Sermon Tone Analysis

400 Years of Silence

Malachi

Israel’s History between Malachi and the birth of Jesus Christ

They were still under the rule of the Mede-Persian Empire at the closing of the Old Testament canon

They had the second Temple and the walls of Jerusalem had been rebuilt.

(Ezra and Nehemiah)

They had the priestly line of Aaron but:

No recorded Scriptures

No prophets

No king on the throne of Israel but Zerubbabel was a puppet king from the line of David (Haggai , Zechariah, and Malachi)

Zerubbable

Next they came under the authority of the Greeks when Alexander the Great conquered the known world

When he died and his kingdom was divided by his four generals, Israel came under the rule of the Seleucids after a long struggle with the Ptolemy the general who ruled Egypt

Only the Apochrapha

Sadducees and Pharisees

During this time Grecian influence was becoming strong in Palestine.

A party arose among the Jews called the Hellenists, who were very eager to bring Grecian culture and thought into the nation and to liberalize some of the Jewish laws.

This forced a split into two major parties.

There were those who were strong Hebrew nationalist, who wanted to preserve everything according to the Mosaic order.

They resisted all the foreign influences that were coming in to disrupt the old Jewish ways.

This party became known as the Pharisees, which means "to separate."

They were the separationists who insisted on preserving traditions.

They grew stronger and stronger, becoming more legalistic and rigid in their requirements, until they became the target for some of the most scorching words our Lord ever spoke.

They had become religious hypocrites, keeping the outward form of the law, but completely violating its spirit.

On the other hand, the Hellenists -- the Greek lovers -- became more and more influential in the politics of the land.

They formed the party that was known in New Testament days as the Sadducees, the liberals.

They turned away from the strict interpretation of the law and became the rationalists of their day, ceasing to believe in the supernatural in any way.

We are told in the New Testament that they came again and again to the Lord with questions about the supernatural, like "What will happen to a woman who has been married to seven different men?

In the resurrection, whose wife will she be?" () They did not believe in a resurrection, but in these questions they were trying to put Jesus on the spot.

On the other hand, the Hellenists -- the Greek lovers -- became more and more influential in the politics of the land.

They formed the party that was known in New Testament days as the Sadducees, the liberals.

They turned away from the strict interpretation of the law and became the rationalists of their day, ceasing to believe in the supernatural in any way.

We are told in the New Testament that they came again and again to the Lord with questions about the supernatural, like "What will happen to a woman who has been married to seven different men?

In the resurrection, whose wife will she be?" () They did not believe in a resurrection, but in these questions they were trying to put Jesus on the spot.During this time due to influence of Greek culture two religious groups were formed in Israel.

The Pharisees who resisted the influence of the culture.

The Sadduccees who were Hellenist had accepted the Greek culture

Samaritans and Jews

“Now there was also a young rebel Jewish priest who married a Samaritan, went down to Samaria, and in rebellion against the Jewish laws, built a temple on Mount Gerizim that became a rival of the temple in Jerusalem.

This caused intense, fanatical rivalry between the Jews and the Samaritans, and this rivalry is also reflected in the New Testament.”—Ray

Stedman

The Septuagint

Also during this time, in Egypt, under the reign of one of the Ptolemies, the Hebrew scriptures were translated for the first time into another language, in about 284 B.C.

A group of 70 scholars was called together by the Egyptian king to make a translation of the Hebrew scriptures.

Book by book they translated the Old Testament into Greek.

When they had finished, it was given the name of the Septuagint, which means 70, because of the number of translators.

This became the Greek version of the Hebrew Bible.

From it many of the quotations in the New Testament are derived.

That is why New Testament quotations of Old Testament verses are sometimes in different words -- because they come from the Greek translation.

The Septuagint is still in existence today, and is widely used in various parts of the world.

It is still a very important document.

Antiochus Epiphanes, the mad man

He ended the Aaronic priesthood

Onias the Third was the last of the hereditary line of priests.

Antiochus Epiphanes sold the priesthood to Jason, who was not of the priestly line.

Jason, in turn, was tricked by his younger brother Menelaus, who purchased the priesthood and then sold the golden vessels of the temple in order to make up the tribute money.

Epiphanes overthrew the God-authorized line of priests.

