Jacob had seen that, after they had rejected the Messiah, they would be scattered and subjected to many sufferings, but also gathered for a second time. In the year 70 A.D. Titus destroyed Jerusalem. Our Lord had said (Luke 21:24) that Jerusalem should be trodden down by the Gentiles “until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” Emperor Julian (331-63 A.D.), in order to discredit the prophecies and please the Jews, encouraged these to rebuild the city and the temple. But the work was interrupted by earthquakes and flames of fire—remarkable phenomena for which even the famous Gibbon has found it difficult to account. Furthermore, during the so-called Crusades a series of “holy” wars, started by Pope Urban II, begun in 1096 and lasting, off and on, until 1272 A.D., all western Europe was united in efforts at rescuing the Holy Land from the domination of the Gentiles. But it was all in vain. Romans, Greeks, Persians, Turks and Arabs continued to trample Jerusalem under foot.