A Silent Witness to Accurate Prophecy - DEATH OF A CITY

Thirty-three years passed, and Judea still chafed under the Roman yoke.  But in 66 C.E. when the Roman procurator of Judea, Gessius Florus, seized funds from the sacred temple treasure, the enraged Jews had had enough.  Soon, Jewish fighters swarmed into Jerusalem, slaughtered the local Roman garrison, and declared their independence from Rome. 

About three months later, over 30,000 Roman troops, led by Cestius Gallus, advanced on Jerusalem to crush the rebellion.  The Romans quickly penetrated the city undermine the outer wall of the temple area.  Then, for no apparent reason, they retreated.  The Jewish rebels rejoiced and promptly gave chase. With the warring parties away, the Christians, heeding  Jesus' warning, fled from Jerusalem to the mountains beyond the Jordan River. -Matthew 24:15, 16. 

The following year, Rome renewed its campaign against Judea, headed by General Vespasian and his son Titus, However, soon after Emperor Nero died in 68 C.E., Vespasian returned to Rome to assume the throne, leaving the Judean campaign to his son Titus with an army of some 60,000. 

 In June C.E., Titus ordered his soldiers to strip the Judean countryside of trees, which were used in building a 4.5 long (7 km)  wall of pointed stakes around Jerusalem.  By September, the Romans had plundered and burned the city and its temple had torn them apart stone by stone, just has Jesus had earlier foretold.  (Luke 19:43, 44)  According to a conservative estimate, "between a quarter and a half million people perished in Jerusalem and the rest of the country." 

Next time: A Silent Witness to Accurate Prophecy - AN IMPERIAL TRIUMPH

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