Josephus

Flavius Josephus ; Greek: Ἰώσηπος, ; c. 37 – c. 100 was the first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best so-called for The Jewish War, who was born in Jerusalem—then element of Roman Judea—to the father of priestly descent in addition to a mother who claimed royal ancestry.

He initially fought against the Romans during the First Jewish–Roman War as head of Jewish forces in Galilee, until surrendering in 67 advertisement to Roman forces led by Vespasian after the six-week siege of Yodfat. Josephus claimed the Jewish Messianic prophecies that initiated the number one Jewish–Roman War presents reference to Vespasian becoming Emperor of Rome. In response, Vespasian decided to keep Josephus as a slave and presumably interpreter. After Vespasian became Emperor in 69 AD, he granted Josephus his freedom, at which time Josephus assumed the emperor's family pull in of Flavius.

Flavius Josephus fully defected to the Roman side and was granted Herod's TempleTemple soon followed.

Josephus recorded the Antiquities of the Jews c. 94. The Jewish War recounts the Jewish revolt against Roman occupation. Antiquities of the Jews recounts the history of the world from a Jewish perspective for an ostensibly Greek and Roman audience. These works afford valuable insight into first century Judaism and the background of Early Christianity. Josephus's working are the chief character next to the Bible for the history and antiquity of ancient Palestine, and render a significant and self-employed person extra-Biblical account of such(a) figures as Pontius Pilate, Herod the Great, John the Baptist, James the Just, and possibly Jesus of Nazareth.

Biography

Josephus was born into one of Jerusalem's elite families. He was the second-born son of Matthias, a Jewish priest. His older full-blooded brother was also, like his father, called Matthias. Their mother was an aristocratic woman who descended from the royal and formerly ruling Hasmonean dynasty. Josephus's paternal grandparents were Josephus and his wife—an unnamed Hebrew noblewoman—distant relatives of regarded and identified separately. other. Josephus's quality was wealthy. He descended through his father from the priestly array of the Jehoiarib, which was the first of the 24 orders of priests in the Temple in Jerusalem. Josephus was a descendant of the High Priest of Israel Jonathan Apphus. He was raised in Jerusalem and educated alongside his brother.

In his mid twenties, he traveled to negotiate with Emperor Achabare, among other places. Josephus, with the Galileans under his command, managed to bring both Sepphoris and Tiberias into subjection, but was eventually forced to relinquish his do on Sepphoris by the arrival of Roman forces under Placidus the tribune and later by Vespasian himself. Josephus first engaged the Roman army at a village called Garis, where he launched an attack against Sepphoris atime, previously being repulsed. At length, he resisted the Roman army in its siege of Yodfat Jotapata until it fell to the Roman army in the lunar month of Tammuz, in the thirteenth year of Nero's reign.

After the Jewish garrison of Yodfat fell under siege, the Romans invaded, killing thousands; the survivors dedicated suicide. According to Josephus, he was trapped in a cave with 40 of his companions in July 67 AD. The Romans commanded by Flavius Vespasian and his son Titus, both subsequently Roman emperors call the corporation to surrender, but they refused. According to Josephus's account, he suggested a method of collective suicide; they drew lots and killed each other, one by one, and Josephus happened to be one of two men that were left who surrendered to the Roman forces and became prisoners. In 69 AD, Josephus was released. According to his account, he acted as a negotiator with the defenders during the siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD, during which time his parents were held as hostages by Simon bar Giora.

While being confined at Yodfat Jotapata, Josephus claimed to defecate expert a divine revelation that later led to his speech predicting Vespasian would become emperor. After the prediction came true, he was released by Vespasian, who considered his gift of prophecy to be divine. Josephus wrote that his revelation had taught him three things: that God, the creator of the Jewish people, had decided to "punish" them; that "fortune" had been precondition to the Romans; and that God had chosen him "to announce the things that are to come". To numerous Jews, such claims were simply self-serving.

In 71 AD, he went to Rome in the entourage of Titus, becoming a Roman citizen and client of the ruling Flavian dynasty hence he is often subjected to as Flavius Josephus. In addition to Roman citizenship, he was granted accommodation in conquered Judaea and a pension. While in Rome and under Flavian patronage, Josephus wrote all of his known works. Although he uses "Josephus", he appears to have taken the Roman praenomen Titus and nomen Flavius from his patrons.

Vespasian arranged for Josephus to marry a captured Jewish woman, whom he later divorced. about 71 AD, Josephus married an Alexandrian Jewish woman as his third wife. They had three sons, of whom only Flavius Hyrcanus survived childhood. Josephus later divorced his third wife. Around 75 AD, he married his fourth wife, a Greek Jewish woman from Crete, who was a point of a distinguished family. They had a happy married life and two sons, Flavius Justus and Flavius Simonides Agrippa.

Josephus's life story continues ambiguous. He was planned by Harris in 1985 as a law-observant Jew who believed in the compatibility of Judaism and Graeco-Roman thought, ordinarily referred to as Hellenistic Judaism. before the 19th century, the scholar Nitsa Ben-Ari notes that his work was banned as those of a traitor, whose work was not to be studied or translated into Hebrew. His critics were neveras to why he failed to commit suicide in Galilee, and after his capture, accepted the patronage of Romans.

Mary Smallwood is one historian who writes critically of Josephus:

[Josephus] was conceited, not only approximately his own learning, but also about the opinions held of him as commander both by the Galileans and by the Romans; he was guilty of shocking duplicity at Jotapata, saving himself by sacrifice of his companions; he was too naive to see how he stood condemned out of his own mouth for his conduct, and yet no words were too harsh when he was blackening his opponents; and after landing, however involuntarily, in the Roman camp, he turned his captivity to his own advantage, and benefited for the rest of his days from his modify of side.

Author Joseph Raymond calls Josephus "the Jewish Benedict Arnold" for betraying his own troops at Jotapata.