Founding of Judaism
Who was the Mesopotamian shepherd God told to move his family to Canaan?
Abraham
Judaism is based on the belief in how many gods?
One
Who was Israel’s first king?
Saul
What empire conquered Israel in 722 BC?
The Assyrian Empire
What does the term “Diaspora” mean?
The dispersion or scattering of Jews outside their homeland
What is the name of the agreement between God and the Hebrews?
A covenant
What is the Hebrew word for the Jewish day of rest that lasts from Friday evening to Saturday night?
The Sabbath
Which king united the twelve tribes and made Jerusalem his capital?
David
What was the forced removal of Jews to Babylon called?
The Babylonian Exile
Which Greek ruler tried to force Jews to worship Greek gods and dedicated the Second Temple to Zeus?
Antiochus (of the Seleucid Empire)
Where did Moses receive the Ten Commandments?
Mount Sinai
According to Jewish dietary law, animals must be killed how?
Humanely
What great structure did Solomon build in Jerusalem?
The Temple
Who allowed the Jews to return to Judah from Babylon?
Cyrus the Great of Persia
Who led the Jewish rebellion that defeated the Seleucids and rededicated the Temple?
The Maccabees
What is the Exodus?
The journey of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt to freedom in Canaan
What are the first five books of the Hebrew Bible called?
The Torah
Why did the kingdom of Israel split after Solomon’s death?
The northern tribes resented Solomon’s taxes and labor demands
What was rebuilt when the Jews returned to Jerusalem?
The Second Temple
What major empire destroyed the Second Temple in A.D. 70?
The Roman Empire
What did the Ten Commandments reaffirm between the Israelites and God?
Their covenant to worship only one God and follow His laws
What does the Torah mean in English?
“The Law”
After the split, what were the two kingdoms called?
Israel (north) and Judah (south)
During the exile, what important religious text was finalized?
The Hebrew Bible
How did Judaism influence later civilizations?
It introduced monotheism and ideas of justice, equality, and moral law that shaped Christianity and Western civilization