Looking toward the messiah

1
A Future Built on Promise

• Looking toward the messiah

2
And then come the Greeks

• The Greeks, through a succession of battles and
  fights, began taking control over parts of the
  Persian Empire
• Philip of Macedon had finally unified the warring
  Greek city-states--impressive seeing how he was
  not from Macedon
• Philips Son would eventually expand the Greek
  empire a little further, that man was

3
ALEXANDER THE GREAT!

• Alexander was tutored under Aristotle, had his
  fathers military skill and his mothers belief
  that he was destined for greatness (they believed
  they were descendants of Achilles)
• Alexander inherited the kingdom after his
  fathers assassination in 336 BC
• Wanted to punish the Persians for their invasion
  of Greece a century ago so he marched on their
  empire with 35,000 soldiers

4
Alexanders March on Persia
5
Alexanders Accomplishments

• He defeated the Persian army in three major
  battles and quickly took hold of Syria,
  Palestine, Egypt, and Asia Minorthe lands
  dominated by the Persian empire.
• He pushed his troops east beyond the Indus River
  and unified the East and West trade was centered
  in the East (Think Silk Road)
• pg. 171

6
Alexanders Accomplishments

• He issued a standard coinage, which helped
  facilitate an easy flow of trade from East to
  West
• He created about seventy cities, settling them
  with his military and administrative personel and
  their families, many of whom were Greek. In doing
  so, Alexander began the hellenization of the
  ancient world
• pg 171

7
Alexander the Great(Image discovered at Pompeii)
8
The Ptolemaic and Seleucid Empires

• After Alexander dies at the age of 32 in 323 BC,
  Ptolemy, a Greek general, eventually won Egypt
  and Israel when the Green empire was parsed out
  by the Greek Generals
• Egypt had now became full of Jews through the
  Diaspora
• These Jews were now Hellenized, or imbued with
  Greek culture
• Jews spoke and read in Greek, and eventually
  translated the Scriptures in Greek (later called
  the Septuagint)

9
Greek Jew v. Jew Jew

• Some Jews, especially those who were still within
  the area of Jerusalem, did not approve of the
  Hellenization of Judaism
• Remember that several prophets tried to cultivate
  a sense of Jewishness which kept things
  exclusively Jewish, NO ROOM for Gentile culture
• Several Sacred books, however, were possibly
  written and widely read in Greek, which
  eventually caused a rift in the Old Testament
  canon
• This Canonical problem eventually became the
  reason why Protestant and Jews have a different
  OT than Catholics

10
The Deuterocanonical Books

• Tobit
• Judith
• Additions to Esther
• Wisdom
• Sirach
• Baruch
• Some additions to Daniel
• 1 and 2 Maccabees

11
Antiochus III

• In C. 200 BC Antiochus III, a Seleucid ruler,
  began to turn his focus toward Egypt and
  Palestine
• Defeated Ptolemy for control of the area and was
  considered overall a fair and just ruler to the
  Jews
• The books of Esther, Tobit and Daniel 16 came
  from this era
• Often deal with problems that occurs with the
  rule of outsiders

12
Antiochus III

• Antiochus III eventually tried to take over parts
  of the Roman empire, which was gaining power
• Lost all of Asia minor to the Romans
• Was chased back all the way to Asia
• Was forced to give hostages, including his son
• Was forced to give the Romans a HUGE tribute
  (monetary payment)
• Beaten and broken, Antiochus III eventually was
  succeed by Antiochus IV

13
Major Actions of Antiochus III

• Gave the Temple a government subsidy (paid for
  upkeep and maintenance)
• Exempted the Temples personnel from taxes
• Issued an edict that proclaimed that the Jews
  were allowed to live in accordance with their law
• pg 172

14
Antiochus III
15
Tobit and Daniel Suffering and Deliverance

• Tobit often thought of as a fairytale
• Primarily because of the progression of events
  and its happy ending
• The book describes two people who are faithful
  yet unjustly suffer through difficult life
  situations. Tobit and Sarah, the characters,
  pray, fast, and give alms
• However, Tobit becomes blind and Sarah is widowed
  SEVEN times, yet still they pray and remain
  faithful
• The story then says that an angel, Raphael, helps
  heal Tobit while Sarah finds out that shes
  plagued by a demon causing the deaths of her
  husband
• The images represent clear lines of good and
  evil, and show how Jews should remain faithful
  despite their suffering

16
Tobit and other tales

• The book of Tobit is also has common, secular
  folktales called the Demon-Lover, or, The Monster
  in the Bedchamber
• The story goes that a demon falls in love with a
  bride and kills her husband on their wedding
  night
• The story became very popular, spreading even to
  India
• Another story is the Greatful Dead
• An impoverished man who is rewarded handsomely
  for burying an abused corpse
• The point of adding these secular stories was to
  grab the readers attention to give the story of
  Tobit and Sarah and the moral behind it

17
Daniel

• Daniel is the OT book most widely known for its
  apocalyptic worldview and visions
• Made up of six stories (Chapters 16)
• Four dream-visions (Chapters 712)
• And a collection of short stories (Chapters
  1314)
• Daniel receives revelations of the end times
  which are explained to him by an angel

18
Daniel and apocalyptic lit

• The narratives in Daniel often form a legend
  cycle
• Where the prophet is confronted with temptation
  but does not succumb
• Likely developed in oral formjudging from the
  repititionand later adapted for literature
• The narratives use the legend cycle to tell most
  of the stories in Daniel
• Daniels gift of dream interpretation
• Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery
  furnace
• Daniel in the lions den
• Ect., Ect.

