The last vision showed seven angels poised in heaven ready to strike the earth. Now each angel receives a golden vial. The vials contain God's wrath. Time has run out for Judea. The Lord is already here. He is knocking at the door. The promised one, the beloved, like a gazelle, came: "leaping upon the mountains, skipping over the hills" (Song of Solomon 2:8). Those within Judea who respond will become the betrothed, the spouse, of the promised one. Those who fail to respond, who do not recognize their day of visitation, will experience the great day of Almighty God. "His threshing fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his floor and gather his wheat into his barn; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire" (Matt. 3:12). They will experience what all nations will experience, each in their own time—but Judea first—as they make their choice. Will they believe? Or will they not believe?
REVELATION 15:5–8
5 And after those things I looked; and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:
6 And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed with clean and white linen, and gird about the breasts with golden girdles.
7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden vials, full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.
8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the majesty of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.
These verses were first preached in A.D. 50–70 by a disciple of John the Baptist. But even if, as some believe, John the Evangelist composed them as late as 96 A.D., the events I am about to describe would still be future events. They start in A.D. 100 and reach a climax in 135. So they are revelations of future events, but not, as commonly supposed, of the distant future. These events will happen soon. The first verse in Revelation says so. "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to make known to his servants the things which must shortly happen” (Rev. 1:1). The last chapter repeats it: "And he said to me: These words are most faithful and true. And the Lord God of the spirits of the prophets sent his angel to show his servants the things which must be done shortly" (Rev. 22:6).
Christ founded the Church during his lifetime. The reaction against his followers mounted as the Christianity grew. It came first from the unbelieving Judeans, and later, as Revelation predicted, from Rome. It was not merely the opposition of humans; fallen angels opposed the Christians. The Devil opposed the Christians. The Devil tried to devour the child then tried to drown the mother. That is, the Devil spewed a flood of false inspirations and temptations to entice the Judeans not to believe and not to cooperate with the promised one. It did not work. The Devil then incited the Roman Empire, including the visible head of the Empire, to attack the woman and all her children.
This enormous struggle questioned deep truths of human well‑being, truths about the final goal of human destiny. This spiritual struggle (between those who will listen to God's word, and those who will not) reached a climax when Christianity was born. Jesus established a new way humans are to worship and serve God. It set aside, or really fulfilled, the old way. Revelation describes it as a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21:1).
The new "heaven," Christianity, will receive a new covenant through Jesus. Membership will be available to a new "earth" comprised of all humans without regard to tribal or racial lineage. The old "earth" involved the descendants of Israel. The new covenant will bring a new sacrifice with a new high priest and a new temple. The new temple will serve a similar function, but will differ from the old Temple. It will not be as confined as was the old Temple. Its dimensions will pass through time and space and manifest itself wherever Christ's sacrifice is commemorated.
The mandate of the new covenant will be fulfilled at the end of time by Christ and his triumphant followers. "Every knee should bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth: And that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2:10–1). During the early phase of this monumental struggle, the old Temple built of stone was destroyed. The daily sacrifice held in the old Temple ceased. The old Temple gave way to the new temple, built—not of stone and not by humans, but built of humans. The old sacrifice, repeated each day, gave way to the new everlasting sacrifice of Calvary.
When the Christians embark on their mission, the whole Judean nation will dissolve. The surviving Judeans, a remnant, will scatter throughout the world. The Gentiles will trample the holy city (Jerusalem) until the Messiah's followers complete his mission. Jerusalem's downfall is the other half of the coin of Christianity's rise. The prophets had often warned what would happen if Jerusalem (and the whole nation) was not ready when the promised one came:
For who shall have pity on thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go to pray for thy peace? Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: and I will stretch out my hand against thee, and I will destroy thee: I am weary of entreating thee. And I will scatter thee with a fan [threshing fork] in the gates of the land: I have killed and destroyed my people, and yet they are not returned from their ways. Their widows are multiplied unto me above the sands of the sea: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young man a spoiler at noonday: I have cast a terror on a sudden upon the cities. She that hast born seven is become weak, her soul hath fainted away: her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she is confounded and ashamed: and the residue of them I will give up to the sword in the sight of their enemies, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 15:5–9)
And Isaiah:
In that day shall this canticle be sung in the land of Juda. Sion the city of our strength a savior, a wall and a bulwark shall be set therein. Open ye the gates, and let the just nation, that keepeth the truth enter in. The old error is passed away: thou wilt keep peace: peace, because we have hoped in thee. You have hoped in the Lord for evermore, in the Lord God mighty for ever. For he shall bring down them that dwell on high, the high city he shall lay low. He shall bring it down even to the ground, he shall pull it down even to the dust. The foot shall tread it down, the feet of the poor, the steps of the needy. (Isaiah 26:1–6)
Jerusalem is the strong city in Juda. The just nation is Christianity. Instead of opening its gates that the just nation might enter, Jerusalem tried to destroy Christianity. Jerusalem, that high city, was brought to the ground.
