HISTORY OF ISRAEL BETWEEN OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS

By Al Maxey in “The silent centuries”

Un resumen de …

RESTORATION & PERSIAN RULE (536-332 BC) 52

Cyrus — (559-530 bc): raises from Media and conquer Persia and Babylon (with the Jews in it), and frees them to return to Jerusalem 53

Darius I— (522-486 bc): payed for the restauration of the Temple 53

Xerxes I — (486-465 bc): married Esther 54

Artaxerxes I — (465-424 BC): Ezra carried more Jews to Israel and reformed the religious life there. Nehemias rebuild the city wall. 54

Darius II (423-404 BC) and Artaxerxes II (404-358 BC):  rebellions and decline of Persia 54

Artaxerxes III — (358-338 BC): Subdued rebellions, but inspired Phillip of Macedon 55

Arses — (338-336 BC) and Darius III — (336-332 BC): defeated by Alexander 55

Greek Rule — The Ptolemies & Seleucids (332-168 BC) 56

Alexander “The Great” (332-323 BC): conquered Egypt and Persia 56

Period of Struggle & The Diadochoi (323-168 BC) 56

The Ptolemies (Egiptians) controled Palestine (323-198 BC) 57

The Seleucids (Sirians) controled Palestine (198-168 BC): for protecting Hannibal they had to pay to Rome (and tax Israel among others) 58

Antiochus IV, Epiphanes (175-163 BC): abused the Jews, forbidding their religion and profaning the Temple 58

The Maccabean Revolt (168-135 BC) against Antiochus. 59

Mattathias (168-166 BC: old priest who refused to eat pork and revolted 59

Judas (166-160 BC): beat the Greek armies and re-consecrated the Temple 60

Jonathan (160-142 BC): keep the peace by diplomatic maneuvering 61

Simon (142-135 BC): made, by the Jews, hereditary High Priest and King 61

The Hasmonean Dynasty, Growth & Decay (135-63 BC) 62

The Romans Enter the Scene. 62

FF. RESTORATION & PERSIAN RULE (536-332 BC)

1. In 722 BC the Northern Kingdom –Israel – was destroyed by the Assyrians, and then in 586 BC the Southern Kingdom –Judah – fell to the Babylonians.
2. The “70 years of captivity”are generally reckoned in one of two ways:
   1. From 606 BC, when the first group of captives was taken, to 536 BC, when the first group of captives returned to their homeland.
   2. From 586 BC, when Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians and the Temple was destroyed, to 516 BC, when the work on the new Temple was completed.

Cyrus — (559-530 bc): raises from Media and conquer Persia and Babylon (with the Jews in it), and frees them to return to Jerusalem

1. In the year 559 BC a thirty year old man named Cyrus, from Media, began his rise to power. Within twenty years he had conquered almost all the then known world, including Media, Persia, and Asia Minor. In 539 BC captured Babylon and Cyrus thus became the undisputed ruler of Asia, which came to be known as the
   Persian Empire.
2. With the capture of Babylon, Cyrus also became the new master of the exiled Jewish people. In his first year as monarch, Cyrus issued his famous decree allowing the Jews to return home and to rebuild their Temple (Ezra 1:1-4).
3. Many Jews did not want to return to Palestine. A total of about 60,000 Jews who took advantage of Cyrus’ offer, and returned in three separate groups, led by three notable men — Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemia.
4. They began to experience opposition from the peoples who were living in the land of Palestine at the time of their return. It was from these Jews who had not been taken captive, and who had intermarried with the pagans, that the Samaritans would come. All work on the Temple ceased for about 14 years. During this time of discouragement, Cyrus was killed in a battle.
5. At the death of Cyrus, his son Cambyses takes the throne 530-522 bc). Cambyses was an epileptic, and toward the end of his reign had become almost completely insane.

Darius I— (522-486 bc): payed for the restauration of the Temple

1. Although he could be an extremely cruel man, he nevertheless proved to be a benefactor to the people of Israel. He ordered the people of the land to allow the Jewish to finish the Temple. He also decreed that funds from the royal treasury be sent to the Jews to expedite the rebuilding of their Temple, which was soon completed (in 516 BC).
2. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah also were active at this time, encouraging the people to resume their work on the Temple. Thirty years after the rebuilding of the Temple, Darius was slain.
3. Very little is known of the 60 years that follow the rebuilding of the Temple. Political power was passing more and more into the hands of the priesthood who were intent upon accommodating the local Palestinians and their culture. Intermarriage with unbelievers was common, as was the increased adoption of their pagan beliefs and practices. This spirit of compromise led to a noticeable deterioration in the spiritual life of the people of Israel.

Xerxes I — (486-465 bc): married Esther

1. At the death of Darius, the throne went to his son Xerxes, who was 35 years old when he ascended the throne in 486 BC.
2. The Greeks, decided to rebel against Persian domination, and after extended battles were able to win their freedom. This may have seemed rather insignificant at the time, but over a century later these Greeks, under the leadership of Alexander the Great, would utterly defeat the Persians and take over the empire — thus, the seed for the later Greek Empire was being planted.
3. The real significance of Xerxes, as concerns the Bible and the Jewish people, is that he was the Persian king who married Esther.

Artaxerxes I — (465-424 BC): Ezra carried more Jews to Israel and reformed the religious life there. Nehemias rebuild the city wall.

