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Origins of JudaismChapter 3, Section 4
Lay of the LandLay of the Land Palestine was cultural crossroads
due to location
Canaan (area of Palestine), ancient home of the Hebrews
Between Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea
Canaan was land promised to the Hebrews by God, according to Bible
Hebrews on the MoveHebrews on the Move The Torah, 1st 5 books of Bible, contains
most of what we know of early Hebrews
God chose Abraham as “father” of the Hebrews
Torah says that Abraham was shepherd from Ur, & that God commanded him to move his people and flocks to Canaan
Most likely happened around 2000 B.C.; his descendents than moved again around 1650 B.C. to Egypt
Abraham’s GodAbraham’s God Yahweh, Abraham and his descendant’s God,
travelled with them on their long journey
These people were unlike other groups of religions in this region, they prayed to only ONE god, known as Monotheism
They proclaimed Yahweh as the one and only God
God was not a physical being
God and Abraham made a covenant together, stating Yahweh promised to protect the Hebrews while Abraham promised to obey him
““Let My People Go”Let My People Go” Hebrews originally given places of honor in
Egyptian kingdom
Over time they were forced into slavery
“Exodus” occurred between 1300 – 1200 B.C., this was the Hebrews fleeing Egypt
Celebrate this flight every year during Passover
Moses is the one who led the Hebrews out of Egypt; considered greatest figure in Jewish history
The New CovenentThe New Covenent Moses climbed atop Mt. Sinai to pray
There he spoke with God and when he descended, he brought with him the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets
These became basis for civil and religious laws of Judaism
This was form of a new covenant between God and the Hebrew people
The Land & People of the The Land & People of the BibleBible
Hebrews wandered the Sinai Desert for 40 years
Returned to Canaan after Moses’ death
Frequently fought with their neighbors over the land
Difficult to settle in this area because they were used to a nomadic way of life with simple technologies
Hebrew Law & JudgesHebrew Law & Judges When settled in Canaan, organized 12 tribes
which lived in separate territories and were self-governing
God would raise up judges in times of emergency, who would unite the tribes and provide leadership
One of the most prominent of these judges was a woman, Deborah
10 Commandments were part of a larger code of laws delivered to Moses
Code resembled Hammurabi’s Code, but was softened by God’s mercy
Prophets then came and later interpreted the code
The ProphetsThe Prophets Constantly urged Hebrews to stay true to
their covenant with God
Taught Hebrews had duty both to worship God and to live justly with one another
Israel Rises to PowerIsrael Rises to Power Hebrew’s position in Palestine was
constantly threatened by the Philistines
Only tribe that remained after exile was the Judah, Hebrews later became called Jews and their religion Judaism
Between 1020-922 B.C., united under three able kings, Saul, David and Solomon
New kingdom was known as Israel
This 100 year period was Israel’s greatest period of power and independence
The Three KingsThe Three Kings Saul was the 1st of the three kings
Largely chosen because he was successful in driving out the Philistines
Bible portrays him as a tragic man
Saul was followed by David Son-in-law of Saul Extremely popular leader, united tribes, established
Jerusalem as capital
Solomon was the last of the three Son of David Most powerful of the 3 kings Beautified Jerusalem Built a great temple, to glorify God; this temple was
home of the Ark of the Covenant, contained the tablets of Moses’ s law
DivisionDivision Because of Solomon’s major building ideas,
cause the kingdom much financial strain
Men also forced into labor once every three months, which cause a lot of problems
Jews in north revolted after Solomon’s death; resulting in the kingdom dividing into two; Israel in the north and Judah in the south
Next 200 years saw a lot of confusing times for the two divisions
Babylonians Take Babylonians Take CaptivesCaptives
Both Israel and Judah were forced into paying tribute, money paid by a weaker power to a stronger power, to Assyria
Assyrians attacked the Jews anyway and the entire northern kingdom fell to the Assyrians by 722
It took another 150 years for the southern kingdom to fall
Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, ran Egyptians out of Syria and Palestine, and attacked Jerusalem twice
He destroyed Solomon’s temple; any survivors were deported to Babylon where they were held for about 50 years, The Babylonian Captivity
Persian king, Cyrus, conquered Babylon and allowed some 40,000 exiles to return to Jerusalem
First thing they did was rebuild their great Temple to Yahweh