Holy Convocations and the Public Reading of Scripture

• Torah (T): Wayiqra (Leviticus) Leviticus 23:1-37 (Abridged)
• Prophets (P): Nehemiah 8:1-8
• Apostolic (A): Luke 4:14-21; Acts 13:13-15
• Additional (ADD): Sirach 39:1-11

RELATED SCRIPTURES

• The Synagogue
  • Acts 13:42-46
  • Acts 14:1-7
  • Acts 17:1-17
  • Acts 18:1-28
  • Acts 19:1-10
  • Acts 22:17-19
  • James 2:1-4
• Breaking of Bread and Home Fellowship
  • Mark 1:29-31
  • Luke 14:1-4
  • Acts 1:12-14
  • Acts 2:37-47
  • Acts 20:7-12
• Worship, Prayer, Purifying, Teaching, and Proclaiming the Good News at the Temple
  • Acts 2:46
  • Acts 3:1-11
  • Acts 4:1-4
  • Acts 5:12-42
  • Acts 21:17-30
  • Acts 22:17-22
  • Acts 24:1-21

RELATED ADDITIONAL READINGS

• What does “miqra qodesh” mean?
• Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Pharisee”
• Flavius Josephus, Against Apion, Book 2, Section 157 and 173

Note: (T) means the verse relates to that week’s Torah portion. (P) means the verse relates to that week’s Prophets portion. (A) means the verse relates to that week’s Apostolic portion. (ADD) means the verse relates to that week’s Additional portion.

Torah Portion (T)

Wayiqra (Leviticus) 23:1-37 (Abridged)

23:1 YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them, ‘The appointed times of YHWH, which you will proclaim to be holy convocations, these are my appointed times. 3 Six days will work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a holy convocation; you will do no kind of work. It is a Sabbath to YHWH in all your dwellings…6 On the fifteenth day of the new moon is the festival of unleavened bread to YHWH. Seven days you will eat unleavened bread. 7 In the first day you will have a holy convocation. You will do no work of service. 8 But you will offer an offering made by fire to YHWH seven days. In the seventh day is a holy convocation. You will do no work of service…15 You will count from the next day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths will be completed. 16 The next day after the seventh Sabbath you will count fifty days; and you will offer a new grain offering to YHWH…21 You will make proclamation on the [bone of that day]^(MTT) there will be a holy convocation to you…24 Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh new moon, on the first day of the new moon, there will be a rest for you, a remembrance of shouting, a holy convocation…27 “Surely, on the tenth day of this seventh new moon is the day of atonements. It will be a holy convocation to you…34 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh new moon is the festival of booths for seven days to YHWH. 35 On the first day will be a holy convocation. You will do no work of service. 36 Seven days you will bring an offering made by fire to YHWH. On the eighth day will be a holy convocation to you. 37 These are the appointed times of YHWH which you will proclaim to be holy convocations.

Prophets Portion (P)

Nehemiah 8:1-8

8:1 All the people gathered themselves together as one man into the wide place that was in front of the water gate; and they spoke to Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the Torah of Moses, which YHWH had commanded to Israel. 2 Ezra the priest brought the Torah before the assembly, both men and women, and all who could hear with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 He read from it before the wide place that was in front of the water gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women, and of those who could understand. The ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the Torah. 4 Ezra the scribe stood on a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people (for he was above all the people), and when he opened it, all the people stood up. 6 Then Ezra blessed YHWH, the great Elohim. All the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” with the lifting up of their hands. They bowed their heads, and worshiped YHWH with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the Torah; and the people stayed in their place. 8 They read in the book, in the Torah of Elohim, distinctly; and they gave the sense, so that they understood the reading.

Apostolic Portion (A)

Luke 4:14-21; Acts 13:13-15

Luke 4:14 Yeshua returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and news about him spread through all the surrounding area. 15 He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 16 He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He opened the scroll, and found the place where it was written, 18 “The Spirit of YHWH is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, to proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver those who are crushed, 19 and to proclaim the acceptable year of YHWH.” (cf.  Isaiah 61:1-2) 20 He closed the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Acts 13:13 Now Paul and his company set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. Yochanan departed from them and returned to Jerusalem. 14 But they, passing on from Perga, came to Antioch of Pisidia. They went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. 15 After the reading of the Torah and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, speak.”

Additional Portion (ADD)

Sirach 39:1-11

Sirach, or Wisdom of Sirach, and also known as the Book of Ecclesiasticus (abbreviated Ecclus.) or Ben Sira, is a work of ethical teachings, from approximately 200 to 175 B.C., written by the Jewish scribe Ben Sira of Jerusalem, on the inspiration of his father Joshua son of Sirach, sometimes called Jesus son of Sirach or Yeshua ben Eliezer ben Sira. The Sirach was almost completely uncovered in Hebrew in the Dead Sea Scrolls, at Masada, and the Cairo Geniza. The multiplicity of manuscript fragments uncovered in the Cairo Genizah evidence its authoritative status among Egyptian Jewry until the Middle Ages. Quotes from Sirach can be found in Rabbinic literature in multiple places  including the Talmud in Bava Kamma 92b:13 and Hagigah 13a:2. Additionally, the Gospels and other Apostolic Scriptures quote from the Book of Sirach including the Song of Miriam in Luke 1:52 (cf. Sirach 10:14); the description of the seed in Mark 4:5, 16–17 (cf. Sirach 40:15); the statement by Yeshua in Matthew 7:16,20 (cf. Sirach 27:6); and Ya’aqov (James) 1:19 (cf. Sirach 5:11).

