ABSTRACT
Inter-class tensions, increasing economic stress, heavy taxation, ethnic antagonism, and oppressive Roman governors could all be found in fi rst-century Judea. ese hardships undoubtedly contributed signifi cantly to the rising tensions that climaxed with the general revolt. Yet, could such factors, however stressful, have provoked an uprising of such scale and nurtured the perseverance of the rebels through years of suff ering and against severe losses and increasing certainty of failure? is chapter examines various non-ideological aspects of the political, social, and material stress and the potential infl uence of each in the decision and determination of Judean Jews to fi ght Rome. An analysis based on both historical and archaeological data of their relative impact against that of the intense religious ideologies which prevailed in Judea at that time occupies the fi nal chapters of this study.