REVELATION 16:1–4
1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels: Go, and pour out the seven vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth, and there fell a sore and grievous wound upon men, who had the character of the beast; and upon them that adored the image thereof.
3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea, and there came blood as it were of a dead man; and every living soul died in the sea.
4 And the third poured out his vial upon the rivers and the fountains of waters; and there was made blood.
This is just retribution. The angel of water affirms it. So does the angel of the altar:
REVELATION 16:5–7
5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying: Thou art just, O Lord, who art, and who wast, the Holy One, because thou hast judged these things:
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
7 And I heard another, from the altar, saying: Yea, O Lord God Almighty, true and just are thy judgments.
It was the unbelieving Israelites who shed the prophets' blood. And their unbelieving descendants persecuted and killed the Messiah's followers.
REVELATION 16:8–11
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun, and it was given unto him to afflict men with heat and fire:
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God, who hath power over these plagues, neither did they penance to give him glory.
10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom became dark, and they gnawed their tongues for pain:
11 And they blasphemed the God of heaven, because of their pain and wounds, and did not penance for their works.
An angel poured God's wrath on the sun. Another angel poured God's wrath on the beast's throne. The beast's kingdom, the Roman Empire, plunged into darkness. Whatever true revelation once inspired the Roman pagan religion is now shut off. There were at least some true revelations made to pagans, for God had spoken directly to pagans in the past. Before God's covenant with Moses, God sent Melchizedek, king of Salem, a pagan, and yet a priest of the Most High God, to bless Abraham (Gen. 14:18). God spoke to the pagan Balaam when the King of Moab sent for Balaam to curse the Israelites (Num. 22:7–14).
The three wise men were pagans, but God spoke to them and revealed that the savior would soon be born. Cornelius, a devout Roman pagan who feared God and gave liberally to the needy, received a revelation through an angel: "Thy prayers and thy alms are ascended for a memorial in the sight of God. And now send men to Joppa, and call hither one Simon, who is surnamed Peter . . . He will tell thee what thou must do" (Acts 10:4–6).
It took a full generation after their defeat in A.D. 70 before the Judeans could again exert any real influence in their own homeland. So until A.D. 96, all Palestine was peaceful enough for economic prosperity to return. Nerva and Trajan, the first two of the five so‑called "good emperors," helped nurture this prosperity. When King Herod Agrippa II died in Rome around A.D. 100, Rome annexed the areas he ruled into Palestine. Palestine was then annexed into Syria, a Roman province ruled by Roman procurators. Right away conditions in Judea worsened. The new procurators, just like their predecessors thirty‑five years earlier, found dishonest ways to enrich themselves. The Judeans resented this. Their resentment fueled a new desire for national independence. Like their fathers before them, they decided to fight for independence.
Trajan wanted to avert rebellion. To woo Judean loyalty, he promised to rebuild the Temple. This pleased the Judean leaders. They planned a feast day to commemorate it. They named the new feast "Trajan's Day." They planned to combine it with Purim and Nicanor's Day to make a three‑day annual festival (Finkelstein, p. 219). Trajan then found unexpected opposition to rebuilding the Temple. The Judean Nationalists did not want the Temple rebuilt. They thought it would diffuse their argument for independence. The Samaritans did not want it rebuilt because they never had full access to the Temple. The Christians, too, did not want it rebuilt. The fall of the Temple had confirmed their understanding that the new covenant had replaced the old one.
Christian opposition caused Trajan to realize that Christianity was different from Judaism. At this time, Christians were persecuted in Rome. Trajan's realization that Christianity was a rival religion encouraged him to deal harshly with Judean Christians. He did this to please the unbelieving Judeans. Also at this time, Rome had border problems with Parthia on the eastern frontier. Parthia (modern Iran) had never been conquered by Rome. They had always been a menace on the eastern frontier. Trajan decided to invade Parthia. The Parthians let his armies penetrate as far as their Capitol, Ctesiphon, in A.D. 115. The Parthians then counterattacked behind the front lines in areas Trajan had already conquered. This sparked revolts elsewhere in the empire. With his initiative destroyed, Trajan retreated to Antioch in A.D. 116.
