Brill Josephus and the Bible Collection (4 vols.)

by Louis H. Feldman; Gohei Hata; Federico M. Colautti

Publishers:

Brill; Wayne State University Press

, 1987–2002

Overview

Flavius Josephus as a historical figure can only be described with the term "controversial." He is the man who mysteriously and perhaps suspiciously rose to the rank of general in the failed revolt against the Romans, an elevation in rank that was just as quickly followed by his surrender to them under the most unusual circumstances. The numerous rewards he received from the Romans did not gain him any adoration from his fellow Jews. And yet this enigmatic man is also one of the most passionate defenders of the Jews against anti-Semitism. He is praised as a careful writer of history, though contradictions regularly appear between his accounts of the Jewish War and his Jewish Antiquities.

But in spite of all of the unusual circumstances of his life and writings, Flavius Josephus is perhaps our best source for history in the first century and his paraphrase of the Old Testament represents an important and essential resource for Old Testament textual criticism, being one thousand years earlier than our most complete manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible. And on top of that, his discussions of Jewish religious practice and culture in the first century provide essential information available nowhere else.

For all these reasons, these studies provide an essential look at how Josephus' writings interface with Judaism, Christianity, and Scripture. With astute and valuable research that takes a close look at Josephus relationship to the Old Testament text, Septuagint, Jewish Culture, the New Testament, and even the Church Fathers, the Brill Josephus and the Bible Collection (4 vols.) is an essential tool for both students and scholars that becomes even more accessible with Logos Bible Software.

Key Features

• Comprehensive examination of the Jewish Passover in Josephus
• Numerous essays and studies on Josephus' paraphrase of the Old Testament
• Thorough indexes for the works of Josephus and Scripture

Product Details

• Title: Josephus and the Bible Collection (4 vols.)
• Publisher: Brill Academic
• Volumes: 4
• Pages: 1,899

Studies in Josephus' Rewritten Bible

• Author: Louis H. Feldman
• Publisher: Brill Academic
• Publication Date: 1998
• Pages: 664

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Studies in Josephus' Rewritten Bible consists of 35 studies of various portions of Josephus' Jewish Antiquities by Louis H. Feldman. The volume is an attempt to examine the oldest systematic commentary on the historical books of the Bible that has come down to us. It considers how Josephus resolves apparent contradictions, obscurities, and other theological questions, as well as the historicity of biblical events, which have puzzled classical commentators on the Bible. The volume attempts to explain cases, notably Ahab, Hezekiah, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah, where Josephus seems to change the biblical text radically. Included are Josephus' interpretations of several prophets, women, and non-Jewish leaders.

All of these studies have previously appeared in print over a period of almost three decades in thirty-three different publications. However, they have been edited, corrected, and updated in many ways. At least one article has been translated into English from another language for the first time.

Louis H. Feldman, Ph.D. in Classical Philology, Harvard University, is Professor of Classics at Yeshiva University. He has written Jew and Gentile in the Ancient World (Princeton, 1993) and Studies in Hellenistic Judaism (Brill, 1996).

Josephus, Judaism and Christianity

• Editors: L. H. Feldman and G. Hata
• Publisher: Brill Academic
• Publication Date: 1989
• Pages: 473

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Josephus, as a writer and historical figure, sits at the intersection of history. Before him, Christianity begins, Second Temple Judaism evolves into Rabbinic Judaism with the destruction of the Temple, and East meets West as the Romans crush the Jewish revolts of 60's and 70's AD. It is among these intersections that Josephus wrote.

With Josephus' unique position in mind, Louis H. Feldman and Gohei Hata have gathered together a group of first-class scholars to contribute essays on Josephus and his relationship to Judaism and Christianity.

Articles include:

• "Josephus and the Roman Empire as Reflected in The Jewish War," Menahem Stern
• "Josephus and Justus of Tiberias," Tessa Rajak
• "Josephus and Masada," David J. Ladouceur
• "Philo and Josephus as Historians of the Same Events," E. Mary Smallwood
• "Hellenizations in Josephus' Jewish Antiquities: The Portrait of Abraham," Louis H. Feldman
• "Josephus' Portrayal of the Matriarchs," James L. Bailey
• "The Story of Moses Interpreted within the context of Anti-Semitism," Gohei Hata
• "Antiquities IV, 277 and 2788, Compared with the Early Rabbinic Law," David M. Goldenberg
• "Miracles in the Writings of Flavius Josephus," Otto Betz
• "The Occult in Josephus," Morton Smith
• "The Samaritans in Josephus," R. J. Coggins
• "Josephus' Pharisees: A Complete Repertoire," Jacob Neusner
• "The Conversion of the Royal House of Adiabene in Josephus and Rabbinic Sources," Lawrence H. Schiffman
• "The Works of Josephus and the Early Christian Church," Heinz Schreckenberg
• "Origen and Josephus," Wataru Mizugaki
• "The Testimonium Flavianum and the Martyrdom of James," Zvi Baras
• "Josephus and Pseudo-Hegesippus," Albert A. Bell, Jr.
• "Josephus in Byzantium," Steven Bowman
• "Josippon, a Medieval Hebrew Version of Josephus," David Flusser
• "The Illustrations of Josephus' Manuscripts," Guy N. Deutsch
• "Martin Luther and Flavius Josephus," Betsy Halpern Amaru

Louis H. Feldman, Ph.D. in Classical Philology, Harvard University, is Professor of Classics at Yeshiva University. He has written Jew and Gentile in the Ancient World (Princeton, 1993) and Studies in Hellenistic Judaism (Brill, 1996).

