Rays of Hope, Unit 3, Old Testament, Hellenism, Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocrypha, etc.

1. The Rays of Hope
An Introduction to the Old Testament
Rev. Dn. K.A. George
(Book 3)

2. Lesson 1 – Greek Religion
• Greek culture influenced Judaism. This
influence is called Hellenism or
Hellenization
• Second Temple Judaism (515 BCE to 70
CE) 515 reconstruction of Temple & 70
destruction of Temple by Romans.
• (sometimes known as Intertestamental
Period)

3. Lesson 1 – Greek Religion
• Philip the Macedon and Alexander the
Great (whose tutor was Aristotle)
• 356-323 B.C – Alexander‟s Conquest is
said to have visited Jerusalem.
• After Alexander Palestine ruled by
Ptolemaic (Egyptian) and Seleucid
(Syrian)
• Antiochus Epiphanes (Seleucid Ruler)
tried extreme Hellenization.
Maccabees(Hasmoneans) revolt (167 –
165 BCE)

4. Alexander‟s Empire

5. Lesson 1 – Greek Religion
• Jewish Diaspora within a rising Greek
Culture – Hellenistic Judaism
• Alexandria in Egypt – Septaugint (LXX)
• Despite several centuries of Greek
Influence the Semitic mode of reasoning
dominated.

6. Lesson 2 – Chief Divisions in the
second Temple Period
• Maccabees
-organized rebellion against Antiochus
Epiphanes. Rejection of Hellneization
• Scribes
-Soferim – strict interpretation of Torah
• Pharisees
-special group of scribes
-oral tradition (unwritten Torah) –
Mishnah; Letter & Spirit of Torah

7. • Sadducees
-wealthy conservative; Letter of Torah Alone
• Basic distinction between Pharisees and Sadducees
is how to interpret Jewish law for contemporary life.
• Sanhedrin – Jewish court ; majority were Pharisees
• Essenes
Ascetic community (pre-monasticism); retreated
into desert; believed end was imminent. John the Baptist
• Zealots
Opposed Greek and then later Roman
Occupation
Lesson 2 – Chief Divisions in the
second Temple Period

8. Two Individuals
from 2nd Temple Period
• Philo (15 bc – ad 50) Alexandrian Jew.
Synthesize faith and philosophy
• “And even if there be not as yet any one who is worthy to be
called a son of God, nevertheless let him labour earnestly to be
adorned according to his first-born Logos, the eldest of his
angels, as the great archangel of many names; for he is called,
the authority, and the name of God, and the Word, and man
according to God‟s image, and he who sees Israel.”
• Josephus (ad 37-100)
-Jewish Historian

9. Lesson 3 – Dead Sea Scrolls
• Discovered in 1947. Role of Syrian Bishop

10. Lesson 3 Dead Sea Scrolls
• Useful:
– History of Palestine
– Emergence of Xianity
– Ancient Biblical Manuscripts
• Ex. Aleppo Codex & DS 1000 years apart
but both texts match.

11. Lesson 4 - Apocrypha
• Literally Hidden
• Aka as “Intertestamental Literature” or
“Deuterocanonical Books”
• Tobit – Maccabees Group
• Peshitta includes Tobit-Maccabees
• Different from N.T Apocrypha
• Best Resource OSB or NRSV Bible
• Available in Malayalam Bibles – Catholic
Editions

12. List of Books in Peshitta

13. Lesson 4 - Apocrypha
• Wisdom of Solomon
“wisdom 9:1-9:2
9„O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy,
who have made all things by your word,
2 and by your wisdom have formed
humankind
to have dominion over the creatures you
have made,”
Important in development of Theology of
Logos & Trinitarian Theology