I read Josephus' Wars of the Jews, and his Testimonium about Yeshua makes me think that he was probably a Messianic Jew. He ascribes the Romans' defeat of Japha and the First Century Jewish revolt to the Lord's will, but it isn't clear to me what reasons the Lord would have for that defeat. You don't have to agree with Josephus, and I know that it can be hard to discern the Lord's motives and involvement. But I think that Messianic believers might have insight into the underlined topic, due to their special dedication to Jewish traditions. So I would like to please ask how you might address that question?
In Book II, Chapter 16, Josephus recites Herod Agrippa II's speech to a Jewish audience, encouraging them to avoid war. After laying out the Romans' military prowess, he says:
I am not asking you to agree with, or even respond to, Herod Agrippa II's arguments. Just because an empire is vast doesn't mean the Lord supports it; generally, empires eventually collapse. Maybe the Lord could give an exception to resting on the Torah in war time. Instead, I am interested in your own answer to the question in the thread title. Please read my Message #7 below, where I quote Josephus' passage about Japha. (Why would the Lord want the defeat of Japha and other cities rebelling against Rome in 66-70 AD?)
In Book II, Chapter 16, Josephus recites Herod Agrippa II's speech to a Jewish audience, encouraging them to avoid war. After laying out the Romans' military prowess, he says:
Herod Agrippa II is saying that (A) the Lord must be on the Romans' side because they built up such a vast empire. (B) The rebels can't both observe the Torah and win, because if they rest on the Sabbath they will be defeated like under Pompey, and if they fight on the Sabbath, they will violate the Torah. (C) The rebels should avoid war to spare the Temple, because the Romans will ruin it, since the Romans will see that the rebels ignored the Romans' past restraint. (D) Rebellion carries tremendous peril, and the rebels would be carried away by their Passions if they rebelled.The only refuge, then, left to you is divine assistance. But even this is ranged on the side of the Romans, for, without God's aid, so vast an empire could never have been built up. Consider, too the difficulty of preserving your religious rules from contamination, even were you engaging a less formidable foe; and how, if compelled to transgress the very principles on which you chiefly build your hopes of God's assistance, you will alienate Him from you. If you observe your sabbath customs and refuse to take any action on that day, you will undoubtedly be easily defeated, as were your forefathers by Pompey, who pressed the siege most vigorously on the days when the besieged remained inactive; if, on the contrary, you transgress the law of your ancestors, I fail to see what further object you will have for hostilities, since your one aim is to preserve inviolate all the institutions of your fathers. How could you invoke the aid of the Deity, after deliberately omitting to pay Him the service which you owe Him?
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Spare the temple and preserve for yourselves the sanctuary with its holy places; for the Romans, once masters of these, will refrain their hands no more, seeing that their forbearance in the past met only with ingratitude. As for me, I call your sanctuary and God's holy angels and our common country to witness, that I have kept back nothing which could conduce to your preservation; as for you, if you decide aright, you will enjoy with me the blessings of peace, but if you let yourselves be carried away by your passion, you will face, without me, this tremendous peril.
I am not asking you to agree with, or even respond to, Herod Agrippa II's arguments. Just because an empire is vast doesn't mean the Lord supports it; generally, empires eventually collapse. Maybe the Lord could give an exception to resting on the Torah in war time. Instead, I am interested in your own answer to the question in the thread title. Please read my Message #7 below, where I quote Josephus' passage about Japha. (Why would the Lord want the defeat of Japha and other cities rebelling against Rome in 66-70 AD?)
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