Download - Paul.lesson 9.second temple judaism
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TheGoodLifeandHardTimesOftheApostlePaul
EditedbyJohnR.Wible1
Lesson 9 ‐ Second Temple Judaism
Between the construction of the second
Jewish temple in Jerusalem, circa 515 BC,
and its destruction by the Romans in AD
70, Judaism underwent major historical
upheavals and significant religious changes
that would affect not only it but also
Christianity. For Christians, this time is
commonly referred to as the
“Intertestamental Period” and is not
commonly taught.
For the Jews, themselves and as an
ethnicity, this was a pivotal period in which
the origins of the authority of scripture, of
the centrality of law and morality in
religion, of the synagogue and of
apocalyptic expectations for the future all
developed and had a profound influence
on pre‐Christian and Christian thought and
teaching.
Much of what we as Christians believe
today to be true had roots in this period.
That having been said, we find that while there has been significant scholarship into the period,
not a great deal of this work has been taught to us in churches. I attribute this to the fact that
there is no canonical writing.
While our Heavenly Father, in His wisdom has chosen not to so ordain, there is much non‐
canonical writing that while not inspired Word of God, may still be true and may give us clues as
to the thought of this period, and for our purposes in this study, the thought of the Apostle Paul
that influenced his canonical writings.
1 Editor’s note. Most of the material used herein is taken from a number of other sources. In some cases, it is taken ver batem. That being the case, I refer to myself as the Editor and not the Author.
312 BC to 4 BC
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Maps of the Empires.
Alexandrian Empire Ptolemaic Empire Alexandrian Empire Ptolemaic Empire
Seleucid Empire Maccabean Palestine
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Herodian Palestine Roman Empire 44 BC – 117 AD
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We have previously studied the Babylonian captivity
(586‐539 BC) and noted its influence on Judaism.
Specifically, during the relatively brief Babylonian
period and the longer Persian period (539‐312 BC) that
followed, we noted a growth and change in Judaism.
Taking these together with the later periods of the
Greek influence and to short time of self‐rule, we
observe the following:
A. Synagogue.
• Rise of the institution of and pervasive influence of the synagogue in every day
Jewish life both in Jerusalem and thought in all areas where the Jewish diaspora
had migrated.
• The synagogue enabled many other changes.
B. Writing and Language.
• Modern Hebrew script was adopted during this period, replacing
the traditional Israelite script. The first Hebrew writing was
probably in a language referred to as “Proto‐Phoenician.” This
language was the mother tongue of Classical Hebrew, Modern
Hebrew, Aramaic, Nabataean‐Arabic, and Greek. Close study of all
will disclose many cognates.
• The influence of the Torah emerged as central to the lives of the
average “Jew in the street.”
• The Torah was altered during this time, and began to
be regarded as the authoritative text for Jews. We
will discuss the Prophets in another session.
• Later, in the Persian and particularly in the
Hellenistic (Greek) periods, we will see the
replacement of Hebrew as the normal, day‐to‐day
language of the people in favor of Aramaic, the
Assyrian language spoken by the peoples conquered
by Assyria. Assyrian is descendent from ancient Akkadian, the mother tongue of
Semitic languages. Jesus and his disciples, while all probably were able to read
Classical Hebrew in the Temple and the synagogue, as well as being passably
conversant in Greek, commonly spoke Aramaic. In fact, Jesus speaks Aramaic
from the cross.2 Greek was the common language of commerce.
2 “Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani, (My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?)” quoted directly in Aramaic in Matthew 27:46. In this, one of Jesus’ “Seven Sayings from the Cross,” Jesus quotes his own translation of the ancient Hebrew Psalm 22. By this time in the Jews’ history, they regarded Psalm 22 as a “messianic Psalm.”
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C. National Identity. The Jews were transformed into an ethno‐religious group that could
survive without a central Temple primarily because of the emergence of the synagogue.
D. Political structure. During the period, the Jews returning from Babylon, and there may
not be as many of them as we have thought, underwent many changes in political structure
from vassal‐state to brief independence, to occupied territory. During this time, real power
began to be placed in the Priests and High Priests and the political groups that were formed
during the period. This culminated in the Sanhedrin, the embodiment of high council and
high court.
