In the Bible, Amalek represents both a nation and a nomadic tribe, considered the foremost adversary of ancient Israel. The Amalekites are depicted as having assaulted the Israelites during their escape from Egypt, as recorded in Exodus. Although the Israelites emerged victorious in this conflict, a divine curse was subsequently imposed on Amalek's descendants.
Today’s article will uncover the characteristics of the Amalekites, their grave sin that caused God to want to blot them out, and what we can learn from their story.
Amalekites: Table of Contents
Who Were the Amalekites?
To know the origin of the Amalekites, we must first understand their father, Amalek. And to do that… we must understand his father, Esau. Esau was a twin of Jacob, who tricked Esau out of his birthright and blessing—he’d rightfully earned as the oldest son.
Although Esau and Jacob made temporary amends toward the end of their lives, we don’t hear much about the meeting after they made amends. So, it’s hard to say how permanent and long-lasting Esau’s forgiveness was. We don't know if Esau told his children to hate Jacob’s descendants. We do know that they certainly don't treat their relatives nicely. We can speculate that he probably didn't tell them to forgive them.
Amalek is Esau's grandson and doesn’t come to Esau through a natural marriage. Esau’s son, instead, sleeps with a concubine, and she gives birth to him. The Amalekites mentioned throughout Scripture are his descendants.
Scripture doesn’t tell us much about the person of Amalek himself. But we know that the Amalekites lived in the desert Negev—an area we know today as Palestine. They would’ve been a nomadic people. Scripture tells us they had a king, so they would’ve operated under a monarchy as many tribes and nations did during that period.
Historically, they inhabited the Negev region, which lies south of Canaan, between Mount Seir and the Egyptian border.
Who Did the Amalekites Worship?
Like many ancient Semitic tribes, the Amalekites likely practiced polytheism, worshipping multiple gods associated with natural elements and aspects of daily life. It's plausible that their religious practices might have included deities such as or similar to Baal.
In Islamic tradition, the term "Amalek" (Amaliq or 'Amaleeq) sometimes refers to ancient tribes that were considered giants or peoples of great stature and power. The Quran does not mention the Amalekites directly, but later Islamic interpretations sometimes discuss them as ancient peoples who were among the predecessors to the Arabs or as tyrannical tribes that lived in the Arabian Peninsula. However, their primary religious affiliations remain largely speculative without concrete archaeological evidence.
What Was the Sin of the Amalekites?
It is evident in the Bible that Israel accrued several enemies during ancient history. Some of this hatred came from God sending them to a much-desired area of Canaan to live, which led other nations to attack them routinely.
But little do people know that the Amalekites were the first enemies to attack Israel after they left Egypt.
Exodus 17 tells us that while the Israelites wandered the desert, the Amalekites attacked them unprovoked. Israel avoided enemy territory as they wandered, so this would’ve been an uncalled-for attack.
Joshua returns the attack and overcomes their army the next day.
However, God hasn’t finished with the Amalekites. He tells Moses that he will blot out the name of the Amalekites forever. Hence, this is probably why we can find so little archaeological evidence about them. We have little or nothing to find.
Why Did God Want to Kill the Amalekites?
So, did God act rashly? After all, God allowed some of Israel’s enemies to live for a time—such as the Assyrians in the Book of Jonah—and into antiquity. After all, the British Museum alone has an embarrassing number of artifacts from Assyria.
We have to consider several things.
First, the Amalekites attacked Israel due to a grudge Esau had held against Jacob. And although Esau may have forgiven Jacob, his descendants certainly didn’t.
Second, the Amalekites had attacked innocent people unprovoked. In the case of the Assyrians, God had used them to meet justice for the deep and horrible sins the Israelites had committed. God still did not allow the Assyrians to last, but he used them as a scepter of justice.
Finally, the Amalekites likely heard word of what God did in Egypt. Most nations knew not to mess with Israel, but they carried forth their actions with brazen audacity. They basically told God, “You have no power here, and this is what we think of your people.”
God could not allow such actions to go without justice.
What Happened to the Amalekites?
So, what happened to the Amalekites? Full vengeance doesn’t take place until King David's time.
The Amalekites steal away two of David’s wives. So David pursues them and decimates their army.
Although they appear several times before this in the Old Testament, plaguing Israel. They lead to King Saul’s downfall because he lets the king live when God had told him to wipe out the people and animals of Amalek.
They don’t seem to make much of an appearance again… with one exception.
Haman in the Book of Esther. Although he’s not directly an Amalekite, he does come from a group of people who did have their origins with them. Once again, Haman tries to wipe out the people of God, but he doesn’t succeed.
Never do they appear again. God must have made true to his word that he would blot them from history after what they had done to his people.
What Can We Learn from the Amalekites?
Like many of Israel’s enemies in the Old Testament, the Amalekites serve as a cautionary tale. Although they did have quite humble beginnings—they could’ve chosen to ally with and respect the people of Israel passing through their land. The Old Testament shows plenty of examples of people from foreign nations respecting Israel.
Let’s dig into these three life lessons from the Amalekites.
Family grudges can run deep.
We ought to examine our family histories and forgive those in our families who have wronged us. Otherwise, we may end up passing it down to our future children. Even though Esau had forgiven Jacob, his family never truly did. All of his descendants declared war against the descendants of Jacob.
Never attack someone unprovoked.
As a general rule, God holds all vengeance. We should seek to forgive whenever possible. However, if we ever “attack,” we should do so in self-defense. We only operate “offensive” attacks when fighting spiritual entities, not people. And worst of all, we ought to never attack a helpless someone. Most of us are not in active combat, but do we ever take advantage of a person from humble means? Do we refuse to pay workers worthy wages because we know they can’t get a job elsewhere? Do we charge ridiculously high prices on rent because we can and our tenants can’t find housing elsewhere? We may act like the Amalekites more than we think.
God’s justice always follows through.
It took hundreds of years for it to happen, but Saul and David tore through the Amalekite armies. In fact, Saul could’ve completed the job. But instead, he decided to act selfishly. In the end, we have little history of the Amalekites. All because they harbored a grudge and decided to attack God’s people due to jealousy.
Amalekites Bible Verses
Exodus 17:8-16
"The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his arms up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, 'Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.'"
Deuteronomy 25:17-19
"'Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind; they had no fear of God. When the LORD your God gives you rest from all the enemies around you in the land he is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!'"
Judges 3:12-13
"Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel. Getting the Ammonites and Amalekites to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms."
Judges 6:1-5
"The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites. Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds. Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples invaded the country. They camped on the land and ruined the crops all the way to Gaza and did not spare a living thing for Israel, neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys. They came up with their livestock and their tents like swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count them or their camels; they invaded the land to ravage it."
1 Samuel 15:2-3
"This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
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Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
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