaning?
Can Arpachshad be understood to mean something like "bosom of the wilderness" implying the place of origin of the peoples of Arabia?

Thanks

Al Craig




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