Once again...glarry is wrong on what he thinks he is correct about.
The indications, especially on the evidence of the papyri, are that the literacy rate of Hellenistic and early Roman times was rather high, probably higher than at any period prior to modern times....pages 111-112.
The Jewish child was expected to be able to read the Hebrew Scriptures, to memorize a standard translation in his own language if not Hebrew and to recite certain parts of the liturgy. There was a great emphasis on memorizing Scripture. p 112
The Jewish child was expected to be able to read the Hebrew Scriptures, to memorize a standard translation in his own language if not Hebrew and to recite certain parts of the liturgy. There was a great emphasis on memorizing Scripture. p 112
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Probably a lot more Scripturally literate than a lot of our youth are today, sadly!