First century life in palestine :

1. First century life in palestine: Romans and Jews

2. ROMAN RULE • In first century Palestine the Romans were in charge and conquered the country in 63BC • The Romans were harsh rulers. • The Jews were ruled by local ‘kings’ the most famous being Herod the Great who ruled from 37BC until his death in AD4. • After his death the kingdom was divided between three of Herod’s sons who proved to be poor rulers. Consequently the Romans stepped in and ruled Judea directly.

3. ROMAN AUTHORITY • The men who wielded ultimate power were the Procurators (Governors), the most famous being Pontius Pilate. • The Jews responded to this new form of direct Roman authority in different ways....

4. THE PHARISEES • THE PEOPLE’S RELIGIOUS PARTY: • Obeyed the Jewish religious laws and kept themselves apart from ordinary people who were not as devout. • Added their oral (spoken) teachings to the written Law. • The Pharisees hoped for a Messiah – a leader specially chosen and empowered by God to set their country free from foreign rule. • They thought this special leader would be like

5. THE PHARISEES • King David of old and descended from his family. • They believed in a future Kingdom of God and the resurrection of the dead. • The Pharisees were laymen, not priests, and the defended the Law fiercely when the priests forgot it. • The Pharisees were exclusive and powerful but they were the people’s religious party and kept the Jewish faith alive in the towns and villages of first century Palestine.

6. THE SADDUCEES • THE PRIVILEGED PARTY: • The Sadducees were a party of wealthy property owners living in Jerusalem. • Some were priests and some laymen. • They supported the status quo and worked in cooperation with the Romans. • Centred on the great Temple in Jerusalem and all the influence that went with it, they were anxious not to upset the Romans who allowed them such power.

7. THE SADDUCEES • The Sadducees were enemies of the Pharisees and disagreed with them violently. • They were not expecting a Messiah to deliver them form Roman rule. • They did not accept the oral Law which had been added to the written law (the Torah). • They rejected the belief in a resurrection form the dead and did not believe in angels. • They were content with the services of the Jerusalem Temple.

8. THE ESSENES • THE DESERT PARTY: • The Essenes were not mentioned in the Bible but have become well known since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947. • These scrolls belonged to the Essene community who were monks at Qumran near the Dead Sea. • The scrolls were hidden when the Romans invaded Judea in AD66 and remained a secret for almost 19 centuries.

9. THE ESSENES • The community was founded at Qumran after the Maccabean wars. • Some Jews felt religious life was being corrupted, with people preferring winning wars and gaining fame rather than obeying God’s Laws. • The community’s aim was to prepare for the coming of God’s Messiah. • They believed that by living in their monastery in the desert they were obeying the word of the prophet Isaiah:

10. THE ESSENES • “Prepare in the wilderness a road for the Lord! Clear the way in the desert for our God” (Isaiah 40:3).

11. THE ZEALOTS • THE REVOLUTIONARY PARTY: • The Zealots opposed Roman rule totally. • They believed that Israel should be free of the Romans, and carried out terrorist attacks on the Roman troops. • Because the Jewish establishment (the Sadducees, the priests and the wealthy) worked with the Romans, the Zealots hated them. • They desired freedom from Roman rule.