, לכלותינו עלינו עומדים ודור דור שבכלמידם מצילנו הוא ברוך .והקדוש

The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose, filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream-stuff and passed away; the Greek and the Roman followed; and made a vast noise, and they are gone; other people have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it burned out, and they sit in twilight now, or have vanished. The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no weakening of his parts, no slowing of his energies, no dulling of his alert and aggressive mind. All things are mortal but the Jew; all other forces pass, but he remains. What is the secret of his immortality?”

 - Mark Twain“Concerning The Jews,” Harper’s Magazine, 1899

Last Kings of Judah

• Jehoiakim 609-598BCE– Vassal to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylonia

• Jehoiachin 597BCE– Captured by Nebuchandezzar in a siege– Imprisoned in Babylonia– Freed in 562BCE by Amel-Marduk

• Zedekiah 597-586BCE– Placed on throne by Nebucahdnezzar– Rebelled and entered alliance with Egypt– Watched children murdered before being blinded

5 Stages of Destruction• Stage 1 – Judah becomes vassal to Babylonia

in 605 BCE• Stage 2 – Exile of Yehoiachin in 597 BCE• Stage 3 – Breach of Jerusalem Walls

in 586 BCE• Stage 4 – Beth Hamikdash Destroyed

in 586 BCE• Stage 5 – Gedaliah murdered

on 1st of Tishre 586 BCE

Beginning of the Jewish exile

• 722 BCE- King of Israel Hoshea is imprisoned and Jews of Samaria are exiled to Assyria(Melachim b,17:4-5)

• Assyria settles foreigners in Samaria(melachim b 17:24-40)”THE SAMARITANS”

• 586 BCE- King of Judah Sidkiyahu is blinded and Jews exiled to Babylonia by King Nebuchadnezzar(melachim b 25:1-8)

• 586 BCE- 9TH 0F AV-Beit Hamikdash is burned(melachim b 25:8-9)

Babylonian Empire

IM ESHKAHECH YERUSHALAYIM

TEHILLIM 137 :5-6 YOU TUBE VIDEO(urishani1)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qV0pvc_VrQ

How to Count 70•- : יב יא כה פרק את ירמיהו הז הארץ כל והיתה

בבל מלך את האלה הגוים ועבדו לשמה לחרבה : אפקד שנה שבעים כמלאות והיה שנה שבעים

עונם את יקוק נאם ההוא הגוי ועל בבל מלך על: עולם לשממות אתו ושמתי ים כשד ארץ ועל

•: י כט פרק מלאת ירמיהו לפי כי יקוק אמר כה כיעליכם והקמתי אתכם אפקד שנה שבעים לבבל

הזה המקום אל אתכם להשיב הטוב ברי ד את

1. Reign of Nebuchadnezzar in 604 to conquest of Cyrus in 538

2. Destruction in 586 to Rededication in 516

Yirmiyahu the prophet : Build houses,plant gardens,marry and have children there..and after 70 yrs Hashem will return you to your homeland (yirmiyahu 28:5-11)

Life in Bavel-• Autonomy• Aramaic language-similar to hebrew• Jewish infrastructure already set up from previous galut• Kept Shabbat and holidays• Stayed in their own communities,hardly any assimilation• Worked as farmers,irrigation and canal digging projects

The Persian Period

Cyrus Returns ExilesRebuilding the Temple

MIRACLES HAPPEN!!!

KING CYRUS CONQUERS BABYLON538 bce KING CYRUS OF PERSIA ALLOWS THE

JEWS TO RETURN HOME AND BUILD THEIR TEMPLES

Cyrus Cylinder

• Now in the British Museum

Cyrus Cylinder in British Museum, London

Read this

Cyrus Cylinder• [28-33] By his exalted word, all the kings who sit upon thrones throughout

the world, from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea [i.e., from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf], who live in the districts far-off, the kings of the West, who dwell in tents, all of them, brought their heavy tribute before me and in Babylon they kissed my feet. From Babylon to Aššur and from Susa, Agade, Ešnunna, Zamban, Me-Turnu, Der, as far as the region of Gutium, the sacred centers on the other side of the Tigris, whose sanctuaries had been abandoned for a long time, I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there [i.e., in Babylon], to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings. In addition, at the command of Marduk, the great lord, I settled in their habitations, in pleasing abodes, the gods of Sumer and Akkad, whom Nabonidus, to the anger of the lord of the gods, had brought into Babylon.

• [34-36] May all the gods whom I settled in their sacred centers ask daily of Bêl and Nâbu that my days be long and may they intercede for my welfare. May they say to Marduk, my lord: "As for Cyrus, the king who reveres you, and Cambyses, his son, [lacuna]." The people of Babylon blessed my kingship, and I settled all the lands in peaceful abodes.

Replica of Cyrus Cylinder in UN, New York

Stage 1 of RedemptionYehoyachin Freed

and Given Daily Allowance

And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin (562 BCE) king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison; and he spoke kindly jto him, and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king's table; and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, every day a portion, as long as he lived.

