Omer Sergi

The Two Houses of Israel: State Formation and the Origins of Pan-Israelite Identity bridges the gap between the biblical narrative of the great united monarchy ruled by David and Solomon and archaeological and historical reconstructions of a gradual, independent formation of Israel and Judah. Based on a thorough examination of the material remains and settlement patterns in the southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age and on a review of the relevant historical sources, this book provides a detailed reconstruction of the ways in which Israel and Judah were formed as territorial polities and specifically how the house of David rose to power in Jerusalem and Judah. Omer Sergi further situates the stories of Saul and David in their accurate social and historical context in order to illuminate the historical conception of the united monarchy and the pan-Israelite ideology out of which it grew. Sergi provides a new history of the early Israelite monarchies, their formation, and the ways in which these social and political developments were commemorated in the cultural memory of generations to come.

Ḥ orvat Tevet is a small site located in the northeastern margins of the Jezreel Valley. During the late Iron IIA (9th century BCE) a large, public, pillared building was erected on the site's summit, with areas dedicated to agricultural processing and craft specializations around it. In light of evidence from the pottery assemblages, the faunal remains, and the various means of production detected at the site, we argue that Ḥ orvat Tevet served as an administrative centre of a royal estate within early monarchic Israel. We further discuss the archaeological evidence for royal estates in the southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and its meaning for the origins of royal economy in early monarchic Israel.

The paper was published in the volume:
Koch, I., Lipschits, O. and Sergi, O. 2023. From Nomadism
to Monarchy? Revisiting the Early Iron Age Southern Levant Edited (Mosaic 3). Institute of Archaeology and Eisenbrauns; Tel Aviv University and University Park.

Faunal remains from Horvat Tevet, a site located in the rural
hinterlands of the Jezreel Valley, reveal patterns of a complex
redistributive apparatus during the Late Iron IIA. This paper
assesses a large assemblage of animal bones within inter- and
intra-site comparative analyses. Inter-site comparisons to
contemporary sites in the northern valleys of Israel demonstrate
that the agricultural production of grain and animal by-products
at Horvat Tevet is unprecedented and went far beyond the site’s
local needs. Further, an intra-site comparison reveals a
hierarchical distinction in the consumption patterns between
elites and the labour force. These results further reinforce the
conclusion that the late Iron IIA Horvat Tevet was an
administrative centre of a royal Israelite estate in the Jezreel Valley

The recent excavations at Ḥorvat Tevet and the finding of ca. 260 Late Iron IIA cylindrical holemouth jars provided an unparalleled opportunity to study these relatively unknown vessels. This article offers a comprehensive analysis of cylindrical holemouth jars and includes a study of typology and morphology, alongside the analysis of provenance and distribution patterns. By shedding new light on these vessels, this paper provides the opportunity to understand and illustrate the economy of early monarchic Israel in a new and innovative way.

Published in: The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East. Edited by
Karen Radner, Nadine Moeller, and D. T. Potts, Oxford University Press. © Oxford University Press 2023.

This article provides an overview of the History and Archaeology of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah during the Iron Age. For  PDF copy of the article please send an email.

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Full citation:
16. Sergi, O. 2020. Saul, David and the Formation of the Israelite Monarchy: Revisiting the Historical and Literary Context of 1 Samuel 9–2 Samuel 5. In: Krause, J., Sergi, O. and Weingart, K. eds. Saul, Benjamin and the Emergence of Monarchy in Israel (Ancient Israel and its Literature 40). Atlanta (SBL Press): 57–91.

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Full citation:
Sergi, O. 2019. On Scribal Tradition in Israel and Judah and the Antiquity of the Historiographical Narratives in the Hebrew Bible. In: Krause, J., Oswald, W. and Weingart K. eds. Eigensinn und Entstehung der Hebräischen Bibel: Erhard Blum zum siebzigsten Geburtstag. Tübingen (Mohr Siebeck): 275–299.

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Abstract: This study aims to discuss the formation of Israelite identity vis-à-vis the formation of the Israelite monarchies (Israel, Judah), while highlighting its kinship association. In order to do so, I first discuss the material remains and settlement patterns in the Iron I–IIA central Canaanite Highlands and the adjacent valleys (Jezreel, Beth-Shean and the central Jordan). Consequently, and in light of the archaeological discussion, I further elaborate on biblical and extra biblical textual sources that may shed light on the nature of Israelite identity and its consolidation vis-à-vis the process of state formation.
Full citation: Sergi, O. 2019. Israelite Identity and the Formation of the Israelite Polities in the Iron I-IIA Central Canaanite Highlands. Welts des Orients 49: 206–235.

An introduction to the "Identity" discourse in regard to Bronze and Iron Age Levantine Societies.
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Full citation: Sergi, O. 2019. (Re)Constructing Identities in the Bronze and Iron Age Levant. Welts des Orients 49: 146–150.

