Josephus

In Our Time

BBC

History

4.6 • 9.2K Ratings

🗓️ 21 May 2015

⏱️ 46 minutes

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Summary

It is said that, in Britain from the 18th Century, copies of Josephus' works were as widespread and as well read as The Bible. Christians valued "The Antiquities of the Jews" in particular, for the retelling of parts of the Old Testament and apparently corroborating the historical existence of Jesus. Born Joseph son of Matthias, in Jerusalem, in 37AD, he fought the Romans in Galilee in the First Jewish-Roman War. He was captured by Vespasian's troops and became a Roman citizen, later describing the siege and fall of Jerusalem. His actions and writings made him a controversial figure, from his lifetime to the present day. With Tessa Rajak Professor Emeritus of Ancient History, University of Reading Philip Alexander Professor Emeritus of Jewish Studies, University of Manchester And Martin Goodman Professor of Jewish Studies, University of Oxford and President of the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies Producer: Simon Tillotson.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Thank you for downloading this episode of In Our Time for more details about In Our Time
0:04.1	and for our terms of use, please go to bbc.co.uk slash radio4.
0:08.9	I hope you enjoy the program.
0:11.4	Hello, in 67 AD during the first Jewish Roman War,
0:15.0	Josephus was in charge of Jewish rebels in Galilee,
0:18.2	facing the fall, besieging might of the Roman army under Vespasian and his son Titus.
0:23.2	Captured in prison, Josephus declared to them that he'd had a vision.
0:27.0	The one day Vespasian would be Emperor.
0:29.3	Two years later, that prophecy came true and freed from slavery,
0:32.5	Josephus enjoyed a privileged position in the Imperial household in Rome.
0:37.4	There he wrote his great history, the Jewish War.
0:39.3	His account of Roman triumph over a divided people.
0:42.5	A later work, the Antiquitous of the Jews, was treasured by Christians for almost 2,000 years
0:46.8	with its apparent corroboration of gospel accounts of Jesus' Messiah.
0:51.0	He's become a controversial figure, though, called by many a traitor for changing sides
0:55.6	during the Jewish War with Rome.
0:57.4	Widmunditz, just Josephus, are Martin Goodman, professor of Jewish studies at the University of Oxford
1:03.0	and president of the Oxford Center for Hebrew and Jewish Studies.
1:06.2	Tessa Rageart, professor emeritus of ancient history at the University of Reading
1:09.6	and senior research fellow at Summer Mail College, Oxford, and Philip Alexander,
1:13.4	professor emeritus of Jewish studies at the University of Manchester, Philip Alexander.
1:17.9	Can you give us the background of the first war, first Jewish Roman War?
	...

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