History of Valkyria Chronicles the Great War

Judaism

Judaism, the World's scapegoat and the toughest survivors of History. The Jewish People have lived in the land of Judea aka Israel aka Palestine aka Philistia aka Canaan aka "The Promised Land" for millennia. Despite facing persecution, expulsion, and genocide throughout their history, the Jewish people have endured, thriving against all odds. The Jew's story begins with Jacob, son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, the first man who made the Covenant with God or YHWH, was a shepherd in the land of Canaan. He was known for his cunning wit and resilience, traits that would serve his descendants well in the centuries to come. It was during Jacob's time that the seeds of the Jewish people were sown, as he fathered twelve sons who would become the heads of the twelve tribes of Israel. Those sons were named Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun and the Most famous two would be Joseph, and Benjamin. Each of these sons carried the legacy of their forefathers, facing trials and triumphs as they journeyed through the annals of history, especially Joseph, who was sold by his Jealous brothers into slavery in Egypt but eventually rose to become a powerful ruler, saving his family and many others from famine.

As the descendants of Jacob multiplied and grew into a nation, they faced countless challenges. Starting with slavery in Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, After the time of Joseph and Benjamin, the Jewish people were made to endure harsh slavery under the rule of the Pharaohs. Despite the backbreaking labor and oppression, they clung fiercely to their faith and identity, passing down the stories of their ancestors' resilience and the promises of their God.

Their cries for deliverance echoed through the ages until, one Jew, Moses, was told by God to tell Pharoah "to let my people go." With divine power backing him, Moses confronted Pharaoh, demanding the liberation of the Jewish people. Yet, Pharaoh's heart remained hardened, and he refused to heed the warnings of impending plagues. The Ten Plagues of Egypt soon hit in this order, Blood, Frogs, Lice, Flies, Livestock, Boils, Hail and Fire, Locusts, Darkness and finally, the most devastating plague of all: the death of the firstborn.

In the midst of this chaos, the Jewish people followed Moses' instructions to survive each one and were spared from the horrors that befell the Egyptians.

After this final plague, Pharaoh relented, and the Jewish people were finally set free from bondage. But then Pharoah changed his mind and pursued them with his army, trapping them against the Red Sea. With nowhere to turn, it seemed as though their freedom would be short-lived. However, in a miraculous display of divine intervention, Moses parted the waters of the Red Sea, allowing the Jewish people to pass through on dry land while the pursuing Egyptian army was drowned as the waters crashed back together.

Thus, the Jewish people were delivered from slavery and began their journey through the wilderness towards the Promised Land. But when Moses performed a miracle of the Rock Water, he unknowingly violated God's command and was forbidden from entering the Promised Land himself. Instead, it was Joshua, his trusted lieutenant, who led the Israelites across the Jordan River and into Canaan. The Canaanites, who lived in this land had built great cities like Jericho, Megiddo, Gibeon, Bet Sheʾan, Gezer, Hazor, Lachish and Shechem. But most important of all was the city of Jerusalem, a city that would become the heart and soul of the Jewish people.

As the Israelites settled in the land of Canaan, they faced numerous battles and struggles to establish their presence. Joshua led them in conquests against the Canaanite cities, including the famous siege of Jericho, where the walls came tumbling down at the sound of their trumpets.

Yet, even as they established themselves in the Promised Land, the Jewish people faced constant threats from neighboring nations. They endured cycles of prosperity and oppression, with periods of peace punctuated by invasions and exile. Soon, Israel formed a system of government where the leaders, Judges, Oversaw the nation's affairs and provided guidance based on divine law. And according to the Book of Judges, a cycle appeared. Firstly, Prosperous time caused the Israelites would turn away from their faith and worship idols, angering God. In response, God would allow neighboring nations to oppress them and make their lives miserable. Eventually, the Israelites would cry out for deliverance, and God, in all his kindness, would raise up a judge, a charismatic leader chosen to deliver them from their enemies before the good times of that era would cause the cycle to begin anew. In the Book of Judges, Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah/Barak, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, and Samson each followed a part of this cycle and it even showed that Women like Deborah could go do God's work. However, the cycle of prosperity, idolatry, oppression, and deliverance persisted throughout the period of the judges. It wasn't until the Israelites demanded a king in the Book of Samuel that the era of the judges came to an end. Eli and his student, Samuel grew concerned that the only reason the Israelites demanded a king was because they saw the other nations of the world with kings, and they wanted to be like them. Despite their warnings about the consequences of having a king, the Israelites persisted in their request. So, Samuel relented but warned that the king would be tyrannical and would, "he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day." And thus, he appointed a man named Saul as the first king of Israel. Under Saul's rule, Israel experienced both victories and defeats, but ultimately, Saul's disobedience led to his downfall. and Samuel proved himself Correct as Saul did take everything as Samuel Predicted. He drafted the young men of Israel into his army, the Young women became perpetual servants in his palace, and he levied heavy taxes upon the people, exacting tribute from their harvests and flocks.