In 40 B.C., the Roman Senate assigned Herod to be the ruler of Judea. Herod, or Herod the Great, ruled over Judea for the next 36 years. During his reign, he began various building projects including a temple in Jerusalem that would be used to worship God. The building took decades to complete, and required an enormous amount of money as well as labor. Once completed, the temple was a marvelous structure of astounding proportions. However, while Jesus was roaming the Earth, many of the Jews began to worship the Temple complex rather than worship God, and Jesus was not pleased. “Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them, ‘You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down’” (Matthew 24:1-2). Is it possible that Jesus predicted the destruction of Herod’s Temple? The Siege of Jerusalem led to the defeat of the Jews and destruction of Jerusalem, and was prophesized about in the Bible before it occurred.
The Zealots had been rebelling against the Roman Empire the Great Jewish Revolt. However, they lacked proper leadership, and therefore had poor training and discipline, as well as little preparation for battle. Titus, a Roman military commander, was instructed to put this Jewish rebellion to an end. So he surrounded the city of Jerusalem with the Legions, Macedonia, Apollinaris and Fulminata, and had Fretensis occupy the Mount of Olives, which was a mountain ridge adjacent to Jerusalem. This strategy aligned with what was written in Luke 21:20, “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near.” This unfortunately was a...
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... 70 A.D. N.p., July 2007. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. .
Goldberg, G.J. "Chronology of the War According to Josephus Part 7: The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem." Flavius Josephus. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. .
Hayut-Man, Yitzhaq. "The Destruction of the Second Temple." The Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Blue Letter Bible, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. .
Lendering, Jona. "Wars between the Jews and Romans: The Destruction of Jerusalem (70 CE)." Wars between the Jews and Romans. Livius, n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. .
Young, Darrell G. "The Fall of Jerusalem in 70 A. D." Focus on Jerusalem. Dales Design, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. .
August. C. Krey, The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eyewitnesses and Participants, (Princeton: 1921), 42-43
Stern, Pnina. "Life Of Josephus: The Autobiography Of Flavius Josephus." Journal For The Study Of Judaism In The Persian, Hellenistic And Roman Period 41.1 (2010): 63-93. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials. Web. 4 Apr. 2012.
The long-awaited death in 4 BCE of Herod, the ruthless architect of an oppressive Judean police state, sparked a series of spontaneous revolts by the Jewish peasantry. Once these rebellions were subdued, the Jews continued to chafe under a series of tyrannical Roman governors until the massive revolt of 66-70. This period was marked by "widespread discontent and periodic turbulence." Direct Roman rule, along with the burdensome tribute that accompanied it, was highly offensive to the Jews, who considered themselves subjects only to God. Many, in fact, considered their conditions tantamount to slavery (Horsley and Hanson 34-5).
In 1095, Pope Urban the second, was the one who declared religious war against the Muslims now known as the Crusades. In order to get an army, plenary indulgences was offered to anyone who joined resulted in tens of thousands joining in on the campaign. This meant that anyone who joined was “cleansed” of their sins by the Pope which helped believers be more pure in the spiritual world. The crusades began in the late eleventh century by the Western European Christians. These Europeans went with armies to take back the Holy Lands which is modern day Israel, or as the Jews and Christians refer to as Palestine. “ The first official armies to take part in the pope’s crusade departed from Kingdoms in Germany, France, and Italy in August 1096 and began to arrive in Constantinople in late 1096 and early 1097” (5). For the next 200 years, Christians and Muslims would battle over the Holy Lands.
The Romans and therefore Josephus who is an integrated part of their collation by this time thought that if they (the rebels) were indeed to come to their senses, the Romans would help in the preservation of the marvel that is the Jewish temple. Josephus makes this one point abundantly clear that the Romans were more than willing despite their dislike of the Jewish people, in general, to help save something they found magnificent and to a significant part they wanted for themselves. “…He would not make war on inanimate objects instead of men, or, whatever happened, burn down such a work of art: it was the Romans who would lose thereby, just as their empire would gain an ornament if it was preserved.” The Romans and thus Josephus put almost
•The execution of “this Christ” suppressed the “dangerous religious movement” of the Christians for a time, but then it quickly broke out again, first in Judea, but then spreading rapidly as far as Rome
The Arch of Titus is known for its depictions of the spoils brought back to Rome after the destruction of Jerusalem. As a result of the Jewish attacks on Roman installations and the start of a revolt against Roman rule in 66 CE, the Roman Emperor Nero granted Vespasian a special command in the East to be responsible for putting down this revolt. In response to the crisis, Nero placed the seven legions in Syria under Vespasian’s authority and named Titus, one of Vespasian’s sons, as legate of the 15th Legion of Apollo.
Main Events in the history of Jerusalem. (n.d.). Retrieved May 8, 2011, from Century One Educational Bookstore: http://www.centuryone.com/hstjrslm.html
The conquest to pursue war against Sejul Turks, who were Sunni Muslims, began when Crusaders realized the Jerusalem had not been under Christian control in 461 years. This was shocking because Christianity has spread throughout Europe, Africa, and the Middle East in Late Antiquity. After Muslims captured Jerusalem in 1076, any Christian who wanted to pay a visit to the city of Jerusalem faced many obstacles because Muslim soldiers made it very dangerous for them to do so. Jerusalem is very important to Christians because it has lots of biblical references. In Europe the Pope along with the Papacy has assumed the power of utili...
"The Crusades (Overview)." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 12 Oct. 2011.
Given the relative lack of primary resources and archeological remains, the events of Ancient Jerusalem are often difficult to study and tend to rely on biblical accounts and what primary sources have been preserved. For this reason there has been much uncertainty and discussion over the rule of Hezekiah. Among the debate over the exact years of his reign (i.e., whether it was from 727 - 698 BC or from 715 - 686 BC), there too exists disagreements as to whether Hezekiah was in fact one of the great Davidic Kings as he is often portrayed in the Bible (Na'aman, 29). Some researchers have argued that since historians, such as Josephus, speak very little of Hezekiah's reign, wisdom, temperance, or courage, then he must not have been one of the Great Judean rulers as his predecessors: David, and Solomon (Feldman, 598-607). However, upon further analysis of the on goings in Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah as well as his accomplishments as king, the argument arises that Hezekiah was in fact one of the greatest kings of Judah since the time of Solomon. Furthermore, the accomplishments of Hezekiah prove to be evidence that Hezekiah is viewed as the messianic king of 8th century BC Jerusalem due to his reforms to strengthen Judean religion, his developmental changes to improve the infrastructure of Jerusalem, and through his leadership that allowed Jerusalem to withstand the destruction of the Assyrian siege.
One of the Crusades main purposes was to recapture the city of Jerusalem, their Holy Land. The city of Jerusalem was important to both Christianity and Islam because it was the city that represented the center of their respective religion. Also, during the fourth century the city of Jerusalem was drawn on most maps as the center of the world. “Jews treasured it (Jerusalem) as Zion, God’s own city, and as the place where King Solomon had built his great temple. Muslims associated it with the prophets who had preceded their founder Muhammad and considered it their third-holiest city, after Mecca and Medina (“The Divine Campaigns” 57). “It was a meeting place for those who had been scattered, the goal of the great pilgrimage or Crusade, where God resides among his people” (Mayer 136). The Christian attacks against the Muslims in the city of Jerusalem were to no avail as they simply lacked the manpower to capture the city. The Crusades from the Muslim perspective, “ultimately helped the Islamic leaders to impose unity and religious orthodoxy in a divided region” (“The Divine Campaigns” 59). Overall the Christians were unable to complete the main goal of their great pilg...
The people of Israel heard of Holofernes destruction of the west nations and then feared him. They were worried because they just recently moved to Judea and their temple had been declared sacred after they moved. The Israelites then prepared for war and started to pray out to God. They cleansed themselves of all sins before the altar of their Lord. They prayed that God was to not give up on their people and land.