Reading Wright, NTPG, Chapter 6

This week I continue in The New Testament and the People of God with chapter 6 (pp 147-66) as Wright begins part 3 of his book on first century Judaism with the setting of the story. Chapters 6-10 attempt to orient the reader to the first century by describing how the Jews got here (and what ‘here’ is; ch 6), what is their response (ch 7), what is their worldview and beliefs (ch 8-9), and what do they hope for (ch 10)?

Israel is under Roman rule, in the Second Temple period, in a long-considered ‘exile’ that began (for Judea) in 587 BC, when the first temple (built by Solomon) was destroyed. Though the Jews have returned to the land and rebuilt the temple, the presence of Gentile rulers was still indicative of ongoing exile.

Alexander the Great conquered much of the known world in the fourth century BC and Hellenism spread throughout the region, with Greek language, thought, and culture becoming dominant. Suffering under multiple tyrants, Israel was briefly able to free themselves under the Hasmoneans in the second century BC, only to be reconquered by Pompey (Rome) in the first century BC, barely 100 years later.

Wright emphasizes the multiplicity of cults and the numerous gods and pagan practices throughout the Roman empire (p 154-56). Like some American cities with ‘a church on every corner,’ first century space was “full of reminders of the pagan way of life.” (p 155) To a Jew, this would be highly offensive.

The Jews were distinct among all of the various cultures for worshiping one god; the surrounding cultures considered the Jews atheists because of this odd form (they did not worship ‘the gods’). However, the Jews were given an exception to the Roman law that required sacrifice to the gods. The Romans, like those before them, found the Jews to be quite stubborn in their insistence of worshiping only one god!

Post Jesus, in the latter half of the first century AD and early second century, the Jews revolted twice; the first resulted in the temple’s destruction a second time (70 AD) and the second resulted in a complete loss and dispersal (135 AD).

I think one of the most significant takeaways from this chapter (and it will be reinforced in subsequent chapters) is the perspective of the Jewish people at the time of Jesus: we are in exile, under foreign rule, because of our lack of faithfulness to God. The solution, as we will see in the next chapter, will vary.