39:1 Not so he who has applied his soul and meditates in the Torah of the Most High. He will seek out the wisdom of all the ancients and will be occupied with prophecies. 2 He will keep the sayings of the men of renown and will enter in amidst the subtleties of parables. 3 He will seek out the hidden meaning of proverbs and be conversant in the dark sayings of parables. 4 He will serve among great men and appear before him who rules. He will travel through the land of foreign nations, for he has learned what is good and evil among men. 5 He will apply his heart to return early to the Lord who made him, and will make supplication before the Most High, and will open his mouth in prayer, and will ask for pardon for his sins. 6 If the great Lord wills, he will be filled with the spirit of understanding; he will pour forth the words of his wisdom and in prayer give thanks to the Lord. 7 He will direct his counsel and knowledge, and he will meditate in his secrets. 8 He will show the instruction which he has been taught and will glory in the Torah of the covenant of the Lord. 9 Many will commend his understanding. So long as the world endures, it won’t be blotted out. His memory won’t depart. His name will live from generation to generation. 10 Nations will declare his wisdom. The congregation will proclaim his praise. 11 If he continues, he will leave a greater name than a thousand. If he finally rests, it is enough for him.

מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ Miqra Qodesh

מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh (H4744 + H6944) is most often translated as “holy convocation” or “holy gathering.” However, מִקְרָא miqra comes from the word קְרָא qara (H7121) which means to proclaim, call out, recite, or read. In Biblical Hebrew, מ (mem / m) can be a derivational prefix that helps turn a verb root into a noun. מִקְרָא miqra is the act or event of being called together as the noun of קְרָא qara, which is the action “to call.” Thus מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh is the act or event of being called together for a set-apart purpose. That set-apart purpose has Biblically and historically meant “a public proclamation or reading of the Word of Elohim“. This is demonstrated in Nehemiah 8:8; “They read in the book, in the Torah of Elohim, distinctly; and they gave the sense, so that they understood in the reading (miqra)” and Joshua 8:34-35, “Afterward he read (qara) all the words of the Torah, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the Torah. There was not a word of all that Moses commanded which Joshua didn’t read (qara) before all the assembly of Israel, with the women, the little ones, and the sojourners who were among them.”

“…in the Palestinian ritual מקרא קדש (miqra qodesh) in qedushath ha-yom appears as יום מקרא קדש (yom miqra qodesh) or in the sense of “a day whose sanctity is to be proclaimed” or “a day for the reading from the Sacred Scriptures.” – Liebreich, Leon J. “The Term Miqra’qodesh in the Synagogue Liturgy.” The Jewish Quarterly Review, vol. 57, 1967, pp. 381–397. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1453504. Accessed 1 Aug. 2021.

During the 1st Century, teaching and the public reading of Scripture in synagogues on the Sabbath, introduced by Ezra, and detailed in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, was commonplace (cf. Mark 1:21; Mark 6:2; Luke 6:6 compare to Leviticus 23:3 and Nehemiah 8:1-4). The synagogue structure was created to fulfill the commandment to have a “holy convocation,” which is more than “going to church,” and was understood to mean “a public reading of Scripture” which had always been understood to mean the Torah and Prophets as demonstrated in Acts 13:15; After the reading of the Torah and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, speak.”

Luke 4:16 (Yeshua) came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.

Acts 13:42-44 So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath…The next Sabbath, almost the whole city was gathered together to hear the word of Elohim.

Acts 18:4 (Paul) reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded Jews and Greeks.

The Septuagint translates מִקְרָא miqra in Leviticus 23:2 as κλητός klētos (G2822) which means to be invited or summoned as a guest to a banquet (cf. 1 Kings 1:41; Zephaniah 1:7) or to be invited, summoned, or called by or of Yeshua the Messiah (cf. Matthew 20:16;  Matthew 22:14; Romans 1:1; Romans 1:6-7; Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 1:1-2; 1 Corinthians 1:24; Jude 1:1; Revelation 17:14). κλητός klētos is not to be confused with “chosen” which is the word or ἐκλεκτός eklektos (G1588) which means to be elected, picked out, or chosen. Klētos comes from the same root as the word καλέω kaleō (G2564) which means to call or invite (cf. Matthew 22:1-14; Luke 14:7-24; John 2:1-11; Revelation 19:9).

How did the 1st century church and after understand holy convocations?

The 4th Century Council of Laodicea was a regional synod (assembly) of bishops from the diocese of Asia (modern western Turkey), held in Laodicea in Phrygia, which was one of the seven cities addressed in Revelation:

Revelation 3:14-16 To the angel of the assembly in Laodicea write: “The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of Elohim, says these things: 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot. 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of my mouth.

Though some scholars place it as late as 380 AD, the Council of Laodicea’s commonly accepted range is 363–365 AD, not too long after the landmark Council of Nicaea in 325 AD, which standardized when Easter was to be celebrated and explicitly separating it from the Jewish Passover calculation.

The precise number of bishops attending the Council of Laodicea is not recorded, but its canons gained wide circulation and were eventually incorporated into broader collections of church law, including those ratified by the Quinisext Council (692 AD). This gave Laodicea’s canons ecumenical standing in the Eastern church and beyond the provincial council it began as over 300 years prior.

