Anakim

Biblical Text

The Anakim are presented as the descendants of a man named Anak. The Korean Revised Version (Gaeyeok Gaejeong) also renders the name as "people of Anak" and "tribe of Anak."

• Numbers 13: The twelve spies sent by Moses saw Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, at Hebron (Numbers 13:22). Ten of the spies called them "the sons of Anak, which come of the giants," and said, "we were in our own sight as grasshoppers" (Numbers 13:33). This report led the people to murmur, and it became the occasion for the forty years in the wilderness.
• Deuteronomy: Moses recalls how the people lost heart, saying, "we have seen the sons of the Anakims there" (Deuteronomy 1:28). He also quotes the saying, "Who can stand before the children of Anak!" and declares that God would go before Israel as a consuming fire and destroy them (Deuteronomy 9:2–3). Deuteronomy 2:10–11, 21 compares other giant peoples, such as the Emims and the Zamzummims, to the Anakim, describing them as a people "tall, as the Anakims," and records that all of them were also called Rephaim.
• Joshua: Joshua destroyed the Anakim in the hill country, including Hebron and Debir. Some, however, remained in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod (Joshua 11:21–22). Caleb asked for Hebron and drove out the three sons of Anak (Joshua 14:12–15; 15:13–14).
• Judges: The book records both that the tribe of Judah slew Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai at Hebron (Judges 1:10) and that Caleb drove out the three sons of Anak (Judges 1:20).

Background

The former name of Hebron was Kiriath-arba, and Arba is described as "a great man among the Anakims" and "the father of Anak" (Joshua 14:15; 15:13). Because the Hebrew name Anak has the same form as the word for "neck," some interpret it as "long-necked one," though this view is not firmly established. Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod, where the survivors are said to have lived, later became major cities of the Philistines.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

In the biblical text, the Anakim represent above all the fear Israel felt on the threshold of the Promised Land. Faced with the same report, the ten spies were afraid, while Caleb and Joshua trusted God. This contrast lies at the heart of the narrative. The New Testament does not mention the Anakim by name. However, Hebrews 3–4 rereads the unbelief of that generation and its failure in the wilderness as a warning to believers (Hebrews 4:9–11).

Interpretation and Issues

• Actual size: The text does not state the height of the Anakim in specific measurements. Some interpret them literally as a people of very great size. Others, noting that Numbers 13:32 calls the report an "evil report," hold that the spies' account contained exaggeration.
• Relationship to the Nephilim: Some interpreters connect the phrase "which come of the giants" (literally, descendants of the Nephilim) in Numbers 13:33 directly with the Nephilim of Genesis 6:4. However, because it is questionable whether the Nephilim could have survived Noah's Flood, others regard the expression not as a statement of lineage but as a figurative description meaning "men like giants."
• Connection with Goliath: Because Scripture records that some of the Anakim remained in Gath (Joshua 11:22), Goliath of Gath is commonly regarded as one of their descendants. Scripture, however, does not state this directly.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, the Anakim frequently serve as a symbol of the great difficulties believers face. The words "as grasshoppers" from Numbers 13:33 are often cited together with Caleb's request, "give me this mountain" (Joshua 14:12), to contrast a perspective that magnifies problems with a faith that magnifies God.