Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

New Testament - Bith > Exam #1 - NT Backgrounds > Flashcards

Exam #1 - NT Backgrounds Flashcards

1
Q

What significant event happened in 586 BC?

A

The fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzer (Ole Nebbie) and the deportation of many exiles to Babylon

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What significant event happened in 539 BC?

A

Babylon falls to Persia. Some Jews go home, but others don’t (Diaspora)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Who is Cyrus the Great?

A

Persian ruler who conquered Babylon in 539 BC.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What happened in the 330s BC?

A

Alexander the Great begins expanding his empire, which eventually included Judea (etc.).

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What was significant about Alexander the Great expanding his empire in the 330s BC?

A

linguistic and cultural hellenization (or “Greekification”) and the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Hebrew OT)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What was the Septuagint? How did it come into being?

A

it was the Greek version of the Hebrew OT and it came into being due to the hellenization of Jewish culture/life

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What imperial powers did Israel fall under the control of? List two.

A

first the Ptolmies, then the Seleucids (Antiochus IV)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What significant event happened in 167 BC as a result of Israel’s new ruler?

What was the result of this event?

A

Antiochus had the Jerusalem Temple turned over to worshipping Zeus; pigs were even sacrificed by Greeks on the Temple altar.

The Maccabean War.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What was the result of the Maccabean War in the 160s BC (167-160)?

A

Jewish forces under Judas Maccabee regain control of temple and cleanse it (Hanukkah).

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What dynasty begins in the early 140s-63 BC?

A

the Hasmonean Dynasty

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What happens in 63 BC? Who rules at this time?

A

Roman rule begins with Pompey the Great

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What happens in 37-4 BC? Who is the ruler at this time?

A

Herod the Great rules as “King of the Jews”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What happens in 4 BC? (think of the number 3)

A

Herod the Great’s kingdom splits between 3 sons (Archelaus, Herod Antipas, and Philip)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What happens in AD 37? Who comes into power? And how does this ruler die?

A

Herod Agrippa I, a grandson of Herod the Great. Herod Agrippa the II’s rule follows after Herod Agrippa I is eaten by worms.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What war arises in AD 66-70? What is destroyed? What is the result?

A

the First Jewish War (destruction of the Second Temple, which Herod the Great had expanded/renovated).

The result is failure.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What war arises in AD 132-135? How did it begin and how did it end?

A

The Second Jewish War. Romans built a pagan temple in a Jewish city and oppressed their practices. Romans eventually completely took over the city and forbade Jews from entering it.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Why should we study the NT?

A
  • theological reasons: God cares about the material world and historical particularity. We know this due to creation, incarnation, Jesus’ resurrection, and how God gave us Scripture - through particular people in particular times and places.
  • epistemological reasons: words mean what they mean in particular contexts, and we read from our own different, diverse contexts
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

How do we study the NT?

A

we study the general history of the NT and the reception history that fills the gap between the “then” and the “now.”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is “common Judaism?”

A

a selection of the schools of thought and practice within first-century Judaism, including (but not limited to) the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes.

20
Q

What are some examples of the practices that all Jews would observe? (“common Judaism”)

A
  • observed Sabbath
  • Torah = true law
  • revere Temple
  • male circumcision
  • dietary laws
  • practicing prayer
  • mono-theistic
  • following law = God’s grace (not a burden but an opportunity; a chance to live in right relationship w/ God)
21
Q

Describe the Pharisees.

A
  • Lay movement (not primarily priests; some overlap w/ scribes)
  • emphasized accurate interpretation and observance of the Law; affirmed a hope in bodily resurrection.
  • possibly the religious descendants of the Hassidim
  • seem to have adhered oral tradition as well as the written Torah
  • became dominant after fall of Jerusalem Temple (70 AD)
  • sanctification of daily life; ALL of life
22
Q

What are ways in which Jesus’ teachings and the Pharisees’ beliefs clashed?

A
  • whether/how to interact with those who consistently don’t observe the Law
  • what role interpretive traditions have in regulating approach to ritual purity
  • Sabbath observance
  • specific vs. interpretive differences (e.g., divorce)
23
Q

Describe the Sadducees.

A
  • upper-class, urban, some priests
  • focus on temple-worship
  • rejected oral tradition and Pharisees’ attempts to apply Law to all of life
  • did not affirm the resurrection of the body (no life after death)
  • based doctrine only on the Torah (in the first 5 books of the OT only)
  • cooperation w/ Rome
  • less prominent after 70 AD
  • if it’s not in the law, it’s not in the law (oh, well)
24
Q

Describe the Essenes.

A
  • ascetic practices (e.g., fasting, celibacy, and other forms of bodily discipline)
  • not named in NT (potential ties to John the Baptist; eating locusts, ceremonial washing)
  • monastic settlement at Qunran (where Dead Sea Scrolls were found) was likely one expression of this group.
  • objected to the calendar and priesthood of Temple
  • emphasized studying Scripture (but had their own interpretations of it)
  • apocalyptic hope
  • dualistic worldview
25
Q

Describe “Fourth Philosophy” Zealots.

A
  • probably came to the fore after Jesus’ earthly ministry.
  • some were advocating and experimenting w/ violent opposition to Roman oppression.
  • comes to a head in 66-70 AD.
  • advocating purity to the point of violence.
  • origins w/ Phirens in Numbers?
26
Q

Describe the Samaritans. Compare and contrast their beliefs w/ first-century Judaism.

