Jews in the Bible had their own linguistic differences. Tongues ( glōssae) were different dialects and languages. Once more, we see, identity comes from membership in a people group rather than pigment. But they were identified by their people groups, not by their colors. Because of migration and intermarriage, they often were of different colors. ![]() They often consisted of a those in the region of a nation, such as the people of Galilee in the larger nation of Judea, or the people of Macedonia or Achaia in what we now know as Greece. Peoples ( lāoí) were groups with a common history and constitution. In this case, identity in the Bible comes from kin relationships, not skin color. Just as families today where spouses and adopted children can have different colors, tribes were often made up of people of different colors. Tribes (phulḗ) were family lines of common descent. This is the first tipoff that the Bible identifies people not by their pigment but by their national cultures. Its people were a “mixed multitude” with different colors from Exodus days and had often assimilated people from other nations like Ruth and Rahab who were probably of slightly different colors. Israel was a nation united by the Jewish religion. ![]() A nation was united by its culture, which was formed by its cultus or religion. Nations ( tà éthnē) in the biblical world were composed of people with different skin colors. Instead the author of Revelation focuses on their nations and tribes and peoples and languages. It is true that this great multitude will be of many colors, but this passage pays no attention to their colors. This will shock many, especially those who are now pointing to the heavenly church of Revelation 7:9 that supposedly highlights diverse races:Īfter this I looked and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands.
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