Between the Testaments Lesson 42 October 17, 2010

 We’ll cover readings for October  Inter-Testamental Period  Greeks  Seleucids  Ptolemies  Maccabees  Hasmoneans  Romans This Week 2

 Following the Exile  Some Jews allowed to return to homelands  However, many chose to stay where settled  Zerubbabel rebuilt the Temple in 515 BC  Nehemiah rebuilt the wall in 445 BC  However, Judea is merely a temple-state  After Malachi, the Old Testament is silent about the condition of the Jews  The next 450 years or so simply pass by...  Or do they? Recent History

 Daniel prophesied in BC about what was to come in future years  Daniel 2  Nebuchadnezzar’s dream  Daniel 8  Daniel’s vision of the ram & goat  Kings of North and South  He predicted the series of kingdoms that would rule over the Jews for the next years 450 Years of Silence?

Daniel 2Daniel 8EventDate Head of GoldBabylonian Kingdom604 BC Chest of SilverRam w/ Two Uneven HornsMedo-Persian Empire;539 BC One Horn Grows Up LaterPersians eclipse Medes Thighs of BronzeShaggy Goat from the West w/ Single Horn Greek Empire under Alexander the Great 334 BC Goat Attacks RamAlexander defeats Persians; Conquers the known world Goat’s Horn Broken OffDeath of Alexander325 BC Four Horns Grow UpGreek Empire Divides into Four Parts 324 BC Another Horn Grows Up; Removes Daily Sacrifice Antiochus Epiphanes167 BC Legs of IronRoman Republic63 BC Feet of Iron/ClayRoman Empire StoneJesus Christ6 BC Daniel’s Prophecies

DateRuling EntityCulture 931 BCDivided KingdomJewish 722 BCAssyriaAssyrian 586 BCBabyloniaBabylonian 539 BCMedo-PersianPersian 334 BCAlexandrianGreek 324 BCEgyptian (Ptolemies)Greek 204 BCSyrian (Seleucids)Greek 165 BCMaccabeanJewish 142 BCHasmoneanGreek/Jewish 63 BCRomanGreek/Roman From the Exile Forward

 At the time that the exiles are returning to Jerusalem and rebuilding it, significant events are taking place in the rest of the world  In 480 BC, outnumbered Greeks turned back and defeated both the Persian Army and Persian Navy  The story told in the movie 300 about the 300 Spartans who fought to the death at Thermopylae, holding back the Persians while the rest of the Greek city-states assembled to meet the threat  A decisive defeat at Plataea in 479 BC forced the Persians to abandon hopes of conquering Greece Meanwhile... Back at the Ranch

 For the next 100 years or so, the Greek city-states fought mostly against each other  Philip of Macedon became king of Macedonia in 359 BC and unified most of Greece using both military and diplomatic means  Introduced key battle tactics into his armies, making the Greek army a formidable force  Philip was assassinated by one of his bodyguards in 336 BC Philip of Macedon

 Alexander became King of Macedonia in 336 BC, upon the death of his father, Philip of Macedon  He assembled a massive army which conquered Asia, Egypt, Persia and the rest of the Eastern world all the way to India  He took with him city planners, architects, philosophers, teachers, etc.  He not only conquered the world, he Hellenized it  Alexander died of an illness at Babylon in 323 BC, at the age of 32 Alexander the Great

Alexander’s Empire

Modern Day

 Alexander left no successor to the throne  Upon his death, his kingdom initially split into four segments (horns) under his generals  Ptolemy – Egypt  Seleucus – Persia (Syria)  Antigonus/Lysimachus – Asia  Antipater/Cassander – Greece  These kingdoms would shift in number, size and area over the years to follow Successor Kingdoms

The Divided Greek Empire

 Two of these successors are of importance to Judea, as the region was now known  Egypt (Ptolemaic Kingdom)  Syria (Seleucid Empire)  Palestine/Judea lay between them and was overrun numerous times by one or the other of these kingdoms as they fought against each other  Caught in the middle, the Jews struggle to re-establish a national identity  Meanwhile, a new world power is emerging in the West... Rome Inter-Testamental History

 Ruler of the Seleucid Empire ( BC)  Sought to Hellenize the Jewish Nation  Made Jewish religious practices illegal in 167 BC  Set up a statue of and altar to Zeus in the Temple (“the abomination of desolation”)  Sacrificed a pig on the Temple Altar  Antiochus sent Syrian envoys and sympathizing priests to outlying areas to give notice that Jewish sacrifices were illegal and that worship of Greek gods was required Antiochus Epiphanes

 Mattathias, a devout Jewish priest from Modiin, refused to follow the decree  Killed both the Jewish priest who attempted to offer a sacrifice to a Greek god and the Syrian officer who accompanied him  This sparked a rebellion against the Syrian Empire, known as the Maccabean Rebellion  Led initially by Mattathais’ son, Judas (Judah) Maccabeus (“The Hammer”) – a master at guerilla warfare  Brothers – Jonathan, Eleazar, Simon, John Maccabean Rebellion

