Nero
Trusting Under Persecution, A Heart Message
Nero, A Heart Message. TRUSTING UNDER PERSECUTION. When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. (Proverbs 29:2). Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety. (Proverbs 11:14). From our vantage point in 21st century USA, the reign of Nero is a safe intellectual study on the consequences of a wicked and prideful ruler. But from the point of view of the average Christian living in Rome during this time period, Nero was an unpredictable despot who at any time might gather them up for a brutal punishment and savage entertainment in a Roman coliseum. It was a horrific time that required a deep faith in the Father who works all things for the good of those called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28), and who hears the cry of the helpless and brings vengeance (Isaiah 35:4). Nero’s attempts to scapegoat Christianity for his own faults caused many followers of Jesus to hold up their heads, walking forward, leaving loved ones, possessions, and life itself behind. They became a spectacle to the watching Roman cosmopolitan world. Their trust in Christ, in the face of torture and death, planted the seeds of redemption deep into the earth, and generations who reaped the good fruit of their sacrifice are indebted to them. Still today, the voices of the martyrs from Sudan to China cry out to the throne room of the Almighty. Nero himself, who had much promise in the beginning, never acquired the taste for wisdom that his original counselors tried to inculcate. When left to his own devices he regressed into a beast like state and was swallowed by his own lusts. Still, God doesn’t rejoice at the death of the wicked (Ezek 33:11). Nero would have been wise if he could have found humility like that of King Nebuchadnezzar, another empire ruler who suffered from temporary insanity, but who finally turned to God and worshipped Him before the end of his life. "And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, "What have You done?" At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down." (Daniel 4:34,35)Conclusion on Nero
Nero goes down in history as a vicious and crazy man who murdered his mother and his wife, and many others. He had a corrupt ancestry, especially on his father's side, his mother Agrippina was an evil woman, his childhood was perverted and corrupted. He was a glutton, homosexual, murderer and considered insane by many. There's no doubt that he did have a passion for art, but this was clouded by his arrogance and self glorification. He was extremely jealous of anyone suspected of rebellion, and he retaliated in persecution, suppression and murder. For the most part, Nero, was completely despised. Tacitus said: "I began to hate you, when, after murdering mother and wife, you turned out to be a jockey, a mountebank, and an incendiary." (Tacitus annals 15:67). Nero being faced with revolt committed suicide in June of 68 A.D. Ultimately Christianity had been firmly planted throughout the Roman Empire by the apostle Paul during the reign of Nero. In fact Paul must have arrived in Italy during his Third Missionary Journey at around 60 A.D., just a few years before the great fire of Rome and the first imperial persecution of the Christian sect. There is much speculation as to what happened during these few years, but there can be little doubt that the signs and wonders that followed the teaching of Christianity, and the testimony of the Holy Spirit in other cities were also happening in Rome and had reached the ears of those in the palace of Nero. God established His purposes in ways that we cannot understand, and in the midst of circumstances and events that can only be discussed today by searching the Word of God. Every other source cannot be entirely trusted because historians and writers were persuaded in many ways politically and socially. By the time of the destruction of the Temple, or shortly thereafter, all of the Books of the Bible were completed and the early church was established.Coins and Images of the Emperor Nero
Nero Coin , Agrippina Coin , Nero Bust 1 , Nero Bust 2 , Nero Bust 3 , Nero Bust 4Texts - Dio Cassius on Nero and the Great Fire 64 A.D.
