In the first of four volumes on A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, Lester Grabbe presents a comprehensive history of Judah (Aramaic Yehud) during the Persian Period. Among the many crucial questions he addresses are: What are the sources for this period and how do we evaluate them? And how do we make them "speak" to us through the fog of centuries? Grabbe argues that there is a danger of seeing everything from a Judaeo-centric point of view, or using the biblical texts and out-of-date secondary material to provide the main perspective in understanding history, whereas any scholar writing about this period should be familiar with the classical historians and the Near Eastern sources as well. This study brings together and analyzes the original sources, sifts and evaluates the secondary sources, develops a substantial historical synthesis, and points to areas where further research is needed. Yehud: A History of the Persian Province of Judah offers the most up to date and comprehensive examination of the political and administrative structures; the society and economy; the religion, temple and cult; the developments in thought and literature; and the major political events.

An internationally respected expert on the Second Temple period provides a fully up-to-date introduction to this crucial area of Biblical Studies. This introduction, by a world leader in the field, provides the perfect guide to the Second Temple Period, its history, literature, and religious setting. Lester Grabbe magisterially guides the reader through the period providing a careful overview of the most studied sources, the history surrounding them and the various currents within Judaism at the time. This book will be a core text for courses on the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, as well as Qumran, Intertestamental Literature and Early Judaism.

This is the fourth and fi nal volume of Lester L. Grabbe's four-volume history of the Second Temple period, collecting all that is known about the Jews during the period in which they were ruled by the Roman Empire. Based directly on primary sources such as archaeology, inscriptions, Jewish literary sources and Greek, Roman and Christian sources, this study includes analysis of the Jewish diaspora, mystical and Gnosticism trends, and the developments in the Temple, the law, and contemporary attitudes towards Judaism. Spanning from the reign of Herod Archelaus to the war with Rome and Roman control up to 150 CE, this volume concludes with Grabbe's holistic perspective on the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period.

For the first time, Jewish history is presented according to authentic Jewish sources; well researched and clearly illustrated with photos, charts, and maps. Vol. I: The Second Temple Era: The era of the Second Commonwealth from the Destruction of the First Temple to the Destruction of the Second.

This is the second volume of the projected four-volume history of the Second Temple period. It is axiomatic that there are large gaps in the history of the Persian period, but the early Greek period is possibly even less known. This volume brings together all we know about the Jews during the period from Alexander's conquest to the eve of the Maccabaean revolt, including the Jews in Egypt as well as the situation in Judah. Based directly on the primary sources, which are surveyed, the study addresses questions such as administration, society, religion, economy, jurisprudence, Hellenism and Jewish identity. These are discussed in the context of the wider Hellenistic world and its history. A strength of the study is its extensive up-to-date secondary bibliography (approximately one thousand items).

This is the fourth and final volume of Lester L. Grabbe's four-volume history of the Second Temple period, collecting all that is known about the Jews during the period in which they were ruled by the Roman Empire. Based directly on primary sources such as archaeological inscriptions, Jewish literary sources and Greek, Roman and Christian sources, this study includes analysis of the Jewish diaspora, mystical and Gnosticism trends, and the developments in the Temple, the law, and contemporary attitudes towards Judaism. Spanning from the reign of Herod Archelaus to the war with Rome and Roman control up to 135 CE, this volume concludes with Grabbe's holisitc perspective of the Jews And Judaism in the Second Temple Period.