Why was Laodicea convened?

The council addressed several pressing concerns of the post-Nicene church:

• Regulating clergy conduct and qualifications
• Combating various heretical and syncretistic practices still prevalent in Asia Minor, including Judaizing tendencies, Montanism (a 2nd-century “New Prophecy” movement emphasizing ongoing ecstatic revelations, imminent apocalypse, and strict moral rigor), Novatianism (believed the Church had no authority to forgive those who abandoned their faith), and folk magical practices
• Standardizing liturgical practice and the liturgical calendar
• Defining which books were to be read publicly in churches
• Restricting lay and unauthorized persons from roles in worship

How Canon 16 of the Council of Laodicea affirms the continuity of מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh throughout the early church

The Greek original of Canon 16 and the most historically cited Latin rendering produce this translation:

“The Gospels are to be read on the Sabbath [Saturday], along with the other Scriptures.”

Some translations render it with slightly more context:

“On the Sabbath day, the Gospels and other portions of the Scripture shall be read aloud.”

The fuller Greek sense, as rendered by 19th Century German Theologian Philip Schaff and others, is:

“It is ordered that on the Sabbath the Gospels and other scriptures should be read.”

The Council at Laodicea is presupposing that Christian assemblies were still meeting on the Sabbath (Saturday) and reading Scripture. Rather than abolishing that practice, Canon 16 regulated it by requiring that the Gospels be included alongside the other Scriptures.

This is significant for at least two reasons:

1. First, it confirms that as late as 363–365 AD, Sabbath Scripture-reading assemblies were still a functioning reality in Asia Minor. Asia Minor is the very region where the earliest churches of former Gentiles were established by Paul. The council did not say “stop meeting on the Sabbath”; it said “when you meet on the Sabbath and read the Torah and Prophets, read the Gospels too.”
2. Second, Canon 29 of the same council is often cited alongside Canon 16, and creates an interesting tension worth examining:
   • Canon 29: “Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord’s Day [Sunday]; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ.”
   • The Eastern church maintained Sabbath feast-day status, full liturgical services, and Scripture readings.
   • Canon 29 was targeting Sabbath rest from labor as a Jewish distinctive, it was not targeting Sabbath worship or liturgy. The Eastern church never abandoned Sabbath worship, it simply refused to call the cessation of work obligatory.

So within the same council you have Canon 16 assuming Sabbath Scripture readings are happening and Canon 29 forbidding Sabbath rest as a “judaizing” practice. This internal tension suggests the council was navigating a community that was still observing a form of מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh on the Sabbath, while trying to theologically distance itself from Jewish Sabbath observance.

The Fathers of the Church section on the Catholic website New Advent has a particularly interesting explanation of Canon 16 (https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3806.htm) by Zeger Bernhard van Espen, a 17th century Belgian canonist:

“Among the Greeks the Sabbath was kept exactly as the Lord’s Day except so far as the cessation of work was concerned.”

This is a 4th century witness from within the Council of Laodicea’s own tradition that Sabbath and Sunday were liturgically equivalent in the Greek-speaking church. The only distinction acknowledged is the cessation of labor. This directly undermines the common assumption that Sunday had fully replaced the Sabbath by this period in the East.

“the Council wishes that, as on Sundays, after the other lessons there should follow the Gospel.”

The phrase “after the other lessons” is the key. It assumes a pre-existing lectionary structure of readings that precedes the Gospel. This is exactly the pattern of מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh: Scripture is read systematically, in portions, and the Gospel functions as the culminating proclamation within that structure, not as a replacement for it.

Here we may note the origin of our present [Western] discipline, by which on Sundays and feast days the Gospel is wont to be read with the other Scriptures in the canonical hours, while such is not the case on ferial days, or in the order for ferias and simples.

Van Espen’s closing note about Western discipline is an inadvertent admission of divergence that the West eventually restricted Gospel readings to Sundays and feast days, while ordinary weekday offices dropped them. The East, as Canon 16 of the Council of Laodicea shows, maintained the Sabbath as a feast day requiring the full office. This East/West split on the Sabbath’s liturgical status has roots running directly back through this canon.

The Western churches influence on modern Protestant and Catholic practice produced the popular narrative of Sunday fully replacing the Sabbath.

“Judaizing” in the Eastern churches vs the Western churches

The Eastern church in the early centuries was centered on the patriarchates of Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, and Jerusalem, and services were conducted in Greek which was the language of many of the apostolic writings themselves. This is the clearest single marker of its continuity with the earliest Messianic communities. The Eastern provinces of the Roman Empire included Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Greek-speaking Balkans which was the very geography in which the apostolic churches were founded. Rather than constructing a universal ecclesiastical authority from a single dominant source, the East operated through a collegial patriarchal structure in which Jerusalem, Antioch, and Alexandria each carried historical and apostolic weight independent of Constantinople. Distinguishing Christianity from Judaism was therefore a less urgent institutional priority for the Eastern church. It did not need to prove its identity by severing its roots, because those roots were not a source of political liability but of apostolic legitimacy. It was not building a new Roman Christian identity; it was inhabiting the continuation of one.

