Zondervan Handbook of Biblical Archaeology by J. Randall Price & H. Wayne House

Author:J. Randall Price & H. Wayne House [Price, J. Randall & House, H. Wayne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2017-10-31T17:00:00+00:00

7

Introduction to the Intertestamental Period

“Intertestamental” is a popular Christian term used to refer to a period of time between the end of the period of the production of the Old Testament (Persian period) and the beginning of the period related to Jesus and the production of the New Testament (Roman period), a period of time (about 400 years) equivalent to the Second Temple period, although New Testament production continued after the destruction of the temple (e.g., book of Revelation in AD 95). In academic discussion the events of this time are referred to as the Second Temple period, a time that began with the return of exiled Jews to Judah and the laying of the foundation of the Second Temple (538 BC) until its Roman destruction (AD 70). During this period a number of significant events reshaped the world of the Bible and left significant remains in the archaeological record. It began with Persian rule (539–332 BC), with Judah becoming the province of Yehud and the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. Persian rule was then eclipsed by the conquest of Alexander the Great. The colonization that followed imposed Greek culture (Hellenism) on the Jewish people and created a division between Hellenistic Jews (who adopted Greek culture while retaining the Jewish religious tradition though not practice) and non-Hellinistic Jews. Hellenistic lifestyle (with a corresponding ban on the practice of the Jewish religion) was forced on the entire Jewish population under Seleucid rule (most notably under Antiochus Epiphanes IV), resulting in a Jewish revolt (167 BC) led by Judas Maccabeus and his sons, who successfully established independent rule in Israel (165 to 37 BC). Under the Maccabean, or Hasmonean, dynasty the offices of both kings and priests were drawn from their family. This resulted in increasing tension with groups such as the Pharisees and break-off groups, such as a band of priests from the Zadokite line who formed a sectarian community on a plateau at the northwestern corner of the Dead Sea (Qumran) around 100 BC. The Hasmonean Dynasty ended due to civil war between the sons of Salome Alexandra (Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II) and appeals made to the Roman authorities, who saw this an opportunity in the region.

The intertestamental period saw the production of the Septuagint, commissioned by Ptolemy II and produced by Jewish scribes in Alexandria, Egypt ca. 250 BC, the production of copies of the Hebrew Bible, commentaries, and other writings (the Dead Sea Scrolls), the production by Jewish writers of apocryphal and pseudepigraphical documents, the rise and development of Jewish religious and political sects (Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, Essenes) and others such as the Zealots and Sicarii (“dagger-men”) after the imposition of Roman rule over Israel (beginning in 63 BC with the conquest of the Emperor Pompey) and the imperial decrees that images of the emperor and/or empire be placed in the sacred precincts. This led to the Roman establishment of the Herodian dynasty (beginning with Herod the Great in 37 BC), the second rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem (completed in 20 BC), and the Roman creation of the province of Judea (6 BC).

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