A

differences:

  • place of worship on Mt. Gerizim near Sheehan, rather than in Jerusalem.
  • own version of Pentateuch/Torah (the Samaritan Pentateuch)

commonalities:

  • monotheistic (not normal in ancient world to be monotheistic)
  • aniconic worship (no images)
  • authority of Torah/Mosaic Law, including Sabbath-observance, male circumcision, etc.
27
Q

What were some significant institutional structures of first-century Judaism?

A
  • The Temple in Jerusalem: locus of sacrifice, some Jews in the Diaspora made pilgrimage to Jerusalem for major feast, destroyed in 70 AD.
  • Sanhedrin: highest Jewish court (under Romans), included upper-class Lay people, Sadducees, Pharisees, led by high priest.
  • Synagogues: local gatherings to study Scripture, pray, etc., developed during Babylonian exile, as not every Jew had access to a temple.
28
Q

What was the Pax Romana?

A

Roman peace (or pacification?); solidified safe travel and communication.

29
Q

What were the socioeconomic situations of the Roman empire?

A
  • patronage (gives money, receives honor)

- honor/shame system

30
Q

What was slavery like in the ancient world?

A
  • there were many ways one could become a slave (e.g., selling yourself, prisoners of war, punishment for crimes, being in debt, born into slavery, etc.)
  • given different jobs (household slaves, slaves sent to die (expendable slaves), agriculture slaves, etc.)
  • manumission (slavery wasn’t necessarily permanent)
  • master/slave could become master/client (slaves often kept relations w/ owner after freedom)
  • affected a person’s status, even after freedom
  • generally viewed as property (de-humanization)
31
Q

What were households like in the Roman empire?

A
  • extended families lived together
  • hierarchical (patriarchal; complex scale given overlapping identities)
  • women could be heads of houses, but wasn’t as common
  • children and wives generally seen as second-class citizens (according to law, anyway)
  • wives for child-bearing/rearing only, not for pleasure
32
Q

What were the categories and sub-categories of Greco-Roman religions/philosophies?

A
  • Greek/Roman pantheon (appeasing the gods; fertility gods, crop gods, etc.)
  • emperor worship
  • mystery religions (personal concern for salvation)
  • (proto-) Gnosticism
  • various sorts of “popular religion” (curses, love spells, etc.)
  • philosophical schools
  • combos of these options
33
Q

Describe “emperor worship” or the “cult of the emperor.”

A
  • began with worshipping dead emperors, then moved to worshipping living ones.
  • exemption for Jews (but they had to pray to their God for the emperor)
  • political-religious clearly intertwined here - political unity, allegiance expressed or denied religious behavior
    (Pliny the Younger to Emperor Trajan, in regards to the trials of Christians)
34
Q

Describe (proto-) Gnosticism.

A
  • God/world dualism (God is good, material world is bad, God who makes matter is bad; two gods?)
  • salvation through secret knowledge
  • materiality is imprisonment
  • not fully formed until 1st century
  • early Christians wrote against this movement
  • “our bodies don’t matter”; justification to do whatever they wanted OR repression of bodily acts such as sex
  • Nag Hamadi, cache of Gnostic documents discovered in 1945.
35
Q

What is an autograph?

A

the document that is written by him/herself or by their secretary who wrote it for them.

36
Q

What is a manuscript?

A

documents written by hand

37
Q

What are textual variants?

A

differences in the copy of a text

38
Q

Do we have the autographs for any biblical text? And what is the purpose for this?

A

no, because perhaps we are meant to receive Scripture from church/community. We are not meant to isolate ourselves.

39
Q

What is textual criticism?

A

compares all the manuscript evidence that we have, weighing the evidence according to the principles of textual criticism.

  • traditional goal is to determine which variant most likely reflects what was originally written in the autograph.
40
Q

What are the two critical editions of the text that display some of the text-critical evidence?

A
  • “eclectic” which means that it draws on many different manuscripts rather than following any one manuscript.
  • “critical” which means analysis, rather than criticism.
41
Q

What’s at stake (and isn’t at stake) with textual criticism?

A
  • no central doctrine of Christian faith hinges on any single text-critical question
  • the doctrine of inerrancy applies, strictly speaking, to autographs
42
Q

What are some facts about the production of autographs in the ancient world? What were they often made from?

A
  • papyrus: made from reeds common in Egypt (connect sheets to make a scroll, commit to a length)
  • Greek: all-caps, no spaces (earlier) in majuscule
  • later, Greek was written in lower-caps, in miniscule (which is proof that handwriting can help with dating)
  • kodak form
  • ink: soot mixed w/ water
  • wreath pens
43
Q

What roles could a secretary play in the writing of a manuscript?

A
  • recorder; records word for word
  • editor; edits words spoken
  • co-author; given a main argument and some key words.
  • composer; skill and imagination is required to write in the name of said person.
44
Q

How did people generally send letters in the ancient world?

A
  • using an enslaved person
  • paying someone to take it
  • sending it w/ a stranger
45
Q

What are some rules of thumb for deciphering variants and reading ancient text?

A
  • conformity to what’s known of author’s style/thought = more likely original
  • consistent w/ common scribal errors = less likely original
  • clarifications/”corrections” or more difficult to understand = more likely original
  • dittography (accidental repetitions)
  • haplography
  • more likely to add than take away/shorter = more likely original

New Testament - Bith (4 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions