1. Introduction

• the Messiah/Savior of the Jewish race was Mordecai, a slave under the king of Persia in 458BC.
• that some new testament books are an attempt by loyal followers of Jesus to justify his claims of being the Messiah.
• that claims of miracles were stories told to explain a teaching or were symbolic, however they were subsequently recorded as fact.
• that some new testament books are a deliberate attempt by early church leaders to deceive people into following them, and thus gain power, wealth and status.

Prior to the Babylonian exile of Jews (around 600BC) prophets prophesied about a Messiah that would help the descendants of Israel;

• Around 5BC Jesus was born and people believed he was to be the Christ/Messiah. Later in his life he started preaching and attracted followers from which Christianity would evolve.
• Around 610AD Mohammed claimed to have the final word from God, and started a Jewish based religion (Islam).
• The Jewish faith (Judaism) refutes both claims and still awaits the Messiah 2,600 years after the prophecies were given.

However, after much research I have concluded that the Christ/Messiah, Savior, Shepherd etc. referred to different people around the time of Babylonian exile of the Jews and their subsequent repatriation (722-432BC). The titles referring to different passages;

• Mordecai, who secured the highest position under the then king of Persian empire, raising the status of all Jews. The book of Esther (the only biblical record of Mordecai) was notably missing from the Dead Sea Scrolls. This may have been because it would squash Jewish hopes for a future kingdom greater than that of King David's time (as symbolized in Job 1:1-3, 42:12).
• The Assyrian Empire; putting Jews from the Northern kingdom into exile.
• Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon; putting the Jews into exile.
• Cyrus, king of Persia; releasing the Jews from exile.
• Zerubbabel, governor of Jerusalem, who led the first group of Jews back.
• Ezra, high priest who read the Law of Moses, and led a group of Jews back.
• Nehemiah, governor who rebuilt Jerusalem’s walls, and led a group of Jews back.
• Jerusalem, it's high priests and governors.

Being an honest prophet was a career fraught with danger, as not only did they bring good news, but also warnings about coming disasters, and thus unintentionally undermined the perceived 'absolute power' of the Ruler. It's not surprising false prophets were fashionable at the time of Isaiah, as they told the ruling king what he wanted to hear, rather than the truth. However if the false prophets were exposed as being false, they were often executed. So having the privileged status of being an honest or dishonest prophet was fraught with danger.

When a honest prophet made a prophecy of the future event, it was usually gained symbolically in visions or dreams, and then interpreted. Then the prophet then tried to justify the outcome, sourced from his own religious beliefs.

This falters when the reasoning for some future events contradict others e.g. Assyria is considered the Morning star (Isa 14:12), the one whom god is with; Immanuel meaning "god is with us" (Isa 7:17, 8:10). But when the prophecy comes regarding the fall of the Assyrian Empire by the Babylonians in 605BC the reasoning alters "Are not my commanders all kings?" (Isa 10:9) and the morning star falls from the sky (Isa 14:12).

Lamentations (around 575BC) indicate how confused the Jews were when they still were losing out whilst obeying Jewish religious practices. Their belief that the Jews were God's chosen people was being exposed as flawed; the story of Job symbolically tries to reason through their oppression by introducing Satan who God gives in to, to test Job's good character. However Job's final triumph was not indicative of that was to happen to the Jewish race; they never regained the territory they lost in the Assyrian conquest (see table below).

Personally, in line with Socrates, I believe that God is the force of goodness (like gravity), is not a mystical being, has no emotion, follows consistent and predictable laws, has no regard for a person's bloodline, and can be seen through the quality of a person's character. Goodness empowers life, what is referred to as evil (ungodliness) is related to confusion and misunderstanding; creates negative effects and weakens life (in the ungodly individual and/or their surroundings) e.g. suicide, murder, health problems, pollution.

Jewish Race's History

Situation	Duration	Details
Nomadic	130	Israelite origin; descendants of Israel formerly known as Jacob (Gen 32:22-32) from 2006BC.
Slavery	430	Settled in Egypt following a famine in 1876BC.
Nomadic	40	Leave Egypt in search of the Promised Land 1446BC.
Tribal Settlements	745	Settled in Caanan. Conquer neighboring lands and settled clans in separate areas from 1406BC.
Exile/Slavery	162	- 701BC Assyria conquers all Israelite territory except Jerusalem. Israelites exiled into Assyria. - 605BC Babylon conquers the Assyrians and takes Jerusalem. Israelites exiled into Babylon.
Foreign Control	373	- 539BC Persia conquers the Babylonians and starts returning the Israelite remnants (known as Jews) to Jerusalem. - 333BC Macedonians (Greeks) conquer the Persians.
Independence	103	- 166BC A Jewish clan; the Macabees, rebel against Greek rule and eventually gain Jerusalem's independence.
Foreign Control	2011	- 63BC Rome conquers Jerusalem. - 1948AD the state of Israel established.

The knowledge regarding goodness was also being fathomed in non-Jewish regions; Zoroaster the Persian (630-550BC), Socrates the Greek (470-399BC) and the Greek king Ptolemy II and the library of Alexandria (285-246BC) (see Josephus Ant 12.2.1).

Jesus
Prophecies foretelling of how Jesus would bring people back to God led to high expectations by his family and the community in general, that he was the long awaited Messiah/Christ;

Joseph had a dream where an angel said regarding Mary "..She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save many people from their sins."(Mat 1:20 NIV). In line with Old Testament thinking, God was thought to teach stubborn people to be good through injury etc. So to save someone from their sins would mean that he would turn them away from their sinful inclinations and thus be saved from God's wrath.

Due to the all powerful nature of some Rulers, they were often referred to as Gods (e.g. King David in Psalms). For example (Ps 45:6 NIV)"Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever," since it indicates some doubt about the perminance of the throne, this quote must have related to a ruler, and not God." Greek and Romans heroes/rulers were also given a godly status.

Now to have a population in fear of breaking just laws is useful, as it controls citizens, who would otherwise be reckless. However where governments and there decrees are unjust, their abuse can only be sustained by creating a general mood amongst the population of fear and anxiety (e.g. governments who try to control freedom of speech).

In the past corrupt Rulers retained power through fear. By communicating how cruel they could be (e.g. crucifixions, cutting off limbs/testicles), people submitted to their authority regardless of how poorly they were treated. The Catholic Church used the same technique during the Inquisitions, with torture and the public burning of suspected witches and those that questioned church teachings. Likewise, children were to fear their parents; 'spare the rod and spoil the child' is a biblical proverb. Fear and anxiety was a common feature of people ruled in biblical times.

So it's not surprising that the fear of God wrath is also a theme of the Bible.

Living up to other's expectations Jesus studied hard, and must have gained an understanding of the various Jewish philosophies at the time (Pharisee, Sadducee, Essen, and that extolled by Judas of Galilee).

No doubt, some would come to be jealous of his status.

Jesus was not the only biblical character recorded as performing miracles, so was;

• Moses; parting the Red Sea (Exodus 14:16).
• Elijah; bringing a boy back to life (1 Kings 17:7).
• Elisha; feeding 100 men (2 Kings 4:42-44), healing a leper (2 Kings 5), making an ax head float (2 Kings 6:1-7).
• Peter; bringing a woman back to life (Acts 9:40).

Since from birth Jesus was thought to be this Christ, his elders would have taught him of their vision of Christ, expecting him to fulfill it. But their vision of Christ would be based on misinterpretations of the Old Testament prophecies.

"Christ" is Greek for 'the Anointed One'
"Messiah" is Hebrew for 'the Anointed One'
"Devil" is Greek for 'slanderer'
"Satan" is a Greek title for a person who informs king/God of possible threats to his power.
"Hell" is another word for the Hinnon Valley which is beyond the southern wall of Jerusalem, and was used as the city's dump.

Ever since Roman occupation of Jerusalem in 63BC, Jews were hoping to regain their independence, and the prospect of a Messiah coming as prophesied by Isaiah 580 years earlier, gave them hope.

Now I believe that people can, and still do, prophecy about future events, as Isaiah did. However a prophesy tells a truth, regardless of it's political implications. So if it served the Rulers of the time then they would readily accept the implications of a prophecy and acknowledge when and how it was fulfilled. However, if they didn't like it's impications, the fulfillment wouldn't be recorded on a symbolic prophesy or alternatively they would kill the prophet, as a threat to the king's absolute power, e.g. at one point Isaiah wrote that he stored his predictions, as the rulers prefered the false prophets messages to the truth (see Isaiah 8:16).

