Judaism

1. Judaism Lesson 1- The Early Hebrews

2. The Early Hebrews • The Big Idea • Originally desert nomads, the Hebrews established a great kingdom called Israel. • Main Ideas • Abraham and Moses led the Hebrews to Canaan and to a new religion. • Strong kings united the Israelites to fight off invaders. • Invaders conquered and ruled the Hebrews after their kingdom broke apart. • Some women in Hebrew society made great contributions to their history.

3. Accounts of the Hebrews describe the Hebrews’ early history and the laws of Judaism, the Hebrew religion. • The Hebrew Bible traces the Hebrews back to Abraham, who was told by God to settle in Mesopotamia. • After a famine struck Canaan, the Hebrews ended up in Egypt and lived well, causing the pharaoh concern. Main Idea 1:Abraham and Moses led the Hebrews to Canaan and to a new religion.

4. Possible Routes of Abraham and Moses

5. The Exodus • The pharaoh of Egypt made the Hebrews slaves to stop them from taking over Egypt. • A leader named Moses demanded that the pharaoh free his people. • He refused, and plagues occurred, frightening the pharaoh. • His people were released, so they began their Exodus out of Egypt. • God then gave Moses the Ten Commandments by which to live. • They included worshipping only God and valuing human life. • The Hebrews reached Canaan and settled there in small communities, as the Israelites.

6. Main Idea 2: Strong kings united the Israelites to fight off invaders. • The new threat to the Israelites came from the Philistines. • The Israelites united under Saul, who became the first king of Israel. • The Israelites wanted a single ruler who could lead them in battle. • David became king after Saul. He won many wars. • Solomon became king next, and expanded the kingdom and trade. • He made allies with nearby kingdoms, including Egypt and Phoenicia. Trade with them made Israel very rich. • With the riches that came from this, he built a temple to God in Jerusalem.

7. After Solomon’s death, revolts broke out over who should be king. • This split Israel into two kingdoms, called Israel and Judah. The people of Judah became known as the Jews. • Both were conquered, and Judah fell to the Chaldeans. Main Idea 3:Invaders conquered and ruled the Hebrews after their kingdom broke apart.

8. The Jews went through a period of enslavement called the Babylonian Captivity. • The Persians took over and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. Some did not return, however, and settled in other parts of the Persian Empire. • Scholars call the scattering of the Jews outside Canaan the Diaspora. Scattering and Conquest-Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, c. 920 BC

9. The Jews were conquered by the Romans, but made many advances in teaching and building temples. • Yohanan ben Zaccai was a teacher during this time who clarified some Jewish teachings to help people better understand the religion. He also built a school to teach about Judaism. • Despite these advances, the Jews were not happy, and called on people to rebel. Scattering and Conquest

10. Hebrew society was governed by men. Women had few rights. • They had to obey their fathers and husbands. They couldn’t choose their own husbands. • A woman could not inherit property unless she had no brothers. • Some of them, however, such as Queen Esther, the judge Deborah, and Miriam (the sister of Moses) made great contributions to society. • Some women, such as Ruth and Naomi, were seen as examples of how women should behave. Ruth was devoted to her mother-in-law. Main Idea 4: Some women in Hebrew society made great contributions to their history.