Dio Cassius (c.155-235 CE): Roman History, 62.16-18 Nero had the wish---or rather it had always been a fixed purpose of his---to make an end of the whole city in his lifetime. Priam he deemed wonderfully happy in that he had seen Troy perish at the same moment his authority over her ended. Accordingly, Nero sent out by different ways men feigning to be drunk, or engaged in some kind of mischief, and at first had a few fires kindled quietly and in different quarters; people, naturally, were thrown into extreme confusion, not being able to find either the cause of the trouble nor to end it; and meantime met with many strange sights and sounds. They ran about as if distracted, and some rushed one way, some another. In the midst of helping their neighbors, men would learn that their own homes were blazing. Others learned, for the first time, that their property was on fire, by being told it was burned down. People would run from their houses into the lanes, with a hope of helping from the outside, or again would rush into the houses from the streets seeming to imagine they could do something from the inside. The shouting and screaming of children, women, men, and gray beards mingled together unceasingly; and betwixt the combined smoke and shouting no one could make out anything. All this time many who were carrying away their own goods, and many more who were stealing what belonged to others kept encountering one another and falling over the merchandise. It was impossible to get anywhere; equally impossible to stand still. Men thrust, and were thrust back, upset others, and were upset themselves, many were suffocated or crushed; in short, no possible calamity at such a disaster failed to befall. This state of things lasted not one day, but several days and nights running. Many houses were destroyed through lack of defenders; and many were actually fired in more places by professed rescuers. For the soldiers (including the night watch) with a keen eye for plunder, instead of quenching the conflagration, kindled it the more. While similar scenes were taking place at various points, a sudden wind caught the fire and swept it over what remained. As a result nobody troubled longer about goods or homes, but all the survivors, from a place of safety, gazed on what appeared to be many islands and cities in flames. No longer was there any grief for private loss, public lamentation swallowed up this---as men reminded each other how once before the bulk of the city had been even thus laid desolate by the Gauls. While the whole people was in this state of excitement, and many driven mad by calamity were leaping into the blaze, Nero mounted upon the roof of the palace, where almost the whole conflagration was commanded by a sweeping glance, put on the professional harpist's garb, and sang "The Taking of Troy" (so he asserted), although to common minds, it seemed to be "The Taking of Rome." The disaster which the city then underwent, had no parallel save in the Gallic invasion. The whole Palatine hill, the theater of Taurus, and nearly two thirds of the rest of the city were burned. Countless persons perished. The populace invoked curses upon Nero without intermission, not uttering his name, but simply cursing "those who set the fire"; and this all the more because they were disturbed by the recollection of the oracle recited in Tiberius's time, to this effect, "After three times three hundred rolling years In civil strife Rome's Empire disappears." And when Nero to encourage them declared these verses were nowhere to be discovered, they changed and began to repeat another oracle---alleged to be a genuine one of the Sibyl, "When the matricide reigns in Rome, Then ends the race of Aeneas." And thus it actually turned out, whether this was really revealed in advance by some divination, or whether the populace now for the first time gave it the form of a sacred utterance merely adapted to the circumstances. For Nero was indeed the last of the Julian line, descended from Aeneas. Nero now began to collect vast sums both from individuals and nations, sometimes using downright compulsion, with the conflagration as his excuse, and sometimes obtaining funds by "voluntary" offers. As for the mass of the Romans they had the fund for their food supply withdrawn.Texts - Suetonius on the Christians
"Because the Jews at Rome caused constant disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus [Christ], he [Claudius] expelled them from the city [Rome]." Suetonius' Life of the Emperor Claudius, chapter 25 (excerpt) "During his reign many abuses were severely punished and put down, and no fewer new laws were made: a limit was set to expenditures; the public banquets were confined to a distribution of food, the sale of any kind of cooked viands in the taverns was forbidden, with the exception of pulse and vegetables, whereas before every sort of dainty was exposed for sale. Punishment was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition. He put an end to the diversions of the chariot drivers, who from immunity of long standing claimed the right of ranging at large and amusing themselves by cheating and robbing the people. The pantomimic actors and their partisans were banished from the city." - Suetonius' Life of the Emperor Nero, chapter 16 (excerpt). Note: Gaius Suetonius Tranquilla was a Roman historian under Hadrian (AD 76-138).Texts - Suetonius on Nero's Suicide
