Babylonian and Greco Roman Diasporas

Jews in the Greco-Roman Diaspora (332 BCE-7th century CE)
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Jews in the Greco-Roman Diaspora (332 BCE-7th century CE)

From Text to Tradition Jews in the Hellenistic World Anti-Semitism in the Hellenistic World Historical surveys Shaye J.D. Cohen. “Judaism to the Mishnah- 135-220 C.E.” Part III Lee I. Levine. “Judaism from the Destruction of Jerusalem to the End of the Second Jewish Revolt- 70-135 C.E.” Part III Shaye Cohen. “Roman Domination- The Jewish Revolt […]

Josephus, Antiquities XVIII, 310-79: A Jewish Babylonian Principalit
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Josephus, Antiquities XVIII, 310-79: A Jewish Babylonian Principalit

CHAPTER 9. What Befell The Jews That Were In Babylon On Occasion Of Asineus And Anileus, Two Brethren. 1. A Very sad calamity now befell the Jews that were in Mesopotamia, and especially those that dwelt in Babylonia. Inferior it was to none of the calamities which had gone before, and came together with a great slaughter of them, […]

Josephus, Antiquities XX, 17-95: The Conversion of the House of Adiabene
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Josephus, Antiquities XX, 17-95: The Conversion of the House of Adiabene

Large numbers of non-Jews were interested in Jewish practices in the Greco-Roman world. Yet to the Jews, a particular source of pride was the decision of the royal house of Adiabene, a minor kingdom in Northern Syria, to convert to Judaism. Josephus’ account, probably taken from an earlier source, indicates the requirements of circumcision, study […]

James D. Purvis and Eric Meyers. “Exile and Return: From the Babylonian Destruction to the Reconstruction of the Jewish State.” Part IV
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James D. Purvis and Eric Meyers. “Exile and Return: From the Babylonian Destruction to the Reconstruction of the Jewish State.” Part IV

Excerpted from Ancient Israel From Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple. Ed. Hershal Shanks. Washington, D.C.- Biblical Archaeology Society, 1999. The Exile to Babylonia The rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, were […]

By the Rivers of Babylon
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By the Rivers of Babylon

The Jewish dispersion in Mesopotamia dates from the Assyrian conquest of the kingdom of Israel in 722 B.C.E. The mass deportations which followed brought Jews to the region of northern Mesopotamia. When the Babylonians conquered the kingdom of Judah and deported many of its people to Babylonia in central Mesopotamia in 597 and 586 B.C.E., the new exiles linked […]

Babylonian Jewry (586 BCE-7th century CE)
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Babylonian Jewry (586 BCE-7th century CE)

From Text to Tradition The Early History of Babylonian Jewry By The Rivers of Babylon Historical surveys James D. Purvis, and Eric Meyers. “Exile and Return- From the Babylonian Destruction to the Reconstruction of the Jewish State.” Part IV Primary sources Josephus, Antiquities XX, 17-95- The Conversion of the House of Adiabene Josephus, Antiquities XVIII, […]

Overview: The Babylonian and Greco-Roman Diasporas (586 BCE-7th century CE)
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Overview: The Babylonian and Greco-Roman Diasporas (586 BCE-7th century CE)

Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.–Jeremiah 29 The Babylonian Diaspora did not end with Cyrus’ decree ending the Babylonian Exile in 540 BCE. Most Jews did not return to Jerusalem. The […]

The Babylonian and Greco-Roman Diasporas (586 BCE-7th century CE)
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The Babylonian and Greco-Roman Diasporas (586 BCE-7th century CE)

Overview- The Babylonian and Greco-Roman Diasporas (586 BCE-7th century CE) Babylonian Jewry (586 BCE-7th century CE) Jews in the Greco-Roman Diaspora (332 BCE-7th century CE) Social and Religious Life in Diaspora (332 BCE-7th century CE) Literature of the Jewish Diaspora (332 BCE-7th century CE)

Death of Alexander the Great, 323 BCE
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Death of Alexander the Great, 323 BCE

According to the Astronomical Diaries, a collection of Babylonian texts in which astronomical observations and political events are recorded, Alexander the Great died on June 11, 323 BCE. Alexander marched to Babylon, where he drank heavily at many banquets, and became feverish. He declined rapidly over the next few days, and died of the fever […]

…and the Rise 537, Teddy Kollek and Moshe Pearlman, Jerusalem: Sacred City of Mankind, Steimatzky Ltd., Jerusalem, 1991.
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…and the Rise 537, Teddy Kollek and Moshe Pearlman, Jerusalem: Sacred City of Mankind, Steimatzky Ltd., Jerusalem, 1991.

Less than fifty years later, the great Babylonian empire fell as suddenly as it had arisen, overwhelmed by Cyrus, founder of a new Persian empire.   Babylon, the capital, was taken at the end of they year 539 BC, and by 538 the entire empire came under Persian control, right up to the frontier of […]