Select Works of Josephus (8 vols.)

by Flavius Josephus

Publishers:

Harvard University Press; G. P. Putnam’s Sons; William Heinemann

, 1926

Overview

Throughout history, Titus Flavius Josephus has been known by many titles—scholar, historian, soldier, statesman, Pharisee, and traitor. After being captured by Roman forces led by Vespasian, Josephus claimed that the Jewish Messianic prophecies pointed to Vespasian as the future Emperor of Rome. Two years later, Vespasian did become Emperor, and he granted Josephus his freedom. Josephus took on Vespasian’s family name—Flavius—and became a Roman citizen.

As a historian, Josephus provided invaluable records of the Jewish War, contained here in three volumes. It is believed that the text was originally written in Aramaic and addressed to the Jews living in Mesopotamia, though Josephus later translated it into Greek. Also included in the Select Works of Josephus are his autobiography and Against Apion, which defends Judaism as classical religion and philosophy.

This collection contains the complete texts in their Loeb Classical Library editions. Each volume is included in its original Greek with an English translation for easy side-by-side comparison. Logos’ language tools help you to go deeper into the Greek texts and explore Josephus’ elegant language. Use the dictionary lookup tool to examine difficult Greek words and find every occurrence in your library. There’s never been a better way for students of history, philosophy, world religions, culture, and Greek literature to absorb these intriguing works.

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Key Features

• Provides a detailed history of the Jewish War
• Contains an autobiography of an influential historian
• Offers a defense of Judaism as classical religion and philosophy
• Loeb Classical Library editions

Product Details

• Title: Select Works of Josephus
• Author: Josephus
• Translator: H. St. J. Thackeray
• Series: Loeb Classical Library
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Volumes: 8
• Pages: 1,936

About Josephus

Titus Flavius Josephus (AD 37–c. 100) also known as Joseph ben Matityahu was a Romano-Jewish scholar, historian, soldier, and Pharisee. He was a well-educated man of priestly descent. He led Jewish forces in the first Jewish-Roman Wars, and after his surrender, he claimed that Jewish prophesy pointed to Vespasian as future emperor. Two years later Josephus’ prediction came true, and Vespasian freed Josephus. Josephus then took on Vespasian’s family name and became a Roman citizen, rejecting his Jewish heritage. He served as an advisor for Vespasian’s son, Titus, and recorded Jewish history. His other works include Antiquities of the Jews.

About H. St. J. Thackeray

Henry St. John Thackeray (1869–1930) was a British biblical scholar at King’s College, Cambridge, and an expert on Koine Greek, Josephus, and the Septuagint. His other works include The Relation of St. Paul to Contemporary Jewish Thought, The Letter of Aristeas, and Josephus: The Man and the Historian.