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Author	: Bill Kochman
Publish	: Jun. 14, 2025
Update	: Jun. 14, 2025
Parts	: 25

Synopsis:




As I point out in various other articles such as "Abomination of Desolation: Explained!", "Jesus Christ's Return: Have We Been Deceived?" and "The Fall of Masada", the First Century AD was a very difficult and tumultuous time for the Jews and the land of Israel. In fact, since the Roman general Pompey had captured Jerusalem in 63 BC, the country was under Roman occupation, and was ruled by Rome-appointed puppet kings, who were the Herodian dynasty. The very first of these Idumaean -- or Edomite -- kings, was Herod the Great. While he was an Edomite by birth, he was raised in the Jewish religion. Herod slowly grew in political importance due to his father's good relationship with Roman dictator, Julius Caesar.

Finally, in 39-40 BC, after a number of different political appointments, Herod was officially confirmed as the king of Judea by the Roman Senate. This trend would continue through Herod the Great's successors, until the final and seventh Herod, who was Herod Agrippa II. I will be discussing this particular Herod later on in this series.

To make matters worse, contrary to the expectations of the Jewish radicals, forty years earlier, Jesus had not turned out to be the long-awaited political messiah and military liberator who would free them from the heavy yoke of Rome. Interestingly enough, there is some Scriptural evidence to suggest that before they fully understood His real mission on Earth, even some of the Lord's own Apostles thought that Jesus had come to free them from Roman occupation. Thus we find verses such as the following in the New Testament:

"When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power."


"From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men."


Regarding the second group of verses, while I cannot prove it conclusively, I suspect that the reason why Peter was so taken back by Jesus' words concerning His coming death was because he believed that Jesus was the anticipated military messiah who would break the Roman yoke. That may also be why Jesus said to him "for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." It may also be for that very same reason that the common people gladly received the Lord one week as the son of David, only to shout "Crucify him!" the next week when they realized that He was not the one they were expecting and hoping for.

As for the Jewish religious elders, they fully understood the precarious position in which they found themselves with the Romans. As a result, they realized that Jesus had to be dealt with before the situation grew out of hand. Thus, we find the Jewish high priest Caiaphas saying the following in the Gospel of John:

"Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation. And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples."


Yet despite crucifying Jesus, in the hope that it would calm Rome's frustration with Israel, the situation only continued to gradually heat up during the next four decades. As I point out in other articles, this dangerous Jewish-Roman friction was not helped by the fact that certain Jewish radicals were constantly stirring up trouble against the Romans. One such faction were the Zealots, who were led by a rabble-rouser by the name of John of Giscala, a.k.a. Gischala. At first, these troublemakers were concentrated in northern Israel in the Galilee region, and particularly in the city of Gischala. However, as I will be explaining shortly, they were forced to eventually relocate to Jerusalem, where they took over the city, including the Temple Mount itself.

The most violent amongst the Zealots were called the Sicarii, or "dagger men". They acquired this gruesome name due to the practice of concealing small daggers -- referred to as sica -- underneath their cloaks, which they would then use to stab their enemies in crowded areas. Their targets included Romans and Roman sympathizers, the Herodians, and other wealthy Jews who had compromised with Rome. Some scholars hold the opinion that Barabbas -- who, as you may know, was released by Roman governor Pontius Pilate in Jesus' stead -- may also have been a member of the Sicarii, being as the Gospels describe him as being a robber, a murderer and a seditionist who was involved in insurrection against Rome. Consider the following verses:

"Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would. And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas."


"Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired. And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection."


"(For of necessity he must release one unto them at the feast.) And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas: (Who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for murder, was cast into prison.)"


"But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the passover: will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews? Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber."


What is interesting about the previous verses is that in them, Barabbas is described as being an insurrectionist, a murderer, a seditionist, and a robber. So why is this important to know? Because as you will learn later on this discussion, they are the exact same words that Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus, uses to describe the Zealots in his well-known work "The Wars of the Jews", also known as "The Jewish War".

To continue, the friction between the Jews and the Romans was growing hotter by the year. While the Roman conquerors did in fact grant the Israelites religious freedom to worship God as they pleased, and even granted them limited self-rule under the watchful eye of Rome's puppet kings and procurators -- or governors -- such as Pontius Pilate, nevertheless, there was the rather thorny issue of Roman taxes, also referred to as tributes or custom. As some of my readers will recall, it was in fact a Roman proclamation that was made by Caesar Augustus which resulted in Joseph and Mary traveling to Bethlehem, as we see by the following group of Bible verses:

"And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered."


