Hillel the Elder and Jesus were contemporaries, according to the stories. [View all]

[MineralMan]

Last edited Sat Nov 24, 2018, 11:35 AM - Edit history (1)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillel_the_Elder

Hillel lived in Jerusalem during the time of King Herod and the Roman emperor Augustus. In the Midrash compilation Sifre (Deut. 357), the periods of Hillel's life are made parallel to those in the life of Moses. Both lived 120 years (Deut. 34 ), and at the age of forty Hillel went to the Land of Israel; forty years he spent in study; and the last third of his life he was the spiritual head of the Jewish people. A biographical sketch can be constructed; that Hillel went to Jerusalem in the prime of his life and attained a great age. His activity of forty years likely covered the period of 30 BCE to 10 CE.

Now, he was older that Jesus, if the dates are accurate. One wonders whether the two ever met, assuming either or both of them actually were real people.

Here is what is supposed to be Hillel's tomb. Jesus's temporary tomb is also supposed to exist, although there is no evidence of it being the place shown to tourists:



Some of the words attributed to Jesus in the New Testament echo Hillel's teachings.

It's all very interesting. All of that happened so long ago that things often get mixed up over time.