All the above enabled changes regarding prophesy, messianic thought, and eschatology.
A new understanding of the depth and extent of prophesy exhibited itself. Messianic
thought and eschatology began to be formed.
The last high‐point of biblical prophecy in the person of Ezekiel was seen and passed.
The belief in and increasing “looking forward to” a Davidic Savior became popular.3
In 439 BC, Babylon fell to the Persians (Actually, the Medo‐Persian Confederation.) During this
much longer period, the captive Jews either assimilated into Persian life or were allowed to
migrate back to the Jewish homeland to rebuild the temple and be ruled as a vassal‐province of
3 This development was, along with universal Greek language usage, and Roman world‐wide “peace”(Pax Romana) leading to the time of the Incarnation of Jesus as The Christ.
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the Empire, the Provence of Yehud.4 While to the Jews, the Babylonian Period was seen as a
punishment for their national sin and an expression of God’s wrath towards them, the Persian
period (after it was over, of course) was seen as an expression of God’s grace.
The Persian Period is generally said
by historians to end about 333 BC
when Alexander the Great
conquered the Mediterranean
coast. Thus the Persian Period lasts
about 100 years. His empire
disintegrated after his death, and
Palestine,5 including Jerusalem, fell to Ptolemy, the
descendant of one of Alexander's generals who ruled Egypt
and to his descendants.6
This time marked the end of the Davidic monarchy7 (until Jesus’s birth.) The kings were
replaced by the emergence of scribes and sages (later called “Rabbis) as Jewish leaders. (See
Ezra). The High Priests also wielded great power in this period and became more and more
corrupt as the years passed. Though there were always the ruling classes and chief executives
by a number of names, there developed as early as 200 BC a form of democracy known as the
Sanhedrin,8 or High Council. In its final form, the
Sanhedrin was composed of 70 men plus the High Priest
who thought of themselves more as a high court than a
legislature.9
Prior to exile, the people of Israel had been organized
according to tribe. Afterwards, they were organized by
smaller family groups. Only the tribe of Levi continued in
its temple role after the return. Also, after this time, there
were always sizable numbers of Jews living outside the
4 Coogan, Michael David; Brettler, Marc Zvi; Newsom, Carol Ann. "Editors' Introduction." In Coogan, Michael David; Brettler, Marc Zvi; Newsom, Carol Ann. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books. Oxford University Press. (2007.) 5 To historians especially after World War I and the division of territory under the terms of the Sikes‐Picot Agreement, the area at the east end of the Mediterranean including territory from ancient Phoenicia through modern‐day Syria, Jordan, and Israel, and on around to the “Gaza Strip” in what is actually northern Egypt, is known as the “Levant.” It is commonly referred to as Palestine, a derogatory name given the area by the Romans actually after the fall of Jerusalem. This term represents the Roman disgust with the entire region. For our purposes, we will call it “Palestine.” See map, supra. 6 Grabbe, Lester L. An Introduction to Second Temple Judaism. A&C Black, 2010. 7 Though the actual line never died out until AD 70. See Jesus’ genealogy in Matthew 1:1‐17 and Luke 3:23‐38. 8 From the Greek word, synhedrion. 9 Petro, Bill. “History of the Sanhedrin: Who was this Council? Bridging the Gap from Strategy to Execution.” March 31, 2015. http://billpetro.com/history‐of‐the‐sanhedrin. Accessed January 14, 2016.
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borders of Israel proper, historically thereafter
referred to as the diaspora.10 The principal centers
Jewish communities outside Palestine remained in
Babylon and grew in northern Egypt around
Alexandria. However, communities of Jews
populated the whole of Palestine, North Africa,
and Asia Minor. Later, they came to Greece and
eventually to all of Europe.11
In 200 BC
Palestine and the
Persian Provence
of Yehud, which
had been
maintained and
governed as a
separate
province, albeit
“under new
management,”
were captured
by the Seleucids,
the descendants
of yet another
Greek general
ruling Syria. The
attitudes toward
these foreign
rulers were mixed. Many of the Jewish ruling classes that found a way to collaborate with them
actually favored them out of self‐aggrandizement.
