“Khnum Is Against Us” The Rise and Fall of Ḥananiah and the Persecution of the Yahwists in Egypt (ca. 419–404 BCE)

Abstract

According to the Elephantine Yahwists’ own dramatic portrayal, the figure of a certain Ḥananiah played a key role in the misfortunes they experienced following his arrival in Egypt in or around 419 bce. Therefore, understanding who this person was and how he might have helped cause these calamities can provide important context to the analysis of the final decades of this community. This article looks at all available evidence—textual, linguistic, and archeological data, both internal and external to Egypt—and comes to the conclusion that Ḥananiah was, in all probability, a scion of the Sanballat dynasty, an aristocrat and future governor of Samaria, who is known from various mid-fourth-century BCE documents discovered in Palestine. The identification of this eminently unique and dramatic character in Egypt at an exceptionally critical time in the satrapy has important implications, regarding which some speculative options are offered. The article also provides a new perspective on the overarching context of the events endured by the Yahwists in Elephantine, as well as on the general state of Yahwism in the Achaemenid period. Specifically, it offers a new hypothesis regarding the reasons for the persecution of the Yahwists and the destruction of their temple.