Early Judaism: The Exile to the Time of Jesus
Overview
This textbook provides an introduction to the Second Temple period (520 BC–AD 70), the formative era of early Judaism and the setting for Jesus and the earliest Christians. Murphy pays close attention to original sources—especially the Bible, the Pseudepigrapha, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and Josephus—and introduces students to the world of ancient Jews and Christians. Early Judaism: The Exile to the Time of Jesus is designed to serve students and teachers in the classroom.
The Logos Bible Software edition of this volume is designed to encourage and stimulate your study and understanding of Scripture. Biblical passages link directly to your English translations and original-language texts, and important theological concepts link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. In addition, you can perform powerful searches by topic and find what other authors, scholars, and theologians have to say about the Word of God.
- Examines the roots of Judaism and Jesus as a Jew
- Explains Judaism from a historical as well as cultural aspect
- Contains suggestions for primary readings, bibliographies, maps, illustrations, glossaries, and indexes
- Israel before the Second Temple Period
- The Restoration
- Hellenism, Judaism, and the Maccabees
- Apocalypticism
- Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls
- Scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, and Sanhedrin
- Enter the Romans
- Roman Rule
- Jesus the Jew
- Israel in Revolt
- Jewish Foundations of New Testament Views of Christ
Top Highlights
“They attribute Israel’s suffering to its own sins. Nonetheless, they say that if they die loyal to Torah, God will raise them to new life. The idea of resurrection is something we have not encountered so far. There is not much idea of an afterlife in the Hebrew Bible. Sheol, where all humans go after death, is a place of rather shadowy existence.” (Page 111)
“the Stoics were pantheists, believing in the unity and divinity of the universe” (Page 100)
“ citizenry would assemble in a meeting called the ekklēsia” (Page 95)
“The Second Temple period (520 b.c.e. to 70 c.e.) has a clear beginning and end, and its character, although it develops over time, is somewhat consistent. The building of the second temple was a new beginning in Israel’s history, society, and religion. In crucial ways, Israel was very different at the beginning of the Second Temple period from what it was just before that.” (Page 2)
“Hellenism was less apparent among the lower than the upper classes, and there might be different attitudes toward Hellenism within the upper classes themselves. Hellenization was strongest where trade and other sorts of interaction were greatest, and was less apparent in isolated mountain towns in Asia Minor or parts of the highlands of Judea.” (Page 97)
This is the ideal textbook for Second Temple Judaism, beautifully crafted, masterful in its exposition, reliable in its facts, sympathetic in its attitude. . . . [Murphy] has taken a complex and diffuse subject, Judaism before 70, and presented it with structure, clarity, and purpose.
—Jacob Neusner, distinguished service professor of the History and Theology of Judaism, Bard College
This is not only a history of the Jewish people in the Second Temple period, but specifically a history of the religion, that highlights major religious trends. . . . A splendid textbook for colleges and seminaries.
—John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament Criticism and Interpretation, Yale Divinity School
Written by a distinguished scholar and award-winning teacher, this volume is both a reliable reference tool and the perfect textbook for a course in Second Temple Judaism. Murphy helps us to appreciate better the Jewish world of Jesus and of the first Christians in all its richness and diversity.
—Daniel J. Harrington, professor of New Testament, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
This is a textbook for courses on Early Judaism, designed to provide the historical and literary background needed for New Testament study. . . . Each chapter is accompanied by a bibliography. Glossary and an index will serve the student well, as does the text itself.
—International Review of Biblical Studies
We have here a competently written textbook for beginners that explains in jargon-free language the accepted wisdom of mainline scholarship taken from many disparate historical sciences on the issues in question. . . . The overall portrait of early Judaism is presented here with sympathy and depth.
—Religious Studies Review
- Title: Early Judaism: The Exile to the Time of Jesus
- Author: Frederick J. Murphy
- Publisher: Baker Academic
- Publication Date: 2006
- Pages: 496
Frederick J. Murphy (1949–2011) was, for more than 25 years, a professor of New Testament at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. He authored numerous books, including Fallen Is Babylon: The Revelation to John, Early Judaism: The Exile to the Time of Jesus, and An Introduction to Jesus and the Gospels.
Reviews
1 rating
Alessandro
6/2/2021
Dave Thawley
4/13/2016
I'm not quite sure how I am going to get on with a book that starts off (p7) saying that the bible is biased I think I will prefer Gods view than anyone elses. I'm hoping it will get better.