He kept his army in Antioch over the winter. That winter, a severe earthquake struck the city. The Judeans took this as a sign that the Messiah was coming. They began at once to prepare for the Messiah's arrival. Judean hopes, and the nationalistic sentiments that fueled the hopes, were fanned into open rebellion by the Judean Nationalist Party. This was a new political party. It was similar to the Zealot party that was active during the last war. The Judeans thought that the Temple would rise again in A.D. 120 because that would be the jubilee year after its destruction. So the time seemed ripe for the Messiah. The jubilee year, according to Mosaic Law, occurs every fifty years. All real estate, even if it had been sold, was to be returned to its original owners in the Jubilee year. This was mentioned earlier when viewing the Temple mount.
Around this time, Loukuas Andreas, a Judean in Cyrene, electrified the Judeans with his conviction that now is the time. They accepted him as "king" and revolted, even in cities far from Palestine. They attacked everything pagan. Since these attacks occurred in pagan cities outside Judea, the pagans retaliated against the Judeans. It quickly escalated into racial war. Some fighting spread into Palestine, but Judean populations outside Palestine fought the bulk of this war. Trajan abandoned his war against Parthia and used his armies to restore order within the Empire. History calls this the "War under Trajan." Trajan appointed Marcius Turbo to suppress the rebellion in Africa, and Lucius Quietus, a Moorish general, to crush rebellion in Palestine. Trajan died in 117. Hadrian succeeded him.
Hadrian spent two years trying to stop the insurrection. He tried not to be as harsh as Trajan. One of his first acts was to replace the brutal Lucius Quietus. The insurrection was finally put down in 119. More than a hundred thousand Judeans died. The beautiful synagogue in Alexandria lay in ruin. Some Judean cities also lay ruined. Hadrian then decided to rebuild Jerusalem. He renamed the city "Aelia Capitolina." He did not plan, however, to rebuild the Temple. This frustrated Judean hopes again, and the uneasy peace imposed after so much bloodshed fell apart.
Again the Judeans yearned for independence. Nationalistic fervor revived. Judeans formed underground resistance groups. By 125, tensions had risen high enough that Rome reacted against any show of nationalist sentiment. Among other things, Rome forbade public readings of any Scripture judged to foster nationalist bias—the book of Ester, for example. The book of Ester always had been read during the public celebration of Purim. Now it cannot be read. Judean resentment grew because of this. Hadrian also outlawed circumcision. He claimed that circumcision violates a Roman law against mutilation. The key words cited against circumcision were that people should not mutilate the genitals (Yadin, Bar-Kochba, p. 21). The Roman law really banned castration and was already enforced by Nerva. Hadrian banned both castration and circumcision. He made both punishable by death.
Hadrian's new law, whatever his motive, amounted to religious persecution. This is the first time Judaism had been persecuted since Antiochus IV Epiphanes three hundred years earlier. During that earlier persecution, the Maccabees led a revolt that eventually won Judean independence. That persecution and revolt had a profound influence on apocalyptic literature. It came to serve as the framework for prophecies, even Christian prophecies, about the end times. To the Judeans of 125, it did seem as though it were the end times. Almost all Judeans expected the Messiah. Those who did not believe Jesus looked for someone else. Overzealous men all over Judea pointed out would‑be Messiahs.
Into this turmoil, Hadrian stirred one blunder after another. In the year 128, word got out that Hadrian now planned a temple to Jupiter rather than rebuild the Judaic Temple. This galvanized the Judeans. Two respected leaders, Ishmael and Simeon, who up to this point were pacifists, now talked rebellion. Rome executed them. These two men had restrained the extremism within the Nationalist Party. With their death, the leadership passed to the militant wing, to a man with extraordinary charisma. He was an up‑and‑coming leader with his own guerrilla army. He had already shown his brilliance as a military strategist. His name was Simeon ben Kosiba. He will lead Judea to disaster.
REVELATION 16:12–16
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and dried up the water thereof, that a way might be prepared for the kings from the rising of the sun.
13 And I saw from the mouth of the dragon, and from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs.
14 For they are the spirits of devils working signs, and they go forth unto the kings of the whole earth, to gather them to battle against the great day of the Almighty God.
