The various events narrated in the Bible make readers realize that there is an unbroken trajectory in the history of God's encounter with His people from the Old Testament to the New Testament. However, for some readers, there is a wide gap between the time of Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament and Matthew, the first book of the New Testament. This period is referred to as the intertestamental age. It was a long period during which the Jewish people experienced various changes and challenges after their return from Babylonian captivity. Some of them returned to Jerusalem, but others chose to settle or move to Alexandria, Egypt.
At this time the Hellenizing influence was quite strong, which began with the conquests of king Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. Alexander had great ambitions to control the region from Egypt to India, spreading Greek culture to the conquered territories. This situation eventually affected the social and religious life of the people living in the colonized territories, including the Jewish people. Some struggled to maintain their Jewish traditions, while others began to adapt to Greek culture.
After the death of Alexander the Great various political changes occurred, each succeeding leader had different policies. One notable figure was King Antiochus Epiphanes who attempted to violently Hellenize the Jewish people, including banning Jewish religious practices such as the sabbath and circumcision. In addition, there were rules related to food that were quite sensitive to the Jewish people, namely a kind of “ force ” so that they eat food that is not kosher (not kosher). Not stopping there, during this time the temple was also defiled, which caused great anger among the Jewish people and gave them the courage to risk their lives in rebellion.
Who were the influential figures in leading the rebellion at that time? Where can we find this continuity between the Old and New Testaments? Listen to a fuller review via Bible Talk on the Theme Missing History in the Middle of the Bible?