(2 Kings 25:27-30)

Stage 2 of Redeption – Cyrus Grants Permission to Return and Rebuild in

539 BCE

פרק ב הימים לודברי(כ( ויגל השארית מן החרב אל בבל ויהיו לו ולבניו

לעבדים עד מלך מלכות פרס:בר יקוק בפי ירמיהו עד רצתה הארץ ) אות ד כא( למל

אות שבעים את שבתותיה כל ימי השמה שבתה למלשנה: פ

בר יקוק )כב( ובשנת אחת לכורש מלך פרס לכלות דבפי ירמיהו העיר יקוק את רוח כורש מלך פרס

ויעבר קול בכל מלכותו וגם במכתב לאמר: סה אמר כורש מלך פרס כל ממלכות הארץ נתן )כג( כלי יקוק אלהי השמים והוא פקד עלי לבנות לו בית

בירושלם אשר ביהודה מי בכם מכל עמו יקוק אלהיו עמו ויעל:

Stage 3 Rebuilding of Second Bet Hamikdash in 520-516 BCE

• Texts: Ezra 1-6, Haggai 1• People Involved– Sheshbazzar – Yehoyachin’s son– Zerubabel – Yehoyachin’s grandson– Haggai– Zechariah

• Dates– Commences in Darius I’s 2nd year = 520– Finished on Adar 3 of Darius’ 6th year = March 516

Samaritan man prepares for passover Sacrifice on mt gerizim4/17/11

The Samaritans mezuzah

Samaritans on the Internet

• Samaritan Passover

• Samaritans Passover

• Samaritan Shema

• Samaritan Marriage

Samaritans In the Bible• 2 Kings 17• Annals of Sargon II: – The ruler of Samaria, in conspiracy with another king,

defaulted on his taxes and declared Samaria’s independence from Assyria. With the strength given me by the divine assembly, I conquered Samaria and its covenant partner, and took 27,290 prisoners of war along with their chariots. I conscripted enough prisoners to outfit fifty teams of chariots. I rebuilt Samaria, bigger and better than before. I repopulated it with people from other states which I had conquered, and I appointed one of my officials over them, and made them Assyrian citizens.

• Ezra 4:2 – from time of Esarhadon (681-669)

Achaemenid Dynasty• Cyrus II, the Great ruled from c.550-530 BCE• Cambyses II ruled 529-522 BCE • Smerdis (Bardiya), ruled 522 BCE• Darius I, the Great ruled 521-486 BCE • Xerxes I ruled 485-465 BCE • Artaxerxes I Longimanus ruled 465-424 BCE • Xerxes II ruled 424 BCE • Sogdianus ruled 424-423 BCE • Darius II Nothus ruled 423-405 BCE • Artaxerxes II Mnemon ruled 404-359 BCE • Artaxerxes III Ochus ruled 358-338 BCE • Artaxerxes IV Arses ruled 338-336 BCE • Darius III Codomannus ruled 336-330 BCE

Read Ezra chapter 5-6

Letter to king darius for permission to rebuild

Stage 4 - Activities of Ezra and Nehemiah

• Ez 7-8 Sent by Artexerxes (I? in 458BCE)• Ez 9-10 Mixed Marriages

Book of Nehemiah• Arrived in 455BCE• Ch 1-7:3 Rebuilds the walls of Jerusalem• 7:4-73 Census of returned exiles• 8:1-12 Ezra reads the Torah in public• 8:13-17 Celebrate Sukkoth• 9-10 A new covenant• 11-12:26 Repopulation, lists of people• 12:27-13:3 Dedication of city walls• 13:4-31 Legislation of laws

Early Midrash in Nehamiah Ch 10– 10:1-28 List of Signatories– 29-30 Pledge to keep Hashem’s law in general– 31-40 pledge to keep a set of particular laws• 10:31 prohibition to intermarry all people in land from

Exodus 34:11-16 and Devarim 7:1-3• 10:32 buying is prohibited on Shabbat extending Ex 34:21

(farm work), 35:3 (fire), Jer 17:21 (burden), Amos 8:5 (selling), Neh 13:5 (selling and pressing wine)• 10:33 extends Ex 30:11-16 to be an annual tax• 10:35 enables law of Vayikra 6:1-6, wood to burn

continually• 10:36 extends Devarim 26:2 to fruit trees

, והבאתי ולקחתי וגאלתי והצלתי והוצאתי5 Stages of Galut

• Judah becomes vassal to Babylonia in 605 BCE

• Exile of Yehoiachin in 597 BCE

• Breach of Jerusalem Walls in 587 BCE

• Beth Hamikdash Destroyed in 587 BCE

• Gedaliah murdered on 1st of Tishre 587 BCE

5 Stages of Geulah1. Yehoyachin Freed

and Given Daily Allowance2. Cyrus Grants Permission to

Return and Rebuild in 539 BCE

3. Rebuilding of Second Bet Hamikdash in 520-516 BCE

4. Activities of Ezra and Nehemiah

5. Hasmonean Independence

Important Dates

• 604 Nebuchadnezzar comes to power• 597 Galut Yehoyachin• 586 Destruction of Bet haMikdash I• 562 Yehoyachin taken out of prison• 538 Cyrus destroys Babylonia, decree• 520-516 Rebuilding of Bet haMikdash