Quote Originally Posted by David Merrill View Post
This point is more poignant in light of the Gospel of Pragmatism, where one considers that the Messiah ben David was not delivering Israel from Rome so much as from the Jews on the Temple Mount. Read Nehemiah, Chapter 10 and parse out the parties. This was the Babylonian occupation. Prior to that, the Hebrew alphabet went to 400, not 1000 and there were no "jots and tittles" - diacritical markings.
Some suggest Rome to be the iron rod that the manchild (ala Revelations) wields. The separation of wheat from chaff and good figs from bad figs isn't a diss. He delivered Israel. It is suggest that those who rebelled or who were in apostasy were punished.