Finally, when his companions unanimously insisted on his trying to escape from the miserable fate threatening him, he ordered them to dig a grave at once, and then collect any pieces of marble that they could find and fetch wood and water for the disposal of the corps. As they bustled about obediently he muttered through his tears: "Dead! And so great an artist!" A runner brought him a letter from Phaon. Nero tore it from the man's hands and read that, having been declared a public enemy by the Senate, he would be punished in 'ancient style' when arrested. He asked what 'ancient style' meant, and learned that the executioners stripped their victim naked, thrust his head into a wooden fork, and then flogged him to death with sticks. In terror he snatched up the two daggers which he brought along and tried their points; but threw them down again, protesting that the final hour had not yet come. Then he begged Sporus to weep and mourn for him, but also begged one of the other three to set him an example by committing suicide first. He kept moaning about his cowardice, and muttering: 'How ugly and vulgar my life has become!' And then in Greek: 'This certainly is no credit to Nero, no credit at all,' and: 'Come pull yourself together, man!' By this time a troop of cavalry who had orders to take him alive were coming up the road. Nero gasped: 'Hark to the sound I hear! It is hooves of galloping horses.' Then, with the help of his scribe, Epaphroditos, he stabbed himself in the throat and was already half dead when a cavalry officer entered, pretending to have rushed to his rescue, and staunched the wound with his cloak. Nero muttered: 'Too late! But, ah, what fidelity!' He died, with his eyes glazed and bulging from their sockets, a sight which horrified everybody present. He had made his companions promise, whatever happened, not to let his head be cut off, but to have him buried all in one piece. Galba's freedman Icelus, who had been imprisoned when the first news came of the revolt and was now at liberty again, granted this indulgence. They laid Nero on his pyre, dressed in gold-embroidered white robes which he had worn on 1 January. The funeral cost 2,000 gold pieces. Ecloge and Alexandria, his old nurses, helped Acte, his mistress, to carry the remains to the Pincian Hill, which can be seen form the Campus Martius. Suetonius: Nero, 49, 50 Note: Gaius Suetonius Tranquilla was a Roman historian under Hadrian (AD 76-138).Texts - Tacitus on the Emperor Nero
From the Annals, Book XII (48-54 CE) A stepmother's treacherous schemes. From the Annals, Book XIV (59-62 CE) A long meditated crime. Book XV (62-65 CE) A disaster followed.Nero's Orgies, Gluttony and Lust
Nero lavished himself in his own power, he used golden thread for his fishing nets, he never wore the same robe twice, he had his mules shod with silver. He was heavily into parties and practiced orgies and gluttony, and his dinners sometimes lasted twelve hours, from noon to midnight. He also murdered his 19-year-old wife so that he could marry his mistress, and then later he killed that mistress. Nero was always interested in the arts, and he was a huge admirer of all things Greek, and he deliberately wore a charioteer's hair style and wore Greek clothing which upset his people continually. Nero was far more interested in writing poetry, acting, dancing, and singing than he was in being emperor. He introduced Greek games and arts contests to the Romans, wrote poetry, played the lyre, and considered himself gifted in them all, including singing (Nero employed the famous lyre player Terpnus to give him lessons). In 64 A.D. at Neapolis Nero performed in a public theater for the first time. He liked to come there and sing for large crowds of people. The first time he appeared on a Roman stage was in 65 A.D. at the second performance of the Neronian Games. Nero was an avid performer but he also suffered from severe stage fright. He was fascinated by civil engineering and architecture. But his big mistakes were that he left his empire unattended, for example he never visited the legionary camps, and he scorned the Senate. When Nero learned of a senatorial conspiracy in 65 A.D. he had the organizers either killed or banished. Seneca, his own tutor, was among them. Whenever there was a hint of treason Nero ordered their execution or forced them to commit suicide. Nero apparently slept with beautiful young women and young boys including Britannicus, his brother. He supposedly also slept with his mother Agrippina and had many physical relationships with men older than himself, and with eunuchs. Nero, according to Dio Cassius, "fastened young boys and girls to stakes, and then, after putting on the hide of a wild beast, attacked them and satisfied his brutal lust under the appearance devouring parts of their bodies". Nero wanted to marry a freedwoman, Acte, but this would have been socially unacceptable for an emperor.Nero and Agrippina