Then, and under his reign, the city of Jerusalem and all the religious rites of the Jews began to deteriorate as they came fully under the power of the Syrian king.

His first act was to depose the high priest in Jerusalem.

thus ending the long line of succession, beginning with Aaron and his sons through the many centuries of Jewish life.

Onias the Third was the last of the hereditary line of priests.

Antiochus Epiphanes sold the priesthood to Jason, who was not of the priestly line.

Jason, in turn, was tricked by his younger brother Menelaus, who purchased the priesthood and then sold the golden vessels of the temple in order to make up the tribute money.

Epiphanes overthrew the God-authorized line of priests.

Then, and under his reign, the city of Jerusalem and all the religious rites of the Jews began to deteriorate as they came fully under the power of the Syrian king.

He defiled the Temple

In 171 B.C. Antiochus invaded Egypt and once again Palestine was caught in the nutcracker of rivalry.

Palestine is the most fought-over country in the world, and Jerusalem is the most captured city in all history.

It has been pillaged, ravished, burned and destroyed more than 27 times in its history.

While Antiochus was in Egypt, it was reported that he had been killed in battle, and Jerusalem rejoiced.

The people organized a revolt and overthrew Menelaus, the pseudo-priest.

When report reached Antiochus (who was very much alive in Egypt) that Jerusalem was delighted at the report of his death, he organized his armies and swept like a fury back across the land, falling upon Jerusalem with terrible vengeance.

He overturned the city, regained his power, and guided by the treacherous Menelaus, intruded into the very Holy of Holies in the temple itself.

Some 40,000 people were slain in three days of fighting during this terrible time.

When he forced his way into the Holy of Holies, he destroyed the scrolls of the law and, to the absolute horror of the Jews, took a sow and offered it upon the sacred altar.

Then with a broth made from the flesh of this unclean animal, he sprinkled everything in the temple, thus completely defiling and violating the sanctuary.

It is impossible for us to grasp how horrifying this was to the Jews.

They were simply appalled that anything like this could ever happen to their sacred temple.

Judas Maccabaeus and the Asmonean family

Defeat Antiochus Epiphanes, cleanse the Temple - Hanukkah

Become the priest

The Maccabees, who were of the Asmonean family, began a line of high priests known as the Asmonean Dynasty.

Their sons, for about the next three or four generations, ruled as priests in Jerusalem, all the time having to defend themselves against the constant assaults of the Syrian army who tried to recapture the city and the temple.

During the days of the Maccabees there was a temporary overthrow of foreign domination, which is why the Jews look back to this time and regard it with such tremendous veneration.

Make a pact with Rome

smonean Dynasty.

Their sons, for about the next three or four generations, ruled as priests in Jerusalem, all the time having to defend themselves against the constant assaults of the Syrian army who tried to recapture the city and the temple.

During the days of the Maccabees there was a temporary overthrow of foreign domination, which is why the Jews look back to this time and regard it with such tremendous veneration.

Daniel the prophet had said the sanctuary would be polluted for 2300 days.

() In exact accordance with that prophecy, it was exactly 2300 days -- six and a half years -- before the temple was cleansed.

It was cleansed under the leadership of a man now famous in Jewish history, Judas Maccabaeus.

He was one of the priestly line who, with his father and four brothers, rose up in revolt against the Syrian king.

They captured the attention of the Israelites, summoned them to follow them into battle, and in a series of pitched battles in which they were always an overwhelming minority, overthrew the power of the Syrian kings, captured Jerusalem, and cleansed the temple.

The day they cleansed the temple was named the Day of Dedication, and it occurred on the 25th day of December.

On that date Jews still celebrate the Feast of Dedication each year.

The Maccabees, who were of the Asmonean family, began a line of high priests known as the Asmonean Dynasty.

Their sons, for about the next three or four generations, ruled as priests in Jerusalem, all the time having to defend themselves against the constant assaults of the Syrian army who tried to recapture the city and the temple.

During the days of the Maccabees there was a temporary overthrow of foreign domination, which is why the Jews look back to this time and regard it with such tremendous veneration.

During this time, one of the Asmonean priests made a league with the rising power in the West, Rome.

He signed a treaty with the Senate of Rome, providing for help in the event of Syrian attack.

Though the treaty was made in all earnestness and sincerity, it was this pact which introduced Rome into the picture and history of Israel.