The Civil War That Led to the Destruction of the Temple

In the year 68 CE, the Roman general Vespasian camped north of Jerusalem, preparing for its conquest.

At that time, the Jews were anything but united. A civil war raged within Jerusalem and the Temple. The High Priest, Yehoshua Ben Gamla, loyal to Rabban Shimon Ben Gamliel, the leader of Israel, and the Sanhedrin, sought to defend Jerusalem to negotiate favorable terms of surrender with Vespasian. However, a faction of zealots, led by Elazar Ben Shimon and Abba Sikra, nephew of the elder Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakkai, opposed any negotiation and advocated for war to the death. They were joined by Yochanan of Gush Halav from the Galilee, who managed to escape the Roman army under the guise of a truce sought for Shabbat observance. Another zealous group, led by Shimon Bar Giora, fortified itself in the Upper City, held by the Sadducees (an area corresponding to today's Tower of David).

The zealots called upon a force of 20,000 Idumeans, their allies, claiming the city was about to be handed over to the Romans. In the dead of night, they cut down the city gates, entered, and executed Yehoshua Ben Gamla, the High Priest, along with other moderates. In their madness, they even killed military leaders and heroes who had valiantly fought the Romans, ensuring only loyalists remained. In their desperation, the local populace accepted the rule of Shimon Bar Giora, a zealous, albeit less murderous, Sadducee compared to Yochanan of Gush Halav. In the month of Nissan, 69 CE, Shimon Bar Giora assumed control of all of Jerusalem, except for the Temple, which remained under Yochanan of Gush Halav and his men. The zealots set fire to the grain stores of Jerusalem’s wealthy, which could have sustained the besieged city for years, in a twisted attempt to force them into battle rather than remain passive.

Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakkai, a disciple of Hillel the Elder, witnessed these events and recognized the nearing end. The Temple had become a place of violent zealots rather than worshipers of Hashem. He realized that the Divine Presence resided more in a house of Torah study committed to sincere learning than in a Temple desecrated by murder and defilement. Pretending to be dead, his great students, Rabbi Eliezer Ben Horkanos and Rabbi Yehoshua Ben Chanania, carried him as if for burial on the Mount of Olives. When the zealots wanted to pierce him with a sword to ensure he was dead, the students objected, saying: the Romans are watching, "they will say you pierced your Rabbi." Thus, Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakkai managed to escape. Meeting with Vespasian, he foretold that the general would become emperor, citing the prophecy "and Lebanon will fall by a mighty one," suggesting that only a great monarch is destined by Hashem to destroy His Temple, not a minor general. He requested mercy for Yavneh and its sages. Vespasian agreed. Rabban Yochanan and his students relocated to Yavneh, where they organized and documented the Oral Torah traditions for future generations. Among them was likely Rabbi Akiva, a leading Torah scholar of his era. The leader, Rabban Shimon Ben Gamliel, refused to abandon his people, and according to some opinions, was killed in the midst of the tumultuous destruction as a priest on the altar.

On June 9, 68 CE, Emperor Nero committed suicide. After a brief and unsuccessful appointment of Vitellius, the Senate designated Vespasian as Emperor. Vespasian returned to Rome, and his son Titus was appointed to command the siege of Jerusalem. Titus brought four legions numbering eighty thousand soldiers. His chief general was Tiberius Julius Alexander, a Jewish apostate who had sold his soul to the devil.

Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, three factions of mad zealots controlled the city and fought each other. Shimon Bar Giora dominated across the city, Yochanan of Gush Halav held the Temple's courtyard, and Elazar Ben Shimon controlled the inner Temple and sanctuary. The groups launched ballistae and arrows at each other. The Temple courtyards resembled a battlefield. Titus had little to do but bide his time, waiting for the insane leaders inside to destroy each other. Despite the zealots’ rule, over a million Jews were trapped inside during the siege, which began during the intermediate days of Passover, a time when Jews traditionally made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. These unfortunate souls faced starvation and the horrors of siege due to the madness of zealots who ignored the moderate advice of Israel’s sages.

The northern wall, weaker than the others, was breached by Titus within fifteen days. All structures between the third and remaining second wall were dismantled and reduced to rubble. Those caught were killed cruelly, and much of Jerusalem was turned into a wasteland, as the Roman legions settled in to continue their work.

Titus built a ramp with wooden beams to scale the walls of the Temple Mount, but the zealots undermined and burned the beams, causing its collapse. In another instance, Titus constructed a tower, and the zealots courageously attacked and set it ablaze in full view of the astonished Romans. Despite their bravery and ingenuity, the battle was doomed. On a Sunday, the 9th of Av, August 5, 70 CE, the Romans stormed the Temple and set it on fire. The wicked Titus desecrated the Holy of Holies, wrapped the Temple vessels in the curtain, and ordered them taken as spoils.

Thousands of Jews were sold into slavery, forced to fight wild animals in Roman amphitheaters. Shimon Bar Giora was paraded in a triumphal march in Rome through the famous Arch of Titus, with carvings of Jews carrying the Temple Menorah, and then executed. The Romans completed the conquest of the land by capturing Masada and Hyrcania, minting a special coin depicting the Daughter of Zion kneeling in tears. With the Temple treasures, Titus built the famous Colosseum, surviving to this day.

The Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred. At the time, it seemed each believed they were performing a significant mitzvah by fighting their fellow. Looking back, it is unmistakably madness.

Through acts of baseless love, by judging others favorably, we may soon merit its rebuilding, as complete redemption unfolds, with God’s help.