THE PATRIARCHATE OF GAMALIEL IV. AND JUDAH III.
The Amoraim in Palestine--Ami and Assi--The Brothers Chiya and Simon Bar Abba in Tiberias--Abbahu in Cæsarea--The Emperor Diocletian--Complete Separation from the Samaritans --Character and Political Position of Abbahu--Huna in Babylonia--Chama's Generosity--Huna's Contemporaries and Successors--Judah ben Ezekiel--Chasda of Cafri--Mar Sheshet--Nachman bar Jacob--Zeïra _page_ 531
THE TRIUMPH OF CHRISTIANITY AND ITS RELATIONS TO JUDAISM.
Hillel II.--His Calendar--Heads of Judæan Schools: Jonah, José, and Jeremiah--The Expansion of Christianity --Constantine--The Decadence of the Jewish Schools in Babylonia--The Pumbeditha School--Development of Talmudical Dialectics--The Persian Queen Ifra and her son Shabur II.-- The Emperor Julian--Favor shown towards the Jews--Proposed Rebuilding of the Temple--Roman Tolerance _page_ 559
Decline of the Roman Empire--Ashi and the Redaction of the Talmud--Jezdijird II--The Jews under the Emperor Theodosius I and his successors--The extinction of the Patriarchate --Chrysostom and Ambrosius--Fanaticism of the Clergy-- Jerome and his Jewish Teachers--Mar Zutra--Fifth and Sixth Generations of Amoraïm--The Jews under Firuz--Jewish Colonies in India--Completion of the Babylonian Talmud--Its Spirit and Contents _page_ 604
The Crowning Point of the Period--War with Antiochus Sidetes--Siege of Jerusalem--Treaty of Peace--The Parthian War--Hyrcanus joins Antiochus--Successful campaigns of Hyrcanus against the Samaritans and Idumæans--The Idumæans forced to embrace Judaism--Destruction of the Samaritan Temple at Gerizim and of the Capital, Samaria--Internal Affairs--The Parties: Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes, their Rise and Constitution--Their Doctrines and their Relations to one another--The Synhedrion--Strained Relations between Hyrcanus and the Pharisees--Death of Hyrcanus.
The reign of Hyrcanus is at once the pinnacle and the turning-point of this period. He not only carried on his father's work, but completed it. Under his predecessors Judæa was confined to a narrow space, and even within these bounds there were territories in the possession of foreign foes. Hyrcanus enlarged the boundaries to the north and to the south, and thus released the State from the external pressure that had been restricting its growth. His genius for war was aided by fortunate circumstances in bringing about these happy results.