Illustration created for this project.
Caleb
One of the twelve spies who, with Joshua, urged Israel to trust God and take the land.
What we know — and how we know it
Bible — stated in scripture (with verse) · 3
Scholarly — supported scholarly belief · 2
Family & lineage
Tribe & people
BibleOf the tribe of Judah.
Numbers 13:30
ScholarlyCaleb is repeatedly cast as a Kenizzite (son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite), and 'the Negev of Caleb' names a district around Hebron, indicating that the Calebites were a distinct southern clan of non-Israelite (Kenaz/Edom-linked) origin later absorbed into Judah rather than a purely individual figure.
Text-based ethnographic point: Numbers 32:12 (Kenizzite) and 1 Samuel 30:14 ('the Negev of Caleb'); the Calebite clan's Hebron association.
Name & titles
ScholarlyThe name Kaleb is most commonly derived from Hebrew kelev, 'dog'; scholars debate whether this reflects a totemic clan name, a self-effacing devotion formula ('dog [of God]'), or a pejorative sense, but no reading is certain.
Onomastic analysis of Hebrew כָּלֵב / kelev; discussed in standard name studies and commentaries.
Where in scripture
NumbersJoshuaFamily
In their own words — 7 recorded sayings
“Then Caleb made signs to the people to keep quiet, and said to Moses, Let us go up straight away and take this land; for we are well able to overcome it.” — Numbers 13:30
“Said to all the children of Israel, This land which we went through to see is a very good land. And if the Lord has delight in us, he will take us into this land and give it to us, a land flowing with milk and honey. Only, do not go against the Lord or go in fear of the people of the land, for they will be our food; their strength has been taken from them and the Lord is with us: have no fear of them.” — Numbers 14:7-9
“Then the children of Judah went to Joshua in Gilgal; and Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, said to him, You have knowledge of what the Lord said to Moses, the man of God, about me and about you in Kadesh-barnea. I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Kadesh-barnea to make a search through the land; and the account which I gave him was in keeping with his desire. My brothers, however, who went up with me, made the heart of the people like water: but I was true to the Lord with all my heart. And on that day Moses took an oath, saying, Truly the land…” — Joshua 14:6-12
“And Caleb said, I will give Achsah, my daughter, as wife to the man who overcomes Kiriath-sepher and takes it.” — Joshua 15:16
“Now when she came to him, he put into her mind the idea of requesting a field from her father: and she got down from her ass; and Caleb said to her, What is it?” — Joshua 15:18
“And Caleb said, I will give Achsah, my daughter, as wife to the man who overcomes Kiriath-sepher and takes it.” — Judges 1:12
“Now when she came to him, he put into her mind the idea of requesting a field from her father: and she got down from her ass; and Caleb said to her, What is it?” — Judges 1:14
Speaker attribution: Clear Bible MACULA (CC BY 4.0). Wording: Bible in Basic English (public domain).
In art
