The Philistines are thought to have arrived in Israel, Gaza, Syria, and Lebanon in the 12th Century BC, about the same time the Hebrews did.

During this period, cities and civilizations in the Middle East were in a state of decline. Genesis 10:14 says the Philistines descended from the Casluhites of Egypt, after the Ethiopian War in which Moses led the Egyptians against the kingdom of Kush.

Covering Northern Sudan, Southern Egypt, and parts of Eritrea, Somalia, and Ethiopia, Kush was one of the earliest civilizations to develop in the Nile River Valley area of Modern Day Sudan (about 1070BC).

Nebuchadnezzar II, and the Persian Empire (who were larger than any previous empire), destroyed the Philistines. Thereafter, they lost their ethnic identity and disappeared from the archeological record by the 5th Century BC.

The first known reference to the Philistines was found in a relief at the Temple of Ramesses III in Medinet Habu. There, they were called "Pelesets" of the Late 2nd Century BC. They may have been one of the Sea Peoples who attacked Ancient Egypt during the Late Bronze Age Collapse (1200BC to 900BC).

The Bible says the Philistines originated in Caphtor, near Pelusium, in the eastern Nile delta. According to the Septuagint, they may have been connected to the Caphtorians, or the Cherethites, of Crete. The Philistines may have arrived in the Lavant from Minoa in Greece.

There are 286 references of the Hebrew term "Plistim" (Philistines) in the Masoretic text, 152 of them are in 1 Samuel, and 12 in the Pentateuch.

By 1300BC, to 900BC, ethnic Philistine city-states were established around Ashkelon (in the Southern District of Israel), Ashdod (near Tel Aviv), Ekron (west of Jerusalem), Gath (in Central Israel), and Gaza. Deuteronomy 2:23 says the Philistines captured their lands from the Avvites.

The Philistines of Genesis were different from those of the Bible from Joshua to 2 Kings. When used in the context of Samson, Saul, and David, the term "Philistines" meant "non-Israelites of the Promised Land."

Judges 13:1 depicts the Philistines dominated the Hebrews in Samson's time, and that he killed more than a thousand of them.

Before the Assyrians, and the Babylonians, the Philistines were an arch-enemy of the Hebrews.
Perpetual wars seemed to last between them.

The Philistine population of the 12th and 11th Centuries BC varied from approximately 25,000 to 30,000.

Amos 9:7 says " As He brought Israel from Egypt, God brought the Philistines from Caphtor."

Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos, and Zephariah all speak of the destruction of the Philistines.

At least nine battles were fought between the Israelites and the Philistines:

-1 Samuel 13:17-19 - details how the Philistines defeated the Hebrews, captured the Ark of the Covenant, and all the Hebrews' iron weapons

-2 Chronicles 28:18 - the Battle of Shephelah in the Judaean foothills

-1 Samuel 7:3-14 - the Philistines defeated at the Battle of Eben-Ezer. The hymn "Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing" refers to the monument Samuel erected in memory of this Israelite victory.

-1 Samuel 13:19-21 - the Philistines won and forced the Israelites into disarmament. They could not have any blacksmiths, and had to rely on the Philistines to sharpen their weapons and agricultural implements

-1 Samuel 14 - King Saul's oldest son Jonathan routed the Philistines in the Battle of Michmash

-1 Samuel 17 - David defeated Goliath near the Valley of Elah on the West Bank. Goliath is reported to be buried at Khirbet Hanot.

-1 Samul 31 - the Philistines defeated the Israelites on Mount Gilboa, (overlooking the Jezreel Valley and the Jordan Valley). They killed King Saul and his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua

-2 Kings 18:5-8 - Hezekiah defeated the Philistines at Gaza

Places that have been suggested where the Philistine arose from:

-five Egyptian inscriptions called them Pelesets from Egypt

-Anatolian hieroglyphics, by the Hittites, demonstrated the Philistine lands of the 1100sBC, to the 1000sBC, reached from the Amik Valley, in the Hatay Province, near Antioch, Turkey, to Aleppo, Syria. They also went down to Muhardah, in Northern Syria, on the Orontes River, to Shaizar in Syria (near Hama)

-A Greek theory claims the Philistines arose from Palaete, in the Ceraunian Mountains, on the southern Adriatic coast of the Illyria (the northwest part of the Balkan Peninsula), to Epirus (an Ancient area shared by Northwest Greece and Southern Albania).

-Found in the Negev Desert, southwest of the Kingdom of Judah, Ziklag marked the border between Israelite and Philistine territories.

The Philistines appear in four New Kingdom of Egypt texts. One is the Medinet Habu inscription near the Theban Hills, on the West Bank of the Nile River, that is closely associated with the Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III. The second is the Rhetorical Stela of King Tutankhaman at Deir al-Medina. This was the literary archives of the builders of the royal tombs who lived on the West Bank of the Nile River at Thebes. Both of these are dated between 1186BC and 1155BC.

The third was the Papyrus Harris I (the longest known papyrus from Ancient Egypt with about 1,500 lines of text), that summarizes the entire reign of Ramesses III from 1186BC to 1155BC. The fourth is the Onomasticon of Amenemipet, a list of Egyptian words by category that lacks their explanations. Dated from the end of the 12th Century BC, to the early 11th Century BC, this is Egypt's papyrus of the 20th to 22nd Dynasties.

A connection between the Philistines and the Mycenaean culture (the last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece) has been documented by artifacts found in excavating Ashkelon, Ekron, Ashdod, and Gath. This pottery was a locally-made version of the Aegean Mycenaean (Minoan civilization) decorated in browns and blacks. As well as red decorations, on white slips, known as Philistine Bichromeware. Twenty-three 12th to 10th Century BC sites have yielded Philistine pottery in Northern Israel.

Consistent with Ancient Aegean religion, the most common diety artifact discovered in Philistine lands is the figurine of a goddess called "Ashdoda."

Philistines harvested a large olive industry in Ekron, and a sizable fermented drink crop for beer and wine. Gold, bronze, and iron were their most frequent metalworks.

Located in Ashdod, Israel, the Corinne Mamane Museum of Philistine Culture is the only museum in the world dedicated to the Philistines. The museum features a permanent exhibit of Philistine artifacts. Cultural events, Philistine-style clothing visitors can try on, and Philistine cuisine highlight the museum.

Sources:

Bible
museums.gov.il
israelandyou.com
britannica.com
livescience.com
nationalgeographic.com
bibleodyssey.org

Next Time: Sea Of Galilee #28 - Why Isaiah Was Sawn In Two