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Daily Life at the Time of Jesus
Vivid, original illustrations of life in New Testament times, maps, photographs of the Holy Land and the most significant archaeological finds of the past half-century combine to bring alive the times of Jesus in a novel and fascinating way. From the inspiring historical background of the unique period which has affected the lives of so many to the succinct, in-depth explanations that accompany each illustration, this is a perfect book for all ages.
104 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2001
6 people are currently reading
149 people want to read
About the author
Miriam Feinberg Vamosh
27 books26 followersMiriam Feinberg Vamosh, an author based in Israel since 1970, is renowned for her works that delve into ancient times in the Holy Land. Her latest book, "Ahōti – A Story of Tamar," co-authored with Eva Marie Everson (Paraclete Press, release date May 2024), takes the tragic story of David’s daughter Tamar to a new place of redemption and healing. Her bibliography includes "Daily Life at the Time of Jesus," which has been translated into over 30 languages, "Food at the Time of the Bible," "Women at the Time of the Bible" (Palphot) and "Teach it to Your Children, How Kids Lived in Bible Days," (AviMedia), the award-winning "Reflections of God's Holy Land: a Personal Journey Through Israel" (with Eva Marie Everson, Thomas Nelson ) and and a historical novel, "The Scroll" (Toby Press). A native of Trenton, New Jersey, Miriam’s passion for the Bible and ancient sources evolved over many years as a tour educator, and her interest in Christianity began thanks to the respect she learned at home for people of diverse faiths and cultures. A member of the translation team on the news desk of the Israeli daily Haaretz for two decades, she has juxtaposed the complexities of writing, translating, and editing about millennia-old events, with her work for a cutting-edge Israeli newspaper. This is the complexity that for Miriam makes life in Israel an unending search for meaning, healing and justice. With the passing of her husband Arik (Aharon), Miriam continues to cherish their two wonderful daughters and sons-in-law and five grandchildren.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 19, 2019
Daily Life at the time of Jesus by Miriam Feinberg Vamosh presents a rich overview of the culture and circumstances in which the Lord walked the earth. It discusses many aspects of Jewish life in the first century, features a copious amount of images and illustrations, and is just over 100 pages in length.
Jesus lived among His brethren in a specific time period with a unique set of social and economic circumstances. The religion and culture in which He lived were reflected in His manner of life and teaching. Understanding these background elements are helpful in properly appreciating what we read in the Bible. Ms. Vamosh does an excellent job of presenting a brief overview of many things that would have been second nature to Jesus’ hearers, but are foreign to us.
For example, the book explores common village life, the synagogue, wedding feasts, and much more. It sheds light on many well-known passages in the New Testament such as Jesus reading from Isaiah in Luke 4 and the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25 (pgs. 56 and 59). Most topics are considered over the course of just a page or two.
That doesn’t sound like much, but the book’s paper size is large, and the margins often contain 2-4 images on either side that are related to the matter being described. These add a deeper explanation of the subject beyond just words, and for me, greatly increased my appreciation of Jewish life. It also features a number of full-page images and two-page spreads that are worthy of close attention. They depict many Biblical scenes, such as a typical village and the Temple. It is a beautiful book. The text often makes reference to things and events that are depicted in such visuals as well. One instance includes the apostle Paul preaching to the people on the steps of the Antonia Fortress (pg. 33).
This is appreciated because Daily Life at the time of Jesus quotes from the Bible nearly constantly. In the illustration just mentioned, the author includes Acts 21:30-22:1 on the preceding page. Most pages have a Bible quotation or reference on it somewhere. Most of them have both a verse, and its citation, at the top. The book is also replete with quotations and references to writings of the religious teachers who influenced daily life in the first century. The most common of these are from the Jewish Talmud. Many readers may also be pleased to hear that the words of Josephus are quoted repeatedly. All of this demonstrates the great research that Ms. Vamosh has done in preparation for this work.
Outside of Biblical topics, the book also examines a few other places of interest that may be known by some Jews and Christians. These include the community at Qumran and the fortified palace known as Masada. For example, the work dedicates a few pages to the Dead Sea Scrolls (pgs. 77-79). Of these three, there are 15 different illustrations and photos related to the Scrolls and Qumran! At least six pages are spent on Masada (pgs. 80-86). On those, the author presents over a dozen photos and multiple illustrations.
The sheer amount of imagery is very impressive, and the text conveys just enough information for readers to have a good basis from which further study can be conducted. It is comprehensive in scope, but not in depth of its material. Miriam’s work provides a good survey of what she explores, but its brevity compels interested readers to look into other sources for more detailed information. Thankfully, both an index and bibliography are included at the back of the book.
There are only two small caveats I have with this work. Some may struggle with the book’s vocabulary. Second, the historical overview at the beginning may make for particularly dry reading.
Even though some of the above could be viewed as drawbacks, I actually think of them as expected based on the subject matter. Spending time setting the historical scene of the book is a required element for a text such as this. The words the author uses are sometimes rare, but also appropriate based on the topics discussed. I thoroughly enjoyed Daily Life at the time of Jesus by Miriam Vamosh, and recommend it highly to anyone who wants to begin studying the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth and His fellow Jews.
Jesus lived among His brethren in a specific time period with a unique set of social and economic circumstances. The religion and culture in which He lived were reflected in His manner of life and teaching. Understanding these background elements are helpful in properly appreciating what we read in the Bible. Ms. Vamosh does an excellent job of presenting a brief overview of many things that would have been second nature to Jesus’ hearers, but are foreign to us.
