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The priests were priests because they were from the proper family/lineage as established by God, in the desert. An outsider after that point cannot just step into being a priest. A king was chosen by God (like Saul or David) and then there is also lineage (like Solomon). People don't really get to choose the ruler (at least not in any real and official sense). God only chose people who had the lineage to fill the roles. The exception is Cyrus who is called "God's anointed" though not as a king of the Jews -- he was chosen by God as a king on the outside to perform certain acts to benefit the Jews. The commentators discuss the use of the word "anointed" in reference to him as a more generic term. For some info, check out https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/yesh...t-from-hashem/ and Rashi on Dan 9:26.
"They started a new ruling dynasty in Israel, the Chashmonean dynasty, which lasted for one hundred and three years. This era was marked by a great territorial expansion of the country of Israel, but it was also plagued by a terrible moral and Jewish religious decline."
If I may say so, that makes the point. You did Not have to be of the line of anything to get to be King or High Priest, any more than in Rime, England or China. You just had to win. And then God Favoured You (1).
That the Hasmoneans produced some poor or bad rulers is not uncommon, in any dynasty, old established ruling line, or some Usurper who establishes a new line.
The Hasmoneans or "Chashmona'im" as you more correctly have it, came to an end, not because of their failings as kings, much less that they were not of a legitimate line, but because Herod of Edom exterminated them, and established a new line that came close to being accepted as legitimate in Herod Agrippa II.
(1) the point about Cyrus being favoured of God is nothing remarkable. Hebrew thought was always along the line that God arranged and controlled everything - even the Assyrians smashing and obliterating the Northern Kingdom was because He had Used them to do so. It only remained to try to explain why He had done that.
There is one great benefit to being an atheist - we don't have to try to explain away what is inexplicable.
No, actually in Judaism, Torah supports two people: Moshiach ben Yosef, and Moshiach ben David.
"There is a tradition that there will be another Messiah, from the tribe of Ephraim, the son of Joseph, who will precede Moshiach ben Dovid. He is therefore known as Moshiach ben Yosef or Moshiach ben Ephraim."
"Jewish tradition speaks of two redeemers, each one called Mashiach. Both are involved in ushering in the Messianic era. The term Mashiach unqualified always refers to Mashiach ben David (Mashiach the descendant of David) of the tribe of Judah. He is the actual (final) redeemer who shall rule in the Messianic age. All that was said in our text relates to him.
"Mashiach ben Yossef (Mashiach the descendant of Joseph) of the tribe of Ephraim (son of Joseph), is also referred to as Mashiach ben Ephrayim, Mashiach the descendant of Ephraim. He will come first, before the final redeemer, and later will serve as his viceroy."
"They started a new ruling dynasty in Israel, the Chashmonean dynasty, which lasted for one hundred and three years. This era was marked by a great territorial expansion of the country of Israel, but it was also plagued by a terrible moral and Jewish religious decline."
If I may say so, that makes the point. You did Not have to be of the line of anything to get to be King or High Priest, any more than in Rime, England or China. You just had to win. And then God Favoured You (1).
That the Hasmoneans produced some poor or bad rulers is not uncommon, in any dynasty, old established ruling line, or some Usurper who establishes a new line.
The Hasmoneans or "Chashmona'im" as you more correctly have it, came to an end, not because of their failings as kings, much less that they were not of a legitimate line, but because Herod of Edom exterminated them, and established a new line that came close to being accepted as legitimate in Herod Agrippa II.
(1) the point about Cyrus being favoured of God is nothing remarkable. Hebrew thought was always along the line that God arranged and controlled everything - even the Assyrians smashing and obliterating the Northern Kingdom was because He had Used them to do so. It only remained to try to explain why He had done that.
There is one great benefit to being an atheist - we don't have to try to explain away what is inexplicable.
You look at the historical ends. Religion often provides the behind the scenes reasoning. They took the role of leadership when they were only entitled (by lineage) to the role as priests. That crossing of lines led to their downfall which was effected through external (historical) sources. The good thing about religious belief is that we have a ready way of explaining things, a larger context into which we fit the pieces. When you start with the idea that a book is infallible, you won't find any errors. Self serving, but that's what we do.
No, actually in Judaism, Torah supports two people: Moshiach ben Yosef, and Moshiach ben David.
"There is a tradition that there will be another Messiah, from the tribe of Ephraim, the son of Joseph, who will precede Moshiach ben Dovid. He is therefore known as Moshiach ben Yosef or Moshiach ben Ephraim."
"Jewish tradition speaks of two redeemers, each one called Mashiach. Both are involved in ushering in the Messianic era. The term Mashiach unqualified always refers to Mashiach ben David (Mashiach the descendant of David) of the tribe of Judah. He is the actual (final) redeemer who shall rule in the Messianic age. All that was said in our text relates to him.