1. During Artaxerxes I reign, Ezra requested permission to lead another group of Jews back to their homeland (Ezra 7). Permission was granted and Ezra returned in the year 458 BC with a group of about 1500 Jews (Ezra 8).
2. Upon his arrival, Ezra began a large scale reform, one which was sorely needed. The Jews in Jerusalem were disregarding the Law, and were also divorcing their lawful Jewish wives and marrying the pagan women of the area. Ezra commanded the people to put away their pagan wives, and to turn back to God (Ezra 9-10). Most of the people obeyed, but some refused and were tried in a special court.
3. Another thing that distressed the Jews living in Jerusalem was that their city did not have a wall; it had been destroyed in 586 BC when the city fell to the Babylonians. One of the Jews upset by this was Nehemiah, the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes. When the king learned what was troubling Nehemiah, he allowed him to return to Jerusalem with a small group of his fellow countrymen to lead the efforts to rebuild the walls of the city.
4. About the year 444 BC, the walls around the city of Jerusalem were completed. This event was celebrated with great rejoicing, and with sacrifices to God. That same year, Nehemiah was made Governor of Jerusalem, a position which he held until 425 BC. He also helped to institute additional reforms among the people, which are discussed in the latter half of the biblical book which bears his name.
5. During the reign of Artaxerxes I, the Persian Empire began its gradual decline as a world power. They lost more and more of their previously captured territory. The empire slowly, but surely, began to slip under Greek control.

Darius II (423-404 BC) and Artaxerxes II (404-358 BC):  rebellions and decline of Persia

1. The reign of Darius II, which lasted 19 years, was one filled with intrigue and extreme corruption. Throughout his reign, revolts and rebellions were rampant. The Medes rebelled. The Egyptians rebelled, and even destroyed the places of worship that the Jews had built throughout the land.
2. The reign of Artaxerxes II was plagued with further rebellions against the Persian Empire, and further loss of territory. Egypt declared its independence, as did Cyprus, Phoenicia, and Syria. One after another the western satraps all fell away from the empire. Egypt, allying itself with Sparta and the rebellious satraps, decided to destroy Persia. They formed a large army and began to march toward the capital of the Persian Empire. However, a revolt against Pharaoh Takhos made it necessary for them to abandon their plans and return home. Although this major threat to the empire was averted, the disturbances and revolts continued until the death of Artaxerxes II in 358 BC.

Artaxerxes III — (358-338 BC): Subdued rebellions, but inspired Phillip of Mac
edon

1. When this son of Artaxerxes II took the throne, he determined to restore the power and prestige of the Empire, which was fast declining. Artaxerxes III began his reign by murdering all his brothers and sisters (several dozen in all). He then burned the city of Sidon to the ground for sympathizing with Egypt in their rebellion against the Empire. He soon captured Egypt and then tore down the walls of its principle cities.
2. Following this, the king turned his attention to Greece. The Greeks, fearing that Persia was on the rise again, formed an alliance with Artaxerxes in order to prevent war. Although many of the Greeks agreed with this strategy, others did not. Those who opposed this alliance with Persia, led by Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander, overthrew Athens in 338 BC and gained control of Greece. That same year, an Egyptian eunuch, named Bagoas, murdered Artaxerxes III and all of his sons, except for the youngest, whose name was Arses.

Arses — (338-336 BC) and Darius III — (336-332 BC): defeated by Alexander

1. Bagoas, who had political ambitions of his own, spared Arses in the hope of using him as a puppet king. When Arses began showing signs of having a mind of his own, however, Bagoas poisoned him, just as he had his father. Arses died in the year 336 BC.
2. In looking for someone to replace Arses as a puppet king, Bagoas chose a cousin of Artaxerxes III. However, Bagoas had chosen unwisely. The first act of Darius III was to have Bagoas poisoned. That same year, a twenty-year-old man by the name of Alexander ascended to the throne in faraway Macedonia with a commission from his father to destroy the kingdom of Persia. Alexander wasted no time. In just four short years he had defeated the mighty Persian Empire. Darius III fled to Bacteria where he was murdered by his cousin Bessus. The year was 332 BC, and the Jews found themselves under new masters — The Greeks!

GG. Greek Rule — The Ptolemies & Seleucids (332-168 BC)

Alexander “The Great” (332-323 BC): conquered Egypt and Persia

1. Alexander, the son of Philip of Macedon, was born in the year 356 BC. When he was just 20 years old (336 BC), his father was assassinated and he ascended to the throne of Macedonia. He immediately began to implement his father’s plans for world conquest. He quickly subdued the nations around him and then turned his sights on the mighty Persian Empire.
2. The Egyptians were so thrilled to be rid of Persian domination that they declared Alexander to be the son of their god Ammon, and they dedicated a temple to him in his honor
3. Although Alexander was a great military leader and strategist, perhaps his largest and most lasting accomplishment, historically, was the bringing of Greek culture to the lands he conquered.
4. One of the ironies of history, however, is that even though Alexander succeeded in spreading Hellenism to the nations he conquered; yet he himself, toward the end of his life, became converted to the oriental culture. He began dressing like the Persian kings before him, he took on their customs, and he even began to act cruelly toward those who opposed him. In the city of Persepolis, for example, he killed all the men of the city and enslaved the women. Then, he and his soldiers fought with one another over possession of the plunder.

