Famine and Desertion
For all this emotional appeal by Josephus, the insurgents would not budge, and thought it far from safe to change their course. The people, though, took it as a spur to desertion. Some sold their entire property at rock-bottom prices, others just their most valuable treasures, and then, to evade any search by the terrorists, they would swallow the…
Even before Titus built a siege wall to encircle the city and prevent the movement of people and supplies, the famine within was starving the city’s population. If not for the rebel leaders John and Simon having burned the city’s food stores, the city would have been able to withstand a long siege. Josephus describes the “hell inside the city” even before the siege begins in earnest.
Related Guide
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.
