words - What's the difference between "Jew", "Israelite" and "Judaizer"?

What's the difference between "Jew", "Israelite" and "Judaizer"? Can these three terms be used interchangeably? Can only one or only two of these terms be applied to one person?

Answer

There are several, sometimes overlapping families of terms in play:

Israel

This name was given to Abraham's grandson, Jacob, by God and means "God prevails" or "God fights". There's some disagreement over which meaning is accurate, but the source is from this passage in the Torah:

And he said unto him: 'What is thy name?' And he said: 'Jacob.' And he said: 'Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel; for thou hast striven with God and with men, and hast prevailed.' Genesis 32:28-29 (JPS)

Since Jacob fathered the twelve men who are the founders of the 12 tribes, his name was often used as shorthand for the entire community. We see the same phenomena with Moab, Edom, etc. Sometimes the nation was called Jacob, but Israel is more common. There are several variations:

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  Israelite—Usually reserved for the descendants of Jacob in the ancient world. While it can be applied to anyone from his own sons on, it's most common for it to mean the nation that formed during the Exodus. When the kingdom divided, the northern portion retained the name until they were defeated by the Assyrians. After that point, the people living in that region were called Samaritans and there is some dispute over the exact relationship with Israel. The "-ite" suffix comes from Greek, which suggests the Septuagint coined the term.

  
  


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  Israeli—The modern designation for citizens of the nation of Israel. Since nationhood is no longer strictly tied to genealogy, Israelis do not all trace their ancestry to Jacob.

  
  

Judah

Judah was one of Jacob's sons and the ancestor of David. As such, the tribe of Judah acquired significant political and cultural importance. When the kingdom of Israel split, the southern portion was called Judah even though it included Benjamin and portions of other tribes as well. Like Israel, there are several variations of this name as well:

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  Jew—Perhaps because of lessons learned from the destruction of the Northern Kingdom, the people of Judah maintained their communal identity while in exile. When the Persian empire conquered the Babylonian empire, the decedents of the kings of Judah where allowed to return to what was now called the province of Yehud. When Alexander conquered Persia, the name became Ιουδαία and under the Romans it became Judea. After a few language jumps, the word arrived in English as Jew. This is the proper term for people who practice the religion described in the Tanakh or have ancestral relationship to Jacob.

  
  


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  Judaizer—This is fairly technical term that comes from one early Christian text which describes the first division of Christianity. Most of the early figures of the Christianity were Jewish. Some hoped to spread the religion to all types of people and others hoped to retain Jewish religious practice. Paul, writing on behalf of the first group, argued that gentiles should not be compelled to adopt Jewish praxis, or "live as do the Jews". The Septuagint used the same verb when translating Esther 8:17:

  
  

  
  
  

  And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had gladness and joy, a feast and a good day. And many from among the peoples of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews was fallen upon them.—Esther 8:17 (JPS)

  
  

  
  

  Christian commentators turned the Greek verb into a noun: judaizer. Needless to say, outside of this fairly narrow context, the term is not helpful. It should be avoided, if not because of the possibility of offense, then because it's unlikely to be recognized.

  
  

Hebrew

Although not mentioned in the question, "Hebrews" is a commonly used term for the ancestors of Jacob while they were living in Egypt. The name may have derived from Abraham's ancestor, Eber. Other etymologies have been proposed. The word generally signifies the language of the same name, but at various points in history it has been identified with its speakers. The term emphasizes the text, language, and culture of the people rather than their nation or religion.

Shem

One of Noah's sons, who is identified by Genesis as an ancestor of Abraham. Many people groups fall under the banner of Semitic, but because the term antisemitism refers to an attitude of hostility to Jews, the word Semite is sometimes mistakenly used for Jews alone.

Conclusion

While there is significant overlap between the term Israelite and Jew, these terms are not always interchangeable. "Judaizer" probably should not be used at all outside of specific domains.