"If You Had Known"
by Kyle Pope
July 19, 2009

In the city of Rome there stands a mighty monument commemorating an ancient victory over a small and rebellious city in the Roman frontier. On the side of the monument is a relief which portrays the triumphant Roman soldiers carrying off the spoils of the city. The most prominent object in the center of the relief is a huge golden candlestand which was taken from the city's temple. The candlestand was taken after the temple was crushed by the ruthless hand of the Roman general Titus, who later became emperor. The "arch of Titus," as it is called, was built in honor of the general after he had conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.

Relief from the Arch of Titus - 81 A.D.

From Rome's point of view this was a cause of great celebration. History tells us that reveling went on in the city for days. During this time 2500 Jewish prisoners died in games with wild animals and gladiators. This conquest brought the turmoil that had brewed in Palestine for years to an end.

The emperor at the time of this victory was Vespasian. Years before he had become emperor, Vespasian had served as the commander of the Roman army in the region. While he served in this capacity, the Jews who had long opposed Roman domination began to assert themselves. In 66 A.D. Jewish militants slaughtered Roman troops who had been stationed at Masada (the mighty desert fortress that had been built by Herod the Great). Near the same time the leader of the temple in Jerusalem had stopped making a daily offering for the emperor's well-being. Vespasian was made emperor in 68 A.D. Two years later he allowed his son Titus to destroy Jerusalem and its temple after a long siege and carry off its sacred objects. During the next two years the remaining Jewish forces were defeated and by 73 A.D. there was no Jewish rule left in Palestine. One of Vespasian's descendants, the emperor Hadrian, rebuilt the city in the next century and renamed it Aelia Capitolina and prohibited Jews from entering the city.

Roman Emperor Vespasian

To the powerful armies of Rome these events must surely have seemed like just a necessary evil brought on by the irritating "barbarians" of this backward, desert frontier. Little did they realize that these events did not come on Jerusalem by chance, but through the awesome power of God's providential judgment.

During Jesus' lifetime, as He was walking near the temple he told His disciples - "As for these things which you see, the days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down" (Luke 21:6, NKJV). Naturally His disciples wanted to know when this would happen. During His explanation to them, He warned —"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near" (Luke 21:20). Concerning the people of Jerusalem He warned— "...they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled" (Luke 21:24).

Why would God allow such horrible things to happen to Jerusalem and her people? This was, after all the city where God had chosen - "To put His name for His habitation" (Deuteronomy 12:5).

Roman Emperor Titus

The answer is found in another of Jesus' statement about Jerusalem. As Jesus drew near to the city at the beginning of the final week before His crucifixion, Luke tells us that He wept over the city (19:41). Jesus then declare - "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation" (Luke 19:42-44). When Jesus came to them, it was "their day," it was their "time of visitation," they were given the chance to identify the Messiah, and receive Him as their own. This would have been what would have "made for their peace." They would have had the peace and security of a proper relationship with God through the one whom God had chosen as their Messiah. But they did not see what was right before them. They did not know that it was "their day" and they failed to appreciate "the day of their visitation." Because they rejected God, God rejected them and allowed these sad things to come upon them.

What about us? We cannot expect a visitation from the Lord as the Jews had received, yet we do have continuing opportunities to accept Jesus and His word. No generation in history has had as much access to Bibles, tracts, tapes, commentaries, and other material to help us know and understand God's word. No nation in the history of man has had as much freedom of religious practice as America. Yet, how many of us realize our advantages and make use of them? Let us hope that we are not failing to realize "the things that make for our peace" in this "our day." What a sad thing it would be for us one day, when it is too late, to think within our hearts—"If only we had known!"

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