For the Freedom of Zion : The Great Revolt of Jews Against Romans, 66†“74 CE

A definitive account of the great revolt of Jews against Rome and the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple Deeply impressive. . . . Essential for all future discussions of the subject.Barry Strauss, New Criterion A lucid yet terrifying account of the Jewish Warthe uprising of the Jews in 66 CE, and the Roman empires savage response, in a story that stretches from Rome to Jerusalem.John Ma, Columbia University This deeply researched and insightful book examines the causes, course, and historical significance of the Jews failed revolt against Rome from 66 to 74 CE, including the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Based on a comprehensive study of all the evidence and new statistical data, Guy Rogers argues that the Jewish rebels fought for their religious and political freedom and lost due to military mistakes. Rogers contends that while the Romans won the war, they lost the peace. When the Romans destroyed the Jerusalem Temple, they thought that they had defeated the God of Israel and eliminated Jews as a strategic threat to their rule. Instead, they ensured the Jews ultimate victory. After their defeat Jews turned to the written words of their God, and following those words led the Jews to recover their freedom in the promised land. The wars tragic outcome still shapes the worldview of billions of people today. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 Contents 8 Acknowledgments 12 Maps 16 Map 1. Herod's Kingdom, Including Major Benefaction Sites 17 Map 2. Regional Map of the Roman Near East 18 Map 3. The Roman Empire during the Early First Century CE 19 Map 4. Jerusalem in 70 CE 21 Map 5. Flavian Rome 22 Introduction: A Small and Insignificant War? 24 Part I: The Breakdown of the Herodian Model 36 1 Herod Agonistes 38 2 The Little Revolt of 4 BCE 70 3 From Ethnarchy to Province 85 4 The Owl and the Golden Chain 102 5 Procurators, Prophets, and Dagger-Men 121 6 The Fuse 141 Part II: The War in the North 156 7 The Regional Cleansing 158 8 The Clades Cestiana (Cestian Disaster) 183 9 John of Gischala 207 10 Cometh the Hour 226 11 "I Go, Not as a Traitor, but as Your Servant," 239 12 Vespasian the War Criminal 261 13 The Camel's Hump 272 Part III: A Tale of Two Temples 286 14 "Now You Have Our Vote," 288 15 Chaos in the Capitals 304 16 "The Son Is Coming," 323 17 "The Job Is Open," 345 18 The More Gentle Minister 359 19 Woe to the Jerusalemites 379 Part IV: Jupiter Capitolinus and the God of Israel 394 20 The Tragedies of Triumph 396 21 Masada 421 Part V: God's Plan 454 22 The Causes of the War(s) 456 23 The Course and Outcome of the War 467 24 In the Beginning Were the Words 485 Appendices: Contexts and Contentions 490 Appendix A: Sources for the War 492 Appendix B: Chronology: From the Herodian Model to the Arch of Titus in the Circus Maximus 500 Appendix C: The Costs of Munic fi ence 503 Appendix D: The Herodian Dynasty 507 Appendix E: High Priests from Herod thG er eat to 68 CE 510 Appendix F: Tiers of Authority from Rome tJo udaea 514 Appendix G: The Roman Legion around 4 BCE 517 Appendix H: The Roman Province of Judaea, 6 CE? 519 Appendix I: Cestius's Army, Summer 66 CE 524 Appendix J: Vespasian's Army at Ptolemais, Spring 67 CE 531 Appendix K: Titus's Army, Spring 70 CE 537 Appendix L: Silva's Army at Masada, Spring 74 CE 542 Appendix M: Four Campaigns 545 Appendix N: The Second Speech of Eleazar ben Yair 551 Appendix O: Key Topographical Sites in the Regions oth fe War , Jerusalem, and Rome 555 List of Abbreviations 574 Notes 576 References 658 Index 704 A 704 B 708 C 708 D 711 E 712 F 713 G 715 H 717 I 719 J 720 K 724 L 724 M 726 N 727 O 728 P 729 Q 731 R 731 S 732 T 737 U 742 V 742 W 743 X 743 Y 743 Z 743 A definitive account of the great revolt of Jews against Rome and the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple

“A lucid yet terrifying account of the 'Jewish War'—the uprising of the Jews in 66 CE, and the Roman empire’s savage response, in a story that stretches from Rome to Jerusalem.”—John Ma, Columbia University

This deeply researched and insightful book examines the causes, course, and historical significance of the Jews’ failed revolt against Rome from 66 to 74 CE, including the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Based on a comprehensive study of all the evidence and new statistical data, Guy Rogers argues that the Jewish rebels fought for their religious and political freedom and lost due to military mistakes.

Rogers contends that while the Romans won the war, they lost the peace. When the Romans destroyed the Jerusalem Temple, they thought that they had defeated the God of Israel and eliminated Jews as a strategic threat to their rule. Instead, they ensured the Jews’ ultimate victory. After their defeat Jews turned to the written words of their God, and following those words led the Jews to recover their freedom in the promised land. The war's tragic outcome still shapes the worldview of billions of people today. "In 66 CE Jews in Judaea revolted against Roman rule. Four years later the Romans destroyed the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem and much of the city. In 73 or 74 the Romans captured the fortress of Masada after its defenders killed each other rather than surrender. After the Temple's destruction Jews were largely excluded from Jerusalem and the Temple was never rebuilt. It was 1900 years before Jews recovered their political freedom. The causes, course, and outcome of the great revolt of Jews against Romans have been debated since 74 CE. Almost all scholars have assumed that the Roman victory was inevitable. Based upon a comprehensive study of all the evidence and new statistical data Guy Rogers argues that the Jewish rebels were not impious; they lost due to military mistakes; and their defeat was not inevitable. Most importantly Rogers contends that while the Romans won the war, they lost the peace. When the Romans destroyed the Jerusalem Temple they thought that they had defeated the God of Israel and eliminated Jews as a strategic threat to their rule. Instead they ensured the Jews' victory. After their defeat Jews turned to the written words of their God. Following those words ultimately led to the Jews' recovery of freedom in the promised land"-- Provided by publisher A definitive account of the great revolt of Jews againstRome and the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple"A lucid yet terrifying account of the 'Jewish War'-theuprising of the Jews in 66 CE, and the Roman empire's savageresponse, in a story that stretches from Rome to Jerusalem."-JohnMa, Columbia University This deeply researched andinsightful book examines the causes, course, and historicalsignificance of the Jews' failed revolt against Rome from 66 to 74CE, including the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Based on acomprehensive study of all the evidence and new statistical data,Guy Rogers argues that the Jewish rebels fought for their religiousand political freedom and lost due to military mistakes. Rogerscontends that while the Romans won the war, they lost the peace.When the Romans destroyed the Jerusalem Temple, they thought thatthey had defeated the God of Israel and eliminated Jews as astrategic threat to their rule. Instead, they ensured the Jews'ultimate victory. After their defeat Jews turned to the writtenwords of their God, and following those words led the Jews torecover their freedom in the promised land. The war's tragicoutcome still shapes the worldview of billions of people today