A Military Messiah

In the song Simon Zealotes from the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar,” one of the disciples begs Jesus to become the kind of military messiah that many people were hoping for; “What more do you need to convince you that you have made it, and you're easily as strong as the filth from Rome who raped our country, and who've terrorized our people for so long? There must be over fifty thousand screaming love and more for you. And every one of fifty thousand would do whatever you ask them to. Keep them yelling their devotion but add a touch of hate at Rome. You will rise to a greater power. We will win ourselves a home. You'll get the power and the glory…” But Jesus replies, “Neither you, Simon, nor the fifty thousand, nor the Romans, nor the Jews, nor Judas, nor the twelve, nor the priests, nor the scribes, nor doomed Jerusalem itself understand what power is, understand what glory is, understand at all.” And in the gospels, Jesus gave a reason for refusing the call to arms against Rome. “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting […] But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” (John 18:36)

In keeping with God’s plan, Jesus was, of course, not a military messiah. But that left the Jewish people still suffering under the harsh rule of Rome. The people still wanted a warrior messiah to save them, and one hundred years after the death of Jesus, a leader arose who claimed to be just that. His name was “Bar-Kokhba”, and the tragic story of his war against Rome proves that a century earlier, Jesus was right to lead his followers on the path of peace.

The first Jewish war against Rome ended in the year 73 with the fall of Jerusalem, the burning of the Temple, and the capture of the last Jewish fortress, Masada. An estimated one million Jews were dead or enslaved. Perhaps Jesus foresaw this outcome when he said to Jerusalem, “If you […] had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Indeed, the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you, and hem you in on every side. They will crush you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another; because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.” (Luke 19:42-44)

Even though the first war was a disaster, the Jews were compelled by Roman oppression to revolt a second time. In the years 130-132, Emperor Hadrian forbade circumcision and ordered the construction of a new Roman city on the ruins of Jerusalem, complete with a new Temple dedicated to Jupiter, right where the Jewish Temple used to be.

In response, a new ruler arose in Judea, named Simon bar Kosiba. He claimed to be the long awaited messiah. The influential Rabbi Akiva supported bar Kosiba’s claim and renamed him Bar-Kokhba, which meant “son of a star.” This was a reference to a messianic scripture which read, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near - a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel.” (Numbers 24:17) Other Rabbis were not as certain, as the following Midrash shows: “When Rabbi Akiva beheld Bar Kosiba, he exclaimed: ‘This is the king Messiah!’ Rabbi Johanan ben Torta retorted: ‘Akiva, grass will grow in your cheeks and he will still not have come!’”

Nevertheless, the people of Judea placed their messianic hopes in Bar-Kokhba and fought under him against Rome for three years. They believed that the apocalyptic war foretold by the prophets was upon them. Local Christians, however, refused to join the fight, or to accept Bar-Kokhba as messiah instead of Jesus. And who can blame them? Bar-Kokhba was as different from Jesus as night from day; he was a military dictator with unlimited authority who punished traitors to his cause with death. It is said that he punished Christians for refusing to deny Jesus. Soldiers in his army were at first initiated by having a finger cut off, and later by having to uproot a tree. He adhered strictly to Jewish laws, but he did not seem to have much faith in God, for he and his men marched into battle crying, “O God, neither help nor discourage us!” He performed no miracles, and when he finally died, he stayed dead.

The revolt spread quickly, and after early victories, a sovereign Jewish state was restored. Bar-Kokhba ruled as “Prince of Israel”, and Rabbi Eleazar was High Priest of the partially restored Temple. Rabbi Akiva led the court, the Sanhedrin. The people believed it was the era of the redemption of Israel. It was not to last. In the year 135, Emperor Hadrian sent enough Roman legions into Judea to destroy everything in their path. Bar-Kokhba desperately tried to get the Samaritans (neighboring enemies of the Jews) to join the fight. He failed to convince them, and Rabbi Akiva abandoned him for having so little faith that he would consider joining with such heretics. Bar-Kokhba was forced to evacuate Jerusalem and retreat to the nearby fortress of Bethar. The Romans besieged the fortress and the revolt was ended there with the death of Bar-Kokhba.

The story of his death sounds somewhat legendary. It is said that the prayers of Rabbi Eleazar inside the fortress prevented Bethar from being captured. A Samaritan, who was serving with the Romans, came up behind the Rabbi while he was totally absorbed in prayer and pretended to whisper to him. Observers went to tell Bar-Kokhba, who interrogated the Samaritan. Told by the Samaritan that the Rabbi planned to surrender the fortress to the Romans, Bar-Kokhba flew into a rage and kicked the innocent Eleazar to death. A voice from heaven cried out, “Oh, my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May the sword strike his arm and his right eye! Let his arm be completely withered, his right eye utterly blinded!” (Zechariah 11:17) Bar-Kokhba was soon slain in battle when the fortress walls fell. His body was found with a snake encircling his neck. Emperor Hadrian concluded that Bar-Kokhba’s God had slain him. Probably, it was famine and thirst from the siege that doomed the rebels.

The outcome of the war was that 580,000 Jews were killed, many were enslaved, and about a thousand towns and villages were destroyed. Jewish independence was lost. The Romans suffered heavy losses. In revenge, Hadrian prohibited Torah study, circumcision, Sabbath observance, Jewish courts, and synagogue worship. Rabbi Akiva defied these prohibitions and was tortured to death. On Roman maps, the name of Judea was changed to “Syria Palaestina” (named for the hated Philistines in order to humiliate the Jews). Jerusalem was plowed under and the Roman city of Aelia Capitolina was built there. Jews were forbidden to even enter the city. The Jewish diaspora had begun, and Jerusalem did not become the capital of Israel again until the twentieth century.

The Jews of Judea paid a terrible price for following a false messiah. Jesus had already warned his followers about this folly, as seen in the gospel of Matthew. “Beware that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah!’ and they will lead many astray.” (Matthew 24:4-5) Later Rabbis called the failed military messiah, not “Bar-Kokhba” (son of a star), but “Bar-Kozeba” (son of the lie, or son of the disappointment). Maimonides later wrote, “For Rabbi Akiva was a great scholar of the sages of the Mishnah, and he was the assistant-warrior of the king Bar Kokhba, and claimed that he was the anointed king. He and all the Sages of his generation deemed him the anointed king, until he was killed by sins; only since he was killed, they knew that he was not.”

Jesus was quite the opposite of Bar-Kokhba in word and deed, saying, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:43-45) Instead of fighting Rome, Jesus laid down his life to the Romans. As messiah he died as a sacrifice for sin. But what if, in some other reality, Jesus had become a military messiah, an earthly commander of armies? Would his story have ended with military defeat and national disaster, like that of Bar-Kokhba? Would God have intervened and defeated Rome with armies of angels? To ask such questions is perhaps pointless speculation. God’s plan was what it was, and the events in the gospels were always meant to happen in just one way. The Kingdom of God was never meant to depend on earthly war to bring it into the world. The book of Revelations indicates that in the end, the coming of the Kingdom is up to God alone.