The Relationship of Jewish and Gentile Believers to the Law Between A.D. 30 and 70 in the Scripture

175 captivity, and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day." (Ezra 9:7). Nehemiah recounts the theological history of the nation including her sin and exile (9:5-35), concluding: Behold we are slaves today, and as to the land which Thou didst give to our fathers to eat of its fruit and its bounty, Behold, we are slaves on it. And its abundant produce is for the kings whom Thou hast set over us because of our sins; They also rule over our bodies and over our cattle as they please, so we are in great distress" (Nehemiah 9:36- 37). A survey of intertestamental literature yields the same recognition that the curse of Deuteronomy 27-32 had come upon the people in 586 B.C. for violating the covenant and that the condition of desolation would continue until God brought about the restoration promised in Deuteronomy 30. 93 For example, the lamentation from Baruch reads: And you shall say: The LORD our God is in the right, but there is open shame on us today, on the people of Judah, on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, ... because we have sinned before the LORD.... So to this day there have clung to us the calamities and the curse that the LORD declared through his servant Moses (Baruch 1:15-20, NRSV) . 94 Speaking of the exile in Jewish apocalyptic literature Gowan concludes that a general conviction exists that the return to the land was not the fulfillment of God's intentions for Israel , so that "the problem of the exile still remained unsolved . " 95 Knibb concludes his study of intertestamental literature on a similar note : "Despite many differences in presentation the writings that we have been considering seem to share the view that Israel remains in a tate of exile long after the sixth century , and that the exile would only be brought to an end hen God intervened in thi world order to e tabli h hi rule . " 96 93 cott , "Galatian 3. 10," 205-6 . 94 ther imilar ret rence are: 2 Maccabe 1:10- 2: 1 ; 7:1 1 n h - 0; T ta– ment of Le i, 16:1-2, 5 . o n, "Th ile in J wi h po l pti " in ripture in Hi to and in Honor of J . oert R Laa,; dam , d . . L . M rrill and rh It Pr , 1 77) , 19- 0 . 96 ni .. h ile in th 1t r tur of th lntert t m nt l P n d ," 71-7_,