Old Testament

By the year 1000 B.C.E the Jews had founded Israel as their national state (“Jews”). They actively practiced a very distinctive religion, Judaism. Israel was conquered several times and eventually came under the rule of the Roman Empire (“Jews”). During this time, Jews were legal citizens of the Empire. However, the Jews and Christians diverged quickly; the Jews were marginalized for being different and strange. They rejected the belief that Jesus is the Messiah and other christian laws. Eventually the Jewish revolt in 135 C.E. drove the Jews out of Jerusalem (“Jews”). They then lived throughout the Roman Empire and the materializing medieval states. They lived in their own communities called ghettos because they were not allowed to own land

In Chapter 2 of Encountering the New Testament the author talks about a few of the different practices that unified the Jews as well the different religious groups that had different beliefs. Judaism was unified in the beliefs that they had been chosen by God, they were waiting for the messiah to come, they respect the synagogues, they shared the same laws and traditions of elder. Although these beliefs were unifying there were seperate religious groups and leaders that held different beliefs. Probably the most well known group of religious leaders were the Pharisees. The Pharisees were a small group of religious leaders that believed in God, and the coming messiah. Although many of the Pharisees did live good lives many of them were

The Sadducees were the wealthy members of Judea who welcomed the secular world into their heart and rejected any ideas that were not written down and resisted any form of change (Regev, 2006). Pharisees were the middle class members of Judean society that believed in good and evil and rejected those who did not meet their standards of behavior. The Zealots were the politically radical group that stood up to the Romans and attempted to overthrow the regime, but was not able to do so. Essenes rejected the views of all other groups and concentrated on living a spiritually purified life full of contemplation within a religious community.

This superficial view is expanded in Theissen’s book by showing Jesus’ teachings and actions on the Sabbath and how they received by the Pharisees. In The Shadow of the Galilean Andreas encounters a family with a sick child who is desperate for the messiah to come and heal her. Andreas offers his assistance by telling them of a Greek doctor who is a few hours away, and that this doctor can come and try to heal their daughter. However, a problem arises because the day they want to go and retrieve this doctor is on the Sabbath, and so two Pharisees come and tell them that they are forbidden to go on the sabbath. This causes a debate as to what is permissible on the Sabbath day.

The Old Testament is the largest part of the bible nestled behind the leather binding in the front of the book. Unlike most books, told from one-person or even two this is comprised of multiple, some stories even having two different versions in another point of view; over time it has become a large collection of ancient texts written and re-written by different authors and editors over the many years. The stories show the ancient Israelites, they show the laws, and rituals, which make up their religion and the small embers, which will one day, turn to a flame that is Christianity. The Jewish people view these stories as collected in what they call the Torah, is the collection for what makes up their history and the promise that God gave to them, as well as their laws and what they worship today. For the Christians the Old Testament is still seen as sacred, but most place a stronger importance to the New Testament.

It does not take a Bible scholar to understand that one of the most significant people groups throughout history has been the Israelites. According to Biblical narrative, Israel is significant. An understanding of who the Israelites are and where they came from is necessary to understand the Bibles redemptive narrative. This paper will seek to provide insight as to how the Israelites came about and who they are.

The Judenrate were a way to enforce the occupation force 's anti-Jewish laws in the ghettos, and had no authority of their own. A local Judenrate was to include Rabbis and other influential people of their community.

God’s goodness and mercy far transcends the comprehension of the most brilliant human mind! He “who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth”(Psalm 113:6).Yet in His infinite love for us He stoops down to reveal Himself to us by a multitude of illustration, types, and shadows, so that we may learn to know him. This paper will describe what is meant by the Kingdom of God; examine the religious philosophy of the various sects of Judaism during the Second Temple period: Pharisee, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots, describe the religious philosophy and political philosophy of each sects, it will also describe how the Messianic expectation differ from the Messianic role that Jesus presented, and include an exegesis of

The First Jewish Revolt (CE 66-70) was the first revolt in a series of rebellions against Roman authority by the Jewish people. Although this revolt met some principles of the Just War Theory, there were several criteria that were not met by the Jews launching the war. This conclusion can be reached from the writings of Historian Flavius Josephus, a primary source on the topic, and from many other sources also.

Jews are perhaps the greatest race to grace the earth. The Jews have overcome a lot of challenges in their time on Earth as a civilization. Perhaps, their biggest challenge came in 70 A.D. against Rome. The Jews were living under The Roman Empire, and for the most part, they coexisted under Agrippa I, but when he died, their differences started showing. The Romans no longer understood the Jews and their status in the community, and the Jews felt like the Romans did not understand. In 66 A.D., revolts started breaking out in Jerusalem. These rebellions scared the Romans because other Roman cities might’ve rebelled as well. So, they had no choice but to react. In 70 A.D., they broke through the walls of Jerusalem, massacred the Jews, and tore down the temple. Despite being 2000 years old, the siege of Jerusalem and post war Diaspora directly influenced the Jewish communities in the modern era.

The Four Sects of the Jewish Population According to our textbook, A Brief Introduction to the New Testament; during the time of the Hasmoneans, in reaction to their rule, a number of “Jewish sects emerged” (37, Ehrman). In total, there were four million Jews divided among four sects. The four sects were named Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots. Each had different rules and beliefs that they went by.

Dagyeong Yang (Irene) Dr. Paul R. Sauer REL200 The Pharisees Rationale Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, and Zealots are four major Jewish sects active in Palestine at the Second Temple Judaism period around 25 B.C. to 70 A.D. Those sects had distinguished characteristics and beliefs. A scroll written in Hebrew language in a stone box, which discovered by archaeologists was written by one of the four Jewish sects based on their belief.

Thirdly, there are the Essenes. The Essenes were “a monastic group reported to have lived in the Dead Sea area” In the book The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah by Alfred Edersheim, the Essenes are described as “strict Jews, yet separatists, and, alike in doctrine, worship, and practice, outside the Jewish body ecclesiastic.” These Jewish outsiders kept to themselves, were not mentioned in the New Testament, and “their numbers amounted to only about 4,000.” The Essenes came about out from denial of the ways of the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The Essenes believed the other two sects had “corrupted the city and the Temple.” This corruption took form in avarice, poor practice, and hierarchal obsession. This pollution of practice morphed the

The nation of Israel was originally a nation of nomadic people who were isolated and oppressed. After the horrific events of the Holocaust some Jewish people made homes in Israel. The people who made their homes came to be known as Israelites. They were given this name because the nation was named after Israel who was originally known as Jacob (Fisher, 2005). The nation of Israel has always been in a state of disorder and confusion, and in 1947 the United Nations gave Israel to the Jewish people who declared it an independent state in 1948. Israel’s Arabic neighbors did not support this decision and war followed. Battles are still being fought today. Tension also exists within the Jewish community in Israel. There have been many Jewish people who have settled in Israel. These settlers have diverse backgrounds. Some are orthodox and some are not which can bring tension. Even

Judaism, which is made up of a few separate groups, was very common at the originating of Christianity. The common ground (shared beliefs) for these sects was the belief in One God and that this One God had made a covenant with the people of Israel. The foundation of this covenant was called “The Torah.” The Pharisees and Sadducees were the two main groups the Bible focuses on around the time of Jesus, along with the Zealots, the Hellenists, the Lawyers, and the Essenes, who we only read about in sources outside of the New Testament.