Period of Struggle & The Diadochoi (323-168 BC)

1. This struggle among the generals continued until 315 BC, at which time it was decided to divide the kingdom four ways among the top four generals:

a. Ptolemy Lagi — who ruled over Egypt, Palestine, Arabia, and Peterea. He was assisted by a general named Seleucus.

b. Antigonus — who controlled Syria, Babylonia, and central Asia.

c. Cassander — who ruled over Macedonia and Greece.

d. Lysimachus — who was the ruler of Thrace and Bythinia.

1. There were frequent outbursts of violence as they sought to gain each other’s territory. Antigonus was probably the worst of the generals. The others finally allied themselves together and drove him out in 312 BC.
2. General Seleucus seized upon this opportunity and took back the territory which had originally been given to him. This area, Syria and Babylonia, now became the Seleucid Dynasty. At the same time, (312) Ptolemy Lagi extended his boundaries northward from Egypt to include the area occupied by the Jews. Thus, the Jews came under the rule of the Ptolemies, which rule they held until 198 BC.
3. After the Battle of Ipsus (301 BC), Seleucus succeeded in taking all the territory previously held by Antigonus; the kingdom of Lysimachus was also absorbed into the Seleucid Dynasty. Thus, with the exception of the small Macedonian kingdom, the entire empire was now controlled by the Seleucids in the North and the Ptolemies in the South. Caught right in the middle of these two struggling factions was Palestine, and it became the source and site of constant conflict between the Seleucids and the Ptolemies. For the first 100 years or so the Ptolemies held the upper hand in the struggle over Palestine, the home of the people of Israel.

The Ptolemies (Egiptians) controled Palestine (323-198 BC)

1. The first group to maintain any real consistent control of Palestine after the death of Alexander was the Ptolemies, who ruled from the land of Egypt. For the most part, they were very good to their Jewish subjects, although they did tax them quite heavily.
2. Ptolemy I, Soter (323-285 Bc) was also known as Ptolemy Lagi, and was one of the Diadochoi. Palestine came under the dominion of the Ptolemies during his reign. He also relocated many of the Palestinian Jews to the land of Egypt where Greek soon became their native language.
3. Ptolemy II, Philadelphus (285-246 bc) was the son of Ptolemy I. Under his rule the Jews, both in Egypt and Palestine, enjoyed a lengthy period of quiet, and also some degree of prosperity. These first several Ptolemies were more concerned with intellectual pursuits than with military matters. In Palestine, the High Priest, aided by a council of priests and elders, was allowed to rule as a political underlord of the Ptolemies. As long as they paid their annual tribute of 20 talents, they were left pretty much alone.
4. In Egypt, the Jews were allowed to build Synagogues to worship and study in, and Alexandria soon became an influential Jewish center. Under the rule of Ptolemy II, the Jewish Scriptures were translated into the Greek language. This translation is known as the Septuagint (LXX), a translation which would become the most popular version of the Scriptures among the Jews of the dispersion, and which would be used a great deal by the writers of the New Testament books.
5. In the year 221 BC, Ptolemy III died and was succeeded by Ptolemy IV, Philopater, who was without a doubt the most cruel and vicious ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He hated the Jews, and as a result persecuted them without mercy. He even attempted to force his way into the Holy of Holies in the Jewish Temple and thus defile it. The Jews detested this madman, and celebrated with great rejoicing at his death in 203 BC.

The Seleucids (Sirians) controled Palestine (198-168 BC): for protecting Hannibal they had to pay to Rome (and tax Israel among others)

1. In 198 BC the Seleucids, under Antiochus III the Great, finally took control of Palestine (at the batle of Palion in the Jordan Valley), which control they held, more or less (mostly less), until the coming of the Romans in 63 BC.
2. At about this same time, Hannibal, who had been defeated by the Romans at Zama, fled to the court of Antiochus the Great for protection. Still interested in stirring up trouble for Rome, however, he convinced Antiochus to invade Greece, whereupon Rome promptly declared war on Antiochus. The Romans defeated Antiochus in 190 BC, and made him pay dearly for his alliance with Hannibal. He was forced to pay enormous amounts of money, and to surrender his navy and his war elephants. To insure that Antiochus continued making his payments, the Romans took his youngest son to Rome where they kept him hostage for twelve years. This young boy was later to return to the Seleucid Empire and assume the throne under the name Antiochus Epiphanes.
3. Three years after his defeat by the Romans, Antiochus the Great died and was succeeded by Seleucus IV, who ruled for the next twelve years. His situation was a most precarious one — somehow he had to come up with fantastic amounts of money to send to the Romans. To raise this money he heavily taxed the people of the land, including the Jews of Palestine.
4. This created a moral dilemma for the Jews. Some felt it was morally allowable to give money to the government, whereas others felt it was sinful. Thus, two opposing factions formed among the Jews over this issue. The Oniads, under the leadership of the High Priest Onias, were opposed to helping the Seleucids in any way. The other group, led by a man named Jason, felt the opposite, and set about making many false, slanderous reports to the king concerning Onias, in the hopes of undermining him.
5. Jason, who was the brother of Onias, was only interested in one thing — becoming the High Priest in his brother’s place. He hoped to accomplish this by offering the Seleucids large amounts of money (see — II Maccabees 3-4 and Josephus: Antiquities of the Jews, Book 12, Chapters 4-5). King Seleucus IV ignored the Jewish squabble, for the most part, and refused to get that deeply involved.

