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The Jewish War

For other uses, seeJewish War.

The Jewish War[a][b]is a work ofJewish historywritten byJosephus,a first-centuryRoman-Jewishhistorian.[1][2][3]It has been described by the historianSteve Masonas "perhaps the most influential non-biblical text of Western history".[4]

The Jewish War
Hebrew–Latin edition ofThe Jewish War(Basle, 1559)
AuthorJosephus
Original titleFlavius Josephus's Books of the History of the Jewish War Against the Romans
LanguageAramaic(lost),Greek
GenreHistory
Publication date
c. AD 75
Publication placeRoman Empire
Followed byAntiquities of the Jews

Content

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Divided into seven books, it opens with a summary ofJewish historyfrom the capture ofJerusalemby theSeleucidrulerAntiochus IV Epiphanesin 168 BC to the first stages of theFirst Jewish–Roman War(Books I and II). The next five books detail the unfolding of the war, under Roman generalsVespasianandTitus,to the death of the lastSicarii.The book was written about 75 AD, originally in Josephus' "paternal tongue" – eitherAramaicorHebrew[5]– though this version has not survived. It was later translated into Greek, probably under the supervision of Josephus himself. Buth and Pierce wrote "the current Greek edition does not appear to be a translation, but must be considered a new edition, a complete re-working of the first writing and likely a considerable expansion."[6]

The sources of theFirst Jewish–Roman Warare: this account of Josephus, theTalmud(Gittin57b),Midrash Eichah,theHebrewinscriptions on theJewish coinsminted, and Book V ofTacitus'Histories.[7]

The text also survives inan Old Slavonic version,as well as Hebrew which contains material not found in the Greek version, and which is lacking other material found in the Greek version.[8]

  • The Jewish War,1493 Italian translation
  • 1581 German translation of Josephi’sThe Jewish Warin the collection of theJewish Museum of Switzerland.

Influence

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Josephus was a popular writer among Christians in the fourth century and beyond as an independent historian to the events before, during, and after the life ofJesus of Nazareth.Josephus was always accessible in the Greek-reading Eastern Mediterranean.The Jewish Warwas translated into Latin (Bellum Judaicum) in the fourth century byPseudo-Hegesippusin abbreviated form as well as by an unknown other in full, and both versions were widely distributed throughout the Western Roman Empire and its successor states. Christian interest inThe Jewish Warwas largely out of interest in the downfall of the Jews and the Second Temple, which was one of the sources for the antisemitic trope ofdivine punishment for the crime of killing Jesus.Improvements in printing technology (theGutenberg Press) led to the work receiving a number of new translations into the vernacular languages of Europe; the original Greek text was also published in Basel in 1544. In English, the most influential translations wereThomas Lodge's 1602 translation (The Tragic History of the Jews), followed byWilliam Whiston's 1760s translation (The Wars of the Jews).[9]

On the Jewish side, Josephus was far more obscure, as he was perceived as a traitor. Rabbinical writings for a millennium after his death (e.g. theMishnah) almost never call out Josephus by name, although they sometimes tell parallel tales of the same events that Josephus narrated. An Italian Jew writing in the 10th century indirectly brought Josephus back to prominence among Jews: he authored theYosippon,which paraphrases Pseudo-Hegesippus's Latin version ofThe Jewish War(among other works), and included additional historical snippets at times. Jews generally distrusted Christian translations of Josephus until the 19th century, when sufficiently "neutral" vernacular language translations were made.Kalman Schulmanfinally created a translation of the Greek text of Josephus into Hebrew in 1863, although many rabbis continued to prefer the Yosippon version. By the 20th century, Jewish attitudes toward Josephus had softened, as Jews found parts ofThe Jewish Warinspiring and favorable to the Jews. The last stand at Masada was seen as inspirational rather than tragic, for example. A 1938 / 1941 play,Jerusalem and Rome,was loosely based onThe Jewish War,and various novels were written.[10]These 20th century interpretations inevitably reflected the concerns of the era, unsurprisingly, such as thepersecution of Jewsin Russia and Nazi-era Europe, the nascentZionistmovement, and the situation of Jewish settlers in theBritish Mandate of Palestine.[9]

For scholars, Josephus is and remains an invaluable resource for study of the Jewish-Roman war. While he is clearly deferential toward hisFlavian dynastyRoman patrons, he is generally considered a relatively neutral source.[9]

See also

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Explanatory notes

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  1. ^Also known asThe Judean War,The Wars of the Jews,andBellum Judaicum(inLatin).
  2. ^In full:History of the Jewish War Against the Romans;Greek:Ἱστορία Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πολέμου πρὸς Ῥωμαίους,Ηistoria Ioudaikou polemou pros Rōmaious.

Citations

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  1. ^Josèphe, Flavius (2008).Flavius Josephus: Translation and Commentary. Judean war, Flavius Josephus, Steve Mason, Honora Chapman.BRILL.ISBN978-9004169340.Retrieved2013-07-20.
  2. ^Brighton, Mark Andrew (2009).The Sicarii in Josephus's Judean War, Mark Andrew Brighton.Society of Biblical Lit.ISBN9781589834064.Retrieved2013-07-20.
  3. ^Hanson, Kenneth C.; Oakman, Douglas E. (15 July 2008).Palestine in the Time of Jesus: Social Structures and Social Conflicts, K. C. Hanson, Douglas E. Oakman.Fortress Press.ISBN9781451407136.Retrieved2013-07-20.
  4. ^Mason, Steve(19 January 2016)."Josephus's Judean War".In Honora Howell Chapman and Zuleika Rodgers (ed.).A Companion to Josephus.John Wiley & Sons. p. 13.ISBN978-1-4443-3533-0.
  5. ^Buth & Pierce 2014,pp. 88–89, and footnote 64.
  6. ^Buth & Pierce 2014,p. 89, footnote 64.
  7. ^Tacitus."Book V".The Histories.Translated by Church, Alfred John; Brodribb, William Jackson. The Internet Classics Archive.Retrieved2013-07-20.
  8. ^Christopher M. Weimer."The Slavonic Josephus' Account of the Baptist and Jesus".Gnosis.org.Retrieved2013-07-20.
  9. ^abcJosephus, Flavius(2017) [c. 75]. "Introduction".The Jewish War.Introduction byMartin Goodman.Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. xxix–xxxv.
  10. ^Bistritzky’s Play 'Jerusalem and Rome' (1938/1941)

General and cited references

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