Now consider what occurred after Isaiah's prophecies.

• As prophesied by Isaiah, Persia took over the rule of Jerusalem and the exiled Jews.
• Haman, a close friend of the king, told him that a race of people were not respecting his absolute power, securing a decree to kill all that belonged to the Jewish race in one day. Since this was untrue he was a 'slanderer', which in Greek is translated as "devil". In Hebrew it's translated as 'Satan'; an deceitful informer to the divine court.
• However Mordecai, a Jewish slave in the king's court (probably a eunuch) revealed the plot to the king, and had the decree in-effect reversed, so that all those who hated the Jews were, on that day, killed instead - 'Judgment Day'. Mordecai saved the Jews from certain doom, i.e. he was their 'Savior' / 'Messiah'.
• Mordecai replaced Haman as closest to the God king, was given a crown and purple robe, and was lead through the capital on a horse. Fulfilling another prophecy regarding the Messiah.
• Thousands of the dead bodies were tossed into the Hinnon Valley beyond the south wall of Jerusalem which was the city's smoldering dump - the Greek translation of Hinnon is 'Hell'. So the ungodly were literally burned in Hell.
• Now the Jews traditionally idolized the perfect body, but even though Mordecai fulfilled the prophesy, he was a eunuch - so this may have prevented them recording him as being a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy.
• Antiochus IV destroyed any sacred books that they found when he attacked Jerusalem in 168BC. So many books would have been lost forever, some may have detailed Mordecai as fulfilling Isaiah's Messiah prophecies (see Josephus Ant. 12.5.4).
• The book of Esther is the only Jewish record detailing the events of Mordecai, however, no copies were found amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls; it seems quite likely that the book was not well liked by the Jewish Essens at the time of Roman occupation, as it threatened their belief that the Messiah was yet to arrive.

1. Satan was a person (Haman) not a spirit; he sought to destroy the Jewish race through false accusations.
2. The Savior/Messiah was Mordecai, who saved the Jews from the effects of Satan, and gained the position of the highest under the Ruler; seated at the right hand of the god almighty (the king of Persian empire).
3. On Judgment Day those who hated the Jews were killed. Most of there dead bodies were thrown into Hell (the perpetually burning city dump south of Jerusalem).
4. Records of Mordecai fulfilling the Messiah prophecy were either never recorded, or were lost when King Antiochus attacked Jerusalem.
5. The Essens a Jewish sect suppressed the possibility that the Messiah had already come, as it threatened their ambitions and hopes.

So what was the thinking of Jerusalem Jews during Roman rule?

Well, to gain an understanding of them we need to look at their history;

1. The Isrealites (descendants of Israel) had been successful in gaining land and wealth from the time Moses lead them out of Egypt up until the time of King David and his son King Solomon. However, in 722BC the kingdom started to crumble; Assyrians took part of it exiling many Israelites to other areas of the Assyrian empire.
2. 125 years later, the Babylonians took the remainder of the kingdom including Jerusalem and exiled many Israelites to Babylon.
3. 60 years later, Persia conquers Babylon and some Jews decided to return to Jerusalem.
4. 80 years later, a close adviser to the king of Persia tricks him into decreeing the eradication of all Jews on one day. Mordecai and Esther reveal the impact of the decree to the king and the decree was in-effect reversed; all of the people who hated the Jews were killed instead. This day is still celebrated as the day of Purim. It is perhaps the most joyous day of the Jewish year.
5. Esdras (Ezdra) quoting Moses' laws, expels the non-Jewish wives and offspring that Jewish men had acquired whilst in exile from Jerusalem, and gives their property to the temple (Josephus Ant.11.5.4).
6. Greeks conquered the Persians in 333BC. In 168 BC, Jerusalem's temple was dedicated to the worship of Zeus Olympius by order of Antiochus IV. An altar to Zeus was set up on the high altar. The Jewish priest Mattathias Maccabee refused to worship the new god and called for all loyal Jews to abandon Jerusalem and flee into the desert caves.
7. 3 years later, Mattathias' son Judas got together an army, invaded Jerusalem, overturned the idol altars and killed those that had been worshipping them. Many fled into surrounding nations for fear of him (Josephus Ant.12.6.1). This day is still celebrated as Hanukkah, and commemorates the rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem by Judas Maccabee.
8. Following 102 years of unstable Jewish government, Romans took over control of Jerusalem. Jews wanted to regain their independence, and looked for the fulfillment of a Isaiah prophecy made 640 years earlier, that a Messiah would save the Jewish race (I claim that this was already fulfilled 244 years after it was made; Mordecai being the Savior).
9. 3BC to 30AD Jesus lived.
10. 70AD; an abortive Jewish messianic revolution led to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, who became more hostile to Jewish subjects as a result.
11. The Gospel of Matthew was written 80AD.
12. Another unsuccessful messianic revolution occurred during AD132-135.

