Isra’el and the Philistines
The Sea Peoples seem to have come from the province of Pylos in Greece. The two cities of Pylos, Apekee and Asistia were centers of metalworkers and armaments. Arriving in the Eastern Mediterranean, they assimilated into the native Canaanite population. The Philistine material culture lost its uniqueness when they reached the peak of their prosperity and their political and military power at the end of the eleventh century BC. This period was one in which the older Aegean traditions were abandoned, not only at Ekron, but in the rest of Philistia, and new cultural influences, primarily Egyptian and Phoenician, took their place (to see a 25-minute video on the Philistines click here).
The Philistines had probably adopted the native Canaanite language for communication in the south right after their settlement. Moreover, it is possible that the Philistines had also adopted the fully standardized Phoenician alphabet of twenty-two letters, as the Greeks did around 1100 BC. First, the Philistines established three coastal city-states, Gaza, Ashdod, and Ashkelon. Later, Gath and Ekron in the lowland were added to them, thus establishing a pentapolis, a confederation of five city-states in the Philistine Plain.
The purpose of the Philistines in extending control in Canaan was not only to dominate the native inhabitants and to exact forced labor and taxes, but also to control the vital overland routes by establishing military posts and garrisons (First Samuel 13:3; Second Samuel 23;14). During the period of the Judges, the Philistines were one of Isra’el’s major enemies (Judges 3:3 and 31, 13:5 and 14:4). They especially appear in the stories of Sampson (Judges Chapters 14-16), which were probably set in the twelfth century. Later, about the middle of the eleventh century BC, the Philistines won a major conflict with Isra’el during the time of ‘Eli (to see link click Bb – The Philistines Capture the Ark).
The primary god of their pantheon was Dagon, a deity worshiped also in upper Mesopotamia as a grain god. Some scholars suggest that the Philistine Dagon was represented as having a human torso and upper body and a fish’s tail (see Bf – The Ark at Ashdod). It may well be that the originally seafaring Philistines brought their fish god with them to Canaan and then adapted him to the Semitic god Dagon, because of their need to become a grain-producing people (Judges 15:3-5).
Samuel and the Philistines: After capturing the Ark of the Covenant at Ebenezer, the Philistines were able to use the road into the Ephraim mountains and secured their domination of the Via Maris, or “The Way of the Philistines,” was the main trade route along the Mediterranean coast. It was the most important trade route from Egypt to Syria, which followed the coastal plain before crossing over into the plain of Jezreel and the Jordan Valley. Then, Samuel was victorious over the Philistines near Mizpah in the southern mountains of Ephraim (see Bm – The Last Judge). On the historical background of the emergence of the monarchy in Isra’el see Bp – The Request for a King.
King Sha’ul and the Philistines: Before and during the reign of King Sha’ul, the Philistines established their garrisons at strategic points (First Samuel 10:5) and on the main roads (First Samuel 13:17 and 14:15). When necessary, they could send a military unit that included chariots, to aid a garrison. In this way, they could control and tax large areas. They could also conscript units from the subjugated population (First Samuel 14:21). However, Sha’ul conquered the Philistine fortress at Geba in First Samuel 13:3, and brought the Philistine domination in the territory of Benjamin to an end.
At least at the end of the eleventh century BC, the Philistines had a monopoly on the process of extracting metals in their pure form. This was especially relevant to their production of chariots and weapons. What the Philistines did, however, was to prevent Israelite craftsmen from learning those new skills, though presumably they continued working in bronze. Thus, they subjugated the Israelites economically (First Samuel 13:19-21). The Philistine military organization and the quality of their weapons were superior to those of the Israelites (see Cq – David Kills Goliath). The Philistine material culture was highly developed with well-planned urban centers. It was prosperous, and they increasingly imported goods from Egypt, Phoenicia, and Cyprus. It may be that David learned something of Philistine military and administrative techniques during his stay in Gath (see the Life of David Aw – David at Gath) and Ziklag (see the Life of David Bt – Achish Sends David Back to Ziklag).
King Sha’ul seems to have been successful in the hill country, but his troops could not win a battle in the open plain because of the domination of Philistine chariots. In First Samuel 23 the war shifted from the mountains to the lowland Shephelah, which was the border between the Israelite towns and Philistia proper. Then, in First Samuel Chapters 28 to 31, the Philistines attacked Isra’el from bases in the Jezreel Valley on the Via Maris highway and destroyed the Israelite army and cornered King Sha’ul on Mount Gilboa (see Dk – Sha’ul Takes His Own Life).
David and the Philistines: Achish, son of Maok, the Philistine king of Gath, employed that ancient tactic of “divide and conquer” by supporting David against the House of Sha’ul in Isra’el (see the Life of David Bs – David Among the Philistines). But then, when David became king, he was able to defeat the Philistines and control territory in the northern plain, the Jezreel Valley, and large sections along the Via Maris. He captured the cities of Dor, Megiddo, and Beth-Shean. Thus, he broke the Philistine military, political, and economic power over Isra’el, though he could not destroy all the major cities on the southern coast. He used mercenaries such as the Cherethites, Pelethites, and Gittities (Second Samuel 15:18). All those peoples were either Philistine or closely related Aegean groups. Those Philistines were certainly “uncircumcised,” but they were not the uncivilized or unsophisticated people that medieval Europe once thought them to be. They had a highly developed technology and civilization when Sha’ul and David confronted them around the eleventh and tenth centuries BC.7
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