Gohei Hata, Ph.D. in Jewish Studies from Dropsie University for Hebrew and Cognate Learning, is a professor at Tama Art University in Japan. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and has written numerous books and articles related to Josephus, the Old Testament, and Ancient Judaism.

Josephus, the Bible and History

• Editors: L. H. Feldman and G. Hata
• Publisher: Brill Academic
• Publication Date: 1987
• Pages: 448

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

In this important volume, Louis H. Feldman gathers together a group of scholars to examine Josephus' relationship to the Bible and history. Covering an impressive number of topics from the canon of Scripture to the events of the Hasmonean period between the Old and New Testament, to the causes of the Jewish War that destroyed the Second Temple, Josephus, the Bible and History is an in-depth look at this complex and multifaceted individual. The volume concludes with a selective, critical bibliography for the study of Josephus.

Articles include:

• "Josephus and the Canon of the Bible," Sid Z. Leiman
• "Josephus' Jewish Antiquities and Pseudo-Philo's Biblical Antiquities," Louis H. Feldman
• "Josephus' Biblical Text for the Books of Samuel," Eugene Ulrich
• "Josephus, the Letter of Aristeas, and the Septuagint," André Pelletier
• "Josephus and I Maccabees," Isaiah M. Gafni
• "The Role of women in the Hasmonean Dynasty," Joseph Sievers
• "Josephus and Nicolaus of Damascus," Ben Zion Wacholder
• "The Sadducees in Josephus," Günther Baumbach
• "The High Priesthood in the Judgment of Josephus," Clemens Thoma
• "Josephus and the Revolutionary Parties," Valentin Nikiprowetzky
• "Josephus and the Economic Causes of the Jewish War," Shimon Applebaum
• "A Marxist View of Josephus' Account of the Jewish War," Heinz Kreissig
• "The Forms and Historical Value of Josephus' Suicide Accounts," Raymond R. Newell
• "The Description of the Land of Israel in Josephus' Works," Zeev Safrai
• "Josephus Flavius and the Archaeological Excavations in Jerusalem," Benjamin Mazar

Louis H. Feldman, Ph.D. in Classical Philology, Harvard University, is Professor of Classics at Yeshiva University. He has written Jew and Gentile in the Ancient World (Princeton, 1993) and Studies in Hellenistic Judaism (Brill, 1996).

Gohei Hata, Ph.D. in Jewish Studies from Dropsie University for Hebrew and Cognate Learning, is a professor at Tama Art University in Japan. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and has written numerous books and articles related to Josephus, the Old Testament, and Ancient Judaism.

Passover in the Work of Josephus

• Author: Federico M. Colautti
• Publisher: Brill Academic
• Publication Date: 2002
• Pages: 280

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

This superb volume examines Flavius Josephus' presentation of the Feast of Passover in his works. The first part is an analysis of the texts in which Flavius Josephus mentions this Feast in his paraphrase of the Bible. In the second part, the references to Passover in the rest of his works are considered. The third part is an attempt to contextualize the results of the first two parts in his contemporaneous literature and historical events.

Flavius Josephus is normally referred to in a fragmentary way, often with somewhat scattered references to his statements of specific subjects and their relation to the New Testament. This study goes beyond that normal approach and seeks to present a complete survey of his writing on this important Jewish feast. Both New Testament and Early Judaism scholars will benefit by acquiring a more comprehensive insight of this subject and its context.

Passover in the Work of Josephus takes a close look at how the Passover is presented in Josephus and then compares it not only the biblical text, but also the celebration of the festival in the Second Temple Period. This makes Federico Moisés Colautti's research into the Passover an essential resource for students and scholars of Old Testament studies, Second Temple Judaism, and Josephus. The manner in which Colautti deals with the Passover in Josephus and the Old Testament, as well as in the Second Temple Period and beyond illuminates the potential strengths for working across disciplines, be they Josephus, Old Testament, or Judaic studies.

[Federico M. Colautti] has produced a very thorough monograph on the celebration of Passover as recorded in Scriptures (both MT and LXX) and the written accounts of Josephus. . . . [His] conclusions are well balanced and convincingly argued.

— A Turton, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2004

Federico Moisés Colautti, Ph.D. in Biblical Theology, is Professor at 'Our Lady of the New Advent' in Denver.