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Palace of a Great KingTHE ASSYRIAN EMPIREAssyria, located in Mesopotamia near the Euphrates River, was one of the great empires of the ancient world. Its history parallels much of the Old Testament. Known for their ruthlessness in battle and horri...
MORERabbi and TalmidimThe people of Galilee were the most religious Jews in the world in the time of Jesus. This is quite contrary to the common view that the Galileans were simple, uneducated peasants from an isolated area. This perspective is probab...
MOREFour views of JudaismIn Jesus' day, there were varying philosophies within the Jewish faith. While some Jews embraced the Roman rulers, others resisted with violence. And whereas some Jewish believers lived a simple, isolated lifestyle, others enj...
MOREThe Passover For the Jewish people, Passover was more than a religious observance. It was the time of year when they celebrated liberation from Egyptian bondage.During Jesus' time, they also used this opportunity to express their longing for polit...
MOREThe second commandment forbade making images. Hellenistic culture glorified the human form. These two world views clashed in the days of Herod as he tried (and largely succeeded) to mold his kingdom into a Hellenistic one. He imported great number...
MOREThe early writers and readers of the Scriptures viewed their world in concrete, rather than abstract, terms. Because of this, they used word pictures and symbolic actions rather than formal definitions to describe God and his relationship with his...
MOREOne day a student came to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what is the greatest commandment?"You might recall that Jesus included "Love God" and "Love your neighbor" in his response. Do you remember, however, that Jesus ans...
MOREThis photograph is taken from Mount Arbel on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee near Tiberias. The hilltop where Susita (Hippos) was located is clearly visible on the eastern shore. Towering over the Sea of Galilee, Susita is connected to the...
MOREA short story that is told to show how one thing is like another. Most of the parables in the Bible are stories used by Jesus. These parables teach us what the kingdom of God is like.
MOREA person from the country of Samaria (part of Palestine). The Samaritans were hated by the Jews because they had married non-Jews. They also worshiped God differently from the Jews. But Jesus showed his love for the Samaritans by going to them and...
MOREWhen Israel divided after Solomon's death (926 BC), the tribe of Judah under Rehoboam became the southern kingdom, or Judah. In 586 BC, God punished the people for their sins by exiling them to Babylon for 70 years. Jesus was born of this tribe.
MOREA Roman political office; meant one-fourth of a kingdom. When Herod died, his three sons and others received parts of his kingdom; two sons become tetrarchs, one an ethnarch.
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