Page 51 - Bible Geography and Near East Studies - Textbook w videos short

Before Jesus was born, Herod the Great arranged for the murder of two high priests. The most famous
case deals with the death of the popular brother-in-law of his wife Miriam. Josephus the historian tells
us that Aristobulus III “accidentally” drowned while “playing” in one of Herod’s swimming pools at
Jericho. Few around Herod were fooled. Herod promptly named a new high priest who wasn’t a threat
to his rule. John the Baptist was particularly infuriated with the corruption of the priesthood. Preaching
at a relatively safe distance from Jerusalem, he referred to the Pharisees and Sadducees as a “brood of
vipers” and warned them of coming judgment (Matthew 3:7-10). When John was preaching near
Jericho, as he was when Jesus was baptized, he was very near the Qumran community. Famous for
giving us the Dead Sea Scrolls, many of the men at Qumran were former priests who had walked away
from the corruption in Jerusalem. They were living between the Dead Sea and the Judean Wilderness,
hoping their commitment to a life of poverty and holiness would hasten the coming of the Messiah. One
of their favorite passages was from the prophet Isaiah:

“In the wilderness prepare
the way for the Lord;
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God.” (Isaiah 40:3)

To the men of Qumran, the geographic description in Isaiah’s prophecy was critically important. They
would go to the wilderness and live in the desert as they prayed for the Messiah to come. And indeed,
Jesus chose to begin his public ministry by being baptized a short walk away from the Qumran
community by a man who was just as passionate for holiness.

In the meantime, the “Zealot” movement gained momentum among the people of the land. Zealots
were Jewish individuals who campaigned openly and subversively for Jewish independence. Gaining

A small group of Zealot rebels held out for three years at the rock fortress of Masada. Roman troops surrounded the mountain and forced
30,000 Jewish slaves to build a siege ramp on the western side of the mountain, seen in the center of this photograph. When Romans
broke through the final barrier, they found that more than 900 men, women and children were dead. Masada is the most visited site in
Israel today. On a side note, the water of the Dead Sea came nearly to the edge of Masada less than a century ago. The shrinking of the
Dead Sea is an ecological crisis.

support in the Galilee, these “zealous” individuals became an open threat by 60 AD. In 66, the
movement exploded into violence and a full-scale Jewish revolt against Rome.

For a while, Jewish forces held off the Roman troops. A Jewish commander named Josephus won an
early battle in the revolt. But when Rome sent Vespasian and thousands of new troops into the land,
Josephus and his forces were vastly outnumbered and beaten rather quickly. Given an opportunity to

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