Amalek

American  

[am-uh-lek] / ˈæm əˌlɛk /

noun

Bible.

1. the son of Eliphaz and grandson of Esau.

2. a nomadic tribe or nation descended from Amalek and hostile to Israel.

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Example Sentences

In the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible, Amalek is a nation whose soldiers ambushed the Israelites as they made their way to the Promised Land.

From Salon

Some people of faith, like Adam Strater, the senior Jewish educator for Georgia Hillels, are even reclaiming the story of Amalek as a model for Jews to reject “the evil impulse,” described in the Zohar, and to “make the moral choice to reorient the tradition towards a shared sense of solidarity, and ultimately, liberation.”

From Salon

When the Pittsburgh killer shouted “all Jews must die,” he was merely echoing a command uttered in a different tongue by Amalek, the villain who stalked the weakest of the ancient Israelites in the desert on their way to the Promised Land.

From New York Times

But while Paul tries to shut down that unauthorized site, phony Twitter and Facebook accounts using his name start offering comments about the modern-day descendants of Amalek.

From Washington Post

Indeed, Amalek himself was a descendant of Esau, Isaac’s mistreated and wayward son.

From Newsweek