Judas of Galilee
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Judas of Galilee, Judas Galileus, or Judas of Gamala (after his birth-place) was the leader of a Jewish revolt, or Zealot movement, against the Romans about 6AD. Judas, along with Zadok (Zadduk, Sadduc), a Pharisee, preached that God alone was the ruler of Israel and later urged that no taxes should be paid to Rome.
Judas led an assault on a Roman garrison at the kings armory in Sepphoris, then the capital of Galilee (7 km from Nazareth). When Jesus spoke of a millstone hung around someone's neck and that person being cast into the sea, he was using an illustration contemporary to his time. According to the Jewish historian, Josephus, in his Antiquities, Judas the Galilean was drowned in a lake in this fashion. Another source says, Josephus does not relate the death of Judas, although he does report (Antiquities 20.5.2 102) that Judas' sons James and Simon were executed by procurator Alexander in about 46 CE, several years after R. Gamaliel's statement.
Judas is also mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles:
Acts 5
36 For before these days Theudas rose up, making himself out to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were dispersed, and came to nothing.
37 After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the enrollment, and drew away some people after him. He also perished, and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered abroad.
