Fifty-two years later, they rose up in rebellion once again in a well-organized guerilla campaign that lasted three years (132-135 AD). In the process, they slaughtered tens of thousands of its inhabitants.īut this great tragedy failed to quell the rebellious spirit of the Jews. After a stand-off of almost six months, the Romans finally breached the walls and then systematically destroyed the city and its temple. The revolt led to a siege of Jerusalem by Roman troops in 70 AD. “Ultimately, the combination of financial exploitation, Rome’s unbridled contempt for Judaism, and the unabashed favoritism that the Romans extended to Gentiles” brought about a revolt in 66 AD. The Jewish people were particularly outraged when the Romans took over the appointment of the High Priest, resulting in the selection of Roman collaborators. The Jews were heavily taxed, and their religion and culture were held in contempt. In 63 BC, Judah became a protectorate of Rome, and in 6 AD, the kingdom was reorganized as a Roman province. The man accepted Jesus as his Savior, was baptized and went on his way rejoicing - becoming the first African convert to Christianity (Acts 8:26-40). As he was traveling back home, he encountered a Christian evangelist by the name of Philip who shared the Gospel with him. This was a Black Jew from Africa who had come to Jerusalem to worship. There is the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8. Likewise, Peter’s first epistle is addressed to “those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia…” (1 Peter 1:1). The book of James is addressed “to the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad…” (James 1:1). On the Day of Pentecost in about 30 AD, when the Apostle Peter preached the first Gospel sermon, a great multitude of Jews from the Diaspora had gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast Days (Acts 2:9-11):ĩ) Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,ġ0) Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,Īlso in the New Testament you can find a reference to “the Diaspora among the Greeks” in John 7:35. The widespread dispersion of the Jews at the beginning of the First Century AD is attested to in the New Testament. 6 The Egyptian city of Alexandria was 40% Jewish, amounting to approximately one million Jews. 5 By the time of Jesus in the First Century AD, scholars estimate that the majority of the Jewish people (more than 5 million) were living in the Diaspora. Shortly before the time of Jesus, in the late First Century BC, a Greek geographer named Strabo stated that you could not go anywhere in the civilized world without encountering a Jew.
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