Instability and conflict were nothing new to Judea in the First Century of the Common Era. Conquered by the Romans in 63 B.C.E., Judea stayed under their rule until the empire collapsed. Policy toward the Jews, however, could hardly be considered stable. As noted by Moshe and David Aberach, imperial policy was “a weird counterpoint of tolerance and intolerance, appeasement and suppression, rights and prejudices, benefits and humiliations, privilege and provocation, admiration and contempt.”1 (pp. 5) Julius Caesar, for one, granted the Jews privileges, including freedom of worship, exemption from army service and emperor worship, and exemption from tax in Judea during the Sabbatical year, if only because the Jews had displayed their readiness to die for their beliefs in previous revolts against the Greeks.1 (pp. 5) As one of the least assimilated groups in the empire, the Jews were upset by their “ambiguous status"1 (pp.5) and were also divided politically and spiritually amongst themselves.
Statue of Julius Caesar http://www.bible-history.com/past/images/julius_caesar_statue.jpg |
Herod the Great |
Roman-Judeo relations, however, worsened after both the reign of Herod the Great (37-34 B.C.E.), governor of Galilee, and the official annexation of Judea. Herod, attempting to gain favor with Rome, taxed the Jews heavily and manipulated the Judean elite2 (pp. 12), also offending them by bringing Roman idol worship to their land. He rebuilt the Temple with hopes of promoting Hellenization, but instead, the Jews viewed it as a symbol of national pride, and it “became a magnet for anti-Roman feeling and activism."1 (pp. 13) |
| http://www.crimelibrary.com/graphics/photos/notorious_murders/classics/jesus_trial/3-2-Herod-the-Great,-stone-.jpg |
In May of 66 C.E., the Roman procurator, Florus, sent troops to plunder Jerusalem, and the Jews retaliated, overpowering Roman garrisons all over Jerusalem.2 (pp. 14)Thus began the First Jewish Revolt. Pressing onward, they continued to recapture Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. From 67 to 68 A.D. rebels ruled the entire country, and four leaders began to emerge: John of Giscala, Simon ben Giora, Eleazar the Priest, and Joseph ben Matthias.3 (pp. 79)
The Roman response to this rebellion was predictably brutal. Jews all around the empire were massacred. Wanting to put down the rebellion as soon as possible, the emperor, Nero, sent Flavius Vespasian, to command the Roman troops charged with quelling the Jewish resistance. They first surrounded Galilee, where Joseph ben Matthias led the Jews. Within a few months Galilee had fallen. Joseph eventually became the Roman court historian, renaming himself Flavius Josephus in Roman fashion.4 (pp. 165-170) |
http://www.livius.org/jo-jz/judaea/judaea.htm |
|||||
|
Titus http://www.the-colosseum.net/images/titus.jpg |
By 68 C.E. the only remaining Jewish strongholds existed at Jerusalem and Masada; but as Vespasian zeroed in on Jerusalem, Nero died, bringing chaos upon Rome. Vespasian was then proclaimed emperor, and he sent his son Titus to finish putting down the rebellion.4 (pp. 165-170)
http://www.goldcarpet.co.il/bar.htm |
Within Jerusalem, civil war raged among the zealots (led by Eleazar), the
Sicarii (led by Simon ben Giora), and one opposing group (led by John of
Gishala).3 (pp.
79) Josephus reported that John’s men often
paraded the streets in women’s clothing, seducing and killing men
for sport. Fortunately, Simon managed to defeat John in a siege on the Temple.
During this time, Eleazar pulled forces from John’s ranks, forming
a yet another faction. Jerusalem was so war-torn that its citizens had to
climb over dead bodies in the Temple to offer their sacrifices.4
(pp. 165-170)
| Furthermore, thousands of Jews inside the city were dying of famine and plague, while Titus continued to pick away at the city’s walls. Once inside, Titus’ troops burned the temple, taking some Jews captive and slaughtering others. An estimated total of 1,100,000 people had died during the course of the war, and the revolt finally ended when the last group of zealots was put down in Masada three years later.7 (pp. 104-131) |  |
The Destruction of Jerusalem http://www.preteristarchive.com/images/Jerusalem/9308.jpg |
To commemorate their victory, the Romans minted the Judea Capta coins, such as the ones pictured below, and constructed the Arch of Titus at the highest point of the Via Sacra which leads to the Roman Forum. One scene on the arch features the Roman soldiers plundering the Temple before its destruction.6 (pp. 123)
|
Judea Capta Coins http://www.socalcoins.com/PresentationVespasian2.jpg
Scene depicting sack of the Temple http://sights.seindal.dk/img/orig/8216.jpg
|
The Arch of Titus http://emp.byui.edu/DAVISR/HumPix/arch,%20Rome,%20Arch%20of%20Titus.JPG |
