The Four Hundred Silent Years

“History repeats itself in manifold ways,” writes Ironside in the introduction, “and he who is wise will not despise its instruction.” In The Four Hundred Silent Years, Ironside provides an easy-to-understand account of the period between the end of Malachi and the beginning of Matthew. In it, he provides not merely a chronological outline or a series of biological sketches, but traces the warnings of Ezra and Nehemiah, along with Josephus and other Jewish historians. He covers the end of the priestly rule, the days of the Maccabees, the end of the Asmonean Dynasty, and the Edomites. The final chapter is devoted to a brief commentary on the major writings of Jewish literature, including the Apocrypha. Ironside’s intention to draw practical lessons from the intertestamental period makes this the perfect book for anyone interested in an introduction to this important historical era and the implications for the modern church.