Antiochus IV, Epiphanes (175-163 BC): abused the Jews, forbidding their religion and profaning the Temple

1. In the year 175 BC, Antiochus IV, also known as Epiphanes, murdered Seleucus IV and took the throne. He immediately took advantage of Jason’s offer of money, and removed Onias from the office of High Priest, installing Jason in his place. Three years later, a man named Menelaus offered Antiochus even more money, so the king removed Jason and made Menelaus the High Priest.
2. Those Jews who were still trying to be faithful to their God were infuriated by this state of affairs, and their hearts were pained that the position of High Priest could be bought by the highest bidder. Those who were outspoken concerning these abuses were known as the Hasidim (“the pious ones”).
3. In the year 169 BC Antiochus invaded Egypt in an attempt to destroy once and for all the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Soon it was reported back in Palestine that the king had been killed in battle. When this news reached Jason, he returned from exile and threw Menelaus out of the city and once again assumed the office of High Priest. The news of Antiochus’ death was false, however, and when he returned to Jerusalem he utilized his army to forcibly remove Jason from office and reinstall Menelaus. At this time Antiochus also entered the Temple and stole a great deal of valuable treasure, an act which the pious Jews looked upon as an abomination before God.
4. The following year (168 BC) Antiochus renewed his campaign against the Egyptians, but he was stopped by the Roman representative. This so infuriated Antiochus that he came back and took out his frustration on the city of Jerusalem. He tore down the city walls, slaughtered a great many of the Jews, ordered the Jewish Scriptures to be destroyed, and he and his soldiers brought prostitutes into the Temple and there had sex with them in order to defile the Temple. He also issued orders that everyone was to worship the Greek gods, and he established the death penalty for anyone who practiced circumcision, or who observed the Sabbath or any of the Jewish religious feasts and sa
   crifices.
5. The cruelty of Antiochus in enforcing these new laws against the Jews became legendary. An aged scribe by the name of Eleazar was flogged to death because he refused to eat the flesh of a swine. In another incident, a mother and her seven young children were each butchered, in the presence of the Governor, for refusing to worship an idol. In yet another incident, two mothers, who had circumcised their newborn sons, were driven through the city and then thrown to their deaths from the top of a large building.
6. The final outrage for the pious Jews of the land came when Antiochus sacked the Temple and erected an altar there to the pagan god Zeus. Then, on December 25, 168 BC, Antiochus offered a pig to Zeus on the altar of God. This was the last straw! The Jews had taken all they were going to take from these oppressors. The stage was set for a large-scale rebellion of the Jews against the Seleucids. This famous rebellion is known in history as the Maccabean Revolt.

HH. The Maccabean Revolt (168-135 BC) against Antiochus

Mattathias (168-166 BC: old priest who refused to eat pork and revolted

1. In the little village of Modein, which was 17 miles NW of Jerusalem, there lived an aged priest named Mattathias, who had five sons — John, Simon, Judas, Eleazer, and Jonathan. This family is sometimes referred to as the Hasmoneans  or Maccabeans (a nickname meaning “hammerer”).
2. In 167 BC Antiochus sent his officers to the village of Modein to force the Jews living there to offer sacrifices to the pagan gods. Mattathias, as a leader in the city, was commanded by the officers to be the first person to offer a sacrifice — as an example to the rest of the people. He refused with a noble speech. He then attacked and killed the officers, tore down the altar to the pagan gods and fled to the mountains of the Judean wilderness, with his sons and some followers.
3. These men organized themselves into a large, powerful guerrilla-warfare army, and soon began to launch raids against the towns and villages of the land, tearing down the pagan altars, killing the officials of Antiochus, and also executing those Jews who were worshipping the pagan gods. The aged priest Mattathias was much too old for such a rigorous lifestyle, however, and died in 166 BC just as the rebellion was gaining momentum. He chose wisely, though, when he left his son Judas in charge of the rebel forces.

Judas (166-160 BC): beat the Greek armies and re-consecrated the Temple

1. Antiochus again made a major mistake-he sent out some of his less capable generals, with only a small army. These generals and their forces were simply not equal to Judas, who was possibly one of the greatest military minds in all of Jewish history! Even though greatly outnumbered, Judas and his rebels defeated general after general in battle, with only 6000 poorly equipped Jewish rebels
2. Antiochus to exterminate the Jewish people in the process. He sent Lysias, the commander-in-chief of the Seleucid army, along with 60,000 infantrymen and 5000 cavalry, to utterly destroy the Jews. This powerful army finally encountered Judas, who had a force of only 3000 poorly equipped rebels, in the town of Emmaus, which was just over 7 miles from Jerusalem. Judas managed to gather together another 7000 rebels, but was still terribly outnumbered. He prayed to God for strength and deliverance (I Maccabees 4:30-33), and won a huge victory over the Seleucid army.
3. Judas entered Jerusalem and liberate the city to purify the Temple and rededicate it to God. On December 25, 165 BC (exactly three years after Antiochus had defiled the altar of God by offering a pig upon it), the Temple of God was rededicated to God with rejoicing and sacrifices. This is the famous “Feast of Lights” (Hanukkah) which is still celebrated by the Jews to this day.
4. Within a rather brief period of time they were able to regain possession of much of the land. However, their successes were short-lived, for Lysias, now acting as king after the death of Antiochus, gathered a large army and marched upon Jerusalem, in the autumn of 163 BC, with an army of 120,000 men and 32 war elephants. Lysias surrounded Jerusalem in the hopes of starving the Jews into submission. But during this siege he learned that one of his rivals was marching against his own capital city in an effort to overthrow him and take the throne. He made an offer of peace to Judas — the Jews would be allowed to worship their God unmolested, if they would remain politically loyal to the Seleucid Empire. Judas agreed to these terms, and Lysias and his army departed.
5. Although the rebellion now appeared to be at an end, the Jews were nevertheless soon deprived again of peace. The Hellenistic Jews began seeking to force their beliefs and practices upon the pious Hebraic Jews. This led to civil war between Judas and his followers and the Hellenistic Jews. The Hellenists were able to convert large numbers of the rebels, and they convinced the Seleucids to send an army to defeat Judas. In 160 BC, Judas and his 800 men were surrounded by the enemy, and almost all of them, including Judas, were killed. Only a handful escaped and fled into the Wilderness of Judea. With the death of Judas, the first phase of the Maccabean struggle ended.

