Chapter 3: The World around the New Testament

teachers

In the church, those who are skilled in explaining the Scriptures, like Apollos (Acts 18:24-28).

Pharisees

The Jewish conservatives of Jesus's day who focused on the strict study and practice of God's commandments in the Torah and the rabbinic traditions that developed along those lines. Their name derives from the idea of being "separate" from others, and their focus was on purity or ritual cleanness. Their roots are from the Maccabean period, with its fervor for rediscovering and defending traditional Judaism.

synagogue

The local place where Jews gather to worship, pray, and study the Hebrew Bible.

Maccabees

The nickname, meaning "hammers," given to Judas and his rebel followers who revolted successfully against the Syrians in 167 BC. His family, the Hasmonean Dynasty, continued to rule until Roman occupation in 63 BC.

Second Temple period

The period from 515 BC to AD 70 (or AD 135), from the Jews' return from exile to the destruction of the temple, which provides the complex background to Jesus and early Christianity.

asceticism

The practice of strict religious devotion, often self-renunciation of worldly pleasures.

redemption

The purchase or buying back of something. In the New Testament, it often is associated with God's salvation, or purchase, of his people through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

shepherds

Those who are responsible for overseeing the church in general, including the preaching of the Word.

Am ha-Eretz

"The people of the land," the poor, rural, less-educated Jewish people during Jesus's day.

Stoicism

A Greek philosophy that found virtue in accepting fate and mastering one's passions so that one might live in accordance with the logical ordering of the universe.

Cynicism

A Greek philosophy that rejected conventional desires but found virtue in a simple, independent lifestyle.

Epicureanism

A Greek philosophy that rejected determinism in favor of free will, finding virtue in living in the present and pursuing pleasure in the form of mental peace and freedom from anxiety.

Torah

A Hebrew term meaning "covenantal instructions," referring to the Law of Moses. It is also often used as a synonym for "Pentateuch."

Josephus (AD 37-100)

A Jewish general who surrendered to the Romans in AD 70 and ended up living in Rome, where he wrote several important works including the lengthy History of the Jewish War, and from whom much of our information about Second Temple Judaism comes.

Zealots

A Jewish group that focused on Jewish political independence from their Roman oppressors, often engineering assassinations, kidnappings, and Robin Hood-like attacks and thefts on Roman caravans.

lawyers

A Jewish professional class of experts in the law, closely associated with the scribes.

scribes

A Jewish professional class who taught, copied, and interpreted the law.

centurion

A class designation for an important captain of one hundred soldiers (Luke 7:1-10; Acts 10:1; 27:1).

Old Testament Pseudepigrapha

A collection of stories and prophecies that are ascribed to famous people from biblical times, such as Enoch, Solomon, and Abraham.

Hellenization

Alexander the Great's campaign to spread throughout the world the superiority of Greek language, culture, and philosophy.

Palestine

Also known as Roman Judea, the region roughly between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River where most of Jesus's ministry took place.

historical-critical method

An academic discipline that focuses on the historical setting of documents (author, date, location, audience, etc.).

Apostolic Fathers

The Christian leaders of the generation after the original apostles. Their writings include letters from Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, and Polycarp, as well as the Didache, which gives instructions about early Christian practice, and the popular Shepherd of Hermas, which includes visions, instructions, and allegorical parables.

patron-client relationships

An institution vital to the culture and community of the Roman Empire. Patrons often were wealthier members of society who might provide money, grain, employment, land, or social advancement for their clients. In exchange, the socially and financially lesser client was obligated to express gratitude and to publicize the favor of the patron and thereby contribute to his reputation.

Apocrypha

Fourteen or fifteen books (depending on how portions are calculated) in Greek that were produced during the Second Temple period. The Apocrypha consists of additions to some of the Hebrew books (additional parts of Esther and Daniel); some prayers and psalms; instructions in wise living; enjoyable novellas like Susanna, Tobit, and Judith; and the four large histories of the Maccabean period (1-4 Maccabees).

Midrash

From a Hebrew word meaning "to seek answers." Midrash seeks to answer contemporary theological and practical questions by investigating the Scriptures. It consists of two categories: halakah, which inquires about laws and religious practices, and haggadah, which interprets biblical narratives.

Mishnah

From a Hebrew word meaning "to study by repetition/review." The Mishnah is a written collection of oral teachings of various rabbis.

