1. Understanding World Religions
Chapter Fifteen
© Irving Hexham 2011

2. Early Judaism
Jewish history begins with the story of Abram who enters into a covenant with God. As a result his name changes to Abraham (Genesis ).
The African tapestry on the right depicts the story of Abraham and Isaac (Genesis 22:1-19).
Three great religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, claim Abraham as the “father” of their faith. Therefore, they are identifiable as “Abramic religions.”
Photo by Irving Hexham. Tapestry from Natal South Africa. . © Irving Hexham 2011

3. Early Judaism
While Abraham is important to Jews the Jewish story really begins with the birth of Moses (Exodus 2). The Biblical background to this story is that of Joseph and the migration of Abraham’s descendents into Egypt (Genesis 37-Exodus 1).
The picture above depicts the Egyptian ruler Pharaoh Ramases defeating the Hittites around 1273 B.C.
Picture source: Anton Springer, Handbuch der Kunstgeschichte, Leipzig, Seemann, In the pubic domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011

4. Early Judaism
Picture source: John Wright, A History of All Nations, Philadelphia, Lea Brothers, In the public domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011
According to the Bible the Egyptians at first welcomed the Jewish migrants, but when their population increased they enslaved them (Exodus 1).
In the picture above Hebrew slaves are making bricks for the Egyptians.

5. Early Judaism
Picture source: Wiki Paintings . © Irving Hexham 2011
After years of enslavement Moses eventually leads the “Children of Israel out of “Egyptian bondage.” This story is dramatized in Exodus The above painting is by the German artist Lucas Cranach ( ).

6. Early Judaism
Picture source: Gustave Doré, The Doré Bible gallery, Philadelphia : Henry Altemus, In the public domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011
The key event in the history of the Jews is the establishment of a covenant with God and the reception of the Law by Moses (Exodus 19-24). The above picture is from Gustave Doré’s ( ) Bible illustrations which were immensely popular in the 19th Century.

7. Early Judaism
Picture source: Richard Temple, Palestine Illustrated, London, Allen, In the public domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011
Eventually, Jerusalem became the capital of a Jewish kingdom and the site of the Temple (2 Samuel 5; 1 Kings 2-6).
The painting above shows Jerusalem as it looked in the mid-19th. Century.

8. Early Judaism
The Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament as it is known to Christians tells the story of the Jewish people the history of the Jewish kingdoms of the Middle East. The northern kingdom of Israel was conquered in 722 B.C. And the southern kingdom of Judah between 598 and 586 B.C. when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians and its people taken into exile. Eventually, in 538 the Jews were allowed to return to Judah and rebuild Jerusalem.
Picture source: Digitale Bibliothek, Yourk Project, Meisterwerde, Berlin, Germany, found on the Internet at:
Although the picture is in the public domain the permission of Directmedia to use it was acquired. They are to be thanked for their excellent work and low cost DVDs which make many books and illustrations available to the public . © Irving Hexham 2011
This picture by French artist Joseph Tissot ( ) depicts the rebuilding of Jerusalem under the direction of Nehemiah (Nehemiah 2:11-18).

9. Early Judaism
From the time of Nehemiah, and probably long before, Jews became the people of “the Book.”
Above is a photograph of an ancient Jewish manuscript.
Picture source: Isodore Singer, The Jewish Encycolopedia, New York, Funk and Wagnalls, In the public domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011

10. Early Judaism
After he became Emperor, in 68 A.D., Vespasian appointed his son Titus to subdue Palestine.
The Arch of Titus in Rome, Italy, is seen on the right . The reliefs depict the conquest and captivity of the Jews.
Picture source: Isodore Singer, The Jewish Encycolopedia, New York, Funk and Wagnalls, In the public domain. . © Irving Hexham 2011
In 67 A.D. Jewish nationalists seized control of Jerusalem from its Roman rulers. The Romans responded with a brutal campaign of conquest initially led by the general, and later Emperor, Vespasian. Jerusalem was conquered and the temple destroyed. Thus began the long exile of the Jewish people which ended with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

11. Early Judaism
Diagram by Irving Hexham. . © Irving Hexham 2011
After the Roman destruction of Jerusalem a period of uncertainty and confusion followed. Eventually Talmudic Judaism developed. This led to the rise of Classical Judaism around 900 A.D. After 1700 Judaism fragmented into various grouping.

12. Early Judaism
The Hebrew religion that developed from the time of Abraham
Led to the rise of both Christianity and what we now recognize as Judaism following the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Later Islam developed with roots in both Christianity and Judaism. The charts sketche the complex relationships between the religion of the Hebrews, Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Diagram's by Jeremy Hexham . © Irving Hexham 2011