Jewish Rebellion Against Rome

There are many Israelis who are fervently intent on rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem. To understand their motivation, it is important to have some understanding of the history associated with this temple  and the struggle of the Jewish people against their Roman oppressors at the time. Here is a quote from the Ancient History Encyclopaedia on the Bar-Kochba Revolt:

The Bar Kochba Revolt (132–136 CE) was the third and final war between the Jewish people and the Roman Empire. It followed a long period of tension and violence, marked by the first Jewish uprising of 66-70 CE, which ended with the destruction of the Second Temple, and the Kitos War (115-117 CE). In many ways, the Bar Kochba Revolt differed markedly from its predecessors. For the first time, the Jews presented a united front against Roman forces and fought underneath a single charismatic leader, the eponymous Simon Bar Kochba (also given as Shimon Bar-Cochba, Bar Kokhba, Ben-Cozba, Cosiba or Coziba). It was marked as well by strong religious passions, with many apparently believing that Bar Kochba was the promised messiah who would lead the Jewish people to final victory against their enemies.

But firstly, an aside. The use of CE instead of AD peeves me. On timeanddate.com, it's announced that:

Because AD and BC hold religious (Christian) connotations, many prefer to use the more modern and neutral CE and BCE to indicate if a year is before or after year 1. According to the international standard for calendar dates, ISO 8601, both systems are acceptable. 

The Anno Domini year–numbering system was introduced by a Christian monk named Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century. The year count starts with year 1 in the Gregorian calendar. This is supposed to be the birth year of Jesus, although modern historians often conclude that he was born around 4 years earlier. 

The expression Common Era is also no new invention, it has been in use for several hundred years. In English, it is found in writings as early as 1708. In Latin, the term "vulgaris aerae" (English, Vulgar Era) was used interchangeably with "Christian Era" as far back as in the 1600s. 

What is relatively new is that more and more countries and their educational institutions have officially replaced the traditional abbreviations AD/BC with CE/BCE. England and Wales introduced the CE/BCE system into the official school curriculum in 2002, and Australia followed in 2011. More and more textbooks in the United States also use CE/BCE, as well as history tests issued by the US College Board.

Clearly, Jewish lobby groups have been pushing for these educational changes. I'll continue to use AD instead of CE and BC instead of BCE whenever the occasion arises.

That was a rather lengthy aside. Getting back to the Jewish rebellions, it's the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD that gets most of the attention and I'd formed the impression that the Jews were scattered by the Romans after that date but such is not the case as the historic record reveals. However, the failure of the Bar-Kochba Revolt marked the end of Jewish revolutionary activity for the next one thousand years.

Despite their disillusionment with revolution, the Jews never gave up hope of rebuilding their temple in Jerusalem and, for a time, under the reign of the Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate, it seemed that they might succeed. He is called an apostate because he renounced Christianity and was bent on setting the Jews and Christians against each other. To quote from E.Michael Jones' "The Jewish Revolutionary Spirit":

Julian would reverse the course of history by resurrecting the Jewish priesthood, sacrifice, and Temple. Julian's claim was daring, but not preposterous, for as St. John Chrysostom makes clear in Adversus Judaeos, Christians accepted the premises of Julian's argument. If Julian could rebuild the Temple, then the Jews would be vindicated, and Christianity, the superseder, would itself be superseded. It may be difficult to imagine the construction of one building causing this, but the Temple in Jerusalem wasn't just any building. It was the sine qua non of the Jewish religion. If it could be rebuilt, the Jewish religion would be re-established, and if that were to happen, Christianity's claim to be the New Israel would be over. Christianity would be one sect among many, easily accommodated into Rome's pantheon.

With the support of the Roman Emperor and the involvement of wealthy Jews, there seemed no reason that the rebuilding enterprise would not succeed. However, the enterprise proved a disaster much to the consternation of those concerned in ensuring its success. Julian died in battle and with him went any hopes the Jews might have had to rebuild their temple. The Jews were defeated in their rebellions against Rome and they were defeated in their attempt to rebuild their temple even with the help of Rome. 

To quote from Jones again:

On February 27, 380, the Emperor Theodosius decreed Christianity was the official religion of the Roman Empire. In 17 years, the Jews had suffered a complete reversal of fortune. The people who cried "We have no King but Caesar" found that Caesar had suddenly become a Christian. 

Cut to 2020 and things are a bit different. The Roman Empire is long gone and in its place is the United States Empire that helped create and nurture Israel during the third quarter of the twentieth century. During the last quarter of the twentieth century, Israel's takeover of the levers of power in the United States was perfected and set the stage of 9/11 and all that followed. Its current president has been likened to King Cyrus.

This March 2018 article gives detailed information about the Trump and King Cyrus connection but here is a summary:

The comparison comes up frequently in the evangelical world. Many evangelical speakers and media outlets compare Trump to Cyrus, a historical Persian king who, in the sixth century BCE, conquered Babylon and ended the Babylonian captivity, a period during which Israelites had been forcibly resettled in exile. This allowed Jews to return to the area now known as Israel and build a temple in Jerusalem. Cyrus is referenced most prominently in the Old Testament book of Isaiah, in which he appears as a figure of deliverance.

That comparison has become more and more explicit in the wake of Trump’s presidency. Last week, an Israeli organization, the Mikdash Educational Center, minted a commemorative “Temple Coin” depicting Trump and Cyrus side by side, in honor of Trump’s decision to move the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. It was among the most brazen, public links between Trump and Cyrus; one that takes the years of subtext running through outlets like Christian Broadcasting Network and, quite literally, sealed the comparison.