Jonathan (160-142 BC): keep the peace by diplomatic maneuvering

1. The band of surviving rebels chose Jonathan, the brother of Judas, as the new leader. For the next couple of years they continued to hide out in the wilderness, building up their forces. Jonathan was much more of a diplomat than a warrior, and for many years he was able to make progress for his people through diplomacy rather than military force.
2. In 152 BC civil war broke out in the Seleucid Empire between two factions who both wanted the throne. Both sides sought the help of Jonathan When the civil war ended, Jonathan had managed to place himself on the winning side, and as a reward was made the new High Priest in Jerusalem, as well as Governor of Judea and a member of the Syrian nobility. His brother Simo
   n was made Governor of the Philistine coastal region.
3. During the next decade the Empire was beset time and again with revolutions and rebellions from various conquered peoples, and also by challenges to the throne. Nevertheless, Jonathan, by virtue of his skills in diplomacy, managed to survive.
4. In 143 BC, however, Jonathan miscalculated in a very tricky diplomatic situation, and he was taken prisoner by the Seleucids. His brother Simon immediately assumed control of the rebel forces in Jonathan’s place. The enemy soldiers advanced upon Jerusalem, but were trapped in a severe snow storm just as they were about to attack. In their frustration they executed Jonathan and then retreated. The year was 142 BC.

Simon (142-135 BC): made, by the Jews, hereditary High Priest and King

1. A few months later, civil war again broke out in the Seleucid Empire over who would be king. Once again the warring factions appealed to the Jews for support in their struggle. Simon, who was also an able diplomat, .negotiated the complete independence of the Jewish his support. The Jews were at last free — after almost 400 years of foreign bondage.
2. Two years later, in the summer of 140 BC, the people of Israel made Simon the leader of the newly formed nation, and they made this supreme office a hereditary one. Thus, Simon became the High Priest (the religious leader), the Commander of the Army (the military leader), and the King (the political leader).
3. Under his leadership the nation enjoyed peace and prosperity (I Maccabees 14:4-15). Unfortunately, Simon’s son-in-law, who was Governor of Jericho, decided to attempt to seize power for himself. He convinced the new Seleucid king, Antiochus VII, to support him, and he then murdered Simon and two of his sons in 135 BC.
4. A third son of Simon’s, John Hyrcanus, managed to escape the slaughter. By out-maneuvering his brother-in-law, and by paying heavy taxes to the Seleucids, he was able to retain power. The Seleucids, however, exercised control over Palestine until the death of Antiochus VII in 128 BC.
5. With the death of Simon, the last of the sons of the aged priest Mattathias, the heroic period of Jewish history known as the Maccabean Revolt came to an end.

II. The Hasmonean Dynasty, Growth & Decay (135-63 BC)

John Hyrcanus (135 – 104)

Aristobulus I (104 – 103)

Alexander Jannaeus (103 – 76)

Alexandra (76 – 67)

Period of Struggle for Power (67 – 63)

Hyrcanus II

Aristobulus II

Antipater

JJ. The Romans Enter the Scene

Pompey Invades Palestine (63)

Reign of Pompey (63 – 48)

Role of Hyrcanus II & Antipater (63 – 40)

Reign of Julius Caesar (48 – 44)

Period of Struggle (44 – 31)

Reign of Augustus (31 BC – 14 AD)

Local Rule in Palestine (40 BC to NT Times)

Antigonus (40 – 37)

Herod the Great (37 – 4)

The Kingdom Divides (4 BC)

The Birth of Jesus (c. 4 BC

SPATIAL ECONOMICS.- PALGRAVE By Gilles Duranton

1. spatial economics covers location theory, spatial competition, and regional and urban economics.
2. spatial economics is concerned with the allocation of (scarce) resources over space and the location of economic activity
3. it is possible to develop a framework for spatial economics that builds only on local productivity differences. This approach was pioneered by Ricardo (1821), who developed a theory of land use based on relative fertility
4. Instead, spatial economics has focused on the existence of non-convexities in the presence of transport costs. A key reason for this focus is that, although comparative advantage constitutes an appealing explanation for understanding trade flows at the world level, it provides at best a partial explanation for the location patterns of industries within countries, and it is at pains to explain major concentrations of population in large metropolitan areas. Instead, non-convexities in production or consumption seem to hold more promise for providing convincing answers to the core questions of spatial economics
   
