A messiah is a rather ambiguous term. It primarily means an anointed one; usually a messiah is considered a son of David and would restore Israel to what it once was. Since messiahs are anointed, they would typically be Jewish priests, prophets, and kings. But a Messiah can also be a warrior, or a man of peace. (CITE) A messiah was to restore unity among the Jewish people and break through the hardships and oppression they went through during early Judaism and bring a sense of freedom and relief. A series of messianic claimants came forward during the two peaks of the Jewish rebellion, the death of King Herod the Great and the first Jewish war against the Romans. The first search for a messiah began in the 6th century BC when the Jews of Babylon were exiled, they called for an anointed one to bring them back to their home. The second time was when Alexander the Great collapsed the Achaemenid Empire and left it to his Macedonian generals. The Jews were peaceful and tried to adapt more to the Greeks to avoid clashes in this period. Finally, when the Greeks went too far and destroyed the temple, the Hasmonean family led a revolt that brought independence back to the Jews. This period is referred to as the Hasmonean Dynasty. In response to this change in priesthood, the Jewish people reorganized themselves into three major philosophies; the Sadducees, the Pharisees and the Essenes. When the passage to Rome passed, the Jews lost their sense of freedom. They were then ruled by King Herod the Great, which did not improve. Herod the Great was a powerful, brutal and ruthless leader who achieved great things, however under his rule the Jewish people were extremely poor and highly taxed... middle of paper... army at his side. Simon and his followers were well organized and systematic in their approach. It works Quoted http://www.livius.org/men-mh/messiah/messiah_01.html http://www.livius.org/men-mh/messiah/messiah_06.html http://www.livius.org/ jo-jz/ jo sephus/josephus.htmhttp://www.livius.org/ja-jn/jewish_wars/jwar07.htmlhttp://www.livius.org/men-mh/messiah/messianic_claimants03.htmlAnchor Bible - Richard, HorsleyHorsley, Richard A. “Menahem In Jerusalem: A Brief Messianic Episode Among the Sicarii – Not “Zealot Messianism.” Novum Testamentum 27.4 (1985): 334-348. ATLA Religious Database with ATLASerials. Web. 4 April 2012. Stern, Pnina "Life of Josephus: The Autobiography of Josephus Journal for the Study of." Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Periods 41.1 (2010): 63-93 ATLA Religious Database with ATLASerials 4 April. 2012.