tecting little more than small hilltop fortresses and was finally captured at
the siege of Jotapata. He managed to ingratiate himself with Vespasian by
hailing him as the next emperor of Rome. The other Jewish resistance
fighter in the region, John of Gischala, attempted to continue the war
against Vespasian, but he was forced to flee to Jerusalem in the late sum-
mer of 67.
Back in Jerusalem, the situation was becoming increasingly unstable.
The population was dissatisfied with the provisional government because
of its inability to hold Galilee. Dissatisfaction only increased in the spring
of 68 when Vespasian began to march toward and encircle Jerusalem. Op-
position to Ananus was bolstered partially by rural peasants, who had fled
into the city because their homes and farms had been captured or threat-
ened by the Roman army. In this hotbed of factionalism rose a new group
of elite priests, who described themselves as Zealots because of their zeal
for the Temple and its cult. These Zealots accused the provisional govern-
ment of not prosecuting the war with enough enthusiasm. Such a charge
may have been unfair, but it was strengthened by the reality that many
original members of Ananus’s faction, including Josephus, had by this
time defected to the Roman side. Regardless, the Zealots ultimately barri-
caded themselves within the Temple, where they were soon joined by John
of Gischala and his men as well as a large force of Idumeans who had come
to Jerusalem to defend the city. This new faction was able to overthrow the
provisional government and execute Ananus and his closest supporters,
including Josephus’s friend and patron Joshua ben Gamala. Now firmly in
power, John and the Zealots began a bloody purge of their enemies within
the city.
Meanwhile, back in Rome Nero committed suicide, and with his death
ended Vespasian’s mandate as imperial legate. Because of this develop-
ment, Vespasian suspended his campaign and waited to see what would
happen. His campaign resumed in May/June of 69, and by the time that he
was proclaimed emperor in July, his army had recovered the land previ-
ously conquered and had just finished encircling Jerusalem again. For a
second time, the Roman campaign against Jerusalem was suspended as
Vespasian turned to securing control of the empire.
While the Romans were engaged in a civil war known as the “Year of
the Four Emperors,” the Jews in Jerusalem were involved in their own civil
war. In the year 68 some of the factional leaders, whom John and the
Zealots had ousted from power, left the city and joined the army of Simon
bar Gioras, a commander in the battle against Cestius Gallus who had58chris seeman and adam kolman marshakEERDMANS -- Early Judaism (Collins and Harlow) final text
Tuesday, October 09, 2012 12:03:52 PM