The question what 'Israel', the subject of a History of Israel actually was is not so simple and obvious as not require a few words of explanation at the very outset: and although the evidence on which the answer to the question is based will emerge only in the course of our presentation of the 'History of Israel' the very fact that the problem exists at all must be made clear and a provisional answer given that will enable us to define the object of our enquiry and the magnitude of our task.