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The Lord Wept: The Freedom of Zion The Great Jewish Revolt against
Rome was a first-century tragedy whose effects still resonate
today. Timeless themes that still plague the Middle East region and
the world -- ethnic conflict, religious fanaticism, social
upheaval, and the clash of civilizations -- made their baleful
appearance in this bloody conflict fought from 66-73 CE. The Jews'
struggle against the Rome of Nero Caesar was part of the age-old
battle of human kind to establish a society of justice and freedom
in the face of the tyranny and exploitation of a great empire. It
is also a story of the deeply fractured and corrupted Jewish
nation's bitter struggle with itself over issues of wealth and
poverty, law and governance, and collaboration or defiance while
seeking to order its society according to its unique laws and
customs. An intense religious atmosphere infused the Jewish drive
for freedom, and the deep religious ferment associated with their
struggle had a profound influence on the subsequent development of
both Judaism and Christianity. The trilogy The Lord Wept brings to
life the swirling events of the Jewish nation's attempt to free
itself from the Roman Empire. Its characters are largely drawn from
actual personages of the time, and the action adheres closely to
historic events. The Disinherited Nation, the first novel of the
trilogy (also available from Xlibris), is set amidst the chaotic
events of the year 66 when the revolt erupted and the Jews attained
a temporary freedom. The final two novels of the trilogy are here
published as the twin parts of the novel The Freedom of Zion. "The
Star and the Scepter," the first part of that book, is set in the
years 67 and 68 CE when a new Roman general Flavius Vespasianus
conducts a brutal campaign of reconquest in Judaea. The shaky new
government of free Israel, a conservative regime headed by High
Priest Ananus, is unable to offer effective resistance and is
itself overthrown by an uneasy coalition of Jewish revolutionaries
including the Zealots led by the radical aristocrat, Eleazar ben
Simon who attempt to impose far-reaching changes in Jewish society
and governance. Another radical faction, the Tzadikim, is ensconced
in the desert fortress of Masada. One of its leaders, Eleazar ben
Ja'ir, believing that the Lord has condemned the new Jewish state
for its corruption, hopes to take his movement completely out of
the war while his colleague Simon ben Giora nurses a vision of
unremitting resistance to Rome. In the course of these events the
respected old rabbi Jochanan ben Zacchai despairs that the new free
Israel can ever fight off the Romans and begins to formulate a
radically different Jewish society that will survive the inevitable
destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. He eventually flees
Jerusalem and establishes himself at Jabne, a town turned into a
refugee camp by Vespasian. Meanwhile, the young priestly aristocrat
Joseph ben Matthias has been sent to lead the resistance movement
in Galilee. He is unable to stop Vespasian's onslaught and is
himself trapped and captured. Vespasian spares his life, however,
intrigued by his prisoner's amazing prophesy. Joseph declared that
the Lord revealed that the Roman general was "the star and the
scepter" of an ancient Jewish prophesy who is fated to rule the
world. Joseph changes sides and becomes a sycophantic adherent of
Vespasian and his son Titus. He begins to put together a
grotesquely biased account of his experiences in the Jewish War,
filled with absurd flattery of his new Roman patrons that even
Titus does not take seriously. The Christian community of Jerusalem
is plunged into increasing despair by deteriorating conditions in
the city. Its members incessantly study the words of Jesus to seek
guidance as to what they should do. They eventually decide to flee.
Their guest, the Greek convert Luke, who is now married to the
lovely Rachel, the youngest daughter o
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