Josephus and the Politics of Historiography

Josephus and the Politics of Historiography
Author: Gottfried Mader
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 184
Release: 2017-07-31
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 9047400232

This new interpretation of Josephus' relationship to Greco-Roman historiography argues that classical motifs are selectively incorporated in BJ as a means of adjusting the reader's perspective, and are demonstrably related to the work's apologetic and polemical design.

Josephus and Judaean Politics

Josephus and Judaean Politics
Author: Seth Schwartz
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2022-04-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 9004450882

This synthetic treatment of Josephus and his times has two aims. The first is to establish Josephus' attitudes to the various Judaean aristocratic groups of the first century - priests, descendants of Herod, certain sectarians - and how these attitudes changed. The second aim is more speculative: to connect these changes with actual changes in Judaean politics and society in the c. 30 years of Josephus' literary activity, a critical period of transformation following the destruction of Jerusalem. The first chapter examines Josephus' life from his detection to Vespasian, and suggests that Josephus always retained an interest in current public affairs, particularly those of Judaea. Chapters 2-4 discuss the changes of attitude within the Josephan corpus and place them in the context of the evidence of the coins, inscriptions, Rabbinic literature and pagan historians. It is argued that these changes allow us to trace the decline of the pre-66 aristocracy groups after 70. Chapter 5 argues that there arose a new aristocracy in the 80s and 90s, a rise which left its mark in Josephus' later work.

Josephus, Paul, and the Fate of Early Christianity

Josephus, Paul, and the Fate of Early Christianity
Author: F. B. A. Asiedu
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 371
Release: 2019-03-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1978701330

Flavius Josephus, the priest from Jerusalem who was affiliated with the Pharisees, is our most important source for Jewish life in the first century. His notice about the death of James the brother of Jesus suggests that Josephus knew about the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem and in Judaea. In Rome, where he lived for the remainder of his life after the Jewish War, a group of Christians appear to have flourished, if 1 Clement is any indication. Josephus, however, says extremely little about the Christians in Judaea and nothing about those in Rome. He also does not reference Paul the apostle, a former Pharisee, who was a contemporary of Josephus’s father in Jerusalem, even though, according to Acts, Paul and his activities were known to two successive Roman governors (procurators) of Judaea, Marcus Antonius Felix and Porcius Festus, and to King Herod Agrippa II and his sisters Berenice and Drusilla. The knowledge of the Herodians, in particular, puts Josephus’s silence about Paul in an interesting light, suggesting that it may have been deliberate. In addition, Josephus’s writings bear very little witness to other contemporaries in Rome, so much so that if we were dependent on Josephus alone we might conclude that many of those historical characters either did not exist or had little or no impact in the first century. Asiedu comments on the state of life in Rome during the reign of the Emperor Domitian and how both Josephus and the Christians who produced 1 Clement coped with the regime as other contemporaries, among whom he considers Martial, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, and others, did. He argues that most of Josephus’s contemporaries practiced different kinds of silences in bearing witness to the world around them. Consequently, the absence of references to Jews or Christians in Roman writers of the last three decades of the first century, including Josephus, should not be taken as proof of their non-existence in Flavian Rome.

Josephus

Josephus
Author: Miriam Maranzenboim
Publisher:
Total Pages: 448
Release: 2017-02-14
Genre: Jews
ISBN: 9781944878320

After 2,000 years, the writings of Josephus remain an important and relevant source for historians and Bible scholars. "Josephus - The History of the Jews Condensed in Simple English" takes one of his most important works and presents it to modern readers in condensed simple English--the first update of his "Antiquities" in nearly 300 years.Treasures of faith and history await the reader's discovery on each page. Find out about a prophetic and friendly meeting between Alexander the Great and the high priest, Jaddua. Learn important details about the first and second temples--essential for understanding the spirituality and religious politics in those times. This book is an invaluable resource for those wanting to quickly and easily access "The History of the Jews." Miriam has condensed the massive original text of Josephus into one easily read volume. The language is clear and simple--making this a valuable tool to help young boys and girls preparing for their bar/bat mitzvah better appreciate their rich heritage and history, and to see the hand of G-d directing the events recorded by Josephus. Original illustrations, a map, a table of equivalents, and a colorful timeline further contribute to understanding the complexities of the times about which Josephus wrote.

A Companion to Josephus

A Companion to Josephus
Author: Honora Howell Chapman
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 482
Release: 2016-01-19
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 1444335332

A Companion to Josephus presents a collection of readings from international scholars that explore the works of the first century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Represents the first single-volume collection of readings to focus on Josephus Covers a wide range of disciplinary approaches to the subject, including reception history Features contributions from 29 eminent scholars in the field from four continents Reveals important insights into the Jewish and Roman worlds at the moment when Christianity was gaining ground as a movement Named Outstanding Academic Title of 2016 by Choice Magazine, a publication of the American Library Association

Pontius Pilate in History and Interpretation

Pontius Pilate in History and Interpretation
Author: Helen K. Bond
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 279
Release: 1998-11-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 0521631149

This study reconstructs the historical Pontius Pilate and looks at the way in which he is used as a literary character in the works of six first century authors: Philo, Josephus and the four evangelists. The first chapter provides an introduction to the history and formation of the imperial Roman province of Judaea. The following two chapters examine the references to Pilate in Philo and Josephus, looking at each author's biases before going on to assess the historicity of their accounts. The next four chapters look at the portrayal of Pilate in each gospel, asking how a first century reader would have interpreted his actions. Each chapter asks what this portrayal shows about the author's attitude towards the Roman state, and what kind of community found this useful. The conclusion distinguishes between the 'historical Pilate' and the different 'Pilate of interpretation' preserved in our first century literary sources.

MishnahEnglish

MishnahEnglish
Author: Amram D. Tropper
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780199267125

In third-century CE Palestine, the leading member of the rabbinic movement put together a highly popular wisdom treatise entitled Tractate Avot. Though Avot has inspired hundreds of commentaries, this book marks the first comprehensive effort to situate Avot within the context of the Graeco-Roman Near East. Following his novel interpretation of Avot, Amram Tropper relates the text to ancient Jewish literary paradigms as well as to relevant socio-political, literary, and intellectual streams of the contemporary Near East. Through comparisons to ancient wisdom literature, the Second Sophistic, Greek and Christian historiography, contemporary collections of sayings, and classical Roman jurisprudence, Tropper interprets Avot in light of the local Jewish context as well as the ambient cultural atmosphere of the contemporary Near East.

Greek Writers and Philosophers in Philo and Josephus

Greek Writers and Philosophers in Philo and Josephus
Author: Erkki Koskenniemi
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 362
Release: 2019-02-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004391924

In Greek Writers and Philosophers in Philo and Josephus Erkki Koskenniemi investigates how two Jewish writers, Philo and Josephus, quoted, mentioned and referred to Greek writers and philosophers. He asks what this tells us about their Greek education, their contacts with Classical culture in general, and about the societies in which Philo and Josephus lived. Although Philo in Alexandria and Josephus in Jerusalem both had the possibility to acquire a thorough knowledge of Greek language and culture, they show very different attitudes. Philo, who was probably admitted to the gymnasium, often and enthusiastically refers to Greek poets and philosophers. Josephus on the other hand rarely quotes from their works, giving evidence of a more traditionalistic tendencies among Jewish nobility in Jerusalem.

Josephus And Jewish History in Flavian Rome And Beyond

Josephus And Jewish History in Flavian Rome And Beyond
Author: Joseph Sievers
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 471
Release: 2005
Genre: History
ISBN: 9004141790

This volume focuses on the interplay between Josephus' Judean identity and his Roman context. After treating historiographical and literary issues, it addresses Josephus' presentation of Judaism and of historical "facts." A final section deals with the transmission of his works.