Editing Nero (section)

===Jewish tradition===
An [[Aggadah]] in the Talmud says that at the end of AD 66, conflict broke out between Greeks and Jews in [[Jerusalem]] and [[Caesarea Maritima|Caesarea]]. According to the [[Talmud]], during the [[First Jewish–Roman War|Great Jewish Revolt]], Nero went to Jerusalem and shot arrows in all four directions. All the arrows landed in the city. He then asked a passing child to repeat the verse he had learned that day. The child responded, "I will lay my vengeance upon [[Edom]] by the hand of my people Israel" ([[Ezekiel 25]]:14).<ref>[[Ezekiel]] [http://av1611.com/kjbp/kjv-bible-text/Eze-25.html 25:14]</ref> Upon hearing this, Nero became terrified, believing that God wanted the [[Second Temple]] to be destroyed, but that he would punish the one to carry it out. Nero said, "He desires to lay waste His House and to lay the blame on me," whereupon he fled and converted to Judaism to avoid such retribution.<ref>Talmud, [[Treatise|tractate]] [[Gittin|Gitin]] 56a-b</ref> [[Vespasian]] was then dispatched to put down the rebellion.

The Talmud adds that the sage [[Rabbi Meir|Reb Meir Baal HaNess]] lived in the time of the [[Mishnah]], and was a prominent supporter of the [[Simon bar Kokhba|Bar Kokhba]] [[Bar Kokhba's revolt|rebellion]] against Roman rule. Rabbi Meir was considered one of the greatest of the [[Tannaim]] of the third generation (139–163). According to the Talmud, he was a descendant of Nero, who had converted to Judaism.<ref>Gittin 56a</ref>
[[Azariah de Rossi]] and others, such as R. [[David Gans]], suggest that Nero may have converted secretly, explaining the absence of historical records. [[Maharal]] takes the Talmudic narrative at face value, interpreting it as a reflection of Nero’s moral character rather than a literal historical account. Modern scholars view the story as a rabbinic motif linking a non-Jewish figure to a Jewish sage, while others like [[Zvi Ron]] allegorize it as a lesson about the consequences of refusing to mediate conflict.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Reuven Chaim |last1=Klein |date= 2023 |title= Are historical sections of the Talmud actually historical? Critical tools for understanding historical claims in rabbinic literature |url=https://www.academia.edu/127965994|journal=Journal of Philological Pedagogy |volume=12 |issue= |publisher=Chandler School of Education |pages=42–75 |doi=10.17613/rjp5a-md343 }}</ref>

The Talmudic legend about Nero is not supported by contemporary sources. Roman and Greek sources nowhere report Nero's alleged trip to Jerusalem or his alleged conversion to Judaism.<ref>[[Benjamin Isaac|Isaac, Benjamin]]. 2004. ''The Invention of Racism in Classical Antiquity''. [[Princeton University Press]]. pp. 440–491. {{ISBN|978-0-691-12598-5 }}.</ref> There is also no record of Nero having any offspring who survived infancy: his only recorded child, [[Claudia Augusta]], died aged 4 months.