ABSTRACT
Though there is no formal term for the process of conversion in the Hebrew Bible, there are several Biblical terms which are suggestive of such an act: hityahed is used to describe persons who are said to have converted to Judaism for fear of the Jews; amilam (Psalm 118:10–12) may well refer to the circumcision of foreign nations; nilvah (Isa. 56:3) refers to the alien who has joined himself to the Lord. Such terms as these illustrate that conversion was practised during the Biblical period in order to assimilate conquered peoples as well as those who came to live within the Israelite community.
