Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus

by Joachim Jeremias

s/t: An Investigation into Economic and Social Conditions during the New Testament Period
Including: Economic conditions in the city of Jerusalem, economic status, social status, and the maintenance of racial purity.

Genres: History, Christianity, Religion, Christian, Judaism, New Testament, Theology

428 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Joachim Jeremias was a German Lutheran theologian, scholar of Near Eastern Studies, and professor of New Testament studies.

Reviews

[Darryl Greer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The late Joachim Jeremias was a German Lutheran theologian, scholar of Near Eastern Studies and university professor for New Testament studies and was abbot of Bursfelde between 1968 and 1971. His formative years were spent in Jerusalem. His work, "Jerusalem In The Time Of Jesus" is a masterpiece of research and historical detective work, the author having pieced together in extraordinary detail what life must have been like in first century Jerusalem, drawing not only on New Testament texts but the Hebrew Bible and Rabbinic texts as well as those of Romano-Jewish first century historian, Titus Flavius Josephus and other contemporaneous writings. Despite the author’s background, this book is not religious, but historical. It is scholarly, not an easy read but it gives an amazing and no doubt accurate picture of what life must have been like for everyday residents of and visitors to Jerusalem in the first century. It is over 400 pages long, crammed with notes and bibliography as you would expect from an academic work and this is reflected in the cost. On Amazon Australia the hardcover version is listed at $AUD133.53, the paperback $AUD37.53. My copy, however, was free as it is available, legally, on the Internet.

"Jerusalem In The Time of Jesus" was, of course, originally written in German and has been painstakingly translated into English by F. H. Cave and C. H. Cave. It truly is a remarkable work.

[Werner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A professing Lutheran in the "liberal" tradition, German New Testament scholar Joachim jeremias (1900-1979), who taught for over 30 years at the Univ. of Gottingen, was one of the major figures in his field during the 20th century. His writings were numerous, but this tome may well be his most important work available in English (and is the only one that I've personally read). As the title indicates, it's primarily a descriptive treatment of Jerusalem as it was in the days of Jesus' earthly ministry, the early first century, rather than an interpretive discussion of New Testament texts. The author sometimes refers to the latter; but the focus is on the socio-economic and cultural background of Jesus' world (not so much the physical geography of the city). Jeremias considered (correctly, IMO), this background to be a crucial foundation for the serious study of the New Testament, and I've recommended it primarily for readers interested in this. Of course, it would also be worthwhile reading for history students, secular or otherwise, interested in ancient Palestine (because of its focus, the Library of Congress actually catalogs it with Palestinian history, not Biblical studies), or Jewish readers interested in the late second Temple period.

Although Jeremias was an academic, and uses documentary footnotes and the standard scholarly abbreviations for sources (there's a list of these in the introductory matter), the vocabulary level is that of the average intelligent layman. (He uses big words in places, but not jargon.) The book itself is not extremely long, with just 376 pages of actual text (the rest of the 405 pages are mostly indexes of subjects/names and of references to ancient writings, as well as lists of the high priests fr0m 200 BC to 70 AD and of the scribes known to have been active in Jerusalem in this era). But a great deal of solid (and to me highly interesting!) factual information is packed into this, dealing with economic conditions in that day, the various trades and industries, the religious institutions (including the priests and the scribes), the social classes and their relations, the relations of Jews with Samaritans and Gentiles, the concern with racial purity which in Jeremias' words "dominated" the society, the social position of women, etc. (Much of what is written here about Jerusalem can also be extrapolated to the rest of Palestine as well.) Source material from which the information is drawn includes the Talmud and related writings (which were written in the centuries following the destruction of Jerusalem, but which faithfully preserve handed-down oral material from the first century and before), primary or other ancient sources such as Josephus and Roman records, and archaeological evidence. (There's no bibliography, but the footnotes cite a substantial body of material.)

In some places where Jeremias offers an opinion on New Testament texts, I disagree with him. For instance, he argues (in a footnote) that the words "except for marital unfaithfulness" in Matthew 5:32 are an "interpolation," based on its absence from the Synoptic parallels. But there is no actual textual evidence for any manuscript of Matthew's Gospel without those words; and I would maintain that there is no reason to doubt that they were in the original text (IMO, they are easily explained as the author's paraphrase of Jesus' words, to make explicit a qualification which was only implicit in the original). But minor quibbles of this sort don't detract from the substantive value of the book.

Although I haven't reviewed it, another work which also concentrates on providing similar background material is Daily Life in the Time of Jesus (1959) by the French Roman Catholic historian Henri Daniel-Rops, who traveled extensively in the Middle East. The latter work is more "popular level" in its treatment than Jeremias' is, but the two books can supplement each other very well; and I highly recommend either or both of them.

[Sherrill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is quite a technical book written by a scholar so a little hard to understand I came away from reading this with the feeling that our prejudices are nothing compared to all of the ways you could find disfavor in those days. Your profession was suspect and many were out and out regarded as below all social consideration You had to be born into the right family and you had to for sure be born a Jew as proselytes (those who converted) could never actually reach the higher status. Your blood line had to be above reproach or you couldn't marry anyone whose was above reproach. Above all don't be born a woman because they had no status at all and the husband could readily sell her off to pay debts. It isn't hard to imagine that people I\in those days would consider torturing and hanging a person on a cross as very acceptable and a cause to come and watch and celebrate. The good old days were not good at all.