Isaiah 53 is the basis for most Christian doctrines;
Some key verses from Isaiah 53 I believe point to the inhabitants of Jerusalem rather than literally a man (see 2 Chron 36:15-23, Josephus Ant.). Jerusalem;

1. Died; being conquered by the Babylonians in 586BC. Their fortified city of Jerusalem was destroyed(see Jer 39).
2. Went to Hell; exiled to Babylon etc., becoming slaves etc.
3. Rose Again; Jews were partially repatriated in stages; 537, 520, 475 and 432 BC (approx.) after the Persians took over the empire.

• Tender shoot also used in Isa 11:1; "A shoot will come from the stump of Jesse" (NIV)
  Jesse was the father of king David.
  In 1,000BC King David conquered Jerusalem (Zion) which was formerly a Canaanite city.
  So the destroyed Jerusalem would be the stump of Jesse.
  So the shoot refers to the revitalization of the city of Jerusalem.
  

• The Jews (symbolized as a man) were oppressed by the Assyrians, then the Babylonians. Having no land or grouping, they were eventually treated like sub-humans (not unlike Negro slaves in early America).

• "our" is referring to the Jews at the time of Isaiah prior to the fulfillment of this prophecy (see Isa 39:5-8). The fulfillment didn't take place till 586BC, 95 years later. At this point in time the majority of the Jews of Isaiah's time would have been dead. Since the Jews believed God 'manages' all human activity he justified the events which would take place by saying God wanted them to turn from their wicked ways, so he inspired Nebuchadnezzar (king of Babylon) to conquer all Jewish tribes (see also Habakkuk 1:1-12).
• "brought us peace"; the result of the exile and repatriation led to Jews once again following God and rejecting pagan idols, child sacrifices and social injustice. Unfortunately after resettling into Jerusalem, racial 'purification' was placed back on the agenda (see Ezra 9:2, 10:3-11, Nehemiah 13:23-27).

• Jerusalem's Jews didn't seek God, despite all of their problems (child sacrifices, social injustice etc.), prior to their slaughter at the hands of the Babylonians.

• Many Jews were slaughtered by the Babylonians. The Jewish race (Israel) effectively disappeared, being intermingled with non-Jews throughout the Babylonian empire (Jer 39:5-10). Many subsequently intermarried with non-Jews (to the disgust of Ezra and Nehemia).

• Jerusalem suffered the same fate as it's Jewish oppressors, all Jews were prosperous prior to that time.
• Jewish tribes of the Northern Kingdom had fought each other and conspired to attack Jerusalem; "...King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up against Jerusalem, but they couldn't overpower it. Now the house of David was told, "Aram has allied itself with Ephraim"; so the hearts of Ahaz [the king of Jerusalem] and his people were shaken..."(Isa 7:1,2 NIV)

• Jerusalem was attacked by the Babylonians, supposedly to remove the wickedness of all of Israel's descendants. But although they seemed to have lost all trace of their bloodline, after 70 years they returned and rebuilt Jerusalem, and became prosperous under Mordecai (see Esther).

• The city of Jerusalem was provided with riches through the favor of the kings of Persia; Cyrus (Ezra 1:8-11), Darius (Ezra 6:8) and Artaxerxes (Neh 2:7-9).