Actually iw as just about to respond to let you know I was wrong.
I went back and reread the scholarly sources on it and they were not claiming it never existed... they were claiming that it was likely **much** smaller than claimed (some isolated villages) and didnt develop till much later in history than the bible suggests. Not that a jewish nation never existed.
My apologies I was wrong on that it seems.
@realcaseyrollins this is relevant to you too, i got my facts mixed up.