4/22/21

"And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said,
As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down." (Luke 21:5-6)
As Jesus and His disciples left the temple on Tuesday evening, of His week of passion, they commented upon how beautiful the temple was. And they had every right to be proud of the temple. It was a work of art.
But, Jesus told them that the temple would be destroyed to the ground!
What Jesus said came to be in A. D. 70.
After Jesus was crucified, the Jews grew even more rebellious against their Roman conquerors. Matters became worse when Gessius Florus became Procurator of the region. He raided the temple treasury in A. D. 66, and set a chain of events in motion that would lead to Jerusalem's demise.
Shortly afterwards, the Jews killed and expelled all the Romans from Jerusalem. The city was a fortress, and was easily defended from the Roman assaults that followed.
Emperor Nero sent Vespasian, his best Roman general, to the area with 60,000 battle-hardened soldiers. Vespasian, and his army, marched toward Jerusalem, form the sea, and destroyed every city in his path.
But, before he made it to Jerusalem, Nero killed himself, which set off a coup for the throne of Rome. Vespasian had to return to Rome, and stop the rebellion there. He then becomes Emperor of the Roman Empire.
The Jews saw it as God's salvation, but it was not! Vespasian sends Titus, his son, to Jerusalem with 80,000 soldiers. They besiege the city. It was at the Passover, and the city was filled with thousands of visitors. This made things a lot worse. Food ran out in a hurry. Thousands starved to death during the siege.
Any one caught leaving the city was crucified. Some times, five hundred a day!
After five months, Titus battered down the wall, and entered the city. The soldiers were so fierce in their attack, that they killed every one they met, and burned the city.
Titus wanted to save the temple as a trophy, but could not control his men. They removed every thing from the temple, and burned it down!
The ark of the covenant disappeared! Even to this day, it has not been found. Everything else went back to Rome. Titus took down the curtains from the temple, and hung them in his house in Rome!
Over one million Jews died in Jerusalem. Some ninety-five thousand were sold as slaves. They hand-picked 700 young Jewish men, the best of the city, and took them to Rome in chains as trophies of the conquest.
Not one stone was left on top of the other, except for three towers. They were left intentionally as a monument to Roman supremacy!
The Roman Eagles were raised above the rubble of the temple. The soldiers knelt before them, and made sacrifices unto them. It was the desolation of the abomination that Christ spoke of.
Our Savior saw it all before it happened!
Jesus didn't come to save the things of this world! He came to save the people of this world! Every thing, no matter how grand it is, will be destroyed. Only those that have Jesus in their heart will be saved.
From my heart to your heart.