Agrippina Runs Things – For Awhile. Nero was a confident leader who was very interested in Roman arts and education. When he was young the control of the empire was in the hands of his mother, Agrippina. In fact on the first day that he began to rule he gave the tribune of the guard the watchword "The best of mothers" and she was authorized to handle all of the business of the empire for Nero. Burrus, the prefect of the Praetorian Guard, and his tutor, Seneca were his trusted advisors. During this time and under their direction Rome prospered, but this did not last. Nero both loved and hated his mother, who had been continually trying to dominate him. Slowly as Nero became older and more independent, his mother began to lose power. note: On Roman coins Nero and Agrippina faced each other and on the back was Agrippina's name showing she was more important. Slowly as Nero became older and more independent, his mother began to lose power. The coins showed Nero and his mother facing the same direction and his name was on the back. Relations between Nero and his mother were at their worst. Nero tried to bestow honor on her in several ways, but she scorned him, and made him feel indebted to her for everything. She finally moved out of the palace in 55 A.D. to her own mansion, which was a sure sign that she was losing power. Agrippina suddenly began to show favor toward Britannicus (Nero’s brother) and so Nero ordered his execution. By 59 A.D. Nero was fed up with her schemes and ordered her death. This had been the first time and the last time that a woman had ruled Rome. After Agrippina had left the palace Burrus and Seneca successfully ran the empire. Three years later in 62 A.D. both Burrus and Seneca vanished from the political scene. Burrus apparently died from throat cancer, and Seneca resigned and later committed suicide. Nero appointed two Praetorian Prefects (Faenius Rufus and Gaius Ofonius Tigellinus). Tigellinus was previously exiled by Caligula and Nero called him back to make use of his renowned intelligence skills. With the help of Tigellinus, Nero divorced Octavia and married Poppaea. Tigellinus framed Octavia on an immorality charge and she was exiled to an island and later executed. 62-63 A.D. marked the beginning of the degeneration of Nero's rule.Nero and Emperor Worship
Nero became even more tyrannical, claiming that he was equal to Apollo and the other gods. He encouraged emperor worship and had a huge statue of himself erected in Rome.Nero and The Pisonian Conspiracy
In 65 A.D. some senators concocted the Pisonian Conspiracy to murder Nero in the Circus Maximus, while the games were going on, and then place Caius Calpurnius Piso in Nero’s position. They were found out and Nero went on a rampage to root out any opposition and there were daily executions. In fact all together there were nineteen executions and suicides. Among the ones killed were Faenius Rufus, Seneca, Lucan and Poppaea. Corbulo commited suicide. In 66 A.D. a second wave of executions took place and some of the important men who perished were Caius Petronius, Paetus Thrasea the Stoic, and Barea Soranus. Almost everyone who was suspected of treason was executed including many senators and prefects. This all took place in 66 AD, the same time when the horrible Jewish revolt broke out.Nero Frees Greece from Paying Taxes to Rome
Greece – Free from Taxation. In 67 A.D. Nero decided to take a trip to Greece where he participated in a variety of athletic contests and drama spectacles. He was awarded more than 1,800 prizes by the judges. During an oration in the stadium Nero declared Greece free from Roman taxation, though still part of the Roman empire. This was no doubt a huge blunder on Nero’s part and would bring many more revolts.Nero’s Death
Even though many revolts were breaking out throughout the empire, Nero did not seem to care. It was only a matter of time, his trusted bodyguards deserted him and he fled for his life. When he left Rome the Senate declared him a public enemy and ordered him arrested. Nero went into hiding and soon realized that there was no hope of escape and saw death as the only answer and cried out "Alas, What an Artist Is Dying in Me." He preferred suicide rather than the usual public flogging which was the standard punishments for any enemy of the state, and Nero said "how ugly and vulgar my life has become! This certainly is no credit to Nero." The Praetorian Guard came for him and he raised a knife to his throat and, according to Suetonius said these words "Hark to the sound I hear! It is hooves of galloping horses." And suddenly, with the help of his secretary Epaphroditus, he slit his own throat. He died in 68 A.D. and the empire was on the verge of Civil War. In fact the Jews in Judea had already begun a revolt.The Great Fire of Rome
