The Hebrews and Judaism

2025-09-23

Hebrews

• arrived in canaan
• left to the nile delta
• enslaved by the egyptians
• hebrews escaped egypt under moses
• went to sinai
• received ten commandments
• moses wrote the mosaic laws to guide daily life, diet, and morality
• these laws would be contained in the first five books of the torah
• the hebrews returned to canaan
• twelve tribes established themselves, initially ruled by judges
• the covenant was seen, and upheld, as a communal obligation

Kingdom of israel

• Saul
• David
  • defeated the Philistines
  • Jerusalem becomes the capital
• Solomon

  • somewhat controversial

  • "foreign" influences

  • high taxes

  • constructed the temple

The Division

• Kingdom of Israel to the north (capital in Samara)
• Kingdom of judah to the north (capital in Jerusalem)

Assyrians

• Destroyed the Kingdom of Israel - the "lost tribes" of Israel
• Judah became a tributary

The Babylonian Captivity

• Judah taken by Chaldeans (or new Babylonians) under Nebuchadnezzar
• Jerusalem was sacked
• the temple was destroyed
• During Babylonian captivity, a new covenant proclaimed by prophets
• the covenant was to be written "in the hearts" of individuals
• individuals were - no matter their circumstances - were to keep the covenant

return to the promised land

• Cyrus and the Persians defeated the Chaldeans and took Babylon - and much of the near east
• the Hebrews were freed from captivity and allowed to return home and rebuild the temple
• the hebrews would not have an independent state until 1948

Foreign rule

• Persians
• Macedonians and Greeks
• Romans
• various Muslim states
• Great Britain

Messiah

• Prophesy of the Messiah - diring the late 1st century, the Messiah was interpreted to be a strong military leader who would free the Hebrews from the Romans
• Many men claimed to be the Messiah
• Jesus of Nazareth

Rebellions against Rome

• 66-70 - rebellion was crushed, Jerusalem taken, and the second temple was destroyed
• 132-135 - second rebellion
  • Diaspora - from the Babylonian captivity onward, Jews have been scattered in communities across the Mediterranean Sea eastward to India
  • most Jews left or were expelled from Judaea