You may also recall that it was likewise the issue of paying tribute to Caesar, which the sly, jealous, hateful Pharisees and priests tried to use as proof that Jesus wasn't loyal to the Roman emperor. They also brought up the point that Jesus had said that He was a king. In other words, those devilish religious leaders realized that they had to find some kind of serious political crime which they could pin on the Lord. Furthermore, when their wicked tactics failed to produce the desired results, on the day of Jesus' trial before Pontius Pilate, in their desperation to make certain that Jesus was crucified, the chief priests cried out "Away with him, away with him, crucify him . . . We have no king but Caesar." It was not that they were really loyal to Caesar. It was about self-preservation, maintaining their power over the people, and guarding their personal enrichment. Consider this group of Bible verses which verify these various points:

"And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee."


"Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's. When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way."


"And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people: for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them. And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor. And they asked him, saying, Master, we know that thou sayest and teachest rightly, neither acceptest thou the person of any, but teachest the way of God truly: Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no? But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me? Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar's. And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's. And they could not take hold of his words before the people: and they marvelled at his answer, and held their peace."


"And the whole multitude of them arose, and led him unto Pilate. And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King."


‭"And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words. And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know that thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not? Shall we give, or shall we not give? But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, Why tempt ye me? bring me a penny, that I may see it. And they brought it. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto him, Caesar's. And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him."


"And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away."


But concerning Roman taxation on the Jews, from the time that tributes were first imposed on them, the situation grew even heavier with each new emperor. After all, they needed lots of money to finance the various wars they fought as they spread across the known world of their day. Furthermore, the obvious corruption of local governors and kings in Israel only added to the financial burdens of the Jews. Thus, it is no surprise that throughout Josephus' "The Antiquities of the Jews" and "The Wars of the Jews", we discover multiple complaints being made by the Jews regarding the heavy taxation which had been placed upon them, as well as entreaties to be relieved of the same.

As I mentioned earlier, whether governor/procurator or king, all of the leadership in Israel was appointed by the emperor in Rome. Thus, in the aforementioned works by Josephus, he offers considerable details regarding the appointments of these leaders by the emperors. For example, Felix, who was the governor of Judea, was appointed by Emperor Claudius in 53 AD. Felix was eventually succeeded by Porcius Festus. As you may recall, both Felix and Festus are mentioned in the Book of Acts chapters twenty-three through twenty-five. The latter was then succeeded by Albinus, who himself was then succeeded by governor Gessius Florus. And this is where the trouble began in earnest.

In such a charged, oppressive, political environment, it was only a matter of time before war would break out between the Jews and the Romans. In Book 2 Chapter 14 of his "The Wars of the Jews", Flavius Josephus reports that Albinus was a rather corrupt governor. While Festus had worked diligently to reign in and punish the troublemakers -- meaning Zealots/Sicarii, robbers and other seditious and violent elements -- Albinus went to the totally opposite extreme, so much so that he even freed the vile wretches from prison if they would pay a bribe. Consider the following quote from Book 2 Chapter 14:

----- Begin Quote -----

Now it was that Festus succeeded Felix, as procurator, and made it his business to correct those that made disturbances in the country. So he caught the greatest part of the ROBBERS, and destroyed a great many of them. But then Albinus, who succeeded Festus, did not execute his office as the other had done; nor was there any sort of wickedness that could be named but he had a hand in it. Accordingly, he did not only, in his political capacity, steal and plunder every one's substance, nor did he only BURDEN THE WHOLE NATION WITH TAXES, but he permitted the relations of such as were in prison for ROBBERY, and had been laid there, either by the senate of every city, or by the former procurators, to redeem them for money; and nobody remained in the prisons, as a malefactor, but he who gave him nothing. At this time it was, that the enterprises of THE SEDITIOUS at Jerusalem, were very formidable: the principal men among them purchasing leave of Albinus to go on with their seditious practices; while that part of the people who delighted in disturbances joined themselves to such as had fellowship with Albinus: and every one of those wicked wretches was encompassed with his own BAND OF ROBBERS, while himself, like an ARCH ROBBER, or a TYRANT, made a figure among his company and abused his authority over those about him, in order to plunder those that lived quietly."