 After two years of fighting, the Maccabeans fought the Syrians to a standstill and gained religious freedom for the Jews in 165 BC  Temple was cleansed and re-dedicated  Defiled altar torn down and rebuilt  “Feast of Dedication” or “Festival of Lights” (Hanukkah) commemorates this event today  However, some wanted to continue the fight for an independent Jewish state  That fight continued until ~142 BC and culminated with the establishment of a new line of rulers known as Hasmonean Dynasty Rededication of the Temple

 The Hasmonean Jewish State was recognized by the Roman Senate in 139 BC  Forced the Seleucids to take a softer stance with Judea  However, the Hasmonean Dynasty quickly began its own downward slide  Corrupt rulers, assassinations, underhanded dealing, etc.  Antipater, father of Herod the Great, became a powerful official in the latter years  Romans assumed control of Palestine in 63 BC  Rule of Palestine granted by Rome to Antipater’s son, Herod, in 37 BC  “King of the Jews” From Free State to Roman State

 Herod the Great was an Idumean (Edomite)  Idumea had been conquered by John Hyrcanus, a Hasmonean King, in 125 BC  The Idumeans were forced to submit to circumcision  Herod was generally hated by the Jews  To gain their favor, Herod built massive public building and other works  He rebuilt Zerubbabel’s Temple... In massive Greek style  We’ll hear more about him next week Herod “The Great”

Key Cultural Changes

 Under the various deportations, Jews were resettled all over the ancient world  The “Dispersion” or “Diaspora”  This left communities of Jews all over the world  Jewish religious practices were very important to retain national, ethnic and cultural identity  In order to prevent assimilation into the surrounding culture, Jews tended to live in tight-knit communities known as “ghettoes” Diaspora

 For Diaspora Jews, there was no Temple nearby to serve as the center of worship activities  Worship activities were a VERY important part of the Jews’ culture  Allowed them to maintain the distinctness that they felt that God had granted them  The synagogue developed as a place where Jewish religious practices and study could take place  Sacrifices were reserved for the Temple in Jerusalem  The synagogue became the center of Jewish community for the Diaspora Jews Synagogue

 During the inter-Testamental period, various sects began to develop – among them were:  Sadducees  Generally wealthy Jews who favored Hellenization/Greek culture, and courted favor with those who ruled over Judea  Pharisees  Jews who were rigorously faithful to the Law and opposed to Hellenization  Essenes  Those who totally withdrew from society to maintain purity  Zealots  Those who wanted to overthrow outside rule and restore Jewish independence Jewish Sects

 During the exile, many Jews began to speak other languages  Aramaic, and then Greek, became the language of the common people  Hebrew became less common, and was primarily spoken by priests, scribes and teachers (Ezra)  There was need for a version of the OT Scriptures that could be read by all  The Septuagint was a Greek translation of the OT, developed in Alexandria, Egypt in the 3 rd and 2 nd Centuries BC The Septuagint

 When the Assyrians conquered the Israel in 722 BC, the leadership of the nation was deported  The common people were allowed to stay in the land  The Assyrians imported conquered peoples from other nations into Israel  The Israelites intermarried with the imports, resulting in a half-breed race  Their religions also intermingled  We’ve seen where the exiles returning from Babylon rebuffed the Samaritans’ offer to help restore Jerusalem Samaritans

 Ezra 4:1-3  1 When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel, 2 they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, “Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.” 3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, “You have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the LORD, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.” Samaritans (cont.)

 John Hyrcanus destroyed the Samaritans’ Temple at Mount Gerizim in 128 BC, driving the two groups even further apart  When we read about the relationship between the Samaritans and the Jews in the New Testament, we need to understand the centuries of bitter hatred that had existed between the two groups Samaritans (cont)

 At the time the Law was given, the High Priest was to be a descendant of Aaron  This carried through to the time of Ezra and the return of the exiles  However, during Seleucid rule, the High Priesthood was given to someone who was not a descendant of Aaron  The Hasmoneans continued this practice  By the time of the First Century, the High Priesthood was basically for sale The High Priesthood

 During the Inter-Testamental Period, the Jews’ subjection to other nations influenced their view of the Messiah, evidenced by Jewish literature  The picture of the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 gave way to that of the Warrior King who would reign on David’s throne  They were expecting a Deliverer who would set things aright and restore Israel to her former glory Views of the Messiah

 No National Jewish State  Judea and Palestine are subject to the Romans  Most Jews dislike Roman Rule  The Zealots are ready to do anything to overthrow it  Herod the Great is “King of the Jews”  Though the Jews bristle at the thought  Many tensions exist  Messiah will solve them! The Dawn of the New Testament

 Readings for October  The Coming of Jesus! Next Week 31