The Intertestamental Period

The Intertestamental Period

THE READER OF THE NEW TESTAMENT QUICKLY becomes aware of having entered a world quite different from that of Malachi. New religious and political parties have risen to prominence. A new world power is in control. Even Jewish popular perceptions regarding the Law and God’s promised Messiah have changed.

No canonical records exist for the 400-year period between the return from Babylon and the birth of Jesus, but an understanding of the historical and religious developments during this time is critical to our understanding of the New Testament world. Jesus’ ministry and the development of the early church take place within this new context and are shaped, at least in part, by more recent events as well as by Israel’s Exodus, kingdom, and the Exile.

One Period—Six Divisions

If the Book of Malachi was completed in about 450 B.C., then the period under consideration begins at that point and continues until the angel’s announcement of the birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:11–17). Six historical divisions are observable within this time span: The Persian Era, which actually dates to 536 B.C. but coincides with the Intertestamental Period from 450 to 336 B.C.; the Greek Era (336–323 B.C.); the Egyptian Era (323–198 B.C.); the Syrian Era (198–165 B.C.); the Maccabean Era (165–63 B.C.); and the Roman Era (63–4 B.C.). This study will look at these six divisions chronologically, giving attention to the historical situation and the religious developments within each segment.