----- End Quote -----

But as I said, it was when Gessius Florus was appointed the new procurator of Judea by Emperor Nero, that the situation really exploded. In fact, Josephus describes Florus as being the very worst of the worst, and he squarely blames Florus for the start of the First Jewish-Roman War, because Florus intentionally and purposely instigated it by his own actions. Here again are two more quotes from Book 2 Chapter 14 of "The Wars of the Jews":

----- Begin Quote -----

"And though such was the character of Albinus, yet did Gessius Florus, who succeeded him, demonstrate him to have been a most excellent person, upon the comparison; for the former did the greatest part of his rogueries in private, and with a sort of dissimulation; but Gessius did his unjust actions to the harm of the nation after a pompous manner: and as though he had been sent as an executioner to punish condemned malefactors, he omitted no sort of rapine or of vexation; where the case was really pitiable, he was most barbarous, and in things of the greatest turpitude he was most impudent. Nor could any one outdo him in disguising the truth, nor could any one contrive more subtle ways of deceit than he did. He indeed thought it but a petty offence to get money out of single persons, so he spoiled whole cities, and ruined entire bodies of men at once, and did almost publicly proclaim it all the country over; that they had liberty given them to turn ROBBERS, upon this condition, that he might go shares with them in the spoils they got. Accordingly, this his greediness of gain was the occasion that entire toparchies were brought to desolation, and a great many of the people left their own country, and fled into foreign provinces."

"However Cestius, when he had quieted the multitude, and had assured them, that he would take care that Florus should hereafter treat them in a more gentle manner, returned to Antioch: Florus also conducted him as far as Caesarea, and deluded him, THOUGH HE HAD AT THAT VERY TIME THE PURPOSE OF SHOWING HIS ANGER AT THE NATION, AND PROCURING A WAR UPON THEM, by which means alone it was that he supposed he might conceal his enormities; for he expected that, if the peace continued, he should have the Jews for his accusers before Caesar; but that if he could procure them to MAKE A REVOLT, he should divert their laying lesser crimes to his charge, by a misery which was so much greater; he therefore did every day augment their calamities, IN ORDER TO INDUCE THEM TO A REBELLION.

----- End Quote -----

For those of you who may be wondering about "toparchies", it refers to a small state or region within a larger territory, often used in historical contexts, particularly in relation to Judea. Judea was in fact divided into several toparchies, including regions like Gaulanitis, Galilee, Samaria, Judea, Perea, and Idumea. Thus, a toparch was the ruler or governor of such a specific district.

As you can see by the second quote above, one of the reasons why Florus wanted to provoke a war between the Jews and the Romans, was because he was very concerned that the complaints which were being made against him by the Jews due to his poor treatment of the same, might eventually reach the ears of the emperor. If that were to happen, who knows how Caesar might respond to them. It could potentially result in Florus' own dismissal as procurator of Judea, or even worse. Thus, Florus hoped to conceal his treacheries by instigating a war.

Perhaps some of you have noticed that when quoting from the works of Flavius Josephus, I have been placing certain words in uppercase letters. There are two primary reasons why I am doing this. The first reason is to show you how much Josephus absolutely hated the Zealots, and the Sicarii in particular. He viewed them as total lowlifes, killers, thieves and thugs who wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone if it served to increase their own financial gain. Throughout his works, he refers to them by a variety of negative words and phrases, including the following:

the innovators
the seditious
the robbers
the tyrants
crew of robbers
band of robbers

Please note that Josephus seems to have referred to them as innovators, because innovate means to start or to introduce something new, or some new method. In this case, the Zealots wanted to start or begin a war with the Romans.

The second reason why I am placing these words in uppercase letters is to highlight the fact that it was precisely the behavior and acts of these wicked men which directly resulted in the very much avoidable destruction of Jerusalem and the temple compound in 70 AD. Well, at least avoidable from the human perspective. God, of course, had already determined the fate of the unbelieving Jews who had not only killed His Son, but who also persecuted the fledging Church after that. This point regarding how Jerusalem's destruction could have been avoided will become much clearer to you as we continue our discussion.

In short, Josephus blamed both power-hungry governor Gessius Florus and the seditionists -- meaning the Zealots and the Sicarii -- for the Roman invasion, and the final destruction of Jerusalem and the temple compound. This point becomes very evident just by reading the preface to the "The Wars of the Jews", where Josephus writes as follows:

----- Begin Quote -----

"However, I will not go to the other extreme, out of opposition to those men who extol the Romans, nor will I determine to raise the actions of my countrymen too high; but I will prosecute the actions of both parties with accuracy. Yet shall I suit my language to the passions I am under, as to the affairs I describe, and must be allowed to indulge some lamentations upon the miseries undergone by my own country. For that it was a SEDITIOUS TEMPER of our own that destroyed it, and that they were THE TYRANTS among the Jews who brought the Roman power upon us, who unwillingly attacked us, and occasioned the burning of our holy temple; Titus Caesar, who destroyed it, is himself a witness, who, during the entire war, pitied the people who were kept under by THE SEDITIOUS, and did often voluntarily delay the taking of the city, and allowed time to the siege, in order to let the authors have opportunity for repentance."