On the other hand, the Western church, which didn’t start to develop until 200 years after the apostolic period, was centered on Rome and services were conducted in Latin rather than Greek. The language difference is itself the clearest single marker of East/West distinction. The Western provinces of the Roman Empire included Italy, North Africa (Carthage, Alexandria technically straddled the divide but leaned East theologically), Spain, Gaul (modern France), Britain, and Dalmatia (western Balkans). Rome was constructing a universal ecclesiastical authority that needed sharp boundary markers. Distinguishing Christianity from Judaism was part of constructing a distinct Roman Christian identity.

The Eastern anti-Judaizing concern was largely directed outward at Christians crossing into Jewish community practice. The Western anti-Judaizing concern was increasingly directed inward at Christian practices themselves that looked too Jewish, including Sabbath observance, Sabbath rest, and eventually Sabbath worship.

• The East might say, “Don’t go to the Jewish synagogue, our own Sabbath liturgy is fine.”
• The West might say, “Our own practices must not resemble Jewish practices including the Sabbath.”

The Reformers made a significant move that actually reinforced the Western anti-Judaizing assumptions. Luther, Calvin, and their successors divided the Torah into ceremonial, civil, and moral categories. They declared the ceremonial law (which they placed the Sabbath commandment within, or at least the specific day of it) done away with by Christ. This framework had no basis in the Hebrew text or in Eastern theological tradition. It was a Western scholastic construct developed by Thomas Aquinas that the Reformers inherited and retained even while rejecting much else from Rome.

Calvin’s treatment is particularly significant for American Protestantism since Reformed theology so heavily shaped it. Calvin argued the Sabbath commandments’ ceremonial element (the specific seventh day) was abolished, while its moral element (regular worship) was transferred to Sunday. This position was codified in the Westminster Confession of 1647,  the most influential confessional document in American Presbyterian and Reformed Baptist traditions. It states:

“As it is the law of nature, that, in general, a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so, in His Word, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment binding all men in all ages, He hath particularly appointed one day in seven, for a Sabbath, to be kept holy unto him: which, from the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, was the last day of the week; and, from the resurrection of Christ, was changed into the first day of the week.” (XXI. Of Religious Worship, and the Sabbath Day)

In Summary

The Torah commandment in Leviticus 23 that the appointed times of the Shabbat, and set days within the Biblical festivals, established public Scripture reading weekly and during feast days. Ezra institutionalized the public reading of Scripture. The Pharisees built the synagogue around the public reading of Scripture. Yeshua and Paul participated in the public reading of Scripture as normative practice within the 1st century church. The early Eastern churches of former Gentiles in Asia Minor retained the public reading of Scripture on Shabbat. And by 363–365 AD, an Eastern church council was still regulating how the public reading of Scripture should be conducted on Shabbat.

The modern reduction of מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ miqra qodesh to a generic “holy gathering” or simple church assembly obscures a remarkably continuous historical thread of the public reading of Scripture on Shabbat.

Pharisees and Pharisaism

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Pharisee”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Sep. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pharisee. Accessed 29 October 2024.

The Pharisees (Hebrew: Perushim) emerged as a distinct group shortly after the Maccabean revolt, about 165–160 bce; they were, it is generally believed, spiritual descendants of the Hasideans. The Pharisees emerged as a party of laymen and scribes in contradistinction to the Sadducees—i.e., the party of the high priesthood that had traditionally provided the sole leadership of the Jewish people. The basic difference that led to the split between the Pharisees and the Sadducees lay in their respective attitudes toward the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) and the problem of finding in it answers to questions and bases for decisions about contemporary legal and religious matters arising under circumstances far different from those of the time of Moses. In their response to this problem, the Sadducees, on the one hand, refused to accept any precept as binding unless it was based directly on the Torah—i.e., the Written Law. The Pharisees, on the other hand, believed that the Law that Elohim gave to Moses was twofold, consisting of the Written Law and the Oral Law—i.e., the teachings of the prophets and the oral traditions of the Jewish people. Whereas the priestly Sadducees taught that the written Torah was the only source of revelation, the Pharisees admitted the principle of evolution in the Law: humans must use their reason in interpreting the Torah and applying it to contemporary problems.

The Pharisees were primarily not a political party but a society of scholars and pietists. They enjoyed a large popular following, and in the New Testament they appear as spokesmen for the majority of the population. About 100 bce a long struggle ensued as the Pharisees tried to democratize the Jewish religion and remove it from the control of the Temple priests. The Pharisees asserted that Elohim could and should be worshipped even away from the Temple and outside Jerusalem. To the Pharisees, worship consisted not in bloody slaughters—the practice of the Temple priests—but in prayer and in the study of Elohim’s law. Hence, the Pharisees fostered the synagogue as an institution of religious worship, outside and separate from the Temple. The synagogue may thus be considered a Pharisaic institution, since the Pharisees developed it, raised it to high eminence, and gave it a central place in Jewish religious life.

The active period of Pharisaism, the most-influential movement in the development of Orthodox Judaism, extended well into the 2nd and 3rd centuries ce. The Pharisees preserved and transmitted Judaism through the flexibility they gave to Jewish scriptural interpretation in the face of changing historical circumstances. The efforts they devoted to education also had a seminal importance in subsequent Jewish history. After the destruction of the Second Temple and the fall of Jerusalem in 70 ce, it was the synagogue and the schools of the Pharisees that continued to function and to promote Judaism in the long centuries following the Diaspora.

