A King with Two Sons
“Thus said the Lord of Hosts: Listen! Summon the dirge-singers, let them come” (Jer. 9:16). [ . . . ]
R. Yoḥanan said:
It is like a king who had two sons. He became angry at the first one, took a stick, thrashed him, and banished him. The king said: Woe to this one! From what comfort has he been banished! He became angry at his second son, took a…
Lamentations Rabbah, a compilation of midrash on the book of Lamentations written in the fifth to sixth centuries CE, elaborates on themes such as the Israelites’ sorrow over losing the Temple and the idea that the destruction was a result of the people’s sin. The midrash also attributes sorrow over the destruction to God, who is compared to a king taking leave of his palace. Although the book of Lamentations is a response to the destruction of the First Temple, the authors of Lamentations Rabbah likely had the Second Temple in mind as well.
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The First Jewish Revolt
Trace the causes and battles of the First Jewish Revolt, from the siege of Jerusalem to the destruction of the Temple and the fall of Masada.
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