Between the Testaments

Cyrus, and the rise of the empire -- Cambyses, and the conquest of Egypt -- Darius, and the reorganization of the empire -- Xerxes I, and the attempted conquest of Greece -- Artaxerxes I, and the loss of Persian prestige -- The latter Achemenians, approaching the end -- The problems and progress of the Jews -- Alexander, the apostle of Hellenism -- The Jews under the Ptolemies -- The Jews under the Seleucids -- The impact of Hellenism on the Jews -- The Maccabees and the struggle against Hellenism -- The Hasmonean dynasty, growth and decay -- The Romans take over -- The origin of the Jewish sects -- Rise of the apocalyptic literature