The Synagogue

Inscriptional and literary evidence suggests that judicial proceedings, archives, treasuries, prayers, public fasts, communal meals, and lodging for traveling Judeans were all associated with the ancient synagogue. The public reading and teaching of the Torah took precedence over all else by providing the liturgical activity that set the synagogue apart, but the synagogue was much more than a religious institution and must be considered as distinctly different from its predecessor, the Temple. Following the destruction of the Second Temple and the rise of Rabbinic Judaism, a more democratic form of worship began to take root, as well as concepts such as urbanization and institutionalization, which spread throughout the Roman, and later Byzantine, Empire. With the end of the Second Temple period came the end of the practice of slaughter, and so the reading of the Torah filled the void. As a result, the Ark of Scrolls and the Torah shrine developed, eventually emerging as the focal point of the synagogue, representing a symbol of survival and preservation. Nearly every ancient synagogue in the land of Israel yields traces and fragments of a Torah shrine, either in the form of a raised platform as a base for the aedicula, a niche, or an apse. This evidence demonstrates the significance of the Torah shrine as one of the few consistent features within the ancient synagogue. Yet the appearance of the Torah shrine was not the only emergent trait accompanying the rise of Rabbinic Judaism. – “The Ancient Synagogue in Israel & the Diaspora” by Dana Murray – https://www.worldhistory.org/article/828/the-ancient-synagogue-in-israel–the-diaspora/

Acts 13:42-46

13:42 So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. 43 Now when the synagogue broke up, many of the Jews and of the devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas; who, speaking to them, urged them to continue in the grace of Elohim. 44 The next Sabbath, almost the whole city was gathered together to hear the word of Elohim. 45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with jealousy, and contradicted the things which were spoken by Paul, and blasphemed. 46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, and said, “It was necessary that Elohim’s word should be spoken to you first. Since indeed you thrust it from yourselves, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.

Acts 14:1-7 (A)

14:1 In Iconium, they entered together into the Jewish synagogue, and so spoke that a great multitude both of Jews and of Greeks believed. 2 But the disbelieving Jews stirred up and embittered the souls of the Gentiles against the brothers. 3 Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who witnessed to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. 4 But the multitude of the city was divided. Part sided with the Jews and part with the emissaries. 5 When some of both the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, made a violent attempt to mistreat and stone them, 6 they became aware of it and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra, Derbe, and the surrounding region. 7 There they preached the Good News.

Acts 17:1-17 (A)

17:1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 Paul, as was his custom, went in to them; and for three Sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and demonstrating that the Messiah had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Yeshua, whom I proclaim to you, is the Messiah.” 4 Some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas: of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and not a few of the chief women. 5 [But the unpersuaded Jews took along]^(mss) some wicked men from the marketplace and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar. Assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them out to the people. 6 When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers before the rulers of the city, crying, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7 whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Yeshua!” 8 The multitude and the rulers of the city were troubled when they heard these things. 9 When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. 10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroea. When they arrived, they went into the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. 12 Many of them therefore believed; also of the prominent Greek women, and not a few men. 13 But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of Elohim was proclaimed by Paul at Beroea also, they came there likewise, agitating the multitudes. 14 Then the brothers immediately sent out Paul to go as far as to the sea, and Silas and Timothy still stayed there. 15 But those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens. Receiving a commandment to Silas and Timothy that they should come to him very quickly, they departed. 16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw the city full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who met him.

Acts 18:1-28 (A)

18:1 After these things Paul departed from Athens and came to Corinth. 2 He found a certain Jew named Aquila, a man of Pontus by race, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome. He came to them, 3 and because he practiced the same trade, he lived with them and worked, for by trade they were tent makers. 4 He reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded Jews and Greeks. 5 When Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit, testifying to the Jews that Yeshua was the Messiah. 6 When they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook out his clothing and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles!” 7 He departed there and went into the house of a certain man named Justus, one who worshiped Elohim, whose house was next door to the synagogue. 8 Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his house. Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were immersed. 9 The Lord said to Paul in the night by a vision, “Don’t be afraid, but speak and don’t be silent; 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many people in this city.” 11 He lived there a year and six months, teaching the word of Elohim among them. 12 But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before the judgment seat, 13 saying, “This man persuades men to worship Elohim contrary to the law.” 14 But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If indeed it were a matter of wrong or of wicked crime, you Jews, it would be reasonable that I should bear with you; 15 but if they are questions about words and names and your own law, look to it yourselves. For I don’t want to be a judge of these matters.” 16 So he drove them from the judgment seat. 17 Then all the Greeks seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. Gallio didn’t care about any of these things. 18 Paul, having stayed after this many more days, took his leave of the brothers,† and sailed from there for Syria, together with Priscilla and Aquila. He shaved his head in Cenchreae, for he had a vow. 19 He came to Ephesus, and he left them there; but he himself entered into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay with them a longer time, he declined; 21 but taking his leave of them, he said, “I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return again to you if Elohim wills.” Then he set sail from Ephesus. 22 When he had landed at Caesarea, he went up and greeted the assembly, and went down to Antioch. 23 Having spent some time there, he departed and went through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, in order, establishing all the disciples. 24 Now a certain Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by race, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus. He was mighty in the Scriptures. 25 This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Yeshua, although he knew only the immersion of Yochanan. 26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside, and explained to him the way of Elohim more accurately. 27 When he had determined to pass over into Achaia, the brothers encouraged him; and wrote to the disciples to receive him. When he had come, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; 28 for he powerfully refuted the Jews, publicly showing by the Scriptures that Yeshua was the Messiah.

