4.2 The World Jesus Lived In
The northern kingdom of Israel fell to Assyria in 722 BC. The southern kingdom of Judah later fell to Babylon in 586 BC, and many Jews were taken into exile. After Babylon, the Persian Empire allowed many Jews to return and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple. Then the Greeks took control after Alexander the Great. Later, the Jewish people were ruled by Greek successor kingdoms.
In the 160s BC, a Jewish revolt led by the Maccabees won independence from the Seleucid Greeks. This led to the Hasmonean dynasty, a Jewish ruling family.
In Catholic and Orthodox Bibles, there are books called 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees, and they describe events connected to the Maccabean Revolt. These books are not included in most Protestant Bibles, but they are important for understanding Jewish history between the Old and New Testaments.
The Maccabean Revolt is also directly connected to Hanukkah, a yearly Jewish festival usually celebrated in November or December. Hanukkah remembers the rededication of the temple after it had been defiled. The Gospel of John records Jesus being at the temple in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication, known today as Hanukkah.
By the first century BC, there was a power struggle within the Hasmonean family. Rival Jewish leaders appealed to Rome for help. Rome intervened, and the Roman general Pompey entered Jerusalem in 63 BC.
Rome allowed some local rulers to govern under Roman authority. Herod the Great ruled Judea as Rome’s client king.
Jesus was born near the end of Herod’s reign.
After Herod died, parts of his kingdom were divided among his sons, and eventually Judea came under direct Roman governors.
This is the world Jesus lived in during the first century.
The Jewish people were living under Roman rule. Their land had deep religious meaning, but political power was controlled by foreign rulers. Many Jews were hoping for God to act, restore His people, and bring justice.
The Jewish People Were Under Roman Rule
During Jesus’ lifetime, Rome was the dominant empire in the region.
The Roman Empire controlled many lands around the Mediterranean Sea. Rome ruled through governors, soldiers, taxes, local rulers, and political alliances. Jewish life took place under the shadow of Roman power.
Many Jewish people resented Roman rule. Rome was a foreign empire, and its presence raised serious religious and political questions.
If God had made promises to Israel, why were His people still under foreign rule?
If the God of Israel was King, why did pagan empires seem to control the world?
If God had promised restoration, when would He act?
These questions helped shape the atmosphere of Jesus’ time.
Herod and Local Rulers
Rome, however, did not always rule every area directly. Sometimes Rome used local rulers to help maintain control.
Herod the Great ruled Judea before Jesus’ public ministry and is remembered as a powerful builder and a harsh ruler. After Herod’s death, his kingdom was divided among his sons, and different parts of the region were ruled in different ways.
Jesus lived in a world with layers of authority: Roman emperors, Roman governors, local rulers, priests, tax collectors, and religious leaders.
Ordinary people were often caught beneath all of these powers. Because of this, themes like oppression, justice, kingdom, power, loyalty, and deliverance were highly meaningful to the Jews in Jesus’ time.
Galilee and Judea
Jesus grew up in Galilee, a region in the northern part of the land. He was associated especially with Nazareth, a small town in Galilee.
Galilee was not the same as Jerusalem. It had villages, farms, fishing communities, and local synagogues. Many of Jesus’ disciples came from this region. Much of His teaching and healing ministry took place there.
Judea was farther south, and Jerusalem was its most important city. Jerusalem was the center of Jewish worship because the temple was there. Jewish people traveled to Jerusalem for major festivals, sacrifices, and religious gatherings.
Jesus begins much of His ministry among ordinary people in Galilee, but the conflict around Him grows stronger as He approaches Jerusalem.
The Temple Was Central to Jewish Life
The temple in Jerusalem was one of the most important places in Jewish life.
It was connected to worship, sacrifice, prayer, priesthood, purity, festivals, and national identity. For many Jews, the temple represented God’s presence with His people.
The temple was not only a place of worship. It was also socially and politically important. Priests and temple authorities had real influence over public life. Since large crowds gathered there, Roman rulers also paid attention to what happened there. A religious event could easily become politically tense if people started talking about freedom, kingship, Messiah, or resistance to Rome.
Jesus’ relationship to the temple becomes important in the Gospels. His actions and words connected to the temple help explain why some leaders saw Him as a threat.
Jewish Groups Did Not All Think the Same Way
The Jewish world of Jesus’ time was not one single group where everyone agreed on everything. Different Jewish groups had different priorities and beliefs.
The Pharisees were known for their concern with the law, holiness, tradition, and faithful obedience to God in daily life.
The Sadducees were connected to the temple and priestly leadership. They were often associated with the religious ruling class in Jerusalem.
The Essenes withdrew from much of ordinary society because they believed the religious system had become corrupt.
The Zealots and other revolutionary-minded Jews wanted freedom from Roman rule and were willing to resist foreign domination more aggressively.
These groups help show that first-century Judaism was diverse. Jews during this time were debating how to be faithful to God under difficult circumstances.
Jesus’ teachings and conflicts happen inside this larger Jewish world.
Many Jews Were Waiting for God to Act
Many Jewish people were hoping for restoration. They hoped Israel would no longer be ruled by pagan empires like Rome. They wanted Israel restored as God’s people in their own land, under God’s rule. Many hoped God would send a Messiah from the line of David who would rule justly, defeat Israel’s enemies, and restore the kingdom. Many hoped God would forgive Israel’s sins, renew the people, purify worship, and bring them back into faithful covenant relationship with Him. Others focused more on individual spiritual renewal and obedience to God.
They remembered God’s promises to Abraham, Moses, David, and the prophets. They knew the stories of Exodus, covenant, kingship, exile, and return. They hoped God would forgive, restore, judge evil, rescue His people, and bring His kingdom.
There was not only one expectation. Yet many people shared the belief that the world was not as it should be and that God needed to act.
This is the world in which Jesus begins preaching.
When Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God, people already had ideas about God’s rule, justice, and restoration.
When people called Jesus the Messiah, they were using a Jewish title loaded with hope of specific expectations.
When Jesus challenged religious leaders, He was entering real debates about faithfulness, authority, law, mercy, and power.
When crowds followed Him, they were not only looking for interesting religious ideas. Many were hungry for healing, forgiveness, hope, justice, and deliverance.
Jesus’ ministry created strong reactions. Some people saw Him as a prophet, teacher, healer, and possible Messiah. Others saw Him as dangerous, disruptive, or misleading.
Conclusion
Jesus lived in a world shaped by Roman rule, Jewish worship, temple life, religious debate, social pressure, and hope for God’s restoration.
He spoke into a real world filled with oppression, expectation, conflict, and longing for God to act.
In section 4.3, we will look more closely at one of the central themes of Jesus’ teaching: the kingdom of God.