Background

Jesus Reading Isaiah Scroll

Jesus was reading from a scroll of the prophet Isaiah, when He spoke the incredible words, "today this Scripture is fulfilled."...

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Jesus Before Annas and Caiaphas by Alfred Edersheim

IT was not a long way that they led the bound Christ. Probably through the same gate by which He had gone forth with His disciples after the Paschal Supper, up to where, on the slope between the Upper City and the Tyropoeon, stood the well-known Palace of Annas. There were no idle saunterers in the streets of Jerusalem at that late hour, and the tr...

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Rome - Domestic Life

The family was a strong social unit in Roman civilization. In early centuries, the head of the family (paterfamilias) exercised total control over the whole family. Children were taught to respect the gods, their country, and their parents, in that order. By Julius Caesar's time, Roman women could own property and even influence politics. Girls and...

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THE SYNAGOGUE

The first synagogues may have been built by Jews held captive far from the temple during the Babylonian Exile in the sixth century B.C., but synagogues were important religious and social institutions in the time of Jesus. The original Greek word synagogue means merely "a place of meeting." In the Jewish world synagogues were second only to the tem...

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The Sadducees

The Sadducees were so named because they claimed to be descended from Zadok, the high priest at the time of King David and King Solomon. They consisted of the wealthy aristocratic families who controlled the office of high priest. They rejected belief in angels and the resurrection, but they were not liberal rationalists. Rather, they were staunch ...

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Pontius Pilate

The fifth Roman procurator of Judea (ruled 26-36 AD), who issued the official order sentencing Jesus to death by crucifixion. Bible History Online....

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Rome - The Roman Forum

In early times the "forum" (place outside the door) was just a marsh, where many roads met. Here people could meet outside of town and exchange goods. As Rome grew the forum remained a meeting place and market place. Forum Romanum. Bible History Online....

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The Temple

HEROD'S TEMPLE. Begun in 20 BC, the construction of the temple was one of Herod's most ambitious projects. The old temple mount first had to be cleared and enlarged to about twice its original size. The new area was roughly 1000 by 1500 feet, girded by a massive retaining wall of huge fitted stones, each more than 15 feet long and 13 feet thick. As...

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The Scribes

The scribes were held in great awe and respect throughout the Jewish world. They were thought to possess vast, secret knowledge of the workings of the Lord's power. They could be recognized on the streets by their long, flowing robes, fringed at the corners with very long tassels. When a scribe passed, ordinary people rose as a sign of respect. The...

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The Roman Eagle - Sign of Rome

Roman armies carried this standard wherever they went. When Pompey conquered Jerusalem, his engineers set up these kind of emblems in all public places. The eagle stood for power, and the wreath stood for victory, and the letters SPQR for Senatus Populusque Romanus (The Roman Senate and People). Bible History Online....

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