Acts 19:1-10 (A)

19:1 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper country, came to Ephesus and found certain disciples. 2 He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They said to him, “No, we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 He said, “Into what then were you immersed?” They said, “Into Yochanan’s immersion.” 4 Paul said, “Yochanan indeed immersed with the immersion of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe in the one who would come after him, that is, in Messiah Yeshua.”† 5 When they heard this, they were immersed in the name of the Lord Yeshua. 6 When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them and they spoke with other languages and prophesied. 7 They were about twelve men in all. 8 He entered into the synagogue and spoke boldly for a period of three months, reasoning and persuading about the things concerning Elohim’s Kingdom. 9 But when some were hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and separated the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. 10 This continued for two years, so that all those who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord Yeshua, both Jews and Greeks.

Acts 22:17-19 (A)

22:17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and while I prayed in the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not receive testimony concerning me from you.’ 19 I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue those who believed in you.

James 2:1-4 (A)

2:1 My brothers, don’t hold the faith of our glorious Lord Yeshua the Messiah with partiality. 2 For if a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, comes into your synagogue, and a poor man in filthy clothing also comes in, 3 and you pay special attention to him who wears the fine clothing and say, “Sit here in a good place;” and you tell the poor man, “Stand there,” or “Sit by my footstool” 4 haven’t you shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?

Breaking of Bread and Home Fellowship

Mark 1:29-31

1:29 Immediately, when they had come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with Jacob and Yochanan. 30 Now Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. 31 He came and took her by the hand and raised her up. The fever left her immediately,^(mss) and she served them.

Luke 14:1-4

14:1 When he went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees on a Sabbath to eat bread, they were watching him. 2 Behold, a certain man who had dropsy was in front of him. 3 Yeshua, answering, spoke to the Torah scholars and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” 4 But they were silent.

Acts 1:12-14

1:12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 When they had come in, they went up into the upper room where they were staying, that is Peter, Yochanan, Jacob, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, Jacob the son of Halfai, Simon the Zealot, and Judah the son of Jacob. 14 All these with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer and supplication,^(mss) along with the women and Miriam the mother of Yeshua, and with his brothers.

Acts 2:37-47

2:37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the emissaries, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter said to them, “Repent and be immersed, every one of you, in the name of Yeshua the Messiah for the forgiveness of [your]^(mss) sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our Elohim will call to himself.” 40 With many other words he witnessed and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” 41 Then those who received his word were immersed. There were added that day about three thousand souls. 42 They continued steadfastly in the emissaries’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and [the prayers].^(mss) 43 Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the emissaries. 44 All who believed were together, and had all things in common. 45 They sold their possessions and goods, and distributed them to all, according as anyone had need. 46 Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart, 47 praising Elohim and having favor with all the people. The Lord added to [their number]^(mss) day by day those who were being saved.

Acts 20:7-12

20:7 On one of the Sabbaths, when [we]^(mss) were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day; and continued his speech until midnight. 8 There were many lights in the upper room where [we]^(mss) were gathered together. 9 A certain young man named Eutychus sat in the window, weighed down with deep sleep. As Paul spoke still longer, being weighed down by his sleep, he fell down from the third floor and was taken up dead. 10 Paul went down and fell upon him, and embracing him said, “Don’t be troubled, for his life is in him.” 11 When he had gone up, had broken bread and eaten, and had talked with them a long while, even until break of day, he departed. 12 They brought the boy in alive, and were greatly comforted.

Worship, Prayer, Purifying, Teaching, and Proclaiming the Good News at the Temple

Acts 2:46

2:46 Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart

Acts 3:1-11

3:1 Peter and Yochanan were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.† 2 A certain man who was lame from his mother’s womb was being carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Yafeh, to ask gifts for the needy of those who entered into the temple. 3 Seeing Peter and Yochanan about to go into the temple, he asked to receive gifts for the needy. 4 Peter, fastening his eyes on him, with Yochanan, said, “Look at us.” 5 He listened to them, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have, that I give you. In the name of Yeshua the Messiah of Nazareth, get up and walk!” 7 He took him by the right hand and raised him up. Immediately his feet and his ankle bones received strength. 8 Leaping up, he stood and began to walk. He entered with them into the temple, walking, leaping, and praising Elohim. 9 All the people saw him walking and praising Elohim. 10 They recognized him, that it was he who used to sit begging for gifts for the needy at the Yafeh Gate of the temple. They were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. 11 As the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and Yochanan, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.

Acts 4:1-4

4:1 As they spoke to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came to them, 2 being upset because they taught the people and proclaimed in Yeshua the resurrection from the dead. 3 They laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was now evening. 4 But many of those who heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