For example, the book explores common village life, the synagogue, wedding feasts, and much more. It sheds light on many well-known passages in the New Testament such as Jesus reading from Isaiah in Luke 4 and the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25 (pgs. 56 and 59). Most topics are considered over the course of just a page or two.
That doesn’t sound like much, but the book’s paper size is large, and the margins often contain 2-4 images on either side that are related to the matter being described. These add a deeper explanation of the subject beyond just words, and for me, greatly increased my appreciation of Jewish life. It also features a number of full-page images and two-page spreads that are worthy of close attention. They depict many Biblical scenes, such as a typical village and the Temple. It is a beautiful book. The text often makes reference to things and events that are depicted in such visuals as well. One instance includes the apostle Paul preaching to the people on the steps of the Antonia Fortress (pg. 33).
This is appreciated because Daily Life at the time of Jesus quotes from the Bible nearly constantly. In the illustration just mentioned, the author includes Acts 21:30-22:1 on the preceding page. Most pages have a Bible quotation or reference on it somewhere. Most of them have both a verse, and its citation, at the top. The book is also replete with quotations and references to writings of the religious teachers who influenced daily life in the first century. The most common of these are from the Jewish Talmud. Many readers may also be pleased to hear that the words of Josephus are quoted repeatedly. All of this demonstrates the great research that Ms. Vamosh has done in preparation for this work.
Outside of Biblical topics, the book also examines a few other places of interest that may be known by some Jews and Christians. These include the community at Qumran and the fortified palace known as Masada. For example, the work dedicates a few pages to the Dead Sea Scrolls (pgs. 77-79). Of these three, there are 15 different illustrations and photos related to the Scrolls and Qumran! At least six pages are spent on Masada (pgs. 80-86). On those, the author presents over a dozen photos and multiple illustrations.
The sheer amount of imagery is very impressive, and the text conveys just enough information for readers to have a good basis from which further study can be conducted. It is comprehensive in scope, but not in depth of its material. Miriam’s work provides a good survey of what she explores, but its brevity compels interested readers to look into other sources for more detailed information. Thankfully, both an index and bibliography are included at the back of the book.
There are only two small caveats I have with this work. Some may struggle with the book’s vocabulary. Second, the historical overview at the beginning may make for particularly dry reading.
Even though some of the above could be viewed as drawbacks, I actually think of them as expected based on the subject matter. Spending time setting the historical scene of the book is a required element for a text such as this. The words the author uses are sometimes rare, but also appropriate based on the topics discussed. I thoroughly enjoyed Daily Life at the time of Jesus by Miriam Vamosh, and recommend it highly to anyone who wants to begin studying the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth and His fellow Jews.
April 24, 2019
Many citations of Josephus. Lots of illustrations. Covers history, food, medicine, religion, travel, etc. Very good intro.
April 19, 2021
We used this in our history as we studied Rome and the Early Church. It had great illustrations, artifacts, maps, and scripture to tie everything together.
June 18, 2022
Lots of details of the history, geography, and culture in the days of Jesus. We read this in our Classical Dialectic homeschool history class.
August 11, 2011
"Daily Life at the Time of Jesus" gives Bible background information about daily life that helps readers better understand some things that are referred to in the gospels. The author based her information on ancient writings, the New Testament, and archeological findings. The text was accompanied by full-color maps of Israel, photographs taken around Israel and of archeological items, and illustrated artist reconstructions of daily life and buildings. There was also a timeline (with 4 B.C. for Herod's death, for those who are interested in that) and a family tree from King David to Jesus.
I learned some new and interesting information, and I really liked the chart telling how much the various coins would have bought back then. Though each section was brief, this book covered some information I haven't seen elsewhere. Overall, I'd recommend this book.
The author started with a brief history of Herod the Great up to the time of Jesus. It then talked about Jerusalem, the Temple, the Sanhedrin, pilgrimage, the Antonia Fortress, the Roman Army, crucifixion, a wealthy household in Jerusalem, the village, a village house, working in the fields, domestic animals, the shepherd, olive press, blacksmith, carpenter, weaver, grain mill, synagogue, education, a wedding feast, food and drink, fishermen (including information about fishing net types and how to use them), a country manor, wine press, doctor, burying the dead, Qumran, balsam production, Dead Sea scrolls, Masada, mosaics, Herod's other palaces, Caesarea, a pagan temple, city gate and market, and money and prices.
I learned some new and interesting information, and I really liked the chart telling how much the various coins would have bought back then. Though each section was brief, this book covered some information I haven't seen elsewhere. Overall, I'd recommend this book.
The author started with a brief history of Herod the Great up to the time of Jesus. It then talked about Jerusalem, the Temple, the Sanhedrin, pilgrimage, the Antonia Fortress, the Roman Army, crucifixion, a wealthy household in Jerusalem, the village, a village house, working in the fields, domestic animals, the shepherd, olive press, blacksmith, carpenter, weaver, grain mill, synagogue, education, a wedding feast, food and drink, fishermen (including information about fishing net types and how to use them), a country manor, wine press, doctor, burying the dead, Qumran, balsam production, Dead Sea scrolls, Masada, mosaics, Herod's other palaces, Caesarea, a pagan temple, city gate and market, and money and prices.
June 26, 2008
Interesting and had lots of pictures and easy explanations.
December 10, 2014
Great materiel for adults and kids, alike! Worth reading. Well done in literary style, research and illustration!
January 3, 2014
Good resource for learning what it was like in Judah and Galilee in the first century CE.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews