Masada

"A steep narrow trail called the Snake's Path winds its way to the top. When you reach the barred summit and look Out in the burning bright sunlight, you are overwhelmed by the loneliness of the place. It is a formidable site cut off on all sides by steep valleys. Here 2000 years ago Herod the Great built a powerful fortress and a luxurious palace as a refuge from his enemies. The wall surrounding the mountain top had 37 defense towers. After Herod's death Masada was occupied for 70 years by a Roman garrison. Then in 66 AD came the Great Revolt of the Zealots. A party of them captured Masada and to this remote place gathered multitudes of refugees, men, women, and children." Masada YIGAEL YADIN

MASADA Decades after Jesus’ death, Zealots engineered a revolt against Rome. The uprising was brutally stamped out and ended with Jerusalem’s destruction in 70 AD. Survivors fled to Masada, a fortress built by Herod near the Dead Sea. Today, the excavated remains of Masada have become a national symbol for all Israelis.

Here 900 Zealots held out until the year 73. Then, the inevitable day came when 15,000 Roman troops breached its walls. Since it was late in the day, the Romans delayed the final attack until dawn. That night the survivors met and voted for suicide, rather than for capture.

"The survivors chose, by lot, 10 men to slay all the rest. Each man lay down on the ground with his wife and children and embraced them. Together, they awaited the blow from the men chosen to deliver it. When the 10 executioners had, unflinchingly, completed their task, they drew lots again to see who would kill the other 9 and, then, take his own life."

At dawn, the Romans poured through the breached walls. Fires burned quietly everywhere. A ghostly stillness hung over the air. Finally, 2 old women and 3 small children came out of hiding to tell the story. Josephus concludes his report of Masada with these striking words:

"When the Romans saw the mass of slain, they were unable to take pleasure in the sight, even though the people were their enemies." Jewish Wars FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS