The Rise of Judaism: History

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The Rise of JudaismHistory
Interesting fact For more than 2.5 millennia,
the traditions and observance ascribed to Abraham
and his people have continued to thrive in
societies around the globe, many of them
distinctly hostile to Jewish practice and belief.
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Introduction

• Israelites Hebrews Jews
• Judaism stood apart from other religions because
  of monotheism (belief in one all-powerful god).
• Judaism shares many beliefs with two later
  religions Christianity and Islam.

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Introduction, cont.

• Abraham is regarded as the first Jew.
• He and his followers left Mesopotamia and settled
  in Canaan (now Lebanon, Israel and Jordan) at the
  commandment of God, in 1900 BC.
• Abrahams grandson, Jacob (Israel), had 12 sons
  who each led his own tribe.

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Abrahams Journey to Canaan
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Slavery and Exodus

• Famine caused the Israelites to migrate to Egypt,
  where Jacobs son, Joseph, lived.
• They were eventually enslaved.
• Many of the monuments of Egypts New Kingdom were
  built by Israelite slaves.

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Slavery and Exodus, cont.

• Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt in the 13th
  century BC, possibly when Ramses II ruled.
• Ten Plagues
• Crossing of the Red Sea
• Shortly afterward, Moses received the Ten
  Commandments on Mount Sinai.

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The Ten Commandments

1. I am the Lord your God.
2. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall
   not make for yourself an idol.
3. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of
   your God.
4. Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother.
6. You shall not kill .
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your
   neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife. You
    shall not covet anything that belongs to your
    neighbor.

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The Kingdom of Israel

• The Israelites fought for 200 years before
  successfully reclaiming Canaan.
• Saul became the first king of Israel, uniting the
  12 tribes for the first time.

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The Kingdom of Israel
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The Kingdom of Israel, cont.

• Sauls successor, David, ruled Israel from 1012
  BC to 962 BC, and established Jerusalem as the
  capital.

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The Kingdom of Israel, cont.

• Davids son, Solomon, built the magnificent
  temple in Jerusalem, at the cost of high taxes
  and intensive labor.
• After Solomons death (922 BC), the two southern
  tribes split from Israel to create the kingdom of
  Judah.

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The Divided Kingdoms
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Exile

• Israel was conquered in 722 BC by the Assyrians,
  who scattered the Israelites throughout their
  empire.
• Judah was conquered in 597 BC by the Chaldeans,
  under King Nebuchadnezzar.
• In 586, after a rebellion, they destroyed the
  Temple in Jerusalem and captured many Jews to be
  slaves in Babylon.

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Exile, cont.

• Jews continued to maintain their religion while
  in exile.
• The Chaldeans were conquered in 539 BC by the
  Persians, under Cyrus the Great.
• He allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and
  rebuild the Temple.

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After Exile

• Judah/Israel would eventually be ruled by
• the Greeks (Alexander the Great)
• the Romans
• the Islamic Empire (when it became known as
  Palestine)
• the Ottoman Empire
• Israel would not be an independent state until
  1948.

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The Rise of JudaismSome key beliefs
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Important Aspects of Judaism

• The Torah the first five books of the Jewish
  Bible. Also known as the Books of Moses.
• To Christians, the Jewish Bible (24 books total)
  is known as the Old Testament.
• The Torah records the history of the Jews and is
  a collection of various Jewish holy writings.
• The Talmud has other laws and customs recorded.

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Important Aspects of Judaism, cont.

• Every human being is made in the image of God and
  has infinite worth.
• People work in partnership with God to strive to
  achieve a better world.

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A Few questions
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1. What are the significant events in early Judaism
   and who are the important people associated with
   these events?
2. What was radical about Judaism in its earliest
   days?
3. Whats important about the Ten Commandmentsas a
   covenant and as a code of ethics?
4. How is Judaism significant in history?