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Glite Dictionary
intertestamental

intertestamental

1 9.9
The time between the Old and New Testaments of the Bible
  • adjective
  • /ˌɪntərˈtɛstəˌmɛntl/
  • Specialized
: intertestamentario
  • Scholars often explore texts from the intertestamental era to gain insights into early Jewish beliefs.
  • the intertestamental period

Examples

  • The intertestamental period is crucial for understanding the transition from Judaism to Christianity.

  • Early on, the focus of research was on trying to identify "the Dead Sea sect" with one or another of the movements, parties, or sects known or presumed to exist in the Intertestamental period in Palestine.

    Academic text (1998)

  • Sussmann embarks upon an extensive scholarly study of the major religious parties of the Intertestamental period.

    Academic text (1998)

  • Many writings from the intertestamental time highlight the expectations of a messiah among the Jewish people.

Surface Forms

intertestamental positive

Morphology

intertestamental = testamental (semi-transparent) = inter + testament + al

The word is built transparently from 'inter-' + 'testamental', but the resulting biblical-period sense is somewhat specialized.

Etymology

Intertestamental breaks into inter- ('between') and testament (as in the 'Old Testament' and the 'New Testament'), so it means the time or the writings that come 'between' those two parts of the Bible.