The Transformation Of Hebrews During Ancient Jewish

One of the three great monotheistic world religions, Judaism began as the faith of the ancient Hebrews, and its sacred text is the Hebrew Bible, particularly the Torah. Fundamental to Judaism is the belief that the people of Israel are God's chosen people, who must serve as a light for other nations. God made a covenant first with Abraham, then renewed it with Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. The worship of Yahweh (God) was centered in Jerusalem from the time of David.

The history of Judaism starts in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). What the Jews believe is that God himself chose them to be an example to the rest of the people in this world and how the relationship between God and the men he chose work on their relationship. This relationship between the Jews and God was a bit stormy in the beginning. One glamorous event that happened in the Jewish history is the way God changes and developed in company with the specific men he picked.

I will argue that the understanding of the concept of God has significantly changed over time. Over this course, we have explored the evolution and stages of Judaism. I will use supporting evidence from the Biblical, Rabbinic, Maimonides, and Modern texts to show each of their overarching themes, perceived popular beliefs, and changes the concept of God has experienced.

Judaism being the oldest out of these three dominant religions was developed in the “third millennium BCE” (130). Canaan is where the Hebrews first prospered, until around 1500 BCE. At this time a famine struck, and influenced the Jewish people to move to Egypt. Egypt was lead by the Hyksos, which shared languages and cultural beliefs with the Hebrews. In Egypt “the Hebrews thrived over the next few centuries, until the Egyptian overthrew the Hyksos and enslaved the Hebrews” (130). At that time Moses (a man lead by God), rallied the Hebrews and helped them escape the slavery they endured in Egypt.

By religious belief, Jewish people trace their origin all the way back to Abraham, who spread the message of the Oneness of God. However, the documented origin of Judaism started with the conquest of Joshua in 1250 B.C. The presence of Jews in

Have you ever noticed that when people talk of Jews, at least in a protestant church, that the Israelite legalism, rituals, dress and hair standards are the first things to mind? The topic of Judaism may come with stereotypical opinions and “Christian Judgement” that are without merit or understanding. Judaism, by a Christian worldview, had to change after Pentecost, since the animal sacrifice to atone for sin Christ completed on the Cross. However, Judaism does not accept this truth of Christ and His work on the cross, but Judaism remains in the world. So, what was this change in Judaism and when did it take place? There have been numerous fluctuations within Judaism, only the theme constructed in this essay has its foundations around the most important facet of Judaism- the Temple. With the Temple in the forefront of this essay, we will discuss the modifications that Judaism went through, at what time, different perspectives that the destruction of the Temple had, and how the Christian sect views these vagaries. The Temple destruction of A.D. 70 converted the Jewish faith in its singular fashion, while, at the same point, the Jewish faith never had a total change by always changing throughout time.

Although the exact age of the Jewish faith is debatable, one thing is certain, it is a faith with an extensive, and at times tumultuous, history. Throughout the history of Judaism, Jewish people have faced ongoing persecution and discrimination. Despite these conflicts, the faith is alive, strong, and growing. Like many religions faced with adversity, Judaism has had to accommodate the ever-changing world to maintain their faith. One significant moment of change, the falling of the Second Temple, had the opportunity to destroy Judaism for good, but the Jewish people came together and reformulated their religion in order to save their faith.

The small group of people who had large impact on the history of the world were the ancient Israelite's, who were called Hebrews. The ancient Hebrew’s were acknowledged by historians to have founded the first monotheistic religion. Today this religion is known as Judaism, and the people who follow Judaism would be called Jews.

As one of the largest religions in the world, Judaism has often been critiqued, assessed, analyzed and researched for hundreds of thousands of years. Judaism has helped establish a rich tradition and culture for the Jewish people. Throughout these hundreds of thousands of years the Jewish people have been able to rely on a stable sanctuary for prayer, community activities, and intellectual stimulation. This sanctuary is often named the Synagogue but takes on many other names such as the shul and the temple. Through the Synagogue the Jewish people have been able to continue to develop their culture, community affairs, and provide a safe intellectual home for all friends and followers of Judaism.

Research on the Old Testament is even today concerned with finding out both the ‘historical’ facts in these texts, and the significance of the Persian empire in the history of the Jewish communities in Palestine, Babylonia and Egypt, their theological convictions and religious and ritual establishments, as well as the evolution of their literature (the ‘Old Testament’).

The ancient Hebrews were almost continually at war and were conquered by Assyria, Persia, Alexander the Great, and Rome. The Jews became a dispersed people but preserved a sense of their nationhood through the books of the Bible. Over time many of the Jews were converted; whether it was forced or voluntary, they assimilated into local life. Jews became so intertwined in the lives of people all around the world. The Jews had a psychological connection to the land rather than a "blood" connection. This allowed the Jews to spread spatially while still developing a strong connection to God. The peaceful spread of Jews, though, caused religious carnages and expulsions. The Enlightenment of the eighteenth century brought back religious intolerance and brought Jews out of the ghetto and into citizenship in West Europe. This was a slow process done in backward Russia where most Jews lived.

(1) What events lead to the exile of the Hebrews in Babylonia? To the Hebrew people, their exile to Babylonia and the destruction of the First Temple was brought on because they had displeased Yahweh by not following his laws and by not living a lifestyle devoted to him. Once the Hebrews reached the land of Canaan, division splintered them into eleven tribes, but with war constantly occurring in the neighboring nations, the Israelites soon realized they had to unite if the Jewish people and religion were going to survive: The eleven Hebrew tribes were united under one king. The Kingdom of Israel prospered for a short time and under the rule of King David and the aid of his son Solomon the First Temple was constructed as a home for Yahweh.

Throughout the history of Judaism, Jewish people have faced ongoing persecution and discrimination. Despite these conflicts, the faith remains alive, strong, and continuously growing. Like many religions faced with adversity, Judaism has had to assimilate its faith to survive in an ever-changing world. One significant moment of change in the Jewish history, the fall of the Second Temple, had the opportunity to destroy Judaism, but the Jewish people bonded together and reformulated their religion in order to save their faith. The falling of the Second Temple marks a distinct change in the Jewish faith through the modification of ritual practices to accommodate their new mobile lifestyle. This change would forever impact the Jewish

Jewish Studies: Using the book The History of the Jewish People, our class explored the time from the awakening of Abraham, to monotheism, to the response of the rabbis to the destruction of

Over thousands of years, the religion of Judaism has evolved. With years of suffering, persecution, and dispersion the Jews’ religion stays constant. When researching the religion, the history is extremely strong, and the doctrine of the religion dates back thousands of years. With such a vast history, one might want to examine the change into modern society.