Latest Resources
Pharisees
They weren’t priests, but they weren’t commoners. So who were the Pharisees and what was their role in Jewish life? Find out here. By Jesus' day, it was common for Jewish people to meet in private homes for worship and to study the Scriptures. This practice had begun in the later second century B.C. and continued in the first century A.D. One group…
READ MOREZealots
They were the rebels of Palestine. Read about who they were and what they believed in. The Maccabees, as discussed earlier, insisted that the Jewish people have their own king. They were defeated when the Romans took over the land in 63 B.C. Later attempts to win freedom and create an independent Jewish state failed in A.D. 70 and again…
READ MOREClass and Rank in the Roman Empire
In ancient Rome, social class was everything. It determined a person’s rights, privileges and opportunities. The Roman Empire had a class structure based on wealth, birth, and citizenship. At the very top of Roman society was the emperor, who was considered the empire's “first citizen.” Some emperors even declared themselves to be equal with the gods. Below the emperor were…
READ MORETax Collecting During The Roman Rule
Two things never change – death and taxes. The Roman Empire was not an exception. Read about what taxes financed and who collected taxes in the Roman Empire. Though many peoples and cultures contributed to the cultural life in Palestine in Jesus' day, the Romans were by far the most powerful. They controlled the land with strong, well-trained armies. The…
READ MORELocal Governments
The Roman Empire used local rulers to maintain order in the regions they conquered. Find out who these leaders were and what authority they had. Roman policy was to respect local customs and the laws of the peoples they ruled. They let local people form councils to control local affairs. These councils usually included the wealthy and powerful people in…
READ MOREPalestine Before Roman Rule
Everything in changes. In the years before Roman rule, Palestine changed frequently. Find out what these changes were and how they affected New Testament society. The centuries leading up to Jesus' birth were not politically stable in the area known as Palestine. The Jewish people who returned to Judah from exile in Babylon had been allowed to rebuild their cities…
READ MOREGod’s Word heals and brings hope
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