5. Hotelling (1929) assumes evenly distributed consumers over a finite segment, each consuming one unit of a homogenous good. The market is served by two firms that need to choose a location and each customer patronizes the firm that minimizes the sum of the ‘mill’ price and shipping costs. At a first stage, firms choose a location and then compete in price. The resolution of this trade-off depends on the fine details of the assumptions being made (and particularly how an increase in the distance affects the price setting power of producers)
6. To understand central business districts or, more generally, why economic activity agglomerates, spatial economics had to provide microeconomic foundations for (local) increasing returns.
7. Following Marshall, local increasing returns could arise because of knowledge spillovers, linkages between input suppliers and final producers, and thick local labour market interactions.
8. Three main mechanisms can be used to generate local increasing returns: sharing, matching, and learning. Sharing mechanisms show how small non-convexities like small fixed costs paid by heterogeneous producers can be spread across larger quantities as market size increases and thus yield aggregate increasing returns. Matching mechanisms explore how larger markets might improve the probability and quality of matching. Finally, learning mechanisms explore the benefits of local size for the creation and diffusion of knowledge.
9. To model spatial economies, two main approaches came to dominate the intellectual landscape. The first follows the work of Henderson (1974) and is know as the ‘urban systems’ approach. In this type of framework, cities arise endogenously as the result of a trade-off between agglomeration economies and urban crowding.
10. the new economic geography, Krugman (1991), is the second main general equilibrium approach in spatial economics. This approach puts trade costs (rather than commuting costs in urban systems) at the heart of the agglomeration–dispersion trade-off.

xXx

¿POR QUÉ TANTAS RELIGIONES?

Clase # 1B cbf

Nov 2005

§ Si, como hemos visto, cualquier persona puede llegar a conocer a Dios solamente con el examen de la creación, de la naturaleza, entonces ¿cómo es posible que haya tantas religiones? Y después ¿cómo sabemos cuál es la verdadera? ¿Podemos decir que no importa qué religión uno profese, que lo que importa es que se practique con sinceridad de corazón?

§ Para poder responder a estas cuestiones, tenemos que dar varios pasos. Primero hemos de reconocer que si nosotros estamos (profesamos) la religión católica, no es porque hayamos hecho un análisis de todas la religiones y concluimos que esta es la más verdadera. No es así. Nosotros somos católicos porque nuestros padres nos educaron en católico. Pero esto no significa que seamos católicos “por casualidad”. Esto lo que manifiesta es que la fe es un regalo de Dios. Primer paso.

§ Como veremos en otras charlas, nuestras circunstancias son nuestra vocación, es decir, la familia en la que nacemos, la época y el país en el que no toca vivir, la estatura y el color del pelo, una habilidad innata para contar chistes, etc, todas esas circunstancias indican la vocación, la llamada, la misión para la que Dios nos trae al mundo. Por lo tanto, somos cristianos porque Dios nos ha llamado a serlo, por vocación, no por nuestra elección.

§ Segundo paso. De aquí de deduce algo que tiene unas consecuencias radicales, para nuestra vida de cristianos y que mucha gente no ha descubierto todavía, que los cristianos somos enviados de Dios, con una misión específica que cumplir en la Tierra.

§ Tercer paso. Pero ¿y aquel musulmán, o el que nació protestante, no han sido llamados? Dios les está diciendo: búscame, descúbreme, ven a mi. A nosotros también nos lo dice, pero con la diferencia de que a ellos nos les ha dado plenamente el don de la fe, de conocer verdaderamente al verdadero Dios. Nosotros estamos objetivamente cerca de la verdad, pero esto no nos da subjetivamente una ventaja, porque más se nos exigirá cuando nos juzgue y nos pregunte ¿cuánto me llegaste a conocer y a amar?

§ Cuarto paso ¿Pero, entonces, por qué Dios no je ha dado la verdadera fe a todo el mundo por igual? ¿No evitaría así que hubiera distintas religiones, con toda la complicación que esto ha traído a la Historia? Dios ha querido crear un mundo en estado de vía, en evolución hacia su perfección última (por eso es que existe el mal físico y las limitaciones) Y Dios a querido encomendar al hombre la tarea de ir perfeccionándolo. Y Dios ha querido no dar directamente a la humanidad la plenitud de la Fe, sino que se ha querido que los hombres nos llevemos unos a otros hacia el conocimiento verdadero de Dios Por esto es que decimos que la vocación cristiana es una vocación apostólica: porque estamos llamados a acercar a la gente que nos rodea hacia Dios.

§ Estamos ahora en posición de responde a las preguntas iniciales ¿Porqué existen tantas religiones? Porque Dios no se he revelado plenamente a todo el mundo, para que los cristianos podamos colaborar con El en la extensión de su reino. Llevando a todo el mundo hacia el pleno conocimiento de Dios.