15 Behold I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
16 And he shall gather them together into a place, which in Hebrew is called Armagedon.
An angel pours the sixth vial on the Euphrates River. The river runs dry, allowing passage for an invading army. Three unclean spirits gather the nations for the final onslaught. I think this final onslaught is the war of A.D. 131–5. The Roman army destroyed all Judean resistance and deported the survivors. Very few commentaries mention this war. There was no eyewitness historian to report it like Josephus reported the earlier war. In that earlier war, Rome destroyed the Temple and the Holy City. But the Judean nation survived. In this war, Rome literally destroyed the Judean nation.
Simeon ben Kosiba appealed to the Judeans. They thought he was the Messiah, but he led them to disaster. Jesus had already warned the Judeans: "I am come in the name of my father, and you receive me not: If another shall come in his own name, him you will receive" (John, 5:43). The unbeliever's rejection of Jesus, their acceptance of a false messiah, and their total destruction fits very well this third and final woe: "The end is here!" The first mention of Kosiba dates to A.D. 128, right after the execution of Ishmael and Simon. Kosiba led one group of partisan fighters. When the Judeans looked to him for inspiration, he encouraged all the separate groups to unite. Each separate group had already fought the Roman tenth legion, but none could defeat the legion. The tenth legion, stationed near the ruins of Jerusalem, was there to enforce Roman rule in Judea. Tinius Rufus, the procurator, finally told the tenth legion to destroy all the partisan groups. This helped encourage the partisans to unite under Kosiba.
Kosiba spent most of 129, training this army, organizing its chain of command, and planning an offensive. Then he attacked and defeated the tenth legion. The Judeans hated the tenth legion because it provoked the first war, and because it destroyed the last Judean resistance at Masada. They also resented the tenth legion's choice of a wild pig for its emblem. Kosiba's victory won him wild enthusiasm and made him a national hero. A year later, many Judeans compared Kosiba to Judas Maccabeus, the Judean patriot who led the revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Others thought he might actually be the Messiah come to liberate Israel. Rabbi Akiba ben Joseph wondered about this. Akiba was a famous Judean leader. He started his schooling late in life (when he was forty). Forty years later, he dominated the intellectual thinking in Judea. His influence on the Judaism that survived the destruction of Judea has been substantial. Some present‑day Jewish historians consider him a second Moses (Finkelstein, p. 156). Akiba expected the Messiah during these turbulent years, just as other Judeans did.
Kosiba first caught Akiba's notice when Kosiba molded the various resistance groups into a unified army and led that army into stunning victories. As Kosiba attracted more men into his army, even Gentiles, Akiba became convinced that Kosiba must be the Messiah. This would be around 130. After that, when speaking of Kosiba, Akiba quoted Num. 24:17: "A star shall rise out of Jacob and a scepter shall spring up from Israel . . . “He also, more than once, publicly stated his conviction that "This is the Messianic king!" The Judeans then began to call Kosiba "Bar Kochba." This was a word play to have his name mean "Son of the Star." Kosiba later assumed the title "Nasi" which means "prince" or "president" of Israel. Another spiritual leader who supported "Bar Kochba" was Eleazar the Priest. A well‑respected spiritual leader, he held a high position in the priestly hierarchy. Convinced that Kosiba, "Bar Kochba," was the Messianic prince' he served Bar Kochba as High Priest throughout the war.
Recent excavations in Israel reveal the name of Rabenu Botniya Bar Miasa as another priest allied with Bar Kochba (Mansoor, p. 180). His name is not mentioned in history, so nothing is known about him. But he must have been an important religious leader. The title "Rabenu" means "Our master par excellence." It was rarely given. It was previously given to Moses and Judah. A similar title was given to Rabbi Gamaliel, the man who trained Paul the apostle around A.D. 40.
There were other rabbis, however, who did not believe Bar Kochba. Rabbi Jonathan ben Tortha, a highly respected rabbi and close friend of Akiba, is quoted in rabbinical lore: "Akiba, grass will grow out of your jaw and the Messiah will not yet have come!" (Finkelstein, p. 269). But enough people believed that Bar Kochba was the promised one that he soon had widespread support in Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. By the year 131, Bar Kochba's fame reached all over Palestine. The tenth legion, which could no longer control him, was replaced by the renowned sixth legion "Ironsides."
Bar Kochba set his administration headquarters in Ein Gedi, a small city twenty‑five miles south of Jerusalem near the Dead Sea's west shore. By this time, his army had grown to 400,000 fighting men. His men stockpiled all the provisions they could find. They built emergency shelters and food caches in caves on steep cliffs where the Roman army could not attack. They built forts and strongholds all over Palestine, complete with strategically‑placed tunnels, giving them the advantage should fighting begin.