Acts 5:12-42

12 By the hands of the emissaries many signs and wonders were done among the people. They were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch. 13 None of the rest dared to join them; however, the people honored them. 14 More believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women. 15 They even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mattresses, so that as Peter came by, at least his shadow might overshadow some of them. 16 The multitude also came together from the cities around Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits; and they were all healed. 17 But the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him, which is the sect of the Sadducees, and they were filled with jealousy 18 and laid hands on the emissaries, then put them in public custody. 19 But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out and said, 20 “Go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.” 21 When they heard this, they entered into the temple about daybreak and taught. But the high priest and those who were with him came and called the council together, with all the senate of the sons of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. 22 But the officers who came didn’t find them in the prison. They returned and reported, 23 “We found the prison shut and locked, and the guards standing before the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside!” 24 Now when the high priest, the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these words, they were very perplexed about them and what might become of this. 25 One came and told them, “Behold, the men whom you put in prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people.” 26 Then the captain went with the officers, and brought them without violence, for they were afraid that the people might stone them. 27 When they had brought them, they set them before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “Didn’t we strictly command you not to teach in this name? Behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and intend to bring this man’s blood on us.” 29 But Peter and the emissaries answered, “We must obey Elohim rather than men. 30 The Elohim of our fathers raised up Yeshua, whom you killed, hanging him on a tree. 31 Elohim exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins. 32 We are his witnesses of these things; and so also is the Holy Spirit, whom Elohim has given to those who obey him.” 33 But they, when they heard this, were cut to the heart, and were determined to kill them. 34 But one stood up in the council, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the Torah, honored by all the people, and commanded to put the emissaries out for a little while. 35 He said to them, “You men of Israel, be careful concerning these men, what you are about to do. 36 For before these days Todah rose up, making himself out to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves. He was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were dispersed and came to nothing. 37 After this man, Judah of Galilee rose up in the days of the enrollment, and drew away some people after him. He also perished, and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered abroad. 38 Now I tell you, withdraw from these men and leave them alone. For if this counsel or this work is of men, it will be overthrown. 39 But if it is of Elohim, you will not be able to overthrow it, and you would be found even to be fighting against Elohim!” 40 They agreed with him. Summoning the emissaries, they beat them and commanded them not to speak in the name of Yeshua, and let them go. 41 They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Yeshua’s name. 42 Every day, in the temple and at home, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming Yeshua, the Messiah.

Acts 21:17-30

21:17 When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers received us gladly. 18 The day following, Paul went in with us to Jacob; and all the elders were present. 19 When he had greeted them, he reported one by one the things which Elohim had worked among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 They, when they heard it, glorified Elohim. They said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Judeans of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Torah. 21 They have been informed about you, that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children and not to walk after the customs. 22 What then? The assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come. 23 Therefore do what we tell you. We have four men who have taken a vow. 24 Take them and purify yourself with them, and pay their expenses for them, that they may shave their heads. Then all will know that there is no truth in the things that they have been informed about you, but that you yourself also walk keeping the Torah. 25 But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written our decision that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from food offered to idols, from blood, from strangled things, and from sexual immorality.” 26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day purified himself and went with them into the temple, declaring the fulfillment of the days of purification, until the offering was offered for every one of them. 27 When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the multitude and laid hands on him, 28 crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, and the Torah, and this place. Moreover, he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place!” 29 For they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian, with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. 30 All the city was moved and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple. Immediately the doors were shut.

Acts 22:17-22

22:17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and while I prayed in the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not receive testimony concerning me from you.’ 19 I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue those who believed in you. 20 When the blood of Stephen, your witness, was shed, I also was standing by, consenting to his death, and guarding the cloaks of those who killed him.’ 21 “He said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you out far from here to the Gentiles.’ ” 22 They listened to him until he said that; then they lifted up their voice and said, “Rid the earth of this fellow, for he isn’t fit to live!”

Acts 24:1-21

24:1 After five days, the high priest, Ananias, came down with certain elders and an orator, one Tertullus. They informed the governor against Paul. 2 When he was called, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, “Seeing that by you we enjoy much peace, and that prosperity is coming to this nation by your foresight, 3 we accept it in all ways and in all places, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness. 4 But that I don’t delay you, I entreat you to bear with us and hear a few words. 5 For we have found this man to be a plague, an instigator of insurrections among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 6 He even tried to profane the temple, and [we arrested him].^(mss) 7 […] ^(mss) 8 By examining him yourself you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him.” 9 The Judeans also joined in the attack, affirming that these things were so. 10 When the governor had beckoned to him to speak, Paul answered, “Because I know that you have been a judge of this nation for many years, I cheerfully make my defense, 11 seeing that you can verify that it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship at Jerusalem. 12 In the temple they didn’t find me disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd, either in the synagogues or in the city. 13 Nor can they prove to you the things of which they now accuse me. 14 But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, so I serve the Elohim of our fathers, believing all things which are according to the Torah, and which are written in the Prophets; 15 having hope toward Elohim, which these also themselves look for, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust. 16 In this I also practice always having a conscience void of offense toward Elohim and men. 17 Now after some years, I came to bring gifts for the needy to my nation, and offerings; 18 amid which certain Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple, not with a mob, nor with turmoil. 19 They ought to have been here before you and to make accusation if they had anything against me. 20 Or else let these men themselves say what injustice they found in me when I stood before the council, 21 unless it is for this one thing that I cried standing among them, ‘Concerning the resurrection of the dead I am being judged before you today!’ ”

Flavius Josephus, Against Apion, Book 2, Section 157 and 173

Josephus was born Joseph ben Mattathias in 37 AD in Jerusalem of a priestly and royal family. He excelled in his studies of Jewish law and studied with the Sadducees, Pharisees, and the Essenes, eventually aligning himself with the Pharisees. In 62 AD he went to Rome to free some imprisoned priests. After accomplishing this mission through the intercession of Nero’s wife, Poppaea, he returned to Jerusalem in 65 AD to find the country in revolt against Rome. Josephus shrewdly reinterpreted the Messianic prophecies. He predicted that Vespasian would become the ruler of the ‘entire world’. His prophecy became true in 68 AD when Nero committed suicide and Vespasian became Ceasar. As a result, Josephus was freed; he moved to Rome and became a Roman citizen, taking the Vespasian family name Flavius. Vespasian commissioned Josephus to write a history of the war, which he finished in 78 AD, the Jewish War. His second major work, the Antiquities of the Jews, was completed in 93 AD. The extant manuscripts of the book Antiquities of the Jews contain two references to Yeshua of Nazareth (18.3.3. and 20.9.1.) and one reference to the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist (18.5.2.).

