this one.”—Gen. 29:32, 33; 35:23-26; 48:5; Ex. 1:1-4; 1 Chron. 2:1, 2.

When his father Jacob was encamped near Shechem, Simeon, together with his next younger brother Levi, displayed a vengeful anger that was unreasonably harsh and cruel. Arbitrarily, without their father’s knowledge or consent, they set about to avenge the honor of their younger sister Dinah by slaughtering the Shechemites, bringing ostracism upon the whole family.—Gen. 34:1-31.

Simeon was later involved in wrongdoing when he and his brothers planned to kill Joseph. (Gen. 37:12-28, 36) Whether Simeon, as second oldest, was or was not the ringleader in this plot on Joseph’s life is not stated. Years later, when Joseph as food administrator of Egypt was testing out his brothers, Simeon was selected by Joseph to be bound and imprisoned until the other brothers brought Benjamin down to Egypt.—Gen. 42:14-24, 34-36; 43:15, 23.

Shortly before Jacob’s death, when blessing his sons, Jacob recalled with disapproval the violence of Simeon and Levi in connection with the Shechemites many years earlier, saying: “Instruments of violence are their slaughter weapons. Into their intimate group do not come, O my soul. With their congregation do not become united, O my disposition, because in their anger they killed men, and in their arbitrariness they hamstrung bulls. Cursed be their anger, because it is cruel, and their fury, because it acts harshly. Let me give them a portion in Jacob, but let me scatter them in Israel.” (Gen. 49:5-7) Jacob thus removed any hope Simeon may have entertained of receiving the birthright forfeited by his older brother Reuben. Simeon had six sons, one from a Canaanite woman. As prophesied, Simeon’s tribal allotment was not united with Levi’s, but these two were ‘scattered’; even internally, Simeon’s portion was divided up as enclave cities in Judah’s territory.—Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15; 1 Chron. 4:24; Josh. 19:1.

2. The tribe of Israel stemming from the families of Simeon’s six sons: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar and Shaul. (Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15) During Israel’s wilderness journey Simeon encamped with Reuben and Gad on the S of the tabernacle, the threetribe division being headed by Reuben. On the march this same tribal arrangement was maintained, with Shelumiel serving as Simeon’s chieftain, both of the camp and of the army.—Num. 1:4, 6; 2:10-15; 10:18-20.

REDUCTION IN TRIBAL POPULATION

At the time of the first census, taken a year after the exodus from Egypt, the tribe of Simeon numbered 59,300 able-bodied men twenty years old and upward who were fit for military service. (Num. 1:1-3, 22, 23) However, about thirty-nine years later, the second census revealed that the tribe had suffered great losses, there being only 22,200 in the same category. This amounted to a decrease of more than 62 percent, far greater than that experienced by any other tribe.—Num. 26:1, 2, 12-14.

Moses did not mention Simeon by name in his farewell blessing of Israel. This is not to say the tribe was not blessed, for it was included at the end in the general blessing. (Deut. 33:6-24, 29) When they reached Gerizim, Simeon was named first among the tribes assigned in connection with the blessing issued from that mountain.—Deut. 27:11, 12.

Simeon’s reduced size was no doubt considered when it came to assigning individual territories in the Promised Land; the tribe was not given a self-contained, unbroken portion, but, rather, one entirely enclosed within Judah’s territory. In this way Jacob’s deathbed prophecy uttered over two hundred years earlier was fulfilled. (Num. 34:16-20; Josh. 19:1-9; compare Genesis 49:5-7.) Simeon shared with Judah in wresting this territory out of the hands of the Canaanites. (Judg. 1:1-3, 17) Enclave cities were also set aside in Simeon’s inheritance for the tribe of Levi.—Josh. 21:4, 9, 10; 1 Chron. 6:64, 65.

MENTION IN LATER BIBLE HISTORY

The Simeonites were mentioned from time to time in the later history of Israel—in the time of David (1 Chron. 4:24-31; 12:23, 25; 27:16), in the days of Asa (2 Chron. 15:8, 9) and in Josiah’s time. (2 Chron. 34:1-3, 6, 7) This latter reference to Josiah’s reforms shows that, though geographically in Judah’s territory, Simeon had politically and religiously cast its lot in with the northern kingdom. It appears that in the days of Hezekiah 500 Simeonites struck down a remnant of the Amalekites and took up dwelling in their place.—1 Chron. 4:41-43.

In the prophetic books of Ezekiel and Revelation, Simeon’s name occurs along with others of the tribes of Israel. The strip of territory assigned to Simeon in Ezekiel’s envisioned layout of the Promised Land lay between those of Benjamin and Issachar S of the “holy contribution.” But the gate assigned to Simeon on the S of the holy city was with those named after Issachar and Zebulun. (Ezek. 48:21-25, 28, 33) In the vision of the 144,000 sealed ones in Revelation, chapter 7, Simeon is the seventh tribe listed.—Rev. 7:7.

3. The righteous, reverent old man who entered the temple on the very day that Joseph and Mary brought in the child Jesus. It had been divinely revealed to Simeon that before his death he would see the Christ. He therefore took the baby up in his arms, blessed Jehovah and, with holy spirit upon him, declared to the child’s mother: “This one is laid for the fall and the rising again of many in Israel.” Simeon also prophesied that Mary would be greatly grieved (as if run through with a sword) over the agonizing death of this son of hers.—Luke 2:22, 25-35.

SIMEONITES

(Simʹe·on·ites).

The descendants of Jacob’s second son Simeon. After about forty years of wandering in the wilderness the male population among the Simeonites who were twenty years old and upward and who were qualified for military service numbered only 22,200, constituting the smallest of the twelve tribes. They were divided into five principal families—the Nemuelites, Jaminites, Jachinites, Zerahites and Shaulites. (Num. 25:14; 26:1, 2, 12-14; Josh. 21:4; 1 Chron. 27:16) If there were any descendants of a sixth son, Ohad, when this second census was taken, they were probably too few in number to be listed as a separate family of their own.—Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15.

SIMON

(Siʹmon) [hearing].

1. Simon Iscariot, father of Jesus’ betrayer Judas.—John 6:71; 13:2, 26.

2. Another name for the apostle Peter.—Mark 3:16; see PETER.

3. An apostle of Jesus Christ, distinguished from Simon Peter by the term “Cananaean.” (Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18) While it is possible that Simon once belonged to the Zealots, a Jewish party opposed to the Romans, it may instead have been due to his religious zeal that he was called “the zealous one,” or ‘the zealot.’—Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13.

4. A younger half brother of Jesus. (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3) Though he was still an unbeliever prior to the festival of tabernacles in 32 C.E. (John 7:2-8), he may have become a disciple later. Jesus’ fleshly brothers were among the crowd of about 120 disciples in Jerusalem during the season of Pentecost, 33 C.E., although Simon is not specifically named as being present.—Acts 1:14, 15.

5. A Pharisee at whose house Jesus dined and where a sinful woman showed him great kindness and respect, greasing his feet with perfumed oil.—Luke 7:36-50.

6. A resident of Bethany, spoken of as a “leper” (perhaps one cured by Jesus), in whose house Christ and his disciples, as well as the resurrected Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha, had a meal. There Mary anointed Jesus with costly perfumed oil.—Matt. 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9; John 12:2-8.