To make sure they had enough weapons, they asked Judean craftsmen who sold weapons to the Roman army to deliberately make weapons with minor flaws. They hoped the Romans would send them back for repair—just in time to be seized for the offensive. They planned their offensive for fall, right after harvest. By October, 132, they were ready. They struck the sixth legion at Lod (near the modern airport at Lydda) (Klein, Israel, Land of the Jews, p. 101). Bar Kochba easily defeated the sixth legion. When the twenty‑second legion rushed in to help, he defeated it also. A few months later, Bar Kochba freed all Palestine from Roman control.
Bar Kochba then set up military posts at Herodion and Qumran and other strategic places (but not Masada). He administered the newly liberated nation from Ein Gedi because Jerusalem still lay in ruins. There remained standing only seven synagogues, a Christian church (the "Upper Room" where Christ celebrated the Last Supper), and a few blocks of houses. He resumed the daily sacrifice on the Temple ruins. And he ordered coins struck, late in 132, with the inscription "Year one of the redemption of Israel" (Yadin, Bar-Kochba, p. 21).
Who is this man playing such a decisive role in Judean destiny? Why did so many Judeans, and many Gentiles as well, look to him as the single, unchallenged leader? Only seventy years earlier, their great‑grandfathers would not unite under a single leader. What does this man have that other leaders before him did not have? History provides only hints to answer these questions. Practically all information known about Bar Kochba came through folklore. Much of it sounds more legendary than factual. Some of it is contradictory. He was hero and patriot to some. To others, he was bandit and murderer.
Rumor had him a descendant of the Hasmonean‑Maccabean family. These leaders had, three centuries earlier, won freedom from the Seleucid Empire. Rumor claimed his ancestry reached to King David. This helped reinforce the popular idea that he was the Messianic Prince. It was a factor in his widespread acceptance. He also had charisma, that ability to radiate manliness and charm, intelligence, and leadership. He projected his charisma onto other men the way popular and successful leaders have always done when they lead men who admire them. Full of action and energy, he was a military genius who led his men into brilliant victories.
No one has passed down a description of his appearance. He was rumored to have been very strong and feared by battle‑hardened Roman warriors. He was able, somehow, to kick back the Roman stone ballistae flung at him (Klein, Israel, Land Beyond Time, p. 118). His men said he killed several Roman soldiers this way. Being brave himself, he demanded bravery from his men. To test their personal bravery, he made them endure the pain of having a finger amputated. Four hundred thousand men lost a finger to prove their loyalty (Klein, Israel, Land of the Jews, p. 101).
An old legend from Midrash Lamentations shows his poor respect for God. As he advanced with his men to engage the Roman army, an old man shouted to him, "May the Creator be your help against them!" Bar Kochba's reply was this prayer: "Oh God! You needn't bother to help us. Just don't help our enemies" (Klein, Israel, Land of the Jews, p. 101). The Midrash quotes Ps. 59:12 as a judgment against Bar Kochba. "Hast not Thou, O God, cast us off? And go not forth, O God, with our hosts?" Christian historians also criticized Bar Kochba. Eusebius, writing in the fourth century, described Bar Kochba as a murderer, an impostor who hid behind the word play of his name, as though he were dealing with slaves. Bar Kochba had claimed to be like a star come from heaven to redeem his suffering people. He instilled awe and fear into the people by somehow breathing fire. St. Jerome wrote that Bar Kochba blew burning tow from his mouth to make it look as though he breathed fire.
After his acceptance as Prince of Israel and while the die was cast in the rebellion against Rome, Bar Kochba demanded all Judeans pledge loyalty to his government. History does not record exactly what he expected, but Church fathers resented it. Whatever it was, Church fathers considered it blasphemy and a rejection of Jesus. St. Justin, a martyr who lived during the Bar Kochba era, said Bar Kochba demanded that Christians fight with him against Rome. Bar Kochba killed all who refused.
New information has come from Yigael Yadin's excavations in Israel. Documents from this dig show that Bar Kochba habitually issued brief and direct orders. He demanded obedience. "From Shimeon ben Kosiba to Yeshua ben Galgoul . . . " (the military chief at Ein Gedi), "I take heaven to witness against me that unless you mobilize the Galileans who are with you, every man, I will put fetters on your feet as I did to Ben Aphlul" (Yadin, Bar-Kochba, p. 137). "Galileans" might refer to the followers of the Galilean Jesus. This would bear out the comments of Justin Martyr.