10 This process, likewise is fully described in the Book of Ezra. 11 In modern history, Jews moved by the millions to North America. New York City is regarded as “The Largest Jewish City in the World,” and this includes cities in the country of Israel proper.
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However, there was always dislike, hatred, unrest and
dissidence among the common people at foreign rule.
This resulted in a number of minor revolts which were
always put down, most notably the revolt led by Judas
of Galilee about the time of the birth of Jesus the
Christ.12 This unrest and constant revolt culminated in
the final revolt of AD 67‐70 against the Romans and led
by the Zealots and Sicarii which resulted in the
destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 and the historic “last
Stand” and fall of the mountain fortress, Masada in about AD 74 lead by the Zealot Eleazar ben
Ya’ir13 in which all the Zealots killed their families and each other until there was only one left
who then committed suicide.14
Around 167 BC, the Seleucid king Antiochus IV
Epiphanes attempted to suppress Jewish worship,
provoking a revolt that led to the effective end of
foreign control over Jerusalem. He purposefully
defiled the Temple by removing the Jewish articles
of worship and setting up an altar to the Greek god
Zeus. To add insult to injury, he had pigs sacrificed
on the altar. This may well have been the fulfillment
of Daniel’s prophesied “abomination of desolation.”
Daniel 2:11 states, “From the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished and the abomination of
desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days [about 3.5 years].” Others regard the fulfillment of
the prophesy as the placing of Roman Eagle standards in the temple in the early First Century or
the actual destruction of the Temple itself in AD 70.
Following Daniel’s prophesy, the revolt succeeded and the Maccabean or Hasmonean dynasty
was established in about 164 BC. 15 During this time, Jewish ritual was restored in the Temple.
However, it was not until 143 BC that the Seleucids granted de facto autonomy to the
Hasmonean kings.16
Oddly, for all their fierce talk of independence and Jewish nationalism, the Maccabees
(Hasmoneans) were “Hellenizers” who attempted to adopt Greek culture. As one might expect,
12 Brandon, S. G. F. Jesus and the Zealots. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1967. 13 Richmond, I. A. (1962). "The Roman Siege‐Works of Masada, Israel". The Journal of Roman Studies (Washington College. Lib. Chestertown, MD.: Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies) 52:142–155. 14 Cotton, H.M. "The date of the fall of Masada: the Evidence of the Masada Papyri". Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik. 1984. 78: 157–62. 15 “Maccabee” is a Hebrew word meaning “hammer.” The Hasmoneans liked to think of themselves as freeing Israel from oppressing outsiders with the “Hammer of God,” thus the name “Maccabees.” 16 Grabbe, supra.
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this set the stage for almost continual strife and civil war between the Hellenizers and the
Judaisers. This battle survived the Hasmoneans and continued into Paul’s time.
The Maccabees have been historically
considered as patriots by the Jews continuing
into modern times. They are celebrated with a
feast, Hanukkah commemorating the time in the
revolt against the Seleucids when tradition holds
that the great Menorah in the temple stayed
miraculously lit for eight days despite being out
of oil.17 They are also celebrated by having
everything Jewish named after them from
beer18 to a rock band.19
The Maccabees ruled from 116 BC to 63 BC
when the Romans conquered the province and established the dynasty of the Herodians in the
20 BC to AD 70 time frame.20
Herod the Great, pictured at left portrayed by Kelsey Grammer was a great
builder and ruled for many years. He was the “Herod” spoken of by Luke in
his account of Jesus’ birth. Herod was of Idumaean descent and was only
half a Jew. However, through skill at political intrigue, he worked himself
into a position to be appoint as the ruler of Judea and later was given the
title “King of the Jews.” It was to save his ignominious “kingship” that he
slaughtered the innocents, recorded in Luke 2, and pursued the infant
Jesus until the death of Herod.
