Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary

BAR-KOCHBA*, BAR-KOKBA*

Hero of the second Jewish revolt against Rome (AD 132-135) during the latter days of the emperor Hadrian’s rule. In Jewish sources he is referred to as Bar (or Ben) Koziba; his name means “son of a star.” Reasons for the rebellion are not fully known, but they include Hadrian’s construction of a pagan city on the site of Jerusalem (destroyed in AD 70), erection of a temple to the Roman god Jupiter on the site of the Jewish temple, and Hadrian’s prohibition against circumcision.

Even allowing for legendary additions to the story of Simeon Ben Koziba, president or prince of Israel, it is clear that he fought fiercely and courageously against the Romans and inspired his men to do likewise. The result was heavy casualties among the Romans and fearsome reprisals by them. Dio Cassius, third-century Roman historian, reported that the Romans destroyed 50 fortresses and 985 Jewish settlements during the war. They killed 580,000 in battle, and left multitudes to die of sickness and starvation. Judea was almost depopulated. Bar-Kochba himself was killed at the end of a long siege of Bethera (Bethar) near Jerusalem in AD 135.

During the terrible struggle, Jews were forced to seek refuge in caves and other hiding places. As a result, discoveries have been made that have raised Bar-Kochba from the level of legend to that of historical certainty. The first Bar-Kochba letters turned up in 1951 in a cave in a canyon called Wadi Murabba’at, 11 miles (17.7 kilometers south of Qumran (site of the Dead Sea Scroll caves), on the Jordanian side of the border in the Judean wilderness. Israelis exploring caves south of En-gedi in the Nahal Hever in 1960–61 found the personal belongings of refugees, letters written by Bar-Kochba, and scores of documents related to his administration. Coins of the Bar-Kochba revolt have also been found at the Herodium near Bethlehem and at Masada, showing that Bar-Kochba’s forces used those places as forts.