Israelite tribes, descended from Abraham, had later become slaves in
Egypt and that God had freed them under the leadership of Moses and
had given them possession of Palestine under the leadership of
Joshua.
The Israelites believed that God had made a covenant with their
ancestors in the days of Moses, saying "I... will be your God, and
ye shall be my people" (Leviticus 26:12). They believed He had given
them a law that required them to worship Him with sacrifices of
animals and foods, such as wheat, and that regulated many aspects of
their behavior. This law included the Ten Commandments. It also
required the Israelites to circumcise their male children and to
refrain from eating certain foods. From the tenth century B.C. the
sacrifices were carried out chiefly in a Temple built by King
Solomon in Jerusalem.
The religion of the ancient Israelites was threatened when they
worshiped other gods or broke the law in other ways. From time to
time, people known as prophets felt moved by God to deliver messages
calling the Israelites to return to the purity of their faith. Over
a period of centuries, books were written containing the law, the
historical traditions of Israel, the messages of the prophets, and
also the poetry and wisdom of the Israelites. These books form the
Jewish Scriptures, or Old Testament. You can find out more about
them in the volume on the Old Testament in this Book Notes series.
NEW TESTAMENT: EXILE AND RETURN
Before the Old Testament books had reached their final form,
disaster struck the Israelites. In 722 B.C. the northern Kingdom of
Israel was conquered by the Assyrian Empire. In 586 B.C. the
southern kingdom of Judah was conquered by the Babylonian Empire,
and the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. Many Israelites were
carried into captivity in Mesopotamia. The people from Judah kept
their identity and their religion in exile. In 539 B.C. the
Babylonian Empire was conquered by the Persian Empire, and the
Persians allowed the people of Judah to return to Palestine, The
modern name for the people--the Jews--is derived from the name Judah.
The return didn't take place all at once, and it was never complete,
but those who returned eventually rebuilt the Temple, and their
religious practices were restored under the leadership of Ezra.
Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament, was now used mostly for
Scripture study and for other religious purposes. The daily language
of the Jews was generally Aramaic, which was widely spoken in the
Middle East. Although the Jews worshiped God with animal sacrifices
in the second Temple in Jerusalem, they also had special
meetinghouses (now called synagogues), where they studied the law
and prayed.
