Ben Khosva (Bar Kochva) between presidency and monarchy

The rebellion of Ben Khosba that took place between the years 132 and 135 CE, perhaps from the episodes of the rebellion of the people of Israel in the later Roman period (first and second century CE), received both archaeological coverage and historical research, in which I took a fairly active part. This time we will focus on his attempts to take over the institution of the presidency and become a kind of king

The rebellion of Ben Khosva that took place between the years 132 and 135 C.E., perhaps from the episodes of the rebellion of the people of Israel in the later Roman period (first and second century C.E.), received both archaeological coverage and historical research, in which I took quite an active part, and part of which was immortalized in my notes On the "Hidan" website.

Minting of coins during rebellions, both as a primary minting and as a secondary minting, along with literary and epigraphic findings, may well confirm or reject historical research assumptions, and this is because the coin with its inscriptions and drawings/symbols indicates simply, and perhaps also through borrowing and speculation, an important dimension, historical of course, coming from The lines of rebellion are literal. An inscription on a coin and its decoration with one or another symbol may well serve as an authentic historical presentation, generally impartial, and therefore I now asked to delve into it in relation to the subject of the article: President or King?

In one of my articles published in the "Hidan" I asked to offer an interpretation, somewhat daring, about the intentions and actions of Ben Khosva in the field of a double anti-Roman rebellious move - against the Roman government and at the same time against the Jewish leadership that operated at that time, that is, the Sanhedrin, headed by the legitimate House of the Presidency - Rabbi Gamliel's house. Ben Khosva may have taken and appropriated an ancient historical move that took place at the end of the Great Rebellion (around 70 AD) of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai to call an unprecedented challenge against the legitimate ruling house of the presidency by way of usurpation and to propose a change in the presidential dynasty, with Roman support of course.

Ben Kusva sought, similar to Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai, to gather support by way of a double rebellion: in the Romans on the one hand and in the ruling presidency on the other hand, while using great inclusivity, which is probably also involved in covert violence, of the support of Hinoka Rabbi Shimon ben Gamaliel from the legitimate presidency when, Ben Kusva, was imprisoned him as a hostage in his last stronghold, Beitar (or Beit-Ter), and rules, as it were, in the name of that Yanukovych, in the usurpatory ideology - "The king is dead. Long live the new king".

A new royal house. is that so? Well, from the collection of evidence about Ben Kusaba's rebellion in the sources of the Sages, the famous comparative dramatic text from the Jerusalem Talmud appears in this language: "Let (change, say, declare) Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (of the supporters of the rebellion): (Rabbi) Akiva (so in the text) ) would demand: "The way of the star of Jacob" (Bamadbar 17:XNUMX) - the way of the wicked of Jacob (the father of the "nation", the father of the tribes). Rabbi Akiva Kd Hoh Hami bar Kozvah (when he saw the son of Khosvah) Hohh (he) said (says, declares): Din is (this is) Malka Mashia (King of the Messiah). Rabbi Yochanan ben Torta said (answered) to her: Akiba, weeds will grow in your life, and still the son of David will not come" (Yerushalmi Taaniyot chapter XNUMX Sah p. XNUMX). The royal-rebellious context stands out here in the debate between the two sages of the Sanhedrin regarding the identification of Ben Kusaba. And in any case, things did not grow by themselves but from the announcements, so it seems, of the leader of the rebellion, royal announcements as it turns out.

A dramatic text also appears in the Babylonian Talmud in connection with this. Bar Khoziba, king of Tartin Shenin and Pelaga (reigned as king for two and a half years during the rebellion from 132 to 135 AD). Said (Ben Kusaba) to him, to the Rabbi (to the members of the Sanhedrin) (perhaps when he was brought before them, quite similar if I am not flying too high and too far on the wings of imagination, to the case of Jesus the Christian, the Nazarene, when he was brought to trial/for a night discussion in such a Sanhedrin led by Caiaphas, before he stood To the Roman commissioner Pontius Pilate in 26 CE): Please (I am the) Messiah! They said to her (to him, the son of Kusava): (We will conduct an examination for you, a test to see if you are not a false messiah: (and) in the Messiah it is written (in the laws of the Messiah it is written) Damorach and Dayin (that the candidate must demonstrate knowledge and ability in difficult and complicated laws in the examination of an eloi capable of "smelling" and ignorance the truth from the lie, for example). Natzi anan (see we) not (if) demorach and dayin (you). Because they rejected him (because they saw and noticed) dela (that he is not) morach and dayin. They killed him (executed him according to the law assigned to the Sanhedrin in a practical and indirect way).

Don't make it easy for the readers, the use of the word king or the verb king in sage literature is not casual. It really means an attempt at kingship or at least a declaration of kingship or kingship and not control or leadership, obviously. Even during the height of the presidency of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi, who was the closest of all the Sanhedrin presidents before him (and after him), he was not given the title of king, despite the assumption that he was a descendant of the House of David, who was an unprecedentedly authoritative president, who sometimes behaved as a supreme ruler, who was as rich as Korach, who had close, personal ties with the Roman Empire, at whose death incense was burned as a custom in mourning for the death of kings... he did not even dare to think of calling himself a king. All of this strengthens my assumptions about the rebel Ben Kusva.

It turns out that Ben Kusva was not alone in the phenomenon of kingship, which creates a fairly close connection between Ben Kusva's rebellion and the Great Revolt, where several leaders of fanatical rebel groups tried to enthrone themselves and ended up dying in the rebellion or after it with a Roman punishment of beheading. In one of Chazal's texts, in connection with Ben Kusaba's rebellion, it is said that there were XNUMX seals that were reigned over by a king, and because of this he was killed. The phrase "bulots" may be interpreted as mayors or urban settlements, Jews of course, (since in another text it says "Kiryats" under "bolots"), or an image for settlements, obviously, as a historical mutilation of "boli" in Greek, to say the leadership of the classical city. And perhaps it is a network of settlements that sought to break away from Roman rule. In any case, this issue was well connected in the revolt of Ben Khosba, with Suphan representing the position of the Sanhedrin and the presidency, following an evolving relationship with the Roman government, ie death. All of this is consistent with the royal character of Ben Kusava and the attitude of the Sanhedrin Jewish leadership towards him. Let's not forget that the very kingship of Eliba Droma indicates in itself an attempt at acute rebellion against the Roman rule. It should be noted that the number XNUMX in relation to "stamps" is not accidental and is mentioned on various occasions as an eponymous expression.
And perhaps in front of Ben Kusva's eyes stood the model of the two Jewish brothers from Nahardea in Babylon who held the miracle of the rebellion between the second 10 and 30 AD and established a considerable kingdom in the region. And lest before the eyes of Ben Kusva there also stood the royal or quasi-royal move of the leaders of the Jewish rebellion in Egypt and Kyrenia during the reign of Trianus (117-115 CE). One of them, a Jew named Lukoas, ruled himself and led the rebellion.
And we will return to the last text. In it, too, the connection between messiahship, monarchy and rebellion stands out in an interesting way. And again it is interesting in relation to the trial of Jesus in the tribunal set up by the commissioner Pontius Pilate, who sentenced him to death by crucifixion on the charge of rebellion against the empire. In this episode that appears in the New Testament, Pilate seeks to accuse Jesus of the intention of kingship, which is in any case grounds for betrayal, by urging him and asking him: "Are you the king of the Jews" (rex iudaeorum), which ultimately led to his death even though Jesus wised up and answered him sarcastically: "You said! ".
It should be noted that in both cases Ben Khosva is identified with the vision of the Messiah's King, but in any case the royal association should not be ignored in this matter at all.
The father of the church Eusebius in his book "Ecclesiastical History" quotes the following text in relation to Ben Khosva as follows: "... in those days the Jewish army was led by one man named Bar Kochba (this is one of the few places outside the Sage literature, Ben Khosva's coins and his coins, where the rebel appears by name It). It means: a star, a man who murders and tricksters, who managed to steal their minds (of the Jews) .. who came down to them like a star from heaven ..." (6. XNUMX).
And this is to know that the royal context in relation to the Messianic myths is clear and known. And perhaps, when he was bathed in hubris, according to Chazal, of course, considering the sin of pride, delusion of grandeur and intense belief in his messiahship, and especially when he saw before his "eyes" and his imagination some of the zealots of the Great Rebellion, and in particular those who were imbued with a prophetic and messianic spirit as well as tyropy on the one hand and an intoxicating royal lust on the other, Ben Khosva adopted for himself the messianic-monarchic image, which of course was supposed to help him in his military, political and economic-personal moves. And in this context it is worth noting the following fact that in all his letters written by Ben Khosva with his own hands, with his own pen, of which quite a few have survived, there is no direct and clear indication that it was in fact a rebellion and that the leader of the rebellion was supposed to give tactical and strategic instructions to his subordinates, to the officers under his leadership, but in vain. He deals there, with his bonds, on the one hand in maintaining the laws of the Jewish holidays (no mila...) and on the other hand in financial transactions of selling real estate and its assets in the combat zone, in the rebellion zone.
In the coins minted by Ben Kusava, both in the primary and secondary mintings (it is said on top of existing Roman coins, in which lies both an ideological-political message and economic savings) there is an interesting parallel between the drawings/symbols that appear on the coins of the Great Revolt and those minted on Ben Kusava's coins . These and those contained Lulav paintings, etrogs, a date tree, a vine leaf, an inscription inside a wreath and a jar (amphora).
And how were they different? In musical instruments found on Ben Kusava coins such as: a broad harp, a violin (kitara) and two trumpets, which characterizes the instruments of the priests and Levites in the temple ceremonies and have a somewhat royal connection as appears in the Bible. Moreover, on the coins of the Great Revolt we do not find the names of the leaders of the rebellion such as Yohanan of Gush Halab, Shimon bar Giora and more. And in contrast, the name of Ben Kusava appears, both as "Shimon the President of Israel" or for short - "Shema" or "Shimo", which emphasizes his usurpatory revolution while completely erasing the official house of the presidency, in office until then, i.e. Beit Raban Gamliel. And where is the name, or the nickname "Ben Khosva" as it appears in his certificates and "his signature"?
The minting of the coins certainly has a much more widespread and significant value than the Ben Kusava bills. It is not for nothing that the name Shimon appears prominently, which has a clear biblical connotation, of one of the leaders of the sons of Jacob, perhaps even in a warrior-heroic context that appears in the Bible. The appearance of "Shimon" on the coins, and especially in the secondary minting, may possibly indicate a certain Roman influence, considering a known imperial (royal-royal) imitation.
Next to the leader's name appears the name "Elazar HaCohen", regarding which a dispute arose at the time among historical researchers as to who exactly is meant. In any case, next to Ben Kusava appears the figure of a certain high priest, perhaps to teach, along with the imprint of the deviary/temple on the coins of the rebellion, about the royal ambitions of Ben Kusava, who receives legitimacy from the top of the priests (perhaps "politics"?) and who is controlled (the priest) by the leader/ The king (son of Kusaba).
Moreover, an important item that appears on the coins of Ben Kusaba is nothing but a pech of oil, which may on the one hand be connected to one of the Maccabean legends about the "miracle of the pech of oil", and on the other hand, this is connected to the matter of the monarchy, since from the biblical period onwards kings were anointed by sprinkling oil on their heads.
And if we recall Eusebius' statement about "Bar Kochba" which in his opinion is associated with the symbol of the star, and on the other hand we will not have difficulty finding the symbol of the star on the coins of "Jonathan the King", who is Alexander Yanai (76-103 BC), we will receive, albeit in an alligorical interpretation, Some kind of additional support for Ben Khosva's lust for kingship. The relationship between the two leaders and in particular if it is about the luxurious on the one hand and the cruel on the other hand of Alexander Yanai, seems quite interesting.
It is very interesting that Sage literature refers to the coins of Ben Khoseva in an intrusive wording such as: "A rebel coin such as (of) Ben Khozabia, does not desecrate" (Yerushalmi Talmud, Masher Two Chapter XNUMX Neb p. XNUMX).
First - this is the first time that sage literature refers to an object from the heart of a certain leader; Second - this is the first time that the specific circulation of the rebellion coins among the Jewish public is proven; Third - the leadership of the Sanhedrin unequivocally stated its position towards the rebellion itself by saying that the coins of the rebellion "do not desecrate". To say: it is forbidden to redeem fruit or "blood" (meaning money) in the rebellion coins in order to bring them to Jerusalem. This is a sharp statement not only against the rebellion but mainly against the rebel, the one who likened himself to the Messiah King.
And now we are left to examine the question: Is he a king in potential or a president in reality?
Well, returning to the Hasmonean coins, from which, it seems, Ben Kosba drew his ideas and pondered his thoughts, it seems that Alexander Yanai defined himself as a king with the Greek inscription and in Greek "Basilios Alexandroi", i.e. "King Alexander" accompanied by distinct Greek symbols such as an anchor surrounded by a circle, in a way It is clear when considering a message to the Hellenistic public in the cities of the polis in Israel, as well as to the "light" or "Orthodox" Greek Jews among them, while the inscription addressed to the Jewish public on its coins and in Hebrew was "Yonathan (that is, Yanai) the king" as well as "Yonathan the great priest and friend of the Jews" accompanied by related symbols For Judaism such as pomegranates and cornucopias. The mention of the priesthood and the Sanhedrin or the People's Assembly came to symbolize Yanai's clear attachment to Judaism and its leadership institutions.
Yanai's sons and grandsons, Yochanan Hyrcanus II (40-67 BC), Yehuda Aristobulus (64-67 BC) and Matthias Antigonus, minted coins bearing the inscription: "The High Priest and Friend of the Jews" except for the latter, who combined these titles with his reign in Greek transliteration.
The coins of King Herod (4-37 BC) and his son Herod Archaeus (4 BC - 6 AD) and his successors until Agrippa II (95-50 AD) are also decorated with the Greek inscription of "Basilaus".
The coins of the Great Revolt (73/70-66 CE) indicate in Hebrew inscription "Jerusalem", "Holy Jerusalem", "Israel Shekel", "Free Zion", "Half Shekel", "For the Redemption of Zion" and the number of years of the rebellion from the first year to the fourth. This is without mentioning the names of the leaders, "the high priest" and "the friend of the Jews".
And on the coins of Ben Kusava, as mentioned, the name of the leader is mentioned as "Shimon the President of Israel", the high priest, the number of years of the rebellion, "to liberate Jerusalem" and "to liberate Israel" and sometimes with the distortion "Yasherel".
And in his letters, in his writing and in his language, Ben Khosva is mentioned as "Nasia (so in the text) Israel" and sometimes "President of Israel".
"President of Israel" sounds seemingly innocent, but behind this title hides a real monarchy. It is clear that Ben Kusava did not dare to crown his head with a royal diadem for fear of losing public support, which was in any case loose, and it is mentioned above in his trial before the Sanhedrin, whether it took place or not, which referred to his declaration as the Messianic King.
That's why he chose the seemingly "vegetarian" title of president, in terms of cheating and public fraud, but behind this title was hiding the cloak of a king. This matter requires Prof. Aharon Oppenheimer, a teacher and rabbi, who claimed that the title president is intended to indicate to an ideal king the version of the president in Ezekiel's visions of the end of the days (A. Oppenheimer, Issues in the history of Israel, Mered Bar Kochba, Zalman Shazar Center Jerusalem, 13, p. 24), as stated in his book: "And David my servants are a president among them" (Ezekiel 17:2), "and the leaders will be over the leader" (Ibid. XNUMX:XNUMX), "and for each a leader over all Israel" (XNUMX Chronicles XNUMX:XNUMX) and more - All of them have a royal connection, and this is probably what Ben Kuseva intended and intended by the frequent use of the title of presidency, in terms of a consecrated leader who genealogically inherits the sacred title in the Bible. Moreover, in the Bible, the president is associated as the first and foremost, followed by the high priest, and yet it is shown on coins of Ben Kosba.
Moreover, a strong link connecting the kingship/presidency of Ben Kuseva with the biblical one is his appearance as a strategist and army commander, as hinted at in Ezekiel in the presidential context when this appearance takes on a priestly influence (as in the article by David Gotblatt, Aaron Oppenheimer and Uriel Rappaport - editors, Mared Bar Kochba, New Researches, Yad Ben Zvi, Jerusalem, 122, pp. XNUMX et seq.).
The one who is considered the greatest of Israel's presidents in the Roman era was Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi, who also came close to the status of a king, and in particular he noted this sentence: "And what kind of president? This is the king (as) it is said (Vikrah 22:3): And he did one of all the commandments of Jehovah his God, (that is) a president over whom there is none but Jehovah his God" (Mishnat Hooriyat 2:XNUMX) and in Tosefta Hooriyat XNUMX:XNUMX) it is stated that "What kind of president ? The president of Israel and not the president of tribes." This interpretation of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi fits well with the whims of Ben Kusava: president = king.
To conclude our discussion, I would like to claim that in Ben Khosva the whims and fancies of a monarchy were revealed, and below are the points of support to confirm my claim:
First - Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai's claim in the name of Rabbi Akiva that Ben Kusaba is the "King of the Messiah."
Second - the trial of Ben Khosva in the Sanhedrin when his crime is impersonation
(King Messiah.
Thirdly - the image given by Eusebius to Ben Kusava - "star" - is somewhat connected to the royal symbol of Alexander Yanai.
Fourth - the pair of trumpets that appears on the rebellion coins is related to the priesthood on the one hand and to the rituals of the queen on the other hand.
Fifth - the oil jug that appears on the rebellion coins hints at the anointing of kings.
Sixth - the title of the presidency that a son of Kusava takes for himself in a revolutionary process (putsch) to transfer the leadership from the house of Gamliel to his own house, is on the one hand of strategic/military and certainly political significance and on the other hand is well connected to the mythological monarchical status implied in the Bible and emphasized in the tractate of parents for example. It should be noted that this title is prominent on the coins of the rebellion and the bills of the leader of the rebellion.
Seventh - the connection between the biblical presidency in relation to Ezekiel's vision and the House of David may serve as a connecting thread between the intention of the presidency of Ben Khoseva and his royal whims.
Eighth - the ancient status of the biblical presidency, the presidency of each and every tribe in the desert period, had no continuation in the mythological entry into Canaan, when the judges take their place and after them the kings. The position of the presidency is revived in a later period than the biblical one, namely the days of the Second Temple, when the presidents were the heads of the Sanhedrin from the days of Hillel and did not have a particularly high status during the Hellenistic rule. Their status dwindled with the beginning of the Maccabean-Hasmonean rule and their place was taken by the Hasmonean kings. Since the Roman rule (63 BC) the position of the presidents has strengthened a little, although more in appearance than in fact, and when Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakhai led the putsch against the House of Gamaliel and the position of his successor - Rabbi Gamaliel was somewhat shaken following the Trianus rebellion, Ben Kusaba emerged, using the title of the presidency As an excuse to dig into him, when behind this title was established his intention to declare himself king.
Ninth - when the high priest under Ben Kusava is found on his coins, it was a kind of artificial continuity of the biblical days when the high priest, as someone appointed by the king, was nothing more than one of the officials of the royal ruler.
Tenth - Ben Khosva in one way or another saw himself as a genealogical successor of the Hasmonean kingdom.
Eleven - despite the limited dimensions of a rebellion in which it was treated differently from the dimensions of the Great Rebellion, the Romans take the rebellion very seriously, much more than the Great Rebellion, and as evidence - the number of Roman legions participating in the suppression of the rebellion was greater than the number of Roman soldiers against the rebels of 73 AD -66 per cent. Whether there was a Roman fear of the emergence of a new royal figure (Ben Kusava), we do not know. However, one should not ignore the connection, however loose and literary, between the eagerness to suppress the rebellion and the execution of Ben Khosva by the Sanhedrin (physically or virtually), on the charge of impersonating the "King of Christ" and the execution of Jesus of Nazareth by order of Pontius Pilate on the charge of rebellion, that is He placed a royal crown on his head ("King of the Jews"). In any case, we know very well what Rome's aggressive attitude was towards local pretenders to rule in one of the provinces and especially if this was linked to messianic projections ("King of the Messiah").
Twelve - Ben Kusava in his coins appears as a figure above any existing instance, somewhat royal, and the connection between this fact, in the omission of the existing Sanhedrin institution, and the statement of Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi, even many years after the rebellion of Ben Kusava, regarding the relationship between a president and a king, certainly supports the heart - The heart of this article, we were - President = King.

More on the subject on the science website

• The Priesthood as You Didn't Know It - XNUMX: The Manipulation of Ben Kusava - XNUMX
• The Priesthood as You Didn't Know It - XNUMX: The Manipulation of Ben Kusava - II
• From the end of the Great Rebellion to Ben Kusba's Rebellion (Bar Kochba): The Big Brother intervenes
• With God's help: what is the real name of the hero LG Ba'omer
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