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People in the ancient world worshipped a multitude of different gods. Each had its own story, its own myth, of the origin, the character, the blessings and curses they offered, and the worship each demanded. These myths often recalled ancient even...
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He Went To The SynagogueThe New Testament records more than 10 occasions on which the ministry of Jesus took place in the synagogue. The Gospels record that "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues." Yet the Christian...
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Hellenism: Center of the UniverseSatan tempted the first humans in the Garden of Eden in a clever way. "Did God really say...?" (Gen. 3:1) he asked. Adam and Eve were faced with an earthshaking choice. Who or what is the ultimate source ...
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The Greatest CityLocated at the most critical mountain pass on the Via Maris, Megiddo was the greatest city in the ancient world.In ancient times, Megiddo towered above the Plain of Jezreel. It was located along the Via Maris, the primary trade ro...
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A Picture of HellGehenna A sewer channel commonly ran under the streets of ancient cities. It traveled through the city gate and emptied into a nearby valley. Though the channels were probably used to drain rainwater from the towns, people also us...
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Who Was Baal? Baal was the primary god of the Canaanite fertility cults. He was often depicted as a man with the head and horns of a bull, who carried a lightening bolt symbolizing destruction and fertility.Baal supposedly won his dominance by def...
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God allowed his people to employ cultural practices and ideas if they had no pagan content and were used only in God's service. Because the people of the ancient Near East honored their gods by worshiping them on high places, God allowed his peopl...
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In Galilee, the ancient village of Qatzrin has been excavated and reconstructed. Although it was populated centuries after Jesus' time, scholars believe that the buildings and artifacts discovered there represent the practices of the first century...
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Jerusalem's Hinnom Valley marked the western and southern edges of Jerusalem, beginning along the Western Hill and ending where the Tyropean and Kidron Valleys meet. In the Old Testament, it was often the site where people of Judah sacrificed thei...
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Jesus spent a lot of time in synagogues (Matt. 4:23). He taught in them (Matt. 13:54), healed in them (Luke 4:33'35; Mark 3:1-5), and debated the interpretation of Torah in them (John 6:28-59).His life seems to have followed Jewish education patte...
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Jewish Feasts In the Old Testament, God instituted a religious calendar for the Israelites to follow. Within each year, there were seven specified feasts (Lev. 23), four in the spring and three each fall. Through these feasts, the Jewish people ce...
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Did John the Baptist live at Qumran? See the Dead Sea Scrolls? Write any of them? These questions have gripped scholars because the Dead Sea Scrolls reveal remarkable similarities between the Essenes and John's teachings and practices:- John the B...
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