The last of the Elders (z'keinim) who were contemporaries of Joshua and outlived him, passed away in the year 2533 after creation. They were part of the chain of Torah transmission as listed at the beginning of Ethics of the Fathers: "Moses received the Torah from Sinai and gave it over to Joshua. Joshua gave it over to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets..."
In ancient times, this day was marked as a fast day.
[Some are of the opinion that this occurred on the 5th of Shevat].
They have banished G‑d into exile.
They have decreed He is too holy, too transcendent to belong in our world.
They have determined He does not belong within the ordinary, in the daily run of things.
And so they have driven Him out of His garden, to the realm of prayer and meditation, to the sanctuaries and the secluded places of hermits. They have sentenced the Creator to exile, and His creation they have locked in a dark, cold prison.
And He pleads, “Let me come back to My garden, to the place in which I found delight when it all began.”