Tribe of Simeon

Tribes of Israel
The Tribes of Israel Reuben Simeon Levi Judah Dan Naphtali Gad Asher Issachar Zebulun Joseph Manasseh Ephraim Benjamin
Other tribes Caleb Keni Rechab Jerahmeel
Related topics Leaders Israelites Ten Lost Tribes Jews Samaritans
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According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Simeon (/ˈsɪmiən/; Hebrew: שִׁמְעוֹן‎ Šīm‘ōn, "hearkening/listening/understanding/empathizing") was one of the twelve tribes of Israel.^[1] The Book of Joshua locates its territory inside the boundaries of the Tribe of Judah (Joshua 19:9). It has been usually counted as one of the ten lost tribes, although its territory was surrounded by and gradually being absorbed by Judah from the start. For any Simeonites to be of the Northern Kingdom of Israel or to be affected by the Assyrian sack of the kingdom (future lost tribes) would imply a northward migration at some point in time, with support perhaps from 2 Chronicles (15:9 and 34:6,7).

The biblical narrative has it coming into the Land of Israel following the Exodus, while scholarly reconstructions have offered a variety of opinions as to its origins and early history. From the Book of Genesis until the Babylonian captivity, the Bible provides various details about its history, after which point it disappears from the record. A variety of extrabiblical traditional Jewish sources also provide additional material on the tribe.