"Mashiach ben Yossef (Mashiach the descendant of Joseph) of the tribe of Ephraim (son of Joseph), is also referred to as Mashiach ben Ephrayim, Mashiach the descendant of Ephraim. He will come first, before the final redeemer, and later will serve as his viceroy."
Judaism has the concept of the MB"Y but it isn't fleshed out, nor is it accepted (at least as a necessity) by all. Some split the roles with the MB"Y as a military hero killed after winning wars and the MB"D then rising as a political leader.
Saadiah Gaon says that there may or may not end up being a MB"Y.
I don't need to invent anything, I am not Jewish, I don't have any Jewish family, no Jewish blood. It is what it is, it's what it looks like to me.
So you aren't familiar with Jewish history or culture.
Your 'pedigree' determined where one could go in the Temple, determined what professions you could enter, and who you could marry without consequences, among other things. The comment on Cyrus is part of the historical record, as is the Jews he 'saved' returning, only to repress other Jews who weren't exiled, who also apparently didn't suit Cyrus, either, since he supported the exiles, the Samaritans come to mind here, as they are in the NT; there were others. Much of the post-exilic Fun and Games is in the OT itself.
Maybe you should blame those returning anti-Semitic Babylonian Jews and OT writers, instead of just knee-jerk reactionary herd following. You might learn a few things from this interview with a conservative Rabbi:
You want to inform yourself of certain Jewish sub-cultures, like some of the new 'Chassidics' ,like the settlers, who like Islam better than Christians, and are about as 'enlightened as the average neo-Nazi, whom they share a kinship with; they now make up over 10% of Jews, via birthrates mostly:
And at least read the leading Israeli newspapers once in a while; they post an amazing array of 'anti-semitic' stuff, with titles like a Jerusalem Post's article entitled 40 Rabbis: Jews Shouldn't Rent, Sell Homes to Gentiles
You might also check out an article at New Republic, where a reformed Rabbi calls for Jews to stop using the Holocaust as an excuse to avoid addressing their own racism.
Whether one agrees or not, the issues are being discussed, and most should just ignore the 'Holocaust Card' some imbecile may play to shut down discussions.
Also make yourself aware that the IDF is now allowing radical racist cults into the IDF now, so the next time you hear about some 'atrocity' or other, it may not just be just another fake news propaganda story ... and this is of concern to the U.S., as a backer of Israel. Be careful of which Jewish groups you support, with donations or whatever.
Judaism has the concept of the MB"Y but it isn't fleshed out, nor is it accepted (at least as a necessity) by all. Some split the roles with the MB"Y as a military hero killed after winning wars and the MB"D then rising as a political leader.
Saadiah Gaon says that there may or may not end up being a MB"Y.
Exactly. And the beauty of this is that our behavior as individuals and as a people can and does cause a difference in the outcome and how it unfolds. Just as it may occur sooner rather than later, it may occur more gently rather than with harshness.
It is not set in stone. Nor is it meant to be. Our thought speech and action make a significant difference and shape the outcome. Which is why It is so important how we live our daily life and how we treat others and the connection we maintain with Hashem..
You look at the historical ends. Religion often provides the behind the scenes reasoning. They took the role of leadership when they were only entitled (by lineage) to the role as priests. That crossing of lines led to their downfall which was effected through external (historical) sources. The good thing about religious belief is that we have a ready way of explaining things, a larger context into which we fit the pieces. When you start with the idea that a book is infallible, you won't find any errors. Self serving, but that's what we do.
I am aware that 'It was what God wanted' is an easy explanation. Charles Schultz was, to me, quite the philosopher. In one Peanuts strip Lucy Yells at Snoopy "You want to know why your dog-house burned down? Because your Sinned! That's why".
If you are going to look at the Hasmoneans and the all - too- common problems with Kingship and their clearly identifiable demise at the hands of the crafty and power -hungry Herod, and say 'It's was God's punishment because the Hasmoneans took over a position their lineage did not entitle them to (but it didn't stop them winning the war against the Seleucids with god's help apparently - He didn't know they'd take the kingship?), then one can hardly blame the Christians for supposing that the Romans were the Instrument of God in flattening Jerusalem twice (the second time almost literally) and burning the Temple before it was even finished. Even if you disagree with them about what the Jews had done to annoy God so much.
You don't see a problem with the way this kind os easy explanation causes more difficulties than it solves?
then one can hardly blame the Christians for supposing that the Romans were the Instrument of God in flattening Jerusalem twice (the second tome almost literally) and burning the temple before it was even finished. Even if you disagree with them about what the Jews had done to annoy God so much.
Who disagrees with that? That's an essential part of Jewish belief and liturgy. All the exiles were situations where God use Israel's enemies as instruments to punish us. We blame the Christians for other stuff, but not for believing that. Heck, WE believe it.
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