During the period, there were “kings” among the families of the Hasmoneans and Herodians,
but they were “kings” in name only; in actually, they were pretenders because they were not of
David’s blood nor did they give pretense of being so.
The rulers during this period from 333 BC into the times of Jesus
and Paul are not as important as the ideas that emerged from this
period for it was these ideas the shaped the nation of Israel and set
the foundation for the new Jewish sect, the “Christians.”
17 Goldman, Ari L. Being Jewish: The Spiritual and Cultural Practice of Judaism Today, Simon and Schuster, page 141. 18 Maccabee Premium Beer manufactured by Tempo Beer Industries, LTD. 19 “The Maccabees” is a British indie rock band active since 2004 to the present. 20 Nelson, Richard D. Historical Roots of the Old Testament (1200–63 BCE). SBL Press, 2014.
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A. Rise of the Synagogue.
According to the Jewish Encyclopedia:
The origin of the synagogue, in which
the congregation gathered to worship
and to receive the religious instruction
connected therewith, is wrapped in
obscurity. By the time it had become
the central institution of Judaism. . , it
was already regarded as of ancient
origin, dating back to the time of
Moses. . . [However,] the synagogue as
a permanent institution originated
probably in the period of the Babylonian captivity, when a place for common worship and
instruction had become necessary. . .
Isaiah, in applying the phrase "house of prayer" to the Temple to be built at Jerusalem
(Isaiah [56:7]) and, according to the very defensible reading of the [Septuagint] may
have used a phrase which, in the time of the Exile, designated the place of united
worship; this interpretation is possible, furthermore, in such passages as Isaiah [58:4].
The term was preserved by the Hellenistic Jews as the name for the [transliterated
Greek word,] synagogue. . .
After the return from the Captivity, when the religious life was reorganized, especially
under Ezra and his successors, congregational worship, consisting in prayer and the
reading of sections from the Bible, developed side by side with the revival of the cult of
the Temple at Jerusalem, and thus led to the building of synagogues.21
The pre‐Babylonian synagogues were merely houses of meeting as one would find in any
society. There is no evidence that they carried any great influence upon society. That all
changed during the Captivity because of necessity. The Temple was gone. If the Jews were to
persist as a people, they had to adapt. Thus, they drew from the old houses of meeting or
houses of prayer to form an ever‐more‐powerful synagogues, the mixed purposes of which can
be seen today in Judaism, Islam, and even in Christianity. During Paul’s time, the first Christian
churches grew out of Jewish synagogues and the patter for organization of the synagogue was
followed in the organization of the local church.
It can be argued when Christianity broke away finally from the synagogue and became a
separate religion. The traditional view has been that Judaism existed before Christianity and
that Christianity separated from Judaism at some time after the destruction of the Second
21 Bacher Wilhelm and Lewis M. Dembitz. “Synagogue,” Jewish Encyclopedia. http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14160‐synagogue, accessed January 14, 2016.
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Temple. Recently, some scholars have argued, rather that there were many competing Jewish
sects in the Palestine during the Second Temple period, and that those that became Rabbinic
Judaism and Proto‐orthodox Christianity were but two of these. Some of these scholars have
proposed a model which envisions a twin birth of Proto‐orthodox Christianity and Rabbinic
Judaism rather than a separation of the former from the latter. For example, Robert
Goldenberg asserts that it is increasingly accepted among scholars that "at the end of the 1st
century AD there were not yet two separate religions called 'Judaism' and 'Christianity.'"22
Your Editor submits that the synagogues grew in
power not unlike, and could, perhaps should, be
compared with today’s Islamic mosques that mix
religious instruction, prayer, nationalism, and
politics into a boiling milieu that has at times, had
a tendency to boil over into violence. Thus, I
submit that the synagogue in the period between
the 4th Century BC and the 1st Century AD served
many purposes. Not all of them for the good.
Again, the Jewish Encyclopedia informs us:
According to one legend, there were 394 synagogues at Jerusalem when the city was
destroyed by Titus [AD 70], while a second tradition gives the number as 480. Other
passages give the additional information that the foreign Jews at Jerusalem had their
own synagogues. Thus there was a synagogue of the Alexandrian [Greek‐Egyptian] Jews;
this synagogue is mentioned in Acts [6]:9 which refers also to the synagogues of the
Cyrenians, Cilicians, and Asiatics. Josephus mentions both the synagogue built by [King]
Agrippa I at Dora23 and the great synagogue at Tiberias, in which, during the war against
Rome, political meetings were once held on the Sabbath and the following days. The
synagogue of Cæarea rose to importance during the inception of this uprising; it was
called the "revolutionary synagogue" as late as the fourth century.24 (Citations omitted.)
Acts 6:9 states, “But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including
both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with
Stephen.”
22 Goldenberg, Robert. “Review of Dying for God: Martyrdom and the Making of Christianity and Judaism by Daniel Boyarin.” The Jewish Quarterly Review, New Series, Vol. 92, No. 3/4 (Jan.–Apr., 2002), pp. 586–588. 23 Dora was the Greek name of Dor. It was a coastal town, eight miles north of Caesarea [in the Galilee.] See “Dora Dor,” Bible History Online. http://www.bible‐history.com/geography/ancient‐israel/dora‐dor.html, accessed January 14, 2016. 24 Id.
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According to the Babylonian Talmud, a minyan was
required to hold public prayer or teaching thus, the
requirement for there to be a minyan present to
establish a synagogue. A minyan consisted of ten men
and presumably their families. Thus, synagogues were
the first “small group” churches. After the captivity, the
institution of the local synagogue had already been
established so strongly that it would persist through the
ultimate destruction of the Temple and even of the
nation itself. The synagogue was the one institution that survived historically holding Judaism
together through all its struggles for millennia. That power cannot be overstated.
B. Writing and Language.
With the rise of the synagogue came a renewed interest in the Jewish holy books and their
study. This movement began in Babylon and is evident in Ezra’s insistence on the reading of the
scripture to the whole nation at the re‐dedication of the temple. In Ezra 7, we see the scribe
Ezra, who was of the lineage of the High Priests, coming from Babylon to the site of the temple
with the full blessing of the Persian king, Artaxerxes. He has in his possession a letter from the
King giving Ezra plenary power to perform many tasks, among them the rebuilding of the
Temple.25
The balance of the book of Ezra, Chapters 8‐10, recounts the cleansing of the people from the
influence of the locals. This included the ban on intermarriage and the requirement that Jews
send their local wives and children away. While some were not able to do this, most did. This
yielded a basically clean slate to start the rebuilding not only of the Temple but of the culture.
Nehemiah 8 recounts the dramatic reading of the scriptures in the presence of all the people.
1 [A]ll the people came together as one in the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the teacher of the Law to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel. 2 So on the first day of the seventh month Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand. 3 He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate in the presence of the men, women, and others
25 Ezra 7:12 et seq.
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who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law. 4 Ezra the teacher of the Law stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion. . . 5 Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. 6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Thus begins what some scholars have called the “rebirth of Israel.” From this point on, the
scripture in written form will take precedence over almost everything else in the national
psyche. In actuality, it had begun before in Babylon in the synagogues. Though the Bible does
not tell us so, a logical inference can be made that Ezra’s influence in this direction had begun
long before in Babylon. This leads some scholars to elevate Ezra almost the level of Moses in
importance to the nation. Certainly Ezra was a great agent of change from the people that
occupied Canaan and were to some degree assimilated by it into the people of the scriptures.
This moment is a watershed for Israel. In the words of “Camelot,” For one brief, shining
moment,” they were the people God wanted them to be. However, being people – that would
change too.
So, what were those scriptures; what was Ezra teaching?
Rabbinic Judaism recognizes the 24 books of the Masoretic26 Text, commonly called the Tanakh
or Hebrew Bible, as authoritative. Modern scholarship suggests that the most recently written
are the books of Jonah, Lamentations, and Daniel, all of which may have been composed as late
as the second century BC.27
The book of 2 Maccabees, itself not a part of the Jewish or
Protestant canons but included in the Roman Catholic
canon, describes Nehemiah as having "founded a library
and collected books about the kings and prophets, and the
writings of David, and letters of kings about votive
offerings" (2 Maccabees 2:13–15). While there is no
canonical evidence of this, it would be consistent with
Nehemiah’s desire to rebuild the land and with his charge
from the king.