Brief overview of the events surrounding the Great Fire of Rome. In a hot July summer of 64 A.D., a fire broke out near the Capena Gate (the marketplace near the Circus Maximus) and spread quickly across the entire Circus, and finally it was completely out of control, the fire destroyed nearly half of Rome. The Roman historian Tacitus records the event: "First, the fire swept violently over the level spaces. Then it climbed the hills-but returned to ravage the lower ground again. It outstripped every counter-measure. . . Terrified, shrieking women, helpless old and young, people intent on their own safety, people unselfishly supporting invalids or waiting for them, fugitives and lingerers alike--all heightened the confusion." As the fire blaze out of control some citizens tried every measure to put out the flames. It is told that the citizens were stopped. Also some of the mob lit torches and threw them into the flames to feed the fire. Tacitus make an interesting note about these arsonists who had claimed "they acted under orders. Perhaps they had ... or they may just have wanted to plunder unhampered." Nero heard the news from his Palace at Antium and rushed to Rome just in time to see the Palatine Palace in flames. His newly built mansion, the Domus Transitoria, was nothing but a pile of smoldering ashes. Nero immediately organized a team of firefighters and provided shelter for the panic stricken people who had been left homeless. The fire burned for nine days, leaving 10 out of its 14 regions in ruins, with the loss of many lives. Nero decided that he would place the blame on scapegoats, because there was a dangerous rumor that Nero himself had ordered the fire in order to vandalize the capital city, and to free up space for his new building plans. It is recorded that later he indeed take advantage of the situation and begin planning and building his Golden House. His scapegoats were none other than the Christians, who were already being accused in one way or another within Roman pagan society. This was officially the time that the active persecution of the Christian Church began. At some point soon after it became a crime to bear the name "Christian" and the suppression of the church became state policy. This persecution would last, off and on, for almost three centuries.The Christians and the Great Fire of Rome
The Christian Scapegoats and the Great Fire of Rome. It wasn't long before Nero arrived to bring order to the chaos. A rumor had gone forth which accused Nero of starting the fire himself, and had even sang a song from his Palace tower as he watched the flames engulf the city. Nero had also planned in detail for the cities reconstruction but the rumors continued. Nero had to find a way to "suppress this rumor" according to Tacitus. Nero chose the new secret religious sect of the Christians as his scapegoats and punished them severely. They were arrested throughout the empire and "their deaths were made farcical." Nero took pleasure in the Christian persecutions and even offered many of them upon stakes to be burned to death as torches for his parties. According to history many of them were hunted down and tortured, some were sewn into skins of animals and fed to starving dogs while the mob cheered. Even the historian Tacitus, who did not like Christians, objected to the way Nero had made scapegoats of them. The persecution of the Christians under Nero revealed the growing resentment the people had toward the early church. It also revealed that 20 years after the reign of Claudius, the Christians in Rome had become recognized as a distinct group, separate from the Jews.Why Did Nero Blame the Christians?
Why the Christians? Christianity was a new religion and did not appear to be very threatening. The Christians refused to participate in pagan rituals and therefore those who practiced them found it very offensive, according to Tacitus. He describes the Christians as "depraved" and says that this religion is "deadly superstition", "mischief", and "shameful practices." Tacitus also indicted the Christians as "not so much for incendiarism as for their anti-social tendencies," and a hidden hatred for mankind, which was a label that had been originally put on the Jews. It is interesting that Tacitus was more than a historian, he was a member of the aristocracy and a friend of several emperors. Therefore his feelings toward the Christians may have reflected also among the aristocrats. Suetonius, a writer and government official, also indicted the Christians explaining that they were proponents of "a new and mischievous religious belief." Before Nero had began persecuting Christians, they were generally non-threatening to the peace of the empire. The main hostility have been brought about by Jewish leaders who had gone to Roman officials about the Christians.Nero and The Jewish Revolt
