The Old Testament era ends with Ezra, Nehemiah and Malachi. Many Jews had returned from captivity, the walls of Jerusalem had been rebuilt and the second temple was being built. One ancient Jewish source said that five things that had been in Solomon’s temple were missing from the second temple: the ark of the covenant which included the mercy seat; the holy fire that fell from heaven at the dedication of the first temple and had been kept burning continually; the shekinah, the pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night that had stood above the mercy seat; the urim and thummim by which the high priest received answers from God; and the Holy Spirit. In addition to this, there were no prophets from Malachi to John the Baptist. Thus for 400 years God had no input into the spiritual life of the Jewish people.

At least three groups developed during this period; the Essenes, the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The Essenes lived in their own community, developed some mystical beliefs, and had very little connection to the religious life of the rest of the people. Most of the priests and scribes were Sadducees, clinging to their positions of respect, but thinking in a largely materialst way. They did not believe in angels or the resurrection of the dead.

The Pharisees should have been the good guys. They studied the Scriptures, strove to keep the law and avoid the corruptions of the world. They believed in angels and the afterlife. But something went terribly wrong. They were widely respected for the holiness of their lifestyle, but their hearts had become hard, showing no evidence of compassion. John the Baptist called them a “generation of vipers.” Jesus called them hypocrites, “for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess” (Matthew 23:25).

Pharisaism has become another word for self-righteousness or an outward appearance of holiness that covers an inner sinfulness. This is that “conservatism without life, that makes outward formalism the exclusive evidence of faith, with no reference to the condition of the heart.” It has ever been a temptation to those who see a drift toward worldliness in their religious community but have no vision or acquaintance with the power of the Holy Spirit that would lead to genuine piety. Some Mennonite groups have fallen into that snare, as well as the Raven-Taylor branch of the Plymouth Brethren and other groups.