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This wall relief on the Arch of
Titus reveals one of the most troubling scenes in all history, Roman
soldiers carrying spoils from the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem.
The Temple Menorah* and the Table** of the Shewbread shown at an angle, both
of solid gold, and the silver trumpets which called the Jews to the
festivals. The Romans are in triumphal procession wearing laurel crowns and
the ones carrying the Menorah have pillows on their shoulders. The carry
signs commemorating the victories which Titus had won. This group of
soldiers is just a few of the hundreds in the actual triumphal procession,
who are about to enter the carved arch on the right which reveals the quadriga at the
top, Titus on his 4-horsed chariot with soldiers. The
Arch of Titus with its Menorah Relief are high on the list of importance
in the study of Biblical Archaeology.
* When
the temple was plundered by Antiochus Epiphanes, the candlestick was taken
away (1 Macc 1:21); after the cleansing, a new one was made by Judas
Maccabeus (1 Macc 4:49,50).
*
* The
'table' originally provided for the second Temple had been taken away by
Antiochus Epiphanes (about 170 BC); but another was supplied by the
Maccabees.
"If you had known, even you,
especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now
they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your
enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in
on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground;
and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not
know the time of your visitation." - Luke 19:41-44
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one
who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I
wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under
her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you
desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say,
'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'" - Matthew
23:37-39
| Heart
Message
The Arch of Titus
Another witness of stone testifies before the jury of history. Proud and tall the Arch of Titus stoically watches over the highest point of the Via Sacra in Rome. It appears quiet, but as one focuses on its majestic beauty, the story begins to raise its voice. The procession carved in marble shows the Roman General Titus returning victorious, having crushed the Jewish state, carrying the spoils of war stolen from the very Temple of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
There's the menorah relief, showing a representation of the Golden Candelabra that Moses set in the Holy Place offering light and symbolism for the priests. The same shape that we see in the windows of Jewish homes during Hanukah commemorating a former time of victory for Israel. The Table of
the ShewBread is is also carried off by the exulting Romans, the sacred furniture that was restocked with daily bread declaring the sustenance which can only come from God. The golden trumpets are there as well, which were once blown from the Temple and heard over the entire city as the Holy Days and celebration began during a happier time.
One only has to look at this relief and imagine it reversing like a film running backwards to see the dreadful death and destruction that was left behind by the invincible Roman Legion; the thousands that were slaughtered, the glorious city burning and in ruins, and those surviving banished to Europe in chains where their descendants will remain for almost 2,000 years until the miraculous events of 1948 brought Israel back into nationhood once again.
The mighty Arch of Titus tells its story to all who have a moment to listen.
"This happened!" it declares. "But you must seek out for yourself the reason why."
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