26 The Masoretic text was written by a group of Jewish scholars between the 8th and 10th Centuries AD. Their text forms the majority of Protestant Christian translations of the Old Testament. There are differences with the Septuagint text which, though older may reflect a Greek bias. 27 Darshan, G. “The Twenty‐Four Books of the Hebrew Bible and Alexandrian Scribal Methods,” in M.R. Niehoff (ed.), “Homer and the Bible in the Eyes of Ancient Interpreters: Between Literary and Religious Concerns” (JSRC 16), Leiden: Brill 2012, pp. 221.
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The Book of Nehemiah suggests that the priest‐scribe Ezra brought the Torah28 back from
Babylon to Jerusalem and the Second Temple (8–9) around the same time period. Both 1 and 2
Maccabees suggest that Judas Maccabeus (around 167 BC) also collected sacred books. (1
Maccabees 3:42–50, 2 Maccabees 2:13–15, 15:6–9).
There is no scholarly consensus as to when the Hebrew Bible canon was fixed. Some scholars
argue that it was fixed by the Hasmonean (Maccabees) dynasty (140‐40 BC),29 while others
argue that it was not fixed until the second century AD or even later.30 The official Roman
Catholic Church Commission says that "the more restricted Hebrew canon is later than the
formation of the New Testament."31 It is ironic that what Christians think of as the Old
Testament was not completed as a unit until significantly after the completion of the New
Testament.
In summary on this point, after the time of Ezra‐Nehemiah, scrolls began to be collected,
copied, and distributed to the thousands of synagogues in Palestine and elsewhere for weekly
daily private study and weekly public reading.
An interesting development occurred in the 3rd and 2nd
Centuries BC. As the reader will remember, we discussed
the Maccabees (Hasmonean) rulers of Israel at this time
and their Greek bias. The Hasmoneans commissioned a
group of scholars to meet together in Alexandria and
collect the scrolls into s single document. Their work
product is known as the Septuagint and abbreviated
“LXX.” “LXX” are the Roman numerals for 70.
Traditionally, about 70 scholars met to accomplish the
task. While their scholarly work was excellent, some
argue that given their formation and location, some of
the translation reflects a pro‐Greek bias.32
Be that as it may, or perhaps for that very reason, the Eastern Orthodox Church uses the
translation of the Septuagint as its Bible. The best modern Protestant translations such as the
NIV, NASB, Holman Standard,33 and many others use a combination of these and other
manuscripts to form their final works.
28 Remember that the Torah contained only the first five books of the Bible collectively referred to as the books of Moses. 29 Davies, Philip R. cited in The Canon Debate, Lee McDonald and James A. Sanders, 2002 at page 50. 30 McDonald & Sanders, The Canon Debate, 2002, page 5. 31 The Pontifical Biblical Commission. "3. Formation of the Christian Canon", The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible, Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 2002. 32 Barber, Michael. "Loose Canons: The Development of the Old Testament (Part 1.)” The Sacred Page. 2006‐03‐04.) 33 The translation your Editor has jokingly referred to as the ‘Revised Baptist Edition.”
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With the proliferation of a relatively standard text to be read in the synagogues, the Word
became well known and studied by the common man and scholar alike. While knowledge of
and reverence for the Word is a very good thing, their reverence for it led to the abuses of
literalism by which the already well‐establish scribes or teachers of the Law wielded control
over the people.
Further, along with the well‐established scribes and teachers of the law, during the Hasmonean
Period there arose a group of Jews who took as their mission to not only teach the Law, but to
keep the Law in “every jot and tittle.” The Pharisees.
Next week, we will see the interplay between these two groups: the Scribes and the
Pharisees, and we will see the rise of other groups such as the Sadducees and Sicarii. All these
groups taken together constituted a significant influence on which ever political group
happened to be in power at the time.