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History
Ancient History

New Perspectives on the Return from Exile and Per­sian-Period Yehud

Profile image of Mary Joan LeithMary Joan Leith

2020, The Oxford Handbook of the Historical Books of the Hebrew Bible Edited by Brad E. Kelle and Brent A. Strawn

https://doi.org/10.1093/OXFORDHB/9780190261160.013.11
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29 pages

Abstract

Biblical scholars today recognize the long Persian period (550-332 BCE) as the time when an early form of the biblical text approached canonical status. Yhwh religion-at least in its elite form-evolved from a tradition largely based on temple and kingship into one framed by control of a sacred text. While the title of this essay could imply that only Yehud (Judea) is of relevance to Yhwh religion and the historical books of the Bible, this period should be understood in international terms. New textual evidence for previously unknown Yahwist communities in Babylonia and Idumea are a case in point. Elites in Yh wh-worshiping communities situated across the Persian Empire from Egypt to Persia, and not just in Yehud or Shomron (Samaria), communicated with each other. The biblical books written or set in the Persian period developed within this international context, one that included debate over claims to be the true "Israel."

Key takeaways
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AI

  1. The Persian period (550-332 BCE) was crucial for the evolution of Yahwism and biblical texts.
  2. New evidence reveals Yahwist communities existed across the Persian Empire, not just in Yehud.
  3. The curatorial model illustrates how Judeans preserved and defined their identity during and after exile.
  4. Ezra-Nehemiah's narrative reflects elite perspectives, neglecting broader Yahwistic practices beyond Yehud.
  5. Communities like those at Elephantine indicate diverse Yahwistic traditions and interactions across the empire.

Related papers

Leviticus 26 and the Pro-Babylonian-Golah and Pro-Diaspora Redactions in the Context of Identity Formation and Conflict of Yahwistic Groups in the Persian Period
Kishiya Hidaka

Benedikt Hensel, Bartosz Adamczewski, and Dany Nocquet (ed.), Social Groups behind Biblical Traditions: Identity Perspectives from Egypt, Transjordan, Mesopotamia, and Israel in the Second Temple Period (FAT 167), Mohr Siebeck; Tübingen, 2023, 205-223., 2023

This article investigates Leviticus 26 in light of its redactional layers and ideological tendencies, arguing that it reflects both pro-Babylonian-Golah and later pro-diaspora theological developments. Through a detailed literary and theological comparison with Ezekiel and Jeremiah, the study reveals Leviticus 26's unique contribution to Persian-period identity formation and covenant theology.

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Finkelstein, I. 2009. Persian Period Jerusalem and Yehud: A Rejoinder, Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 9: 2-13.
Israel Finkelstein

Journal of Hebrew Scriptures , 2009

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Hensel, 2024, “Reconsidering Yahwism in Persian Period Idumea in Light of the Current Material Findings.” In: Barnea, G./Kratz, R.G. (Hg.), Yahwism under the Achaemenid Empire. Prof. Shaul Shaked in memoriam (BZAW), Berlin: de Gruyter 2024, 139-184. FULL TEXT
Benedikt Hensel

2024

The question of Yahwism is seen as part of the overall phenomenon of "Yahwism in the Persian Period." According to the latest research, this phenomenon is characterized by a high degree of regional diversification and cultural-religioussocial plurality. Yahwism in Idumea is accordingly classified in this system of coordination. This article represents the first study dealing with Yahwism in Idumea-in research it is either not mentioned at all (in favor of a focus on the imagined "norm group" of Judaism in Jerusalem-see below) or it is left with a short reference to the famous Idumea Ostracon from the 4th century BCE, which mentions a "Yaho temple"-apparently in Idumea. This chapter discusses and re-evaluates all the available material evidence in the Idumean region and province that may be indicators of a practiced Yahwism in Persian times in this region (sections 1-6). In this context, certain biblical, namely late Persian, traditions of the Hebrew Bible also need to be taken into account: the focus at the end of the paper will be on the genealogical vestibule of Chronicles with its dominant Judean genealogy, in which "Edomite," i.e., "non-Israelite" cultural traits are "made" into Judean ones. Likewise, a look at the post-P narrative Genesis 23 will have to be taken in this context (section 7).

