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The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Vol 1 - Predestination

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Vol 1 - Predestination

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But Palestine owed, if possible, a still greater debt<br />

to Babylonia. <strong>The</strong> new circumstances in which <strong>the</strong><br />

Jews were placed on <strong>the</strong>ir return seemed to render<br />

necessary an adaptation <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Mosaic Law, if not<br />

new legislation. Besides, piety <strong>and</strong> zeal now<br />

attached <strong>the</strong>mselves to <strong>the</strong> outward observance <strong>and</strong><br />

study <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> letter <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Law. This is <strong>the</strong> origin <strong>of</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> Mishnah, or Second Law, which was intended<br />

to explain <strong>and</strong> supplement <strong>the</strong> first. This<br />

constituted <strong>the</strong> only Jewish dogmatics, in <strong>the</strong> real<br />

sense, in <strong>the</strong> study <strong>of</strong> which <strong>the</strong> sage, Rabbi,<br />

scholar, scribe, <strong>and</strong> JDarshan^^ were engaged. <strong>The</strong><br />

result <strong>of</strong> it was <strong>the</strong> Midrashy or investigation, a<br />

term which afterwards was popularly applied to<br />

commentaries on <strong>the</strong> Scriptures <strong>and</strong> preaching.<br />

From <strong>the</strong> outset, Jewish <strong>the</strong>ology divided into two<br />

branches: <strong>the</strong> Halakhah <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Haggadah. <strong>The</strong><br />

former (from halakh, to go) was, so to speak, <strong>the</strong><br />

Rule <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Spiritual Road, <strong>and</strong>, when fixed, had<br />

even greater authority than <strong>the</strong> Scriptures <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

Old Testament, since it explained <strong>and</strong> applied<br />

<strong>the</strong>m. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r h<strong>and</strong>, <strong>the</strong> Haggadah* (from<br />

nobody to tell) was only <strong>the</strong> personal saying <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>

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