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Simeon to come to their aid. Simeon thus gained control of
the larger part of Jerusalem, both of the Upper and a considerable
section of the Lower City.
The struggle between Simeon and John of Giscala continued.
Constant hostilities were waged between them in the
city, and came to an end only when Titus’ forces reached the
outskirts of Jerusalem (April 70 C.E.). Although all the rebels
joined together during the siege to fight against the Romans
and performed deeds of astounding bravery, the advantage
enjoyed by the Roman army proved decisive. The Temple was
burned and the devastated city captured by the enemy. Simeon
and several of his most loyal friends hid in an underground
passage among the ruins, but, unable to escape, Simeon finally
surrendered to the Romans and was taken prisoner. The
circumstances of his surrender were extremely strange. Josephus
relates that Simeon suddenly appeared among the Temple
ruins, as though out of the bowels of the earth, dressed in
white and covered with a purple mantle. At the sight of him
the Romans were terrified, but after recovering from their
fear, bound him in chains. His strange appearance was probably
connected with messianic expectations on his part; or by
submitting to the victorious enemy he may have deliberately
invited martyrdom.
Simeon was led as a prisoner in the triumphal procession
held in Rome by Vespasian and his sons to celebrate their victory
over the Jews. Scourged all the way, he was taken to the
Mamertine prison, at the northeast end of the Forum, and executed
at the moment of the culmination of the triumph. That
he and not John of Giscala played this part in the triumphal
procession shows that the Romans regarded him as the most
important leader in Jerusalem and as the rebel commander.
This is evident from other extant information as well. His army
was far larger than that of his rivals, having numbered about
15,000 at the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem. His soldiers
were also the best organized and disciplined. The fact that he
was invited to Jerusalem by the priests and the people may
have provided him with some legal basis for his leadership,
although not all the patriot elements recognized his authority.
Since information about them is very sparse, it is difficult
to comprehend and explain the basis of the conflict between
their different parties. At times it is even difficult to distinguish
between the parties themselves. Nevertheless, from extant
information it would appear that Simeon b. Giora was
the leader of a clear eschatological trend in the movement of
rebellion against Rome, and possibly filled the role of “king
messiah” within the complex of eschatological beliefs held by
his followers. His exceptional bravery and daring, mentioned
by Josephus, undoubtedly attracted many to him, and won
him preeminence among the rebel leaders. In contrast to the
bitter hostility that existed between him and John of Giscala,
there was a measure of understanding between him and the
Sicarii at Masada.
Conspicuous among Simeon’s characteristics was the enmity
he bore toward the rich and the sympathy he showed to
the poor, even to the extent of freeing slaves. This approach of
bar hedya
his doubtless had its origin in his party’s social outlook, opposed
as it was to the existing order also in regard to the economic
system and social justice.
Bibliography: J. Klausner, Ke-she-Ummah Nilḥemet al
Ḥerutah (19559), 151–86; M. Hengel, Die Zeloten (1961), 303–4, 381–2;
M. Stern, in: Ha-Ishiyyut ve-Dorah (1963), 70–78; O. Michel, in: New
Testament Studies, 14 (1967/68), 402–8 (Ger.); C. Roth, in: Commentary,
29 (1960), 52–58.
[Uriel Rappaport]
°BAR HEBRAEUS (or Bar ʿEbhraya or Ibn al-ʿIbri), JOHA-
NAN (later: Gregorius or Abu al Faraj; 1226–1286), the last of
the important writers in Syriac. He was the son of an apostate
Jewish physician, Aaron (hence the appellation Son of the Hebrew),
and knew Hebrew. Born in Malaṭīya (in Asia Minor) he
went with his father to Antioch, where he became a monk. He
also pursued secular studies, at first under his father’s tutelage
and later with a Nestorian scholar in Tripoli (Syria). In 1246 he
was ordained Jacobite (Monophysite) bishop of Gubos (near
Mulafryn) and assumed the name Gregorius. In 1252 he was
appointed Maphriyan (archbishop) of Mesopotamia and Persia.
Bar Hebraeus traveled widely, supervising the congregations
of his church. He died at Maghāra in Azerbaijan.
Bar Hebraeus was a prolific writer. His commentary
Oẓar Razei (“Treasury of Secret Wisdom”) on the Old and
New Testaments, reveals the influence of traditional Jewish
exegesis. In addition to theological works such as Ḥokhmat
Ḥokhmeta, which contains a systematic exposition of Aristotle’s
teaching, he also wrote on Syriac grammar and composed
a Syriac Chronicle, a history of the world from creation
to his own time, in two parts: ecclesiastical history and secular
history. It was translated into English by E.A.W. Budge
in 1932, and became widely known. Bar Hebraeus also wrote
many poems and compiled a collection of entertaining stories
(English translation, Oriental Wit and Wisdom, or the Laughable
Stories, 1889). In addition, he translated Arabic works
into Syriac (including the philosophical work of *Avicenna,
Kitāb al-Ishārāt), and also wrote works in Arabic, including an
abridgment of the secular portion of his Chronicle with some
revisions and addenda, and an epitome of the large work of
al-Ghāfikī on medications (part published in the original with
an English translation, with a commentary by M. Meyerhof
and G.P. Sohby, 1932).
Bibliography: A. Baumstark, Geschichte der syrischen Literatur
(1922), 312–20; G. Graf, Geschichte der christlichen arabischen
Literatur, 2 (1947), 272–81; Brockelmann, Arab Lit, 1 (1898), 349–50,
591; W. Wright, Short History of Syriac Literature (1894), 265–81.
[Eliyahu Ashtor]
BAR HEDYA (fl. first half of the fourth century), Babylonian
scholar. Bar Hedya was one of the neḥutei, amoraim who
moved between Babylonia and Ereẓ Israel, transmitting the
rabbinical traditions of both countries. He testified, among
other things, that in Ereẓ Israel care was taken to ensure that
Hoshana Rabba (the 7th day of Tabernacles) did not fall on a
ENCYCLOPAEDIA JUDAICA, Second Edition, Volume 3 151