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Where to Put „Biblical“ Yahwism in Achaemenid Times?, in: G. Barnea / R.G. Kratz (eds), Yahwism under the Achaemenid Empire: Professor Shaul Shaked in Memoriam (BZAW 548), Berlin: De Gruyter 2024, 267–278 (open access).
Reinhard G. Kratz

2024

In this paper I would like to address a fundamental methodological problem of the sources on Judaism in Persian times, which is well known but widely ignored in scholarship. I do not have a solution to the problem, but I would like to strongly advocate that we do not continue to pretend that we have a solution or even that the problem does not exist at all. Instead, we should concede the limits of our knowledge and take them into account in our historical reconstruction. Otherwise, biblical scholarship simply makes a fool of itself in relation to other sciences, especially the historians of antiquity, and turns out to be a purely apologetic enterprise of theologians. The problem I am talking about concerns the literary sources of the Persian period that have been incorporated into the Hebrew Bible and thus-for purely pragmatic reasons-can be called "biblical" sources. These are primarily the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (1-8), the book of Esther as well as parts of the book of Daniel, which explicitly speak about the Persians. Furthermore, one can also include Chronicles, Second Isaiah (chap. 40-55 or 40-66) and the prophet Malachi, which are usually dated to Persian times. I will refrain here from other parts of the Hebrew Bible that for conceptual and/ or linguistic reasons are also dated to late Babylonian, Persian or early Hellenistic times , such as the Priestly Writing in the Pentateuch, late redactions and parts in Torah and Former Prophets, or late poetry in Psalms and Wisdom; however, the following remarks also apply to them. In scholarship, represented by both special monographs and textbooks, the literary, i.e. biblical sources are normally used on an equal footing with archaeological and epigraphic evidence for the history of the two provinces of Samaria and Yehud, of the Samarian and Judean population both in the land and in the diaspora, and of the religion, i.e. Yahwism in Achaemenid times. It is true that the dating, authenticity and historicity of the biblical sources are disputed in detail. But the overall opinion in scholarship seems to be that these sources are more or less reliable and-in this way or the other-reflect the reality of the Achaemenid period.

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Expatriates, Repatriates, and the Question of Zion’s Status – In Conversation with Melody D. Knowles, Centrality Practiced: Jerusalem in the Religious Practices of Yehud and the Diaspora in the Persian Period
Gary N Knoppers

Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, 2009

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Lipschits, O. 2011. Persian Period Judah – A New Perspective. in: Jonker, L. (ed.). Texts, Contexts and Readings in Postexilic Literature – Explorations into Historiography and Identity Negotiation in Hebrew Bible and Related Texts (Forschungen zum Alten Testament II 53). Tübingen: 187-212.
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Review of Judah and the Judeans in the Achaemenid Period: Negotiating Identity in an International Context. Edited by Oded Lipschits; Gary N. Knoppers; and Manfred Oeming. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 2011.
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2009-The Redaction of the Hebrew Bible: its Achaemenid Persian Setting
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Chronicles in an (Un)Changing World: The ‘Persian Context’ in Biblical Studies
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Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2018

Robert Rollinger argues that Cyrus's conquest of Babylon in 53 9 BCE does not necessarily mean that a new ‘Persian’ epoch started. Continuity and change rather appear side-by-side. As such, it is difficult to define what is uniquely ‘Persian’ in this era. With this view Rollinger captures the present state of consensus regarding the Persian Empire. Although the Persian Empire displays numerous unique features, one should not ignore the continuities with customs and peoples of former imperial regimes, as well as its incorporation of a diversity of ethnic and cultural identities. These insights warn against an ‘over-interpretation’ of the uniqueness of the Persian period, a tendency which often emerges in biblical scholarship.

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Judah and the Judeans in the Achaemenid period : negotiating identity in an international context
Manfred Oeming

2011

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FAQs

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What evidence suggests Yahwism evolved during the Persian period?add

Archaeological findings since the 1970s reveal that Yahwism began to adopt monotheism during the Persian period, indicating a significant religious evolution from earlier polytheistic practices.

How did Judeans maintain identity during the Babylonian exile?add

Judeans coped by cultivating genealogies, engaging in prayer, and reinterpreting laws for life away from the Temple, which helped preserve their cultural identity during exile.

What role did the concept of 'curating' play in exilic Judean identity?add

The curation of traditions allowed exiles to select and manage their heritage, culminating in the development of canonical scriptures during the Persian period.

How is the administration of Yehud characterized under Persian rule?add

Yehud's administration remains complex, with debates on whether it had an independent governor or was managed by Samarian officials, reflecting evolving local power dynamics.

What implications did the archaeological record have on Ezra-Nehemiah's narratives?add

The archaeological evidence challenges Ezra-Nehemiah's claims of a unified Golah identity by suggesting that the returnee population was absorbed into existing local Judeans.

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Mary Joan Leith
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Related topics

  • Achaemenid Art and Archaeology
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  • Post Exilic Period
  • Ancient Samaria
  • Judea and Samaria
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