Bible history turns a corner in the New Testament and never looks back at the terrible struggles of the Jews that followed. Omitted are the accounts of some very dark times for the Jewish people as they struggled against their Roman rulers.
One such event was predicted by Jesus. He foretold a catastrophic end to Jerusalem and its temple. The prophecy is in Matthew 24:1,2. "And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these thing? Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down." The Bible does not record the fulfillment of this prophecy, but it came in 70 A.D. when the Romans stormed Jerusalem and burned the city and its temple to the ground. This "almost" ended what is referred to as the First Jewish Revolt against Rome. However, nearly 1000 Zealots and their families escaped the Roman siege and took up a new defensive position at a place called Masada.
The fortress called Masada, is a small, but very high flat-topped mountain located in the wilderness desert about 35 miles from Jerusalem beside the Dead Sea. In about 30 B.C., King Herod the Great build a wall around the top of Masada and enclosed its 28 acre level area. He also built food storage buildings, palaces and swimming pools fit for a king. Herod was a king who was afraid of his own people and also his avowed enemy, queen Cleopatra of Egypt. Masada overlooked an ancient trade route and main road to Egypt. From atop the fortress soldiers could easily see for miles in all directions. The steep cliffs made enemy attacks unthinkable. The trail up the side, called the Snake Path, is so steep that in these modern times, a cable car carries most people to the top. It was at Masada where the remnants of the Jerusalem revolt took their last stand.
For several years the Jewish defenders held off the Romans. However, in 73 A.D. the siege of Masada came to an end when the Roman army build an immense earthen ramp up the side of the mountain and battered their way through the wall with siege machinery. The victorious soldiers who breached the wall were greeted with dead silence. They soon discovered that all but seven of the mountain top defenders were dead---the result of mass suicide and murder.

Blessings in your study of God's Word!

Marvin Hunt

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Blessings!
Marvin Hunt

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