Between?yahwism?and Judaism - Judean Cult Culture During Early Hellenistic Period 332175 Bce

This Element seeks to characterize key aspects of the cult and culture of the Judean populace at large, in Judea and the diaspora, during the Early Hellenistic period (332-175 BCE). It asks if this period signals cultural continuity with the Yahwism of the past, or cultural rupture with the emergence Judaism as known from later times. It investigates: administrative structures, whether Torah was widely observed, how and where Judeans performed cultic worship of YHWH and if this had become exclusive of other deities, adoption of Greek cultural elements and what literature was well-known and influential, including "Biblical" literature. It concludes that while no rupture is evident, and the Early Hellenistic period marks a strong degree of continuity with the Yahwism of Persian times, in some senses the era paved a way for the subsequent transition into the Judaism of the future.

List of contents

Abbreviations; 1. Introduction; 2. Administrative Structures; 3. Torah Law; 4. Cultic Worship of YHWH; 5. Adoption of Greek Cultural Elements; 6. Literary Reception; 7. Conclusions; References.

Product details

• Authors: Yonatan Adler, Yonatan (Bar-Ilan University) Adler
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press ELT
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 31.10.2025
• EAN: 9781009459624
• ISBN: 978-1-0-0945962-4
• No. of pages: 75
• Series: Elements in The Archaeology of Ancient Israel
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Antiquity; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Archaeology, Ancient / Biblical Israel, Ancient History, Archaeology by period / region, Ancient history: to c 500 CE, c 1000 BCE to start of CE period, BCE to c 500 CE, Biblical Archaeology