Judaism Before Jesus: The Events & Ideas That Shaped the New Testament World

by Anthony J. Tomasino

Turning the page from Malachi to Matthew, we skip a lot of history. In fact, it is something like missing several key episodes in an ongoing television saga. The setting and main plot line are familiar, but new characters have appeared and more recent events and developments are assumed. Did anyone record the episodes we missed? Fortunately a few did. Their reception wasn't always good, and there are annoying cuts and splices. But Anthony J. Tomasino has put together the missing episodes and skillfully retells the story of Judaism before Jesus, from the time of Ezra and Nehemiah to the Herods, and even up to Masada. The result is an entertaining, informative and enlightening retelling of the story of Judaism and the development of the ideas, subplots and characters that shaped the world of Jesus and the first Christians.

Genres: History, Biblical Studies

345 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2003

Reviews

[Brett Mclaughlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tomasino's book gets a lot of good reviews. I think they're merited, but I also think those reviews are as much a negative rating of most historical works that cover the intertestamental period (from around 400BC to 6 or so AD) as they are of Tomasino's work. That aside, he writes well, and is more engaging than many purely historical writers. He also formats the book well--there's a main line and then lots of sidebars. Additionally, the sidebars stand alone, and are good flip-through material even after reading the main line.

Tomasino is probably also going to appeal to many non-Christians who are casual historians, simply because he rarely takes a strong Christian position. He assumes to a large degree the truth of the Bible, but never seems theologically bent. In fact, he often discusses the heavy cultural and mythical influences he sees in both secular and non-secular works of the time, as well as the Bible itself. This lends some degree of credence to his work, and probably argues that he's done his homework and really is trying to appeal to a large audience.

Unfortunately, for a Christian--and especially a conservative one who reads the Bible as truth, rather than an amalgamation of stories--this creates some negatives. Tomasino keeps Jesus and Scripture at arm's length, and there are times where his belief in Scripture seems tentative. The Bible is often treated as an important historical source, simply a weightier Antiquities or Against Apion.

Finally, Tomasino is so obviously familiar with this period that his writing is sometimes difficult to follow. There are a lot of characters, obviously, and keeping up with them is non-trivial. History is always resplendent with names, but Tomasino could go a little further in making sure the absolute minimum are in view at any one time, making it easier to follow.

All that said, this is still a good introduction, and a readable one at that.