Time Line of Jewish Revolt & Temple Destruction (from Josephus’ Jewish Wars)
Oct., 62 AD- A man named Jesus son of Ananius begins to pronounce doom on Jerusalem, and continues this plaintive proclamation for 7+ years until the siege of Jerusalem.
Apr. 65 to Apr. 66- A star/sword is seen over Jerusalem and a comet for a whole year
Aug. 64 to June 68- After a fire destroys much of Rome, Emperor Nero persecutes Christians .
64-66 AD- The Roman Procurator Floras steals from the Temple treasury, then brutally quashes a revolt, and oppresses the Jewish people.
April 66- Before the Jewish revolt, just prior to the Feast of Unleavened Bread, an unusual bright light is seen in the Temple and at the altar for ½ hour. During the Feast a cow gives birth to a “lamb” in the Temple courts. The Nicanor gate to the inner courts opens miraculously.
May 21, 66- Soon after the Feast, chariots are seen in the sky at sunset over the whole country and encircling the cities.
June 66- An earthquake, a loud noise, and a voice is heard from the Temple saying “Let us depart from here” (as in Ezek. 10)
May-July, 66- There is a Jewish uprising at Caesarea against the Romans, and riots in Jerusalem.
August 66- The daily Temple sacrifices on behalf of Rome are ended.
August 66- The Antonia Fortress in Jerusalem is captured and the Roman garrison is massacred. In response, Jews are massacred at Caesarea, Damascus, Alexandria, and elsewhere throughout the empire.
October 66- Roman troops under Cestius Gallus march on Jerusalem and surround it. But in Nov. 66, the Roman army inexplicably ends the siege of Jerusalem and retreats to Caesarea, and experiences heavy casualties in being attacked while they are retreating. Some Jews flee Jerusalem at this time. (Early Christian writers note that Christians in Jerusalem fled across the Jordan River to Pella. cf.Lk.21:20-21.)
67-68 AD- A new Roman army, under Vespasian, invades and systematically conquers and destroys Galilee, Samaria and Judea, as it moves toward Jerusalem. Many Jewish zealots, led by John of Giscala, flee to Jerusalem for safety. They fight with the official Jewish leadership for control of the city.
Early 68- Civil war in Jerusalem leads to Idumeans being invited to come to the city to help the zealots. The gates are shut against them, but they secretly gain entrance during a violent storm and embark on wholesale slaughter of residents, and they become a 3rd faction in the civil war raging within the city.
June 68- After Nero dies with no heir, there is a civil war throughout the Roman Empire, with 3 emperors in 18 months before Vespasian becomes Emperor.
May 70- His son, Titus, now commands the Roman army and besieges Jerusalem. Roman catapults throw huge stones into the city.
Aug.70 AD- The Temple is burned on the same day of the Jewish calendar as it had been burned in 586 BC by the Babylonians. The stones of the Temple are pried apart to get the gold covering of the stones that had melted and run down in the cracks. The stones are then pushed off the side of the Temple Mount into the valley below.