John the Revelator referred to the in this manner....
Rev 3:9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
During the 1st century it was common knowledge that most of the so called Jews were in fact Idumaens which came from Edom (Esau)....Here is a portion of an article
World history reveals a remarkable story in which one group of people assumed the identity of another. The vast majority of people who are today called Jews are not, in terms of strict definition of the term, Jews at all.
The term “Jew,” actually a later comer to the Old Testament, originally meant one who can genuinely claim genetic descent from Judah, one of the twelve sons of Jacob. It is from the Hebrew and “Yhudi,” meaning “of Judah.”
The true people of Judah were a numerous part of the ancient, twelve-tribed Israelites. In time, the Israelites divided into two kingdoms. The southern one was called the “Kingdom of Judah,” and the region it occupied, “Judea.” All of its inhabitants, of whatever tribe, were often called Judeans, and in time “Jews.” As time passed, the Northern Kingdom was taken into captivity and scattered to the north and west (721 B.C.).
The Kingdom of Judah was later taken to Babylon (586 B.C.), where many stayed. Seventy years later a remnant returned, and gradually, with much struggle, regained its status of nationhood. Unfortunately, the religion they returned with had picked up many pagan elements while in Babylon, and this gradually evolved into a system of oral teachings that Scripture condemns as the tradition of the elders. (Matthew 15:2-3)
At this juncture in history, an unusual development occurred that muddled the meaning of the words Judah, Judean, and Jew. In the second century before Christ, a dynamic priest-king of Judah, John Hyrcanus of the Hasmonean dynasty, conquered the people directly to the south of Judah, the Edomites.
The Edomites (or Idumeans) were descended from Esau. Jacob/Israel’s twin brother (Genesis 36:8). Esau had married a woman of a Hittite family, thus destroying forever the pure genetic pedigree of his descendants. For this, Esau essentially was disinherited (his mother saw the need for this before his father; Genesis 26:34; 27:46). These folks had been perennial enemies of both Israel and Judah since ancient times.
After thoroughly subjugating them, Hyrcanus gave the Edomites the choice of either death or conversion to the religion, language, and culture of Judah. This proved to be a catastrophic decision for the people of Judah, and a choice which Hyrcanus should have known as forbidden in Old Testament law (Deuteronomy 7:1-5; Leviticus 20:24, Joshua 23:12-13; Ezra 9:1-4; Nehemiah 13:23-30). But not surprisingly, most chose conversion.
The Jewish (truly of Judah) historian Josephus described this event: “Hyrcanus took also Dora and Marissa, cities of Idumea, and subdued all the Idumeans; and permitted them to stay in that country; if they would circumcise their genitals, and make use of the laws of the Jews; and they were so desirous of living in the land of their forefathers, that they submitted to the use of circumcision, and of the rest of the Jewish ways of living; at which time this therefore befell them, that they were hereafter no other than Jews.” (Jewish antiquities, Book 13, 9:1)
The marginal note in Josephus’ works add this commentary, quoting Ammonius, a writer from 129 A.D.; “...the Idumeans were not Jews from the beginning...but being afterward subdued to buy the Jews.” After editorial comment regarding Josephus’ work adds emphasis: “This account of the Idumeans admitting circumcision, and the entire Jewish law, from this time, or the days of Hyrcanus, is confirmed by their entire history afterward.”
The significance of the Edomite population merging with the Jews is often overlooked. But it is not really any secret. Many modern Biblical scholars admit that the historic event did, indeed, occur. For example: “But during the warlike rule of the Maccabees (Hasmonean dynasty of the jews) they were again completely subdued and even forced to conform to Jewish laws and rites and submit to the government of Jewish perfect. The Edomites were then incorporated into the Jewish nation, and the whole providence was often termed by Greek and Roman writers ‘Idumea’...From this time, the Edomites as a separate people disappear from the pages of history.” (The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, p. 333)
There is Edom [Esau is called Edom in Genesis 36:8]. And Edom is in 'Modern Jewry' Jewish Encyclopedia, 1925 edition, Vol. 5, p. 41. Even the encyclopedia on your shelf may inform you of these events, if one is sharp enough to understand the significance: “The Hasmonean dynasty conquered the Idumeans in the 100's B.C., and converted them to Judaism.” (World Book Encyclopedia, 1967, Vol. 6, p. 55)
Here is the link to where all can read the entire article
http://www.israelect.com/reference/W...ual_Murder.htm
Time to stop listening to all the 501(c)(3) "churches" and PACs telling us its in our best interests to support those OTHER Palestinians on the other side of the pond.
