How the Israelite Priesthood Really Developed

Comments · 21

• ER

  @Erimgard13 · 4 weeks ago

  Gonna listen to this at work, but I've been waiting for a deep dive on a topic like this.

  4

• ET

  @ethpareguth8789 · 3 weeks ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZ_gb2AzZ24&amp;t=1559">25:59</a> Possibly Hyksos? The Levites tend to have Egyptian style names. If they&apos;re &quot;attached&quot; with no land, this might be an interesting connection worth exploring

  2

• DN

  @DneilB007 · 3 weeks ago

  I was always under the impression that the transition from the priesthood of Eli to the Zadokite priesthood was a matter of the Davidic family wanting their own people in place in the priesthood.

• TO

  @tomdouge6618 · 4 weeks ago

  The value of the Levites was that they were viewed as Outsiders, a Third Party in disputes between tribes. That was why they were not given a portion of land in the Bible, only the neutral territory of the Refuge Cities. Priesthood gave them added the added authority and protection arising from a deity. But their main purpose was lawyerly. This is evident from reading any part of the Bible that scholars identify as coming from Priestly sources. <br><br>The Judean priests of the Jerusalem Temple wanted to be superior to those Israelites who had fled Assyria&apos;s destruction and subjugation of their rival kingdom. But too many pilgrimaged to Mount Gerizim, or other YHWH sites. They wanted an all-powerful theocracy. After the most evil king in the history of Judea, Manasseh, who God &quot;punished&quot; with its longest and most peaceful reign, the priests had his son and heir assassinated. That is how young Josiah came to be the anointed / messiah king<br><br>Within 30 years, those of the theocrat party were killed or in Exile. For 70 years, the lawyer Deuteronomist redacted the old texts, legends and tales, even adding to Jeremiah and Isiah. Then those who worshiped Ahura Madza freed them and allowed them to rebuild their Temple. The theocrats wouldn&apos;t let the impure Samaritans help. DNA shows that the Samaritans really were and are Israelites. Still the Temple was not the One True Temple; there were other places of YHWH worship away from Jerusalem, out of their authority<br><br>This changed around 145 BC with the rise of the Levite Hasmonean dynasty. They used the Bible account of a United Judea-Israel to conquer Samaria, Galilee and even Moab and Edom. They forced their subjects to convert to Judaism, the Deuteronomic Biblical-version of YHWH. This included the family of Herod the Great. And still, there were places where Jews did not submit to the Jerusalem Temple and would rather be Greco-Roman. Ptolemy rewarded a quarter of the City of Alexandria to them for helping Alexander the Great conquer<br><br>It was because of the ethno-nationalism inspired by the Deuteronomists and Hasmonean example, there was three Jewish-Roman Wars (66 - 72, 115 - 117, 132 - 136). And this is the origin of antisemitism

  5

• ET

  @ethpareguth8789 · 3 weeks ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZ_gb2AzZ24&amp;t=840">14:00</a> would love a deep dive into Ezekiel as well. Chapters 40-48 discuss the reinstatement of the Levites and the sacrifices. If the theology relates this as the &quot;Third Temple&quot;, this would have major implications

• TH

  @TheVinceLyons · 4 weeks ago

  Eli usurped the legitimate priesthood from Uzzi, copied the true Mount Gerizim sanctuary at Shiloh, and founded the rival tradition that eventually centered itself in Jerusalem. So the “glory departed” when Eli’s corrupt house lost the privileges it had seized.

  6

• RA

  @rainbowserpentcomplex · 3 weeks ago (edited)

  I really liked where this video was headed towards.<br><br>That said, the last 20 minutes felt like Dr. Macdonald wanted to avoid discussing the so-called Aaronides, Zadokites, etc. and was instead a primer on why we should be careful about asking about those folks without getting to the meat of it.<br><br>I also kind of disagree with his view in one portion of the video where he says the story is about “Saul and David”. It is about them but the authors frequently frame those characters (and so many others) based on their proximity to what they viewed as normative veneration towards or apostasy of YHWH/“Yahwism”. <br><br>The heroes are those that did what was good by YHWH. The “villains” are who did what was bad by YHWH. I don’t think we can easily make a distinction between political/historical drama &amp; theological drama within the HB. They seem to be intrinsically bound together.<br><br>I’d also argue that <b>priests</b> are the most likely culprits for the preservation of the texts and that said texts would have preserved their preferred ideology which is inclusive to theology &amp; politics.<br><br>I’m inclined to think Dr. Macdonald probably has a lot more to say in his actual scholarship. Just wish there was a sort of “pay off” in the video that could have moved beyond why we should be careful to presuppose Cross-adjacent methodology.<br><br>Maybe I’m misreading the discussion but it honestly felt like Jordan was really wanting to push the discussion past this as well but Dr. Macdonald didn’t want to budge. Thoughts?

• ST

  @stevev7844 · 4 weeks ago

  I&apos;m a quarter of the way through this, and so far it isn&apos;t &quot;how the priesthood really developed&quot; but is instead &quot;what the bible tells us about the priesthood,&quot; which could be very different.

  4

• KT

  @KTempestBradford · 3 weeks ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZ_gb2AzZ24&amp;t=600">10:00</a> this sounds an awful lot like divination. I thought that was forbidden! Like in Numbers or somewhere. 🤔

• CR

  @craigfairweather3401 · 4 weeks ago (edited)

  This is speaking of the priests as acting for God &nbsp;in Jesus use of it. &nbsp;The ancient rabbis and the author of John Ch 5 &nbsp;interpret Psalm 82:6 ‘I said “You are gods”…but you will die lie men’ as referring to rulers of Israel who were supposed to make just decisions in God’s name. This is regardless of what the psalm may have meant when first composed.

• GR

  @grigorymenhel4441 · 4 weeks ago

  יש את מרק לויכטר שחקר וחוקר את הנושא לעמוק שווה לעמת אותו עם מקדונלד.

• MI

  @Michelle-g2h9q · 2 weeks ago

  There was a priesthood in Egypt under the god PTAH , approximately 2700-2500 BC . So the whole concept of even having a priesthood was probably stolen from Egypt!