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The Jewish RevoltsJewish people of Jesus' day had a passionate desire for freedom from the domination of the pagan Romans and the oppressive Herod dynasty that had ruled them for many years. Revolt seethed continuously, mostly underground, for mor...
MORESynagogues continued to be a focal point for Jewish life during the first century. By the time Jesus' ministry began, a synagogue was found in most towns of Galilee. The Gospels specifically mention those of Nazareth (Matt. 13:54) and Capernaum (M...
MOREThe TempleWhen King David reigned in Jerusalem, he envisioned a place where God could dwell among his people. He bought land on Mount Moriah, and his son Solomon eventually built the Temple on that site. The beautiful structure became a symbol of ...
MOREA Chronology of Temple Events Approx. 2,000 BC: Abraham was sent to the Moriah area to sacrifice Isaac. Jerusalem was later built on the mountain named Moriah.Approx. 1,000 BC: David captured the Canaanite city of Jebus (2 Sam. 5:6-7) and named it...
MOREAfter reaching the Promised Land, the Israelites were commanded by God to destroy the Canaanite high places (Num. 33:52) so that they would not be tempted to blend worship of the false gods of the land with the worship of Yahweh, the one true God....
MOREJesus focused his ministry in one small place in Israel: Galilee, in the three cities of Korazin, Capernaum, and Bethsaida. Although many people today assume that Galileans were simple, uneducated peasants who lived in an isolated area, the truth ...
MOREThe ark of the covenant was a symbol of God's presence among the Israelites a visual reminder that the one true God had made a covenant with them. It was so important to God that he described the arks construction before describing any other sacre...
MOREAround 250 BC, the people of Pergamum won a great victory against the Galatians. In memory of that event, they built a great altar to Zeus, who was considered to be king of the gods, life-giver, the lord of all, the creator of all; titles that bel...
MOREThe high place at Dan, in northern Israel, dates to 920 BC, when Israel was divided into the northern (Israel) and the southern (Judah) kingdoms.The high place measured 62 feet square and was surrounded by a wall. On top of the high place were bui...
MOREThe Holy of Holies was reached by climbing two steps. This provided the symbolism of going up to God that is so central to the biblical idea of worship.In this small room were two standing stones. Scholars debate whether these stones represented t...
MOREThis room was the priests' court, which contained several key elements of the worship of Yahweh.Unseen just inside the opening is a stone bench, and across from the bench are the two incense altars at the entrance to the Holy of Holies. The bench ...
MORE' A building where people woship divine beings. God told Israel to build him a temple and worship him there. God showed his people that he was with them by having his presence in the temple. In the New Testament, we learn that the new temple is n...
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