The Jewish Revolt Against Roman Domination. In 66 A.D. the Jews rebelled against Rome. Nero had sent Mucianus to govern Syria, and he detached the current governor whose name was Vespasian to the south to put out this great rebellion in Israel.Nero’s Foolish Choices and Suicide
Nero made a foolish mistake, he departed for Greece to tour the country and compete in the games. He made another foolish mistake by ordering his competent eastern general Corbulo and two popular governors of Germany to commit suicide. This Sparked much bitterness in Rome and among the praetorian guard. In the spring of 68 A.D., one of the Gallic governors, Caius Julius Vindex, marched an army against Nero in Spain, and Clodius Macer in Africa. Vindex and his army were put down by Verginius Rufus, the loyal governor of Germany, but the praetorian guard in Rome was loyal to Galba and on June 9, 68 A.D. Nero committed suicide. His last words were "Qualis artifex Pereo" which means "what an artist dies in me"? This has been the subject of much speculation.The Jewish War
As previously mentioned Nero did not seem to be very concerned about all the troubles there were happening within the empire, especially within the hot region of the province of Judea. Ever since the time of Tiberias, the Jews in israel had to deal with corrupted governors and they were losing patience. By 66 A.D. the Jews had began to rebel against Rome, in particular the Roman Procurator of Judea - Gessius Florus who’s wife Cleopatra had been a friend of Poppaea, Nero’s wife. A delegation of Jews protested against a pagan sacrifice that was set deliberately in front of a synagogue in Caesarea. Gessius Florus arrested them and later extracted money from the Temple treasury. He then ordered his troops to raid the markets in Jerusalem, and 3600 men, women and children were slaughtered. The Jews around Judea took up arms against the Romans, with the Zealots leading them. For the most part, the Jews and especially their leaders had wanted to maintain peace with the Romans, but the Zealots and the Sicarii (a group of secret assassins) took control of the revolt.The Jewish Rebels and the 12th Legion
The Rebels. Herod Agrippa II sent 2000 riders to help out the Jewish leaders in the upper city from the rebels, the lower city was already under rebel control. When Herod's Calvary arrived they were driven out and the archives were set on fire. Apparently setting the archives on fire would encourage the common people to join in a rebellion. They also captured and set fire to the Antonia fortress. It wasn't long before all of Jerusalem was under rebel control. At the end of summer during this rebellion Cestius Gallus, the Syrian governor, dispatched the 12th Legion from Antioch to deal with the rebellion in Jerusalem. When they arrived the Jews, being outnumbered, somehow managed to overcome them and forced them to retreat. The Jews chased after them and slaughtered his entire rear guard, which consisted of about 400 men. It is interesting that at this time the Jews, feeling very triumphant, minted their own coins.Nero Sends Titus to Put Down the Jewish Rebellion
Nero Hears Of the Rebellion. When Nero heard about the bitter defeat of the 12th Legion, he dispatched his most able commander, General Titus Flavius Vespasian, to put down the rebellion. Titus Vespasian was a very skilled military strategist and planned his attack starting with Galilee. He arrived with three legions and wiped out the Jewish forces in Galilee. It is interesting that the fortresses had been built by Josephus, who was captured by the Romans and later, as a prisoner, wrote the history of the remainder of the war. Titus then marched his legions down the coast and then moved inward toward Jerusalem. By 68 A.D. Jerusalem was under siege. Nero had committed suicide on June 9th, 68 A.D. and Titus Vespasian was awaiting orders. At this time three emperors came to power and left the throne almost as quickly. Finally Titus Vespasian was named head of the realm. In 70 A.D. he sailed for Rome and left the final siege of Jerusalem in the hands of his son Titus. Titus arrived to the city border at the head of 80,000 soldiers, he brought so many because Jerusalem was a difficult city to capture and heavily fortified. On three sides it is nearly impossible to attack the city which leaves only the North side for the troops to attack, the North contained the heavy fortifications, with their high walls and towers. Titus strategically planned his attack and after a two-week siege, according to Josephus, his troops "became masters of the first wall." Five days later came down the second wall and the legions marched in, but "the Jews, constantly growing in numbers and greatly at an advantage through their knowledge of the streets, wounded multitudes of the enemy." The Jewish victory would not last, for Titus sealed off the city by building a five-mile wall and then killed anyone that touched it. The Jews