Mobilization must have been difficult for Christians. To side with the rebels meant to accept Bar Kochba for what he claimed to be. He claimed he was the prophesied prince, the one whom God had chosen to restore Israel. But it would be an Israel separated from Jesus Christ. The Christians had no alternative. They had to choose allegiance to Bar Kochba or allegiance to Jesus Christ. It is not likely that the followers of Bar Kochba would have tolerated allegiance to both. The contradiction between Bar Kochba and Jesus Christ, and the realization of what was at stake when Christians made their choice, is what drove the final wedge between the Judeans who believed Christ and those who did not (Avi-Yonah, p. 163 & Zeitlin, III, p. 375). Until that time, there had been a strong Judaizing influence in the Church. All Bishops of Jerusalem, for example, had been Judean. From here on, Judean dominance in the Church, even in Jerusalem, ended.
We are now in A.D. 132. Judea is finally free of Roman control. The Judeans can manage their own affairs, pursue their own interests. I can imagine their joy and enthusiasm. I can see the unbelievers convinced that this is what the Messiah was supposed to accomplish, not what Jesus Christ did, but what Bar Kochba did. And, of course, I can see them firmly convinced that Jesus Christ is a false messiah. One can wonder what Bar Kochba's followers would have done to the remembrance of Jesus Christ, had they remained victorious. But Providence did not allow it.
While Bar Kochba pondered over management of his government, Hadrian pondered over his problems if he accepted Judean independence. If Judea can gain freedom by force, other provinces might try the same. If they do try, that would destroy the Empire's stability. Hadrian decided to preserve the Empire at all cost. He appointed his best general, Julius Severus, to reconquer Judea. Severus had just crushed a German revolt on the northern frontier. Severus put together an army of thirty‑five thousand fighting men and sixty thousand auxiliaries. He entered Palestine from the north and swept through Galilee, the valley of Jezreel, through Ephraim and the Judean hills and finally arrived at Jerusalem in the winter of 133–4. Though Bar Kochba had a much larger army, he avoided large‑scale fights that might have defeated Severus in a decisive battle. Instead, Bar Kochba struck with small hit‑and‑run forces, a guerrilla war launched from many villages and strongholds throughout Israel. Severus for his part simply surrounded any village or fort used as a rebel sanctuary. One by one, he attacked the strongholds, killed the defenders, burnt the buildings, and leveled the rubble.
In less than one year's time, Severus smashed most of Bar Kochba's strongholds. He slaughtered women, children, and livestock along with Bar Kochba's fighting men. In his relentless sweep through Palestine, Severus destroyed over nine hundred towns and villages and fifty forts (Klein, Israel, Land of the Jews, p. 102). The survivors of Bar Kochba's fighting forces kept retreating to safer ground. Now, in 133, most of them are in Jerusalem and the high hills southeast of Jerusalem. Jerusalem would not do because it had not been rebuilt since the first war. So in early spring 134, Bar Kochba retreated to Ein Gedi, twenty‑four miles southeast of Jerusalem, where he already had his administrative center. Ein Gedi had abundant spring‑fed fresh water, making it better suited to withstand a siege.
Severus laid siege in spring, 134. By summer it was obvious that Ein Gedi would soon fall. So Bar Kochba's men retreated to the smaller but better‑fortified city of Bethar. Bethar is twenty miles northwest of Ein Gedi and about seven miles southwest of Jerusalem. It is close to Bethlehem, only a few miles away. Joshua 15:59 mentions Bethar, so it is an ancient city. It still exists today under the modern name of Bittir (Yadin, Bar-Kochba, p. 193). Bethar contained a strong fortress built on a hill. Walls enclosed the city, running a total length of 3280 feet. The walls protected twenty‑five acres, including the fort. Deep chasms outside the walls on the east, west, and north made access impossible. The south side, however, faced level ground. A moat sixteen feet deep, forty‑nine feet wide, and two hundred and sixty feet long protected this side against assault.
Bar Kochba then moved his headquarters to Bethar. He still had two hundred thousand fighting men, each marked with a missing finger. He stationed them between Ein Gedi and Bethar along the valley of Murabba'at. Severus followed. On August 9, 134, Severus laid siege to Bethar.
Revelation: Fall of Judea, Rise of the Church
Copyright 2009 Maurice A. Williams
http://www.mauriceawilliams.com
Labels: Agrippa, Akiba, Justin, Kosiba, Nerva, Trajan
posted by Maurice A. Williams @ 1:25 PM
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