[Christofer Boeyink · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super fascinating book - have a much higher appreciation for the uniqueness of Christ - he was completely counter-cultural. One gem from the book - Samaritans were thought so low of that even the spittle of one could make you "unclean." They had their own Temple which was destroyed by Herod, and bands of Jews and Samaritans would attack each other often. The animosity between the two has no modern day comparison. This makes Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 even more amazing. Jeremias at times holds a lower view of Scripture, but they are relatively minor - things like discrepancies between Matthew and Luke in Jesus' genealogy means one of them must be false... I was able to disagree and still got a lot of enjoyment from the book. It is definitely a scholarly work, and it is impossible to read while tired (you WILL fall asleep).

[Ben Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The gold standard for New Testament background studies, especially the life and times of Jesus. Very well written and exhaustively researched, while being extraordinarily accessible to layman and scholar alike. My biggest takeaway is how stratified the caste system was, and ironically given later history, how much focus there was in second temple Judaism on racial purity. That realization certainly shines light on some of the scenes in the gospels.

[Steve Irby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished "Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus: An Investigation into Economic and Sovial Conditions During the New Testament Period," by Joachim Jeremias.

Jerusalem 6-70 ad:
Wow. Jeremias' rapid fire of Jerusalem facts is amazing. Olive oil?--Jeruslems only export. There was the trade of water-seller during times of drought. So far the most amazing thing is that the completion of the temple in ~66 ad put some 18,000 people out of work. So they started a make-work street paving project. In this time period a doctor was seen alongside a laborer, which gives a new view of the trade.

I don't know if I can keep up. Jeremias is a shotgun blast of Jerusalem facts. Blood ran directly from the altar of the temple, underground to the Kidron Valley. This blood rich soil was sold for a high fee and it was considered sacrilege to not pay for it. The Kidron grew some legit trees and bushes due to the blood soil. The cursed fig tree was here. But what did the grades taste like?

The Mt of Olives had vendors on it who sold sacrifices of purification.

Jeremias just figures out how many pilgrims would have traveled to Jerusalem for Passover. His estimated population is based on good data be that the real number or not. Where else will you find out the number of people who live inside the walls (and outside)?

Really interesting that they would call their priests Abba, as in Abba Saul. The number of priests to run the temple in Jerusalem is absolutely astounding; just washing the curtain or veil required 300 priests. In all, at about the time of Jesus there would have been around 18,000 priests and Levites. For. One. Temple.

Before a priest could take office they had to provide a record of genealogy to show they are descent from royal stock. Reminds me of the opening of Mt and Lk.

Thinking Atonement theology here: A Jew could own a Jew slave and a slave was free at the death of their master.

The chapter here that gets the win is "Detestable Trades." The fact that gets the win is that daughters were married off between 12 and 12.5 yrs old.

Awesome book. The last 100pp could be a book in itself.


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[Andy Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This detailed historical view of Jerusalem is quite thorough and clear. I recommend it for any student of the New Testament, especially of the four gospels. Dr. Jeremias examines the economy and sociology of Jerusalem, every sector of the economy and every demographic segment.

Along the way, the reader learns the detailed history of the political and religious parties, the Sadducees, Pharisees, and scribes, as well as Herodians and Greek Jews. From kings to slaves, from priests to proselytes, Dr. Jeremias examines all in historical detail.

His primary sources are contemporary Jewish rabbis, the historian Josephus, the Bible, and letters of the Roman rulers.

I did not find the style as entertaining as Paul Johnson or

[Gary Detrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chose this book as a part of my historical biblical studies. Indeed, it was an interesting lesson on the culture of Jerusalem during the era of Jesus. You can identify with his reasons for speaking out against the sects of that time. Specifically the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots. The section on the Scribes is very interesting along with the chapters of the "lower" peoples and the place of women at that time. A radical time in my eyes. Christ was surely the shining light of that time.
Throughly researched and assiduously prepared from our ancient historical documents. A nice addition to your biblical library.

[Plants And · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative, although a bit out of date on same things (though several were corrected by the notes) and more dry than I like. Still a useful tool for fully appreciating several situations and teachings in the New Testament.

[Barb Hegreberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is hands down one of the best reference books I have ever owned. It is well organized and well written. The cross references make it easy to find the information I am looking for.

[Sheba Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended reading. Gives an in-depth new analysis of the four Gospels and the New Testament. Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus breaks down the economic, social and community structures. A must have tool to use when studying the New Testament. I have it on my desk beside my Bible.

[Dmcconkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic volume from the late NT scholar on the background information of the times of Jesus in Jerusalem. Covers areas of economics, social status, politics, religious practices, and maintenance of Racial Purity in the late 2nd Temple era. A wealth of information on the daily life & relationships with insights from scripture and rabbinic literature.

[C.L. Francisco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeremias' book is dated now, in light of more recent biblical scholarship and excavations, but it's still a landmark text and a giant in the field. Eminently readable, carefully organized, minutely detailed, and endlessly fascinating--I'd recommend it to anyone as a background for studying life in 1st C Israel.

[Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely a scholarly book, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus is full of cultural information relevant to a study of the New Testament.

[Richard Klueg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth reading for background to the gospels. Highly technical and well-documented, though I am not sure that all of the author's conclusions are as certain as he presents them.