Historical Background
One thing that makes this poem difficult is that it alludes to some ancient kingdoms of the Middle East (kingdoms mentioned in the Old Testament of the bible).
If you're familiar with the bible, you "get" these allusions. But if you've never studied the bible, these allusions may go right over your head. Therefore, to make sure you understand the poem, let's make sure you understand the history of these ancient kingdoms.
If you're familiar with the bible, you "get" these allusions. But if you've never studied the bible, these allusions may go right over your head. Therefore, to make sure you understand the poem, let's make sure you understand the history of these ancient kingdoms.
The Kingdoms of Israel and Midian
About a thousand years before Christ, tribes of Jews settled on the lands on the eastern sides of the Mediterranean Sea. These Jewish tribes were also known as Hebrews or Israelites.
Many of them were nomadic herders. Their home was the desert; they lived in tents, and they moved every few weeks, looking for fresh pastures on which to graze their herds of camels, cattle, sheep, and goats.
They had few material possessions, as everything they had, they had to carry. Their food was meagre and coarse. Their skin was brown from the desert sun; their muscles were hard; their feet and limbs were bare. They were good horsemen. They had eyes like hawks.
City-dwellers looked down on these nomads because they were poor, but the nomads themselves did not think of themselves as poor. On the contrary, they were proud of their nomadic lifestyle, for they prized their freedom above everything else. And they loved the open lands of the desert.