| | Judaism in Jesus’ Day
1 How do we know?
Philo Cl Alexandria
Josephus Late Cl Rome
Maccabean and other ‘apocryphaL’ Literature
Jewish Apocrypha (1 Enoch, PsaLms of Solomon etc.)
Greco-Roman writers
Archaeology
2 Historical Background
The Persian Peace
586BC Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroys Jerusalem
550-530 Cyrus of Persia
538 Beginning of the return to Jerusalem
520-515 Rebuilding of the Temple
Rule by Zadokite Priesthood under a Persian governor
Hellenisation from 3 22BC onwards
Palestine conquered in 332 by Alexander the Great
322 Alexander died
300-198 Palestine under the PtoLomies of Egypt
202-198 Palestine under the Seteucids of Syria (with help of
Simon II cf Ben Sira 50.1-11)
175-164 Aniochus IV (Epiphanes)
The Hasmonean Period and Jewish Independence
167BC desecration of the Temple
1 64BC rededication of the Temple
166-160 Judas Maccabeus
160-67 The Hasmonean dynasty of High Priest/Kings(cf 1 Macc 14.41 -43)
The Roman Period
63BC Pompey conquered Palestine
37-4 Herod the Great king
4-39 Antipas Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea
6-41 Judea governed by Roman prefects
41-44 Agrippa King
44-66 Judea Samaria and parts of Galilee ruled by Roman procurators
66-74 Jewish Revolt
70 Fall of Jerusalem
3 Social Context
First Century Contexts for Christianity
Gentile cities in and town
Jewish towns and villages
Jerusalem the Temple City
Pilgrimage, Priesthood and Purity
The three parties in Judaism:
Saducees: Aristocratic, including priests, followed biblical law.
Denied resurrection, political cooperators with Rome. lOOs
Pharisses: Mainly non-priests. Socially and financially prominent.
Rigorous about keeping law through developed traditions.
Believed in the resurrection. 6000.
Essenes: Had various branches including the Qumran group.
Had distinct views on the Temple and purity.
Believed that their leaders, Zadokites, should lead Israel.
More than 4000.
Most people were ‘people of the Land’ and not part of any group,
though many admired the Pharisees.
People like Jesus and John belonged to the prophetic/wisdom wing of Judaism.
Brigandage (the sicarii) was rife in the first century.
Occasional Roman mis-management (eg Caligula in 41AD) and rebel leaders eventually led to the revolt from Rome.
Most Jews most of the time disliked Roman rule.
People and parties disagreed on how to deal with it.
4 Life and Faith
The Temple, Sacrifice and Worship
Sacrifices:
Substance: Meat, Wine, birds, animals
Communal or Individual
Various purposes: worship, thanksgiving, purification, atonement, feasting
Burned or eaten
Tithes and Taxes
Purity for people and Priests
The Calendrical Cycle
Festivals and Pligrimage: Passover (Spring), Weeks (Pentecost)
8 Yom Kippur/Booths (Autumn)
Daily/Weekly offerings
Worship in Synagogue and Home
Keeping the Law
613 commandments of Torah
Distincitve ideas (‘boundary markers’)
Montheism - practical and negative
Circumcision
Food laws
Sabbath (‘cathedral of time’)
Purity
Sanders’ idea of ‘coventantat nomism’:
God graciously offers Israel the covenant
Israel responds with obedience to Torah
Hopes for the Future
Four common national hopes
The assembling of the tribes
‘Dealing’ with the gentiles
Jerusalem will be glorified, the Temple restored
Pure worship wilt be offered
In some cases this involves the coming of the Messianic King/High Priest
Life after death
The parties disagree:
Pharisees believe in resurrection and judgment
Sadducees deny personal survival
Esseries believe in the immortality of the soul
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