Jerusalem in uproar best defines the month after Jesus rose from the dead.
As conquerors, the Roman army was always on guard in the ancient city.
But now, despite the best efforts of the ineffectual and corrupt Sanhedrin, everything had changed.
The rabble-rouser risen from the dead?
Who thought that?
And what was up with the High Priest screaming in the temple?
The post-Easter weeks were busy and teeming with the unexpected.
Uproar, “a state of commotion, excitement, or violent disturbance, described it best.
Where was Jesus amid the uproar?
It started on the Road to Emmaus Easter afternoon.
He appeared to over 500 people during the 40 days after Easter.
Here’s a list:
- Mary Magdalene, Salome, and “Mary the mother of James” (Mark 16:1).
- Cleopas and a friend (Mark 16:12-13).
- Simon Peter (Luke 24:34).
- Eleven other apostles and friends (Luke 24:36-43).
- Thomas (John 20:28).
- Eleven disciples on a Galilean mountain (Matthew 28:16-20).
- A gathering of about 500 on a Galilean mountain (1 Corinthians 15:6).
- His brother James (1 Corinthians 15:7).
- A group as Jesus ascends into heaven. (Acts 1:9).
What were the disciples up to?
- Traveling to Galilee and going fishing. (John 21)
- Waiting for the Holy Spirit, and then being filled with his power, praise, and direction at Pentecost. (Acts 2).
- Testifying as to who Jesus was and what he did.
- Healing a crippled man and preaching in Solomon’s porch in the Temple area. (Acts 3).
With all of Jerusalem in uproar, they caught the attention of the Jewish religious leaders and the Romans. (Because they kept preaching, even when told not to).
(Definition of the Sadducees and Pharisees).
Then John and Peter were arrested:
As they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them.
[The Sadducees were] greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3
[As a result, the Sadducees] laid hands on John and Peter. [The Sadducees] put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. However, many of those who heard the word believed. The number of men came to be about five thousand.
What was the Sanhedrin’s reaction to Jerusalem in uproar?
(The Sanhedrin was the Jewish ruling council.)
The High Priest was aghast–how did the temple veil rip into two pieces?
And how would it be repaired?
Even worse, from their point of view, many priests who worked in the temple became Christians! (Acts 6:7)
(The priests and scribes should have recognized Jesus’ identity because they memorized the Scriptures. They recognized the acts, particularly after Jesus’ death, were prophesied in the Old Testament.)
Their wisest teacher, Gamaliel (Saul/Paul’s instructor), advised them to be careful:
34 A Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people stood up. He commanded the Council to put the apostles outside for a little while. 35 He said: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. . . .38 I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone. If this work is of men, it will come to nothing. 39 But if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.”
Then what happened?
The Christian diaspora began.
Believers in Jesus’ words acted in the 40 years after his death as events grew more difficult in Jerusalem.
“When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let those who are in the midst of her depart. Let not those who are in the country enter her. 22 For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.”
Luke 21:20-22 (NKJV)
By the time of Jerusalem’s destruction in AD 70, most of the Christians had left the city.
The Jews and the Romans oversaw the scorched-earth horror that destroyed the city.
Jerusalem in uproar, yes.
But those who believed Jesus had already left.
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