1. Second Temple Judaism (520 BC-70AD)
Brief historical survey.
Major elements: temple, Torah, messianic expectations.
Major religious groups.

2. Timeline 1020-922 undivided monarchy
922 Solomon’s kingdom divided into Northern (Israel) and Southern (Judah)
721 Northern kingdom is defeated by the Assyrians
Babylonian exile; 587 Temple destroyed
Persian rule; 520 Temple rebuilt. Second Temple Judaism begins.
Hellenization under Alexander the Great and his successors from Egypt & Syria
Hundred years of independence under Maccabees
63 BC Roman conquest of Palestine. Independence lost till 20th c. AD!
70 AD Second Temple destroyed.
……..
1948 Recognition of the State of Israel
Tragic history of submission to foreign rulers, interrupted by brief periods of independence.
CIVIL WAR BETWEEN TWO MACCABEE BROTHERS. THEY TURN FOR HELP TO ROME. ROME ENTERS.
The degeneration of the Maccabean line into a quarrelling group of oriental princes was brought to a climax by the civil war that breaks out between two princes for the throne of Judea. They both turned to the local power broker, Rome, to settle the dispute and Rome under its local general Pompey, exploits the opportunity to bring its own troops into Judea and effectively to seize control.

3. Persian king Cyrus (580-529 BCE)
Defeated the Babylonians
Allowed the Hebrews to return from Babylon and to rebuild the Temple
This is a smart modern stylization made by an Australian artist.

4. Map of Persian invasion

5. Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE)
Left: Detail from the Alexander mosaic From the House of the Faun, Pompeii, c. 80 B.C. National Archaeologic Museum, Naples, Italy.
Right: Alexander as divine hero. Statue of Alexander found in Magnesia. Probably by the sculptor Menas in the late second century.
Conquered Asia Minor, Palestine, Egypt, Persia
Hellenization

6. Alexander Sarcophagus
Royal Necropolis of Sidon, chamber #3. Last quarter of 4th c BC. Istanbul Archeological Museum

7. Alexander’s conquest.
Unified Greek cities, then ‘liberated’ the Greek cities of Asia Minor and proceeded to invade West Persia after decisive battle of Issus. Then went East conquered Phoenicia, Palestine and Egypt, then returned and conquered Mesopotamia, Parthia and reached the very boarders of India.

8. Hellenization
So far has our city [Athens] surpassed the rest of mankind in thought and speech that her pupils have become the teachers of the rest of the world; and our city has brought it about that the name ‘Hellenes’ suggests no longer a race, but an intelligence, and the title ‘Hellenes’ is applied rather to those who share our culture than to those who share common blood. – Isocrates.
Socrates (top, left)
Plato (bottom, left)
Aristotle (top, right)

9. Antiochus IV—forced Hellenization
Ordered to destroy the Scriptures
Abrogated Sabbath observance
Prohibited circumcision
Sacrificed swine in the Temple
King Antiochus, God manifest, bearing Victory
Two sides of a coin minted by Antiochus representing him as Zeus sitting on the throne with the statue of Nike in his hand. Epiphanes means ‘god manifest.
“King Antiochus, God manifest, bearing Victory.
Some Jews thought Antiochus was Epimanes, I.e., a madman.

10. Second Temple (model). Destroyed in 70 A.D.
Started in 20/ 19 B.C. by Herod the Great. Herod died in 4 B. C. Completed in 64 A. D. under Archelaus.
Large rectangle: Court of Gentiles. Triple colonade was called Royal or Solomon’s Portico, because Solomon was crowned there. Inside the Court of Gentiles is the Court of Women. Inside of that was the Court of Men. Inside of the Court of Men was the Court of the Priests, which housed the sacrificial altar. Inside of it was the sanctuary and the holy of holies which was entered by the High Priest only once a year.

11. Inscription Prohibiting strangers to enter the Temple of Jerusalem
Copy. Museo di Civilta Romana, Rome.
Original. Archeological Museum, Constantinople.

12. Second Temple Judaism: main events
520. Jews return from Babylon and rebuild the Temple
332 BC Alexander the Great conquers the Near East. Hellenization.
167 BC Maccabean revolt against Antiochus IV. One century of independence.
63 BC Romans conquer Palestine.
66-70 AD Jewish war. Temple destroyed.
132 AD Bar-Kochba revolt. Jews expelled from Jerusalem.
Young Alexander

13. Pharisees & Sadducees Pharisees Sadducees Luke 18: 10-12 Acts 5:34
Mark 7:1-13
Mark 8:11
Mark 3:6
Acts 23:1-8
Acts 4:1
Acts 5:17
Acts 23:6-8
Mark 12: 18-27

14. Essenes in Qumran (2nd c. BCE-1st c CE)
Lived in an isolated community founded by “Teacher of Righteousness”
Rejected Temple worship
Expected two messiahs, royal & priestly
About 4000 in 1st c. CE
Massacred by Romans in 68 AD. Disappeared towards the end of 2nd c CE

15. A Fragment of Hosea Commentary from Qumran
Material from
4Q166 (4QpHosa) Parchment Copied late first century B.C.E. Height 17.5 cm (6 7/8 in.), length 16.8 cm (6 5/8 in.) Courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority (6)This text is a commentary, or "pesher," on the prophetic biblical verses from the book of Hosea (2:8-14). The verse presented here refers to the relation of God, the husband, to Israel, the unfaithful wife. In the commentary, the unfaithful ones have been led astray by "the man of the lie." The document states that the affliction befalling those led astray is famine. Although this famine could be a metaphor, it may well be a reference to an actual drought cited in historical sources of that time. The manuscript shown here is the larger of two unrelated fragments of the Hosea Commentary found in Cave 4. The script, which is identical to that of a commentary on Psalms, belongs to the rustic, semiformal type of the Herodian era.
The Hosea Commentary Scroll was first published by J. Allegro as the fifth volume of the official publication series, "Discoveries in the Judaean Desert."
In 1979, M. Horgan completed a work on all the "pesharim," or commentaries, which included an extensive treatment of the Hosea Commentary fragments. The "pesharim" interpreted the biblical text in light of events of the late Second Temple Period--seeing within the text prophesies and messages relevant to the community's beliefs and practices.
References
John Marco Allegro Qumran Cave 4. DJD V (Oxford, 1968) Printed book. General Collections, Library of Congress
Maurya Horgan Pesharim: Qumran Interpretations of Biblical Books (Washington, D.C., 1979) Printed book. General Collections, Library of Congress

16. Jewish Diaspora 500 BC – 500 CE

17. Who do you say that I am?
…On the way [Jesus] asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Mk 8: