List of Jewish messiah claimants (wikipedia)
See also: List of messiah claimants This is a short list. There are hundreds, check out the Wikipedia articals, interesting to say the least.
In Judaismmessiah originally meant a divinely appointed king or the Hebrew word moshiach means 'anointed one' and may indicate Jewish priests, prophets and kings, such as David, Cyrus the Great [ 1 ] or Alexander the Great. [ 2 ] Later after the failure of the Hasmonean Kingdom (37 BCE) and the Jewish–Roman wars (66-135 CE), when in the 2nd century CE, the Jews were again suffering from repression, and the old prophecies became relevant again.
Some people were looking forward to a military leader who would defeat the Seleucid or Roman enemies and establish an independent Jewish kingdom; others, like the author of the Psalms of Solomon stated that the Messiah was a charismatic teacher who gave the correct interpretation of Mosaic law, would to restore Israel, and would judge mankind. [ 3 ] Generally the figure of the Jewish Messiah was one who would deliver the Jews from oppression and usher in a Olam Haba ("world to come") or Messianic Age.
Before the Common Era
- Simon of Peraea (c. 4 BCE), a former slave of Herod the Great, who rebelled and was killed by the Romans. The messiah of Gabriel's Revelation. [ 4 ]
- Athronges (c. 4-2? BCE), a shepherd turned rebel leader of a rebellion with his four brothers against Herod Archelaus and the Romans after proclaiming himself the Messiah. [ 5 ] He and his brothers were eventually defeated. [ 6 ]
First century
- Jesus (ca. 4 BC - AD 30), in Galilee and the Roman province of Judea. Jews who believed him to be the Messiah were the first Christians, also known as Jewish Christians. It is estimated that there are between 1.5 and 2 billion Christians in the world today, [ 7 ] making Jesus of Nazareth the most widely followed Messiah claimant. In addition to Christians, Muslims also regard Jesus ('Isa) as the Jewish messiah.
- Judas of Galilee (6CE), Judas led a violent resistance to the census imposed for Roman tax purposes by Quirinius in Iudaea Province around AD 6. The revolt was crushed brutally by the Romans. [ 8 ]
Jesus Christ - Menahem ben Judah (?), the son or grandson of Judas of Galilee, was a leader of the Sicarii. When the war broke, he armed his followers with the weapons captured at Masada and besieged Antonia Fortress in Jerusalem, overpowering the troops of Agrippa II in Judea and forcing the Roman garrison to retreat. Emboldened by his success, he behaved as an "insufferable tyrant", [ 9 ] thereby arousing the enmity of Eleazar, the Temple Captain and de facto a rival Zealot rebel leader, who had him tortured and killed. [ 10 ] He is probably identical with the Menahem ben Hezekiah mentioned in the Talmud (tractate Sanhedrin 98b) and called "the comforter that should relieve".
- Theudas (?-46 AD), a Jewish rebel of the 1st century AD, at some point between 44 and 46 AD, Theudas led his followers in a short-lived revolt. Some writers are of the opinion that he may have said he was the Messiah. [ 11 ]
- Vespasian, c.70, according to Flavius Josephus [ 12 ]
- John of Gischala (? after 70), was a leader of the Jewish revolt against the Romans in the First Jewish-Roman War, and played a part in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70CE.