ANCIENT ISRAEL’S SOCIAL STRUCTURE(S)

Social structure was one of the most important aspects of ancient Israel’s existence. It refers to the social patterns and the social relationships as well as to the social and physical characteristics of communities in which the ancient Israelites practiced their culture. It also refers to social inequality and to the ways in which Israelite society was ranked in a hierarchy. Social structures are, however, not simply determinations of social behavior in the past. This chapter reconstructs ancient Israelite society through their communities and local practices emphasizing the dynamic changes this society underwent from the 12th through the 8th centuries BCE.