§ ¿Pero da igual qué religión uno practique? Sabemos que los que practican otras religiones pueden salvarse, si lo hacen con sinceridad de corazón. Pero sería muy egoísta y cómodo de nuestra parte, permitir que solo disfruten en la Tierra de un sucedáneo de la verdadera religión cuando pueden conocer a Dios con mucha más perfección y disfrutar de todos los medios para salvarnos que tenemos en la Iglesia Católica: los sacramentos, sobre todo. Si a nosotros se nos puede hacer difícil cumplir la voluntad de Dios en la verdadera religión, no podemos permitir que nuestros hermanos los hombres pongan en riesgo su felicidad eterna por ir hacia ella por caminos secundarios.

Una aclaración: parece que la diversidad de religiones ha sido la causa de muchas guerras en la historia. Sin embargo si uno mira las creencias de las distintas religiones, casi ninguna legitima la agresión, ni mucho menos incita a batallar. Pensemos en los concflictos entre hindues y sikhs o musulmanes. Pensemos en las mismas guerras de religión en Europa. No se puede encontrar en esar religiones algo que diga que tienes que convertir a los demás a la fuerza.

Lo que pasa es que la religión sirve para diferenciar grupos de humanos, como también sirve (y más aún que la religión) la raza o el lugar de nacimiento. Y una vez que se ha establecido diferencias entre dos grupos, la danada naturaleza humana provoca a que un grupo quiera relegar a otro. Pero el problema no está en la religión, sino en el deseo de imponernos unos a otros.

Realmente más que desanimarnos por que hay muchas religiones, debemos de maravillarnor por la total universalidad del fenómeno religioso y por lo mucho que tienen en común todas las respuestas a este fenómeno, todas las religiones.

Fortaleza

JUL 2005

El Cristianismo es un ideal, es decir, una visión de cómo debe ser el hombre, la sociedad y el mundo. También es un ideal el comunismo, el socialismo, el ambientalismo, la estadidad, la Ilustración, la masonería, etc y la mayoría de los religiones. Son world views: ideales de cómo debe ser el mundo.

Si nosotros nos llamamos cristianos es porque queremos que ese ideal se haga realidad: que cada hombre sea como fue Jesús y que la sociedad se organice de tal forma que facilite el máximo el que los individuos puedan desarrollarse.

Pues bien, dice San Josemaría que ningún ideal se hace realidad sin sacrificio. (repetir). Qué tipo de sacrificio.

Primero, como el ideal consiste primero en cambiarnos nosotros, tendremos que luchar contra el peso de nuestra propia carne y de nuestras propias miserias. Y esto por toda la vida. A mucha geste este peso le agobia, el ahoga, le desespera. Es fuerte.

En segundo lugar, el ideal consiste en cambiar a los demás y al mundo. Esto implica que tendremos que luchar en primer lugar contra el peso de las miserias de los demás (la pereza, la sensualidad, el orgullo). Y en segundo lugar, contra la inercia: la tendencia a no cambiar las cosas de cómo están.

Esto lo han tenido que vivir todos los cristianos de todas las épocas. En adición a esto, estamos en una época donde la corriente del agua alejándose de Dios es tan fuerte que no es posible vivir es cristiano si estar haciendo un esfuerzo constante. Ha habido épocas en las que uno podía mantenerse sin ofender a Dios aunque sin tratar de seguirle, porque el ambiente, las costumbres, lo que se ensenaba en la universidad y en la televisión no era totalmente contrario al ideal cristiano. En esas épocas, simplemente “estando” en la Iglesia uno podía “ir tirando”. En estos tiempos esto no es posible. En esta época un cristiano no puede mirar la mayoría de lo que aparece en la TV. Y esto está fuerte. No puede ir a muchos de los lugares de entretenimiento donde van la gente de su edad. Y esto está fuerte. Estamos en momentos especiales.

Qué implica todo esto? Que si queremos llevar a este mundo hacia el ideal cristiano tendremos que estar luchando contra corriente todos los días de nuestra vida.

Y qué implicación tiene el que nuestra vida se nos presente como una lucha peremne? El que, como en todos los pueblos guerreros, tengamos que valorar en mucho la virtud de la fortaleza.

Cómo uno adquiere la virtud de la fortaleza? La fuerza de la voluntad se desarrolla ejercitándola. Cómo se ejercita la voluntad: buscando pequenos puntos de negación diarios.

+Negación al crapicho.

+Negación en la argumentación, al quedarnos callados.

+Hay un campo de la actividad humana que es donde nosotros más podemos y debemos ejercitar nuestra voluntad y así crecer y madurar. El ámbito de nuestro trabajo o nuestro estudio. Para destacar en el trabajo no basta con tener chispa, hay que fajarse, que viene de ponerse una faja para poder hacer más fuerza.

+Negación en las comidas, comiendo un poco más de lo que nos gusta menos y un poco menos de lo que nos gusta más.

+Exigiéndonos en el horario: viviéndo minutos heroicos: empezando en punto las cosas y acabándolas en pu
nto. Y no por afán de cuadricularse, ni por la importancia que pueda tener empezar en punto, sino por amor a Dios: porque uno quiere tener una voluntad fuerte con la que poder llevar el mundo y uno mismo a Dios.

+Exigiéndose en el orden en sus propias cosas (cuartos, instrumentos, libros). Y exigiéndose en el aseo personal, no solo para verse bien por caridad con los demás, sino como un campo en el que puede ejercitarse la voluntad.

