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Sicker sheds new light on the political circumstances surrounding the emergence of Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity. He places the 300-year history of Judaea from the Hasmoneans to Bar Kokhba, 167 B.C.E.-135 C.E. in the context of Roman history and Judaea's geostrategic role in Rome's geopolitics in the Middle East.
However, because of the unique character of its religion and culture, which bred an intense nationalism unknown elsewhere in the ancient world, Judaea turned out to be a weak link holding the Roman Empire in the east together. As such, it became a factor of some importance in the protracted struggle of Rome and Parthia for hegemony in southwest Asia. Judaea thus took on a political and strategic significance that was grossly disproportionate to its size and made its subjugation and domination an imperative of Roman foreign policy for two centuries, from Pompeius to Hadrian. In effect, the history of the period may be viewed as the story of the conflict between Roman imperialism and Judaean nationalism. A fresh look at ancient Middle Eastern and Roman history that will be invaluable for students and scholars of ancient history, post-biblical Jewish history and of Christian origins.
List of contents
Introduction
The Historical Background
The Hasmonean Revolt
A Jewish State is Born
Pharisees and Sadducees
The Era of Jannaeus and Alexandra
The Succession Crisis and Roman Intervention
The Rise of the Antipatrids
The Era of Julius Caesar
Herod and Marcus Antonius
The Reign of Herod the Great
Herod and Augustus Caesar
The Herodians
Judaea Becomes a Roman Province
Pontius Pilate: Procurator of Judaea
The Era of Agrippa
Prelude to the Great Revolt
The Great Revolt Erupts
The Fall of Jerusalem
Aftermath of the Destruction
Hadrian and the Last Revolt
Afterword
Bibliography
About the author
MARTIN SICKER is a private consultant and lecturer who has served as a senior executive in the U.S. government and has taught at the American University and George Washington University. Dr. Sicker has written extensively in the field of political science and international affairs. He is the author of seventeen earlier books, including
The Judaic State: A Study in Rabbinic Poliitcal Theory (Praeger, 1988). His most recent book is
Between Man and God: Issues in Judaic Thought (Greenwood, 2001).