inside quickly ran short on supplies and became ridden with disease and starvation. Dead corpses filled the city and were finally thrown over the walls. After a month the Roman soldiers had reached the Temple and Titus made an offer to the Jews, he would spare the Temple if the rebels would come out and fight, but they resisted his offer. In fact they even set fire to portions of the Temple rather than allow the enemy entrance. The Roman troops fueled the fires, desiring to see the whole Temple in ashes, this was done against Titus' orders and they could not be stopped. The Temple was destroyed and set on fire never again to be rebuilt. Josephus said: "As the flames shot up, a cry, as poignant as the tragedy, arose from the Jews, who flock to the rescue," he also added: "lost to all thought of self-preservation, all husbanding of strength, now that the object of all their past vigilance was vanishing." The entire city was leveled except for three pillars in the northwest corner. Whoever was not killed was carried off into slavery. When Titus returned to Rome he marched triumphantly through the city bearing the Golden Menorah from the Temple, with hundreds of Jewish captives following behind. Herod's two strong fortresses, Herodium and Machaerus, were also captured. Only Masada was left, the last stronghold of the Zealots, who had captured it in 66 AD. This is where they made their final stand. The new procurator of Judea was Flavius Silva, and he came up with a plan, he built a wall around the base of the mountain and then ordered his troops to build a massive ramp, slowly but surely, until it reached the top of the 300 ft. plateau where the fortress stood. The Romans brought a huge battering ram and rolled up the ramp to crush the outer wall. They then lit a fire which doomed those who were inside. All of the Jews inside committed suicide (about 960 men, women and children) except for two women and five children. The seven-year war had finally come to an end and the Jews lost the Temple, and whoever was left alive was taken into slavery.Timeline of the First Emperors of Rome
Timeline of Rome's Emperors from Augustus to Marcus Aurelius.Timeline of Events in the Life of Nero
Timeline of Events from 37 AD to 80 AD.Dates In Nero’s Life
37 December 15 Nero is born.
39 Claudius marries fourteen year old Valeria Messalina.
39 Messalina bears Claudius a daughter (Octavia).
41 Messalina bears Claudius a son (Britannicus).
41 Claudius is Emperor.
48 Execution of Messalina.
49 Claudius marries niece Agrippina the Younger, (daughter of Claudius's brother Germanicus).
49 Seneca is appointed tutor to Nero.
50 Claudius adopts Nero (then, Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus) as his own son, February 25.
50 The Senate votes Agrippina the title "Augusta."
51 Claudius Consul.
51 Emperor Claudius orders the exile of the Jews from Rome.
53 Nero marries Octavia, Claudius' daughter.
54 Claudius poisoned.
54 Claudius dies (Agrippina probably had him poisoned)
54 Nero becomes emperor at age 17. Seneca and Burrus are his tutors.
55 Britannicus, the son of Emperor Claudius dies during dinner (Nero probably had him poisoned).
58 Beginning of Roman-Parthian hostilities over Armenia.
59 Agrippina the Younger is put to death for criticizing Nero’s mistress.
59 Nero begins to get out of control.
60 Paul the Apostle is in Rome
60 Revolts break out in Britain against Roman rule.
62 Burrus dies, and Seneca retires.
62 Nero divorces Octavia (banishes her and later kills her)
62 Nero marries his mistress Poppaea.
64 The Great Fire of Rome
64 First imperial 'persecution' of Christians;
65 Work begins on Nero’s 'Golden House' (Domus Aurea)
65 Nero's first public stage performance leads to scandals and plots on his life.
65 In the interest of personal security, Nero kills anyone suspected of treason. 65 Seneca is forced to commit suicide.
66 Nero continues to execute any suspected of treason.
66 Outbreak of rebellion in Judea, the first Jewish revolt against Rome.
66 Nero goes on an extended tour of Greece, many theatrical performances
67 Nero makes Judea consular imperial province
67 Nero appoints Vespasian to head campaign against Jews
68 After receiving political pressure about military matters Nero returns to Rome.
68 (March) Revolt of Vindex
68 (April) Galba's troops in Spain hail Galba emperor.
68 (June 9) Nero is forced to commit suicide (end of Julio-Claudian dynasty).
68 The emperor Nero's assassination launches a year of civil war in Rome.
69 Year of the four emperors: Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian.
69 Vespasian is sole emperor until 79.
70 Siege and fall of Jerusalem under military leadership of Vespasian's son, Titus.
70 Coliseum begun by Emperor Vespasian (funded by Jewish defeat).
77 Josephus publishes The War of the Jews
80 The New Testament writings were completed by this time (Bible closed).
80 The Early Church completed her work (foundation laid).
Note: Paul, James and Peter were executed between 60-68 A.D.
