In the last siege, the Roman commander tried to spare
the magnificent pile. When the Jews made it their chief fortress,
because of its massive strength, Titus remonstrated with them, saying:
"If you will but change the place whereon you fight, no Roman
shall either come near your sanctuary, or offer any affront to
it; nay, I will endeavor to preserve you your holy house,
whether you will or not."--_Josephus, "Wars of the Jews," book
6, chap. 2._
But the prophecy was fulfilled to the letter. The people seemed
possessed with fury. The hardened Roman pagans were astonished at their
suicidal rashness. Titus's efforts to save the temple failed, and it
went down in ruin, as Christ had foretold.
[Illustration: A PANEL FROM THE ARCH OF TITUS
Showing the golden candlestick and other sacred vessels of the temple
being carried in triumph through the streets of Rome.]
The disciples of Christ had called His attention to the immense blocks
of stone that composed the temple walls. "See, what manner of stones,"
one said. When Titus examined these same stones, after the fall of the
city, he is said to have declared:
"We have certainly had God for our assistant in this war, and
it was no other than God who ejected the Jews out of these
fortifications.
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