19
The Central Meaning of Daniel

• All these stories have a common theme and
  exhibition
• All show snippets of lifestyles of Jews in exile,
  how to be a Jew in a non-Jewish world
• All stress the need for fidelity to Jewish
  traditions and law despite temptations and
  demands from the Babylonians
• The argument is for integration, how to live in
  an unfamiliar world, not assimilation, or how to
  become part of that world
• Keep Jewish culture Jewish

20
Interesting note on Daniel

• The only book in the Hebrew Old Testament that
  features a clear and distinct affirmation of the
  resurrection of the body
• 2 Maccabees 17 does as well but it is not in the
  Hebrew aka Jewish and Protestant, Old Testament
• Dan 122-3
• Many of those who sleep in the dust of the
  ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but
  the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.

21
Back to History Antiochus IV and the Rebellion

• Antiochus IV returns back to his kingdom from a
  hostage situation in Rome (his father,
  Antiochus III, had given him up as a hostage)
  discovering that it was in a fragile state
• Enemies in Egypt were rising up to retake his
  lands
• The Romans were looming
• He decides its time to reunify his people to face
  these threats
• Part of unification was no exceptionalism,
  especially for the Jews
• Decried that the Jews had to abandon their
  traditions for the sake of unity

22
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
23
UNITY at all costs

• Wanted to instill Greek values and culture
• Installed more Greek temples, statues of idols,
  and gymnasiums for education and athletics
• Gymnasiums were also schools, places of worship
  and intellectual centers
• Jews, by going to gymnasiums, would in effect be
  endorsing Greek polytheism
• Wanted Jews to make sacrifices to Greek gods and
  adopt polytheismthe worship of many gods
• While some Jews followed these decrees, many
  remained steadfast and did not

24
The Power of Crisis

• Bad times can often be moments of opportunity for
  communities to reexamine their core principles
  and solidify their identity
• Example present day America and our financial
  and cultural crisis
• As Antiochus IV and others attacked Jewish
  culture, several Jews were galvanized and
  reclaimed their Jewishnessin spite or because
  ofthe Jewish persecution
• Cries for rebellion rose up from the Jewish
  community

25
Rebellion and street fightin' Jews

• The Jews were ripe for a rebellion and one man
  was ready to deliver just that Mattathias and
  his sons
• From a priestly family, well respected within the
  Jewish community in Jerusalem
• Several Jews joined him in guerrilla warfare
  (think Algiers, post World War II or city
  skirmishes in Africa) against Antiochus IV and
  his officials
• Mattathias soon dies and his son, Judas
  Maccabeus, assumes control
• Turns the skirmishes into a full scale fight
  against the state

26
Maccabee the Hewbrew Hammer

• Maccabeus leads a military rebellion against the
  state and eventually his sons do as well
• Three generations of the Maccabean family lead
  the rebellion, a true family affair
• Maccabeus eventually marched into Jerusalem,
  reclaimed the Temple and destroyed all images to
  Zeus, restored those priests who did not
  apostatize (or turn against the faith)
• The feast of Chanukah commemorates this march,
  its the Jewish but our flag was still there
  moment

27
Post Maccabee the Hasmonean Dynasty

• These were Maccabeus decedents who began their
  rule in 142 BC until 63 BC when the Romans took
  conquered the area and placed Herod, who was half
  Jewish in control
• The triumph of the rebellion was that the Jews
  were allowed religious freedom from the Persian
  and Greek states
• The Hasmonean Dynasty continually faught for the
  rights of Jews and for religious freedom, they
  became the Judges of their era, promoting Jewish
  rituals, Torah reading, and fidelity toward God.
• Were led to believe that their freedom was the
  reward for their fidelity

28
Judith outwit, outlast, survive

• Judith is a story about a Jewish woman saving
  Judah from Nebuchadnezzar
• Judith actually means Jewish woman and she was
  symbolic of all Jewish women, showing their
  strength and value to Judaism
• Note the meekness a childless woman, meaning she
  was at the bottom of the social ladder (note the
  parallels to Jesus)
• Prayed that God would use her gifts of wit,
  courage and guile to help the Jews

29
Judith the story

• King Nebuchadnezzar sends one of his generals to
  pacify the Jews
• His General, Holofernes, besieges the city
  Bethulia and traps a large segments of Jews there
• Famine and disease spread because of the seige
• Several Jews contemplate surrender, but enter
  Judith who claims that she will free them
• Because she is a woman and beautiful, she is
  allowed into the Assyrian camp where she seduces
  Holofernes
• Holofernes gets drunk before he can enjoy her
  seduction and passes out, Judith then cuts off
  his head. Game over.

30
"Judith"Botticelli
31
"Judith"Giorgione
32
"Judith" both by Titian
33
"Judith" by Caravaggio