God-fearers

Gentiles who were attracted to Judaism, perhaps participating in some aspects of Judaism without fully converting.

Philo (20 BC-AD 50)

A highly educated Jewish philosopher in Alexandria, Egypt, which was the intellectual capital of the world at that time. Philo integrated the Greek philosophical system and methods of interpreting texts with Jewish thought and study of the Old Testament. His extensive writings were influential not only for Jews but also for many early Christian theologians.

Son of God

A messianic title used for Jesus throughout the New Testament. He is the unique, beloved Son of God, who is not created but who shares the divine identity; who is the final and true arbiter of God's knowledge and wisdom in the world; who is the Messiah, who is the fulfillment of all the promises, hopes, and images of God's saving work in the world; and who exists in a unique father-son relationship with the God of Israel.

Essenes

A priestly Jewish group who focused on asceticism (typically including celibacy) and the rejection of the current priesthood as fraudulent.

monotheism

A religious belief that there is only one true and superior god.

rabbi

A teacher of Jewish law. These teachers became a fixture within Judaism during the Second Temple period as their sayings and interpretations were memorized and written down.

Dead Sea Scrolls

A wide collection of writings that came from a community of Jews who had separated themselves from the rest of Judaism. This diverse library of some eight hundred writings includes copies of the biblical texts, commentaries and paraphrases on the Bible, pseudepigraphal writings, devotional material, and instructions about the community's life together.

Sadducees

Jewish people usually from the families that controlled the priesthood and political power going back to the later generations of the Hasmonean dynasty. This group typically was wealthy, controled taxes and temple activities, and was in political relationship with the Roman government. They were followers of Moses and honored the Torah as binding, but not other writings such as the Prophets or other beliefs that had developed in the Second Temple period, such as the bodily resurrection and angels. As those in control of wealth and power, they had little interest in the hope for a messiah to come and overthrow the government to establish a new kingdom.

Herodians

Jewish people who supported the Herodian dynasty and were therefore part of the Roman imperial establishment.

Gemara

Later expansions and sayings of the Mishnah.

prophets

People filled with the Spirit who spoke words of direction and encouragement (Judg. 3:10; 1 Sam. 10:10; Acts 15:32; 21:10; 1 Cor. 14:29-32; Eph. 3:5).

Samaritans

Samaria was the area north of Judea and south of Galilee in ancient Israel but was destroyed by the Assyrians in 722 BC. There were centuries of conflict and hatred between the Samaritans, who considered themselves Jews, and the other Jewish people of the surrounding areas. The Samaritans had their own version of the Pentateuch, along with their own temple on Mount Gerizim. By Jesus's time the Jews avoided the Samaritans completely (John 4:9), even traveling long distances to avoid going through their region.

honor-shame culture

The dominant relational culture in Jesus's day. Honor is like a currency that gives people status in society (much like money does in modern Western societies). Honor is granted according to what the society values and often promotes a more group-oriented society. Conversely, one receives shame by not conforming to the established standards of good and bad. Jesus's teaching often pushed against aspects of the honor-shame culture. The first become last (Matt. 19:30), the persecuted and ridiculed are honored (Matt. 5:10-12), the lame and blind and poor are welcomed and lifted up (Luke 14:15-24).

Herodian dynasty

The dynasty of Herod the Great and his family from 37 BC until the destruction of the temple in 70 AD.

Hasmonean dynasty

The dynasty of the Maccabee family following the Jewish revolt against the Syrians in 167 BC.

Pentateuch

The five books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

proconsul

The governor of a Roman province.

high priest

The highest-ranking priest of Israel, from the line of Aaron.

pastors

Those who are responsible for overseeing the church in general, including the preaching of the Word.

Roman emperor

The supreme ruler of the Roman Empire.

symbolic world

The system of values, habits, and beliefs that operates at a conscious and subconscious level.

patriarchs

The three main ancestors of Israel: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

deacons/deaconesses

Those responsible for helping with the practical service needs of the church.

elders

Those who are responsible for overseeing the church in general, including the preaching of the Word.

Targums

Translations of the Hebrew Scriptures into Aramaic, the language commonly used in Palestine and probably what Jesus spoke.

Talmuds

Written collection of various rabbinical teachings and sayings, called the Mishnah, with later expansions and sayings, called the Gemara.