The Essenes, on the other hand, were the ones who had rebelled against the
corrupt priesthood in the temple, went into a self-imposed exile, and lived
in communities out in the desert, waiting for the restoration of a pure
priesthood and the Tabernacle of Moses. It was probably an Essene who
directed the disciples to the upper room for their last Passover with Jesus.

The Pharisees, who already in the times of Jesus loved to be called
"Rabbis," were the ones who eventually developed Rabbinical Judaism, as we
know it today. After the destruction of the temple when their most bitter
rivals, the Sadducees, lost their power, they did everything they could to
gain control over the masses. They actually developed a new religion that
was centered on good deeds and studies of the law, instead of worship at the
temple.

One of their leaders, Rabbi Johannan Ben Zakkai, escaped the destruction of
Jerusalem being carried out of the city by his disciples in a coffin,
pretending to be dead. After the war ended he received permission from the
Romans to establish a new Rabbinical School in the city of Yavneh, away from
Jerusalem, and it was from this place that Rabbinical Judaism emerged.

The one who became the real father of Rabbinical Judaism was Rabbi Akiva.
With what must be considered demonically inspired wisdom, he developed a
long-range plan over many years to establish Rabbinical Judaism as the only
true expression of Jewish faith. The crowning act was to proclaim a cruel,
ruthless military leader, Simeon Ben Kosiba as Messiah, thus starting a
bloody uprising against Rome.

Rabbi Akiva changed one letter in Kosiba's last name and called him Bar
Kokhba, which means "Son of a Star," referring to the Messianic prophecy in
Num. 24:17. "I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star
shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the
brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult."

It is evident that there were no messianic qualifications in Bar Kokhba,
only that he was a ruthless and bold warrior - just what Akiva needed. Akiva
even prophesied before the uprising that it would fail! But through the
revolt he would accomplish his main task: to establish Rabbinical Judaism as
the only accepted Judaism. He knew that especially the Messianic Jews would
not be able to accept Bar-Kokhba as the Messiah, and therefore, in this way,
they could be blamed for the failure of the revolt, excommunicated forever
from the community of Israel. To reach his goal he was willing to sacrifice
the lives of millions of his own people.

Messianic author Daniel Gruber writes in his revealing book "Rabbi Akiva's
Messiah: The Origins of Rabbinic Authority": "The Bar Kokhba Revolt against
Roman rule in the time of the Emperor Hadrian equaled, or surpassed, these
two previous tragedies (the destruction of the First and Second Temple) in
the numbers who were killed, starved to death, or led into exile and
slavery. ...In long-term consequences, the Bar Kokhba Rebellion of 132-135
CE (Common Era / A.D.), 'the Last Revolt' against Roman rule, may well have
been the greatest disaster in Jewish history...

"The Babylonian destruction and exile were eclipsed by the return to the
land seventy years later. The failure of the 'Great Revolt' brought the
destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple, but the Jews were still
permitted to remain in the land. Following the Bar Kokhba Rebellion
(however), Jews were forbidden to inhabit the land of Judea. That legal
prohibition and the exile it mandated lasted for eighteen centuries. The
Romans (even) changed the name of the land to 'Palestine' to demonstrate
that it would never again be a Jewish land." End quote.

 To be included in the Sanhedrin in Akiva's days, a rabbi had to be a
"master of sorcery," something, which of course God explicitly forbids in
the Law. He also had to be able to prove from the Bible that a reptile is a
clean animal. In other words he had to be able to "prove" that the Bible
means the opposite of what it says. "It is not in heaven" was a phrase that
became a guiding principle. It means that what the majority of the Rabbis
declare to be right, is right even if it is wrong.

In fact, they taught that God laughs when men outwit Him! This is the same
spirit of deception that is gaining more and more influence today in Israel.
A generation ago the rabbis in Israel had nothing to do with politics. Today
it is getting more and more difficult for the government in Israel to make
any decision until the leading rabbis, the Sages, have met together and
agreed on their policy.