Decía Francisca Javiera del Valle que “el senorío de uno mismo es vivir el cielo ya en la tierra”. Pero claro, nosotros no buscamos el senorío de nosotros mismos por querer sentir simplemente el auto-control. Ese placer de poder hacer lo que nos propongamos. Conocí una vez a un banquero que era tremendamente engreido: despreciaba al resto de la gente, aunque los tratara bien para utilizarlos. Luego, cuando lo conocí mejor descubrí que todo había empezado desde que comenzó una dieta que le había hecho rebajar decenas de libras. Y esto le había llevado a creerse superior. El control de la voluntad, si no va acompanado de un crecimiento en conocimiento propio, puede dar muchos problemas.

Los cristianos, además, tenemos un arma secreta para crecer en fuerza en la voluntad: pedirle al Espíritu Santo el don de la Fortaleza. Porque lo que estamos buscando en definitiva, es llevar el mundo a Dios empezando por nosotros mismos. Esta misión supera nuestra pobres fuerzas, por eso sabemos que el Senor va a acudir en nuestra ayuda, fortaleciéndonos con su Espíritu.

 

SEPTIMO MANDAMIENTO

ENE 2005

Pecados externos contra el septimo mandamiento:

Hurto: tomar ocultamente. Si hay agraveante se llama robo.

Rapiña: apoderarse violentamente (asalto, car-jacking, etc)

Fraude: robar engañando: no pagar impuestos justos, hacer publicidad engañosa, adulterar medidas, etc

Usura: reclamar más interés del justo.

Daño injusto: daño a la propiedad ajena pública o privada sin beneficio propio: vandalismo

Y en general, retener injustamente el bien ajeno: no devolver lo prestado o un objeto perdido; pagar salarios injustos; elevar los precios especulando con la ignorancia o necesidad ajena; el trabajo mal hecho; los gastos excesivos o despilfarro; la corrupción, que es viviar el juicio de los que deben de tomar decisiones conforme a derecho.

Estas acciones son faltas con independencia de que estén condenadas o no por la ley civil.

En los casos graves hay obligación de restituir para que pueda ser perdonado el pecado; no basta con arrepentirse. Cómo hacer la restitución es algo complicado: el confersor determinará. No hay obligación de autodelatarse.

Pero el séptimo mandamiento no es solo negativo (no robar) sino positivo: prescribe la justicia y la caridad en la gestión de los bienes terrenos. Por eso una de las cosas que manda es vivir la pobreza.

Es distinto ser pobre (no tener) que vivir la virtud de la pobreza (no apegarse a lo que se tiene). Por eso se llama a la virtud de la pobreza: desprendimiento. De hecho, para un laico, existe la obligación de crecer en posición social y económica todo lo que pueda, siempre que respete la jerarquía de bienes cristiana, con el objetivo de poder influir más es su ambiente, no con el objetivo de acumular más riquezas, sino con un objetivo apostólico.

¿Cómo uno sabe que está desprendido de los bienes materiales? 1) no se entristece cuando no los consigue; 2) no se entristece cuando los pierde; 3) usa esa posición económica más alta para hacer apostolado y para influir más en el ambiente; 4) aporta generosamente a las obras de caridad. En definitiva, se trata de ver a los bienes como medios para cumplir nuestra misión en el mundo; nunca como fines.

Otras Obligaciones de la Justicia:

Respetar el destino universal de los bienes privados. Al principio Dios confió la tierra a la administración común de la humanidad ara que los cuidadra y se beneficiara de sus frutos. Los bienes de la creación esta destinados a todo el género humano. Sin embargo la tierra está repartida entre cada uno de los familias, para dar seguridad a su vida. Existe un derecho natural a la propiedad privada, pero es secundario al destino universal de los bienes. Por esto uno no puede destruir sus propios bienes simplemente porque son suyos. No puede una persona dejar sus bienes sin producir, simplemente porque son suyos. Los bienes de producción: tierra, fábricas, profesiones o artes requieren que sus poseedores se esfuercen para que su fecundidad llega al mayor número de poersonas. También, por este principio, la autoridad política puede y debe regular en ejercicio legítimo del derecho a la propiedad en función del bien común. También, leyendo este principio a la inversa, se tiene que los bienes privados también son sociales, no solo los públicos. De aquí se infiere que la principal obligacion social de una empresa es hacer producir sus propios factores de producción de forma que beneficien al mayor número de personas.

Deber ecológico: el respeto a la integridad de la creación (Cat 2415)

Los animales, las plantas y los seres inanimandos estan destinados la bien común de las generanciones pasadas, presentes y venideras. El dominio dado por Dios al hombre sobre los otros seres no es absoluto, está regulado por el cuidado a la calidad de vida del prójimo, incluyendo a las generaciones venideras; exige un respeto religioso de la integridad de la creación.

Los animales son criaturas de Dios, que los rodea de su solicitud providencial. Por su simple existencia lo bendicen y le dan gloria. También los hombres les deben aprecio. Dios confió a los animales a la administración del que fue creado a su imagen. Por eso es lícito usarlos para alimento y vestido. Los experimentos en animales, si se mantienen en límites razonalbes, son lícitos, pues ayudan a salvar o cuidar vidas humanas.

Es contrario a la dignidad humana hacer sufir inutilmente a los animales y sacrificar sin necesidad sus vidas. Es indigno invertir en ellos su
mas de dinero que deberían más bien remediar la miseri de los hombres. Se puede amar a los animales pero no se puede desviar hacia ellos el afecto debido únicamente a seres humanos.

xXx