LGW Chapter 10: Interlude - Time Between the Testaments

Major Events/Dates - Slides

• Persian empire (539-334 BC0

• Macedonian (Alexander the Great, 334-323 BC)

• Israel: Ptolemaic Dynasty (323-198 BC)

• Israel: Seleucid Dynasty (198-166 BC)

• Israel: Hasmonean Dynasty (166-63 BC)

• Roman Empire (63 BC and onwards)

Major Events/Dates

• 334 BC, Alexander the Great united Macedonia and Greece and conquered the Persian Empire

• 334 BC, Alexander and successors attempt to install Hellenism

• 323 BC, Alexander dies and his four strongest generals divide his empire into four parts

• one general, Seleucus Nicator (I), controls Syria (including Judea) and his descendants rule harshly

• Antiochus IV outlaws Jewish worship and desecrates the temple but the Hasmoneans lead a revolt and recapture Jerusalem, cleanse the temple, and restore worship in 164 BC

• 63 BC, Romans conquer Jerusalem

• 37 BC, Romans instal local supporter named Herod as king over Judea and some surrounding area

Basic Story of the Maccabeesaka Hasmoneans

It was 167 BC, Mattathias the Hasmonean was a Jew and he was furious. The king who reigned over the region had sent his officers to Mattathias’s hometown in Judea. The officers were trying to force Mattathias, his five sons, and their neighbors to perform sacrifices to their gods. When another Jew stepped forward to make the sacrifice, Mattathias killed him on the altar. The king’s officer was next. Finally, Mattathias tore down the altar. The Hasmonean Revolt was born. Over a century earlier, Hellenistic forces had taken control of Judea and forced their culture and religion upon the people. According to the first book of Maccabees, one of the Hellenistic kings defiled the temple, forbade circumcision, and even set up altars to his gods. Some Jews went along with the changes. Others, like Mattathias, fought to remain faithful to the Law. The revolt is also known by the name Maccabee, after the most renowned of Mattathias’s sons, Judah the Maccabee (which means “Judah the hammer”). When Mattathias died, two years into the revolt, his sons carried on. In the end, the Maccabees recaptured Jerusalem and regained their freedom. The festival of Hanukkah celebrates the restoration of the temple. The family of Mattathias and Judah ruled until the rise of the Herods in 63 BC. The Maccabean revolt was seared into Jewish memory. It shaped the way first-century Jews thought about foreign powers and faithfulness to the Law.

What is the only story we have from Jesus’ later childhood in the Bible?

On a family visit to Jerusalem for Passover, Jesus spent time in the temple complex speaking with Jewish teachers and religious leaders

Which Old Testament figure is John the Baptist most like?

Elijah

The gospel of Matthew begins with

a genealogy of Jesus