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Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary

IntroIndex©

KENIZZITES

A people related to Kenaz, grandson of Esau (Gn 36:11, 15). The Kenizzites were of Edomite stock and resided to the southeast of Judah in the vicinity of the Kenites. They are thought to belong to the pre-Israelite population of Canaan (Gn 15:19). Their territory was to be given to the Israelites along with that of the Kenites, the Amorites, and the Canaanites (vv 19-21).

In Numbers and Joshua, Caleb, the faithful spy, is reckoned to belong to the Kenizzites (Nm 32:12; Jos 14:6, 14). According to 1 Chronicles 4:15, Caleb’s genealogy is traced back to Judah (1 Chr 4:1). The relationship of Caleb to the Kenizzites is far from clear. Caleb established his patrimony at Kiriath-sepher (Jgs 1:11-13), which is in Judah but which is also situated close to the territory of the Kenizzites. Critical opinion views the Kenizzites as non-Israelites who occupied Hebron, Debir, and the southernmost hill country of the Negev and became politically incorporated into Judah.