Nine major historical events which drastically affected the course of human history occurred on one special date, commemorated as Tisha B'av.  Now surely the forced  evacuation of the Gaza strip in Israel, which began August 14, Tish Ba'av in 2005, will be added to that list. 

ƒ_oTo console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorifiedƒ__ (Isaiah 61:3). 

Tisha B'av, an unusual day in history

by Ray Bentley

The tragedies of human history are remembered, grieved, and commemorated in ritual and ceremony, because they matter for the way they changed the world forever. 

During the summer month of August, a group of people around whom human history continues to pivot-despite persistent persecution, massive dissemination, holocaust, and unparalled odds against survival-prepare to mourn and celebrate what to them is the saddest day of the year, Tisha B'av (which literally means the ƒ_oninth of Av," falling this year on August 13-14).  Observant Jews regard this day without superstition, but with sadness, and a solemn respect for how the events that occurred throughout history on this day shaped and formed their national consciousness and their faith.

Tisha B'av primarily commemorates the two most tragic events in Jewish history, the two destructions of the Temple, in 586 BC and 70 AD.  But in what some might regard as eerie coincidence, Tisha B'av is also the date of at least nine other major events which drastically affected the Jewish people-and the course of human history!

The First Destruction
The first destruction of the temple changed the world.

That may sound dramatic, but think about how in modern times, what happens in Israel, what befalls the Jewish people, affects what happens to the rest of the world. The first destruction not only changed the course of Jewish history, but also set the Jews on a path that would coincide again and again with world changing events.

Writing about Tisha B'Av, Jewish columnist Sara Yoheved Rigler says, ƒ_oWe misrepresent the tragedy of the day by describing it as the destruction of the two Holy Temples, as if the catastrophe is the loss of a building. The American people do not mourn on 9/11 because of the destruction of the Twin Towers; they mourn the thousands of lives lostƒ_ÝTisha B'Av is more like a death than a destruction, because on that day the world changed irrevocably.ƒ__1

The Temple devastation was the result of a series of wicked kings forging a chain of sin and rebellion, driving the people farther and farther from the Lord.  Finally, around 608 BC Jerusalem fell into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the mighty Babylonian king, who appointed oppressive and wicked kings to oversee the tiny province.  In spite of the prophet Jeremiah's preaching and warning, in spite of numerous divine interventions, the king and the people continued to mock God, and despise His prophets; the leaders and priests transgressed again and again, and finally, the judgment of God fell (2 Chronicles 36:12-160).

Jerusalem fell in 586 BC.  After weeks of sacking, looting and executions, the Captain of the Babylonian army, beginning on the seventh of the month of Av and continuing until the tenth of Av, began a burning rampage.  Jerusalem's walls were battered, the Temple was stripped of gold, silver and precious metals and reduced to ashes.  For seventy years the Jewish people wept by the rivers of Babylon, captives in a strange land, crying, ƒ_oIf I forget you, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget its skill!ƒ__  (Psalm 137:5.).

Jeremiah the prophet earned his reputation as the weeping prophet because of what he suffered as an eyewitness to this tragedy.  As he recorded the events, his writings reflected the sorrow experienced on a national and personal level over that terrifying judgment.

Seventy years later Zechariah referred to Tisha B'av as the fast of the fifth month (Zechariah 8:19).  He described it as a time of separating oneself through weeping, mourning and fasting (Zech. 7:3,5).

Six centuries later, on the ninth of Av 70 AD, the stigma of that date was reinforced when Roman armies destroyed the glorious rebuilt Temple.  Only a small section remained, known today as the Western Wall, where Jews and Christian believers still come to pray and weep for the tragedies that have befallen God's people.

A series of tragic events

As if two major destructions of the holy Temple weren't enough to mark this day, an astounding series of other tragic events have befallen the Jewish people on this same date, one even dating centuries before the first destruction.  They are:

• During the time of Moses, Jews in the desert accepted the negative report of 10 out of 12 spies, and the decree was issued forbidding them from entering the land of Israel. (1312 BC)

• The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians, led by Nebuchadnezzar. 100,000 Jews were slaughtered and millions more exiled. (586 BC) 
  

• The second Temple was destroyed by the Romans, led by Titus. Some two million Jews died, and another one million were exiled. (70 AD)

• The Bar Kochba revolt was crushed by Roman Emperor Hadrian. The city of Betar -- the Jews' last stand against the Romans -- was captured and liquidated. Over 100,000 Jews were slaughtered. (135 AD)

• The Temple area and its surroundings were plowed under by the Roman general Turnus Rufus. Jerusalem was rebuilt as a pagan city -- renamed Aelia Capitolina -- and access was forbidden to Jews. 

• In 1290 all Jews were expelled from England on Tisha B'av, for no crime other than being Jewish.

• The Spanish Inquisition culminated with the expulsion of Jews from Spain on Tisha B'Av in 1492.  Hundreds of thousands of Spanish Jews were commanded to convert or be burned at the stake. The blood shed and persecution uprooted and destroyed one of the largest Jewish communities of all time.

• World War One broke out on the eve of Tisha B'Av in 1914 when Germany declared war on Russia. German resentment from the war set the stage for the Holocaust.

• On the eve of Tisha B'Av 1942, the mass deportation began of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto, en route to Treblinka.

The coincidence is eerie if not unsettling.  Just as every nation has their moments in history that changed them forever-Pearl Harbor and 9/11 are just two of modern America's memories-the Jews are deeply aware of how these events changed and shaped their future and formed their identity in the world.

Now, surely,  Tisha B'av of 2005 will be added to the list of traumatic events as the forced eviction of Israeli settlers from the Gaza strip begins.  I think of Leviticus 25:23 in which the Lord says, "The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you are sojourners with Me..."  I believe the disengagement of Gaza will hurt israel, and ultimately hurt the world.  It will certainly add to the profound sadness of Tisha B'av this year.

I would like to recognize this day as we honor the Jewish heritage of our Christian faith.  It is my prayer that we can be a blessing to Israel and her people, that we can mourn alongside her, but also offer hope and encouragement for the future.

The prophet Isaiah once wrote, ƒ_oTo console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorifiedƒ__ (Isaiah 61:3). 

That is my hope and prayer for our Jewish friends during this season of Tisha B'av.  

I would like to add that this day not only reflects historic events, but has also influenced and shaped history in some very interesting ways ƒ_"including the founding of American and a well-known figure named Christopher Columbus.  Look for my next article and I'll explain how. I think you'll be surprised!

Meanwhile if you would like more information about the symbolic rituals and customs of Tisha B'av, there are numerous books and websites such as the references I used, listed below.

God bless you,
Pastor Ray

References:

Howard, Kevin; Rosenthal, Marvin, The Feasts of the Lord, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1997.

Websites: http://www.aish.com/holidays/tisha_bav_and_the_3_weeks/default.asp
http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayd.htm

1.http://www.aish.com/jewishissues/jewishsociety/Tisha_BAv_Waking_Up_to_a_World_without_Gods_Presence_.asp