What Is anti-Semitism?
I would imagine to most of the known world to be anti-Semitic means one has
hatred
or is racist toward Jews. The word/phrase anti-Semitic does not appear
In
the Bible. Reportedly it is an invented word that came into the English
language
around 1879 by a man named Wilhelm Marr (1819-1904).[i] Wilhelm was convinced Jews were a threat In Germany and had to be eliminated during his time. Jews were considered inferior. He wrote an essay entitled: “Der Weg zum Siege des Germanenthums uber das Judenthum. (“The Way to Victory of Germanicism over Judaism”) The Anti-Semitism phrase caught on as new word phrases often do and it has been used to express hostility and or hatred toward Jews ever since.
Let
us go back in history to see where the word comes from.
The
prefix anti means against. The word Semite is a derivative of the Biblical name
Shem. Shem was one of the Sons of Noah. These are the descendants of Shem:
And
children were born also to Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the
brother of Japheth the elder. The sons of Shem were Elam (Elamites), Asshur (Ancient
name for Assyria), Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram (Arameans/Syrians). The sons of Aram
were Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. Arphaxad begot Salah, and Salah begot Eber. To
Eber (where we get the name Hebrew[ii])
were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was
divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan. Joktan begot Almodad, Sheleph,
Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir,
Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan. And their dwelling place
was from Mesha as you go toward Sephar, the mountain of the east. These were
the sons of Shem, according to their families, according to their languages, in
their lands, according to their nations (Genesis 10:21-31).
So,
for one to reference anti-Semitism as hatred to Jews alone is too narrow. As
history clearly reveals, Semitic peoples[iii]
covered North Africa, Arabia, Iraq, Iran, and parts of Turkey along with
Lebanon and Israel.
The
man Shem is also the physical blood ancestor of Jesus Christ (Luke 3:23-38).
Jesus according to the flesh is a Semite and a Hebrew from the tribe of Judah (Hebrews
7:14; Revelation 5:5).
[ii] The
word Hebrew means the other side or one who crosses over. Abraham was the first
man to be called a Hebrew because he crossed over the river (The Euphrates). Abraham
and is his family were immigrants in Canaan (Genesis 12:5;14:13); https://www.oneforisrael.org/bible-based-teaching-from-israel/what-does-the-word-hebrew-mean/
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