----- End Quote -----

According to Josephus, there were several specific incidents which served as catalysts for starting the First Jewish-Roman War. As he explains in Book 2 Chapter 14 of "The Wars of the Jews", the first was the fact that upon assuming office in 64 AD, Florus began showing favor to the local Greek population of Caesarea -- where he was stationed -- over the Jews. The Greeks -- who controlled the city's government under Nero's authority -- realizing the favoritism they were being shown, took advantage of the situation.

There was a certain piece of property which was owned by a Greek, which the Jews had endeavored to purchase on multiple occasions, even offering payment that was worth many times the actual value of the property. However, the owner refused to sell it to them. In fact, in order to snub his nose at the Jews, he even began to build on the property, so that there eventually remained just a narrow way for the Jews to get to their synagogue. Some of the Jews tried to prevent additional construction on the site. However, not being allowed to resort to force, they paid governor Florus eight talents so that he would hinder further construction work on the property.

However, not only did Florus not do as they had requested, but he intentionally left Caesarea so that the skirmish between the seditionists, Jews and Greeks would play out while he was away. In short, Florus wanted to make it appear as if he had nothing to do with it. Well, the next day while the Jews were worshipping in the synagogue, a man sacrificed several birds on top of an earthen vessel at the entrance to the synagogue. According to Jewish law, this rendered the synagogue ritually unclean. Obviously angered by the incident, a fight soon broke out between the Jews, the Greeks and other seditionists, until a certain Jucundus tried to break up the fight by removing the earthen vessel.

However, Jucundus was overcome by the violence of the mob. As a result, the Jews took their books of the law and retreated to a place called Narbata, which was located about seven and a half miles outside of Caesarea. Then John and twelve other men went back to governor Florus and reminded him that they had paid him eight talents to resolve their case. But quite to the contrary, Florus had the men imprisoned, under the accusation that they had carried the books of the law outside of Caesarea. However, as you will see by the following quotes taken from Book 2 Chapter 14, the entire incident had been planned all along by the seditionists:


----- Begin Quote -----

"Now at this time it happened, that the Grecians at Caesarea had been too hard for the Jews, and had obtained of Nero the government of the city, and had brought the judicial determination; at the same time began the war, in the twelfth year of the reign of Nero and the seventeenth of the reign of Agrippa, in the month of Artemisius [Jyar.] Now the occasion of this war was by no means proportionable to those heavy calamities which it brought upon us. For the Jews that dwelt at Caesarea had a synagogue near the place, whose owner was a certain Caesarean Greek; the Jews had endeavoured frequently to have purchased the possession of the place, and had offered many times its value for its price; but as the owner overlooked their offers, so did he raise other buildings upon the place, in way of affront to them, and made working shops of them, and left them but a narrow passage, and such as was very troublesome for them to go along to their synagogue. Whereupon the warmer part of the Jewish youth went hastily to the workmen, and forbade them to build there: but as Florus would not permit them to use force, the great men of the Jews, with John the publican, being in the utmost distress what to do, persuaded Florus, with the offer of eight talents, to hinder the work. He then, being intent upon nothing but getting money, promised he would do for them all they desired of him, and then went away from Caesarea to Sebaste, and left the SEDITION to take its full course, as if he had sold a license to the Jews to fight it out.

Now on the next day, which was the seventh day of the week, when the Jews were crowding apace to their synagogue, a certain man of Caesarea of a SEDITIOUS TEMPER, got an earthen vessel, and set it with the bottom upward at the entrance of that synagogue, and sacrificed birds. This thing provoked the Jews to an incurable degree, because their laws were affronted, and the place was polluted. Whereupon the sober and moderate part of the Jews thought it proper to have recourse to their governors again, while the seditious part, and such as were in the fervour of their youth, were vehemently inflamed to fight. The seditious also among the [Gentiles of] Caesarea stood ready for the same purpose; (for they had by agreement, sent the man to sacrifice beforehand, as ready to support him;) so that it soon came to blows. Hereupon Jucundus, the master of the horse, who was ordered to prevent the fight, came thither, and took away the earthen vessel, and endeavoured to put a stop to the SEDITION; but when he was overcome by the violence of the people of Caesarea, the Jews caught up their books of the law, and retired to Narbata, which was a place to them belonging, distant from Caesarea sixty furlongs. But John, and twelve of the principal men with him, went to Florus, to Sebaste, and made a lamentable complaint of their case, and besought him to help them; and with all possible decency put him in mind of the eight talents they had given him; but he had the men seized upon, and put in prison, and accused them for carrying the books of the law out of Caesarea."

----- End Quote -----

So that was the first incident where governor Florus tried to provoke the war in 66 AD. The second incident was even more serious, and would have even greater repercussions, as we will discuss in part two of this series.

Please go to part two for the continuation of this series.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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