Against Apion is a polemical work written by Flavius Josephus as a defense of Judaism as a classical religion and philosophy against criticism by Apion, stressing its antiquity against what he perceived as more recent traditions of the Greeks. One of his main sources was Menander of Ephesus. Against Apion cites Josephus’ earlier work Antiquities of the Jews, so can be dated after 94 A.D.

[157] But let us consider his first and greatest work; for when it was resolved on by our forefathers to leave Egypt, and return to their own country, this Moses took the many tell thousands that were of the people, and saved them out of many desperate distresses, and brought them home in safety. And certainly it was here necessary to travel over a country without water, and full of sand, to overcome their enemies, and, during these battles, to preserve their children, and their wives, and their prey; on all which occasions he became an excellent general of an army, and a most prudent counselor, and one that took the truest care of them all; he also so brought it about, that the whole multitude depended upon him. And while he had them always obedient to what he enjoined, he made no manner of use of his authority for his own private advantage, which is the usual time when governors gain great powers to themselves, and pave the way for tyranny, and accustom the multitude to live very dissolutely; whereas, when our legislator was in so great authority, he, on the contrary, thought he ought to have regard to piety, and to show his great good-will to the people; and by this means he thought he might show the great degree of virtue that was in him, and might procure the most lasting security to those who had made him their governor. When he had therefore come to such a good resolution, and had performed such wonderful exploits, we had just reason to look upon ourselves as having him for a divine governor and counselor. And when he had first persuaded himself 1 that his actions and designs were agreeable to Elohim’s will, he thought it his duty to impress, above all things, that notion upon the multitude; for those who have once believed that Elohim is the inspector of their lives, will not permit themselves in any sin. And this is the character of our legislator: he was no impostor, no deceiver, as his revilers say, though unjustly, but such a one as they brag Minos to have been among the Greeks, and other legislators after him; for some of them suppose that they had their laws from Jupiter, while Minos said that the revelation of his laws was to be referred to Apollo, and his oracle at Delphi, whether they really thought they were so derived, or supposed, however, that they could persuade the people easily that so it was. But which of these it was who made the best laws, and which had the greatest reason to believe that Elohim was their author, it will be easy, upon comparing those laws themselves together, to determine; for it is time that we come to that point. Now there are innumerable differences in the particular customs and laws that are among all mankind, which a man may briefly reduce under the following heads: Some legislators have permitted their governments to be under monarchies, others put them under oligarchies, and others under a republican form; but our legislator had no regard to any of these forms, but he ordained our government to be what, by a strained expression, may be termed a Theocracy, by ascribing the authority and the power to Elohim, and by persuading all the people to have a regard to him, as the author of all the good things that were enjoyed either in common by all mankind, or by each one in particular, and of all that they themselves obtained by praying to him in their greatest difficulties. He informed them that it was impossible to escape Elohim’s observation, even in any of our outward actions, or in any of our inward thoughts. Moreover, he represented Elohim as unbegotten, and immutable, through all eternity, superior to all mortal conceptions in pulchritude; and, though known to us by his power, yet unknown to us as to his essence. I do not now explain how these notions of Elohim are the sentiments of the wisest among the Grecians, and how they were taught them upon the principles that he afforded them. However, they testify, with great assurance, that these notions are just, and agreeable to the nature of Elohim, and to his majesty; for Pythagoras, and Anaxagoras, and Plato, and the Stoic philosophers that succeeded them, and almost all the rest, are of the same sentiments, and had the same notions of the nature of Elohim; yet durst not these men disclose those true notions to more than a few, because the body of the people were prejudiced with other opinions beforehand. But our legislator, who made his actions agree to his laws, did not only prevail with those that were his contemporaries to agree with these his notions, but so firmly imprinted this faith in Elohim upon all their posterity, that it never could be removed. The reason why the constitution of this legislation was ever better directed to the utility of all than other legislations were, is this, that Moses did not make religion a part of virtue, but he saw and he ordained other virtues to be parts of religion; I mean justice, and fortitude, and temperance, and a universal agreement of the members of the community with one another; for all our actions and studies, and all our words, [in Moses’s settlement,] have a reference to piety towards Elohim; for he hath left none of these in suspense, or undetermined. For there are two ways of coining at any sort of learning and a moral conduct of life; the one is by instruction in words, the other by practical exercises. Now other lawgivers have separated these two ways in their opinions, and choosing one of those ways of instruction, or that which best pleased every one of them, neglected the other. Thus did the Lacedemonians and the Cretians teach by practical exercises, but not by words; while the Athenians, and almost all the other Grecians, made laws about what was to be done, or left undone, but had no regard to the exercising them thereto in practice.