Perspectives on Scripture

Josephus

The importance of perspective.

Lets look at an example:

Someone says ‘In bocca al lupo’ to you, and you look it up. It means ‘Into the mouth of the wolf’.

The importance of perspective.

In bocca al lupo! (Into the mouth of the wolf!) = informal way to say Good luck! (probably was a hunting expression) You don't reply “Thank you” but rather Crepi il lupo! (May the wolf croak!) or buona fortuna, but the idiomatic form is much more common.

Scriptural examples

• Booths -

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• Groves -

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that is to say, temporary dwellings; i.e. tents.

that is to say, places of worship; i.e. temples, ‘high places’, altars, (and yes, stands of trees used for worship of idols or spirits)

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Scriptural examples

that is to say, a protected method of entering a city, such that it would be almost impossible to attack, but that there were no moving parts such as a gate or portcullis.

• Eye of the needle -

Last example, I promise!

Question: What does it mean when I say “Heap coals of fire on their heads”

Prov 25:21-22 “For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD shall reward thee.”

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Last example, I promise!

Answer: Sharing coals allows them to start their own fire easily - it was a nice thing to do, like letting someone share your lunch, or giving them a drink of water.

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Do you realize how often this is misquoted because of a lack of historical interpretation?

Understanding the author

In order to understand what we will be covering during the course of this study, we need to have an understanding of its author.

Let's take a look at, in his own words, the life of Flavius Josephus.

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Understanding the author

BUT!

Before we do that, do we have any questions?

Now is the time!

1. Family history
1. Royal blood
2. Family of good reputation
3. Of the priestly line, descended from the High Priests

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2. Personal origins

• Law expert at 14
• Prospective Pharisee at 16
• Trained with a hermit for 3 years
• Full Pharisee at 19

3. At 26 he went to Rome on his first mission - to free a group of priests from jail.
1. His ship sank
2. He became involved with Caesar's wife
3. He was successful due to her help.

• He found out about a revolt…
• So naturally, he tried to use his influence to try and stop it.
• After his failed attempt, and the subsequent attack on his life…
• He hid out at the temple to wait for Rome to put the revolt down.

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• Under pain of death, Jews were forced to fight other Jews.
• Even though they were promised their lives should they win, and even though they won - they were slaughtered anyway.

• He was sent out on a mission by the Sanhedrin - as a peacekeeper.
• Success!
• Josephus was forced to play politics with three factions

1. One faction was openly for revolt
2. The second was dead set against it
3. The third was playing the fence: openly against revolt (to cover themselves with the romans) but secretly they were fomenting revolt

• Meanwhile,

the city

of Tiberius

was also

in revolt:

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• Gamalia did not revolt.
• Philip escaped the siege
• then robbers
• then a conspiracy

In short, he was preserved by God.

Perspectives on Scripture

Josephus, Session 2

• Since the situation was so precarious, Josephus asked for the direction of the Sanhedrin

The Sanhedrin sent him to the other Pharisees in Galilee.

• Since the rebels had looted the palace, Josephus tried to recover the goods. The other ‘legates’ with whom he was working were bribed and he was threatened into submission.

• Ditched the bribable legates, (sent to Jerusalem) worked out a ‘protection money’ style agreement with the robbers to keep the peace.

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• The people of Terichese wanted to go to war with the people of Tiverius, and they wanted Josephus as their general.

Instead, Josephus used the common dislike both groups had for the Romans to bring peace.