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Abstract: The kingdom of Geshur narrowly appears in the Hebrew Bible, occurring only in relation to stories of David in 2 Samuel and in the descriptions of the Transjordanian border in Deuteronomy and Joshua. In a recent study, Assaf Kleiman and I reevaluated the archaeological remains from key sites in the basin of the Sea of Galilee and, accordingly,
we were able to reaffirm the identification of Geshur with et-Tell. Moreover, our archaeological and historical discussion demonstrated that if Geshur is to be identified with a polity related to et-Tell, then its commencement should be dated to the late 9th century BCE. This conclusion has an important implication for the construction of the
political history of Geshur and consequently for understanding how it was memorized in biblical literature. In the following article I shall briefly summarize the archaeological and historical discussion regarding the historicity of the kingdom of Geshur as a point of departure for examining how the memory of this political entity was shaped and reshaped in biblical literature. It will be demonstrated that even when its earliest
memory is rooted in the Iron Age geo-political reality, by the Persian Period this kingdom was mainly remembered for being a “foreign” entity within Israel.

Full citation: Sergi, O. 2019. The Memory of the Kingdom of Geshur in Biblical Literature. In: Berlejung, A. and Maeir, A. eds. Research on Israel and Aram: Autonomy, Independence and Related Issue, Proceedings of the First Annual RIAB Center Conference, Leipzig, June 2016 (RIAB 1). Mohr Siebeck: Tübingen: 315–330.

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Full citation:  Sergi, O. 2019. Erzählung, Geschichten und Geschichte in den biblischen Überlieferungen von der Entstehung der israelitischen Monarchie (1 Sam 9–2 Sam 5), In: Fischer. I. and Claassens, J. eds. Prophetie (Die Bibel und die Frauen Eine exegetisch-kulturgeschichtliche Enzyklopädie). Stuttgart: 19–43.

Full citation:
Sergi, O. 2017. The Battle of Ramoth-gilead and the Rise of the Aramaean Hegemony in the Southern Levant during the Second Half of the 9th Century BCE. In: Berlejung, A., Maeir, A.M. and Schüle, A. eds. Wandering Aramaean: Aramaeans Outside Syria – Textual and Archaeological Perspectives (LAOS 5). Wiesbaden:  81–97.

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Full citation of the paper:
Sergi, O. 2018. Jacob and the Aramaean Identity of Ancient Israel between the Judges and the Prophets. In: Brett, M. and Wöhrle, J. eds. The Politics of the Ancestors: Exegetical and Historical Perspectives on Genesis 12–36. Tübingen: 283–305.

The story of Absalom and Sheba’s revolts (2 Samuel 15–20) recounts how David’s throne was threatened twice when Israel rebelled against him, first under the leadership of his son Absalom, and later under the Benjaminite Sheba. This study discusses the literary unity and the date of the revolts story, first and foremost, by taking into account the historical and geo-political context presupposed by its authors. It is
thus demonstrated that the story is based on the geo-political realities of the 8th century b.c.e., and that it recalls the extent and power of the kingdom of Israel under the reign of Jeroboam II. The “great united monarchy” ruled by David as envisioned by the authors of the revolts story actually projects the territories of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah during the reign of Jeroboam II back to the 10th century b.c.e. In
light of this conclusion, the study explores the origins of this concept in its literary and historical context

This article presents the first radiocarbon (14C) results from the Late Bronze Age levels of Tel Azekah (Israel). The results testify to the long and prosperous occupation of the site during this period, commencing at least in LB IIA and ending with a severe destruction at the close of LB III. In the extra-mural quarter (Area S2), a pre-monumental building phase (S2-6) dates to the 14th or early 13th century BCE. Two sub-phases of a public building constructed above this yielded dates in the second half of the 13th century and first two-thirds of the 12th century BCE, suggesting that occupation persisted through the “Crisis Years” of the eastern Mediterranean region. On the top of the mound, in Area T2, the destruction of the final LB III level (T2-3) most likely occurred near the end of the 12th century BCE. The preliminary Azekah results are in good agreement with existing data from Lachish and Megiddo, but seem at odds with results from nearby Tel es-Safi/Gath.

Athaliah's rule over Judah is depicted in the second Book of Kings as a "break" in the Davidic line: she is presented as an illegitimate sovereign who violently usurped the throne of Judah. However, examining the historical context for her reign reveals that Athaliah may have gained political and even dynastical legitimacy. Accordingly, this study seeks to reconstruct the historical context for Athaliah's rise and fall and thus to shed light on her image in the book of Kings.

This study examines the role of textual production and scribal schools in the process of state formation, demonstrating that historiographic literature was used in order to constitute a collective identity. I argue that the accounts of David’s battles with the Philistines (1 Sam 23:1–5; 2 Sam 5:17–25; 8:1) should be considered as early Judahite historiography, and I compare them with the accounts of Mesha battles with the Omrides (Mesha Inscription, lines 4–21), which may also be considered as an historiographical text related to state formation. I demonstrate that both texts share similar structure, content and narration and consequently both use similar strategies to reconstruct identity in a newly formed political entity. Furthermore, they both reflect the earliest stages of the development of the royal cult in Judah and Moab.