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Titus Flavius Josephus (;〔("Josephus" ) entry in ''Collins English Dictionary'', HarperCollins Publishers, 1998.〕 37 – 100), born Joseph ben Matityahu (Hebrew: יוסף בן מתתיהו, ''Yosef ben Matityahu''),〔Josephus refers to himself in his Greek works as , ''Iōsēpos Matthiou pais'' (Josephus the son of Matthias). Josephus spoke Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek.〕 was a first-century Romano-Jewish scholar, historian and hagiographer, who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly descent and a mother who claimed royal ancestry. He initially fought against the Romans during the First Jewish–Roman War as head of Jewish forces in Galilee, until surrendering in 67 CE to Roman forces led by Vespasian after the six-week siege of Jotapata. Josephus claimed the Jewish Messianic prophecies that initiated the First Roman-Jewish War made reference to Vespasian becoming Emperor of Rome. In response Vespasian decided to keep Josephus as a slave and interpreter. After Vespasian became Emperor in 69 CE, he granted Josephus his freedom, at which time Josephus assumed the emperor's family name of Flavius. Flavius Josephus fully defected to the Roman side and was granted Roman citizenship. He became an advisor and friend of Vespasian's son Titus, serving as his translator when Titus led the Siege of Jerusalem, which resulted—when the Jewish revolt did not surrender—in the city's destruction and the looting and destruction of Herod's Temple (Second Temple). Josephus recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the first century CE and the First Jewish–Roman War, including the Siege of Masada. His most important works were ''The Jewish War'' (c. 75) and ''Antiquities of the Jews'' (c. 94).〔Stephen L. Harris, ''Understanding the Bible'', (Palo Alto: Mayfield, 1985).〕 ''The Jewish War'' recounts the Jewish revolt against Roman occupation (66–70). ''Antiquities of the Jews'' recounts the history of the world from a Jewish perspective for an ostensibly Roman audience. These works provide valuable insight into first century Judaism and the background of Early Christianity.〔 (See main article Josephus on Jesus). ==Biography== Josephus introduces himself in Greek as Iōsēpos (Ιώσηπος), son of Matthias, an ethnic Hebrew. He was the second-born son of Matthias. His older full-blooded brother was also called Matthias.〔Josephus, ''Flavius Josephus: translation and commentary'' p.p.12-3〕 Their mother was an aristocratic woman who descended from the royal and formerly ruling Hasmonean dynasty.〔Nodet, ''A search for the Origins of Judaism: From Joshua to the Mishnah'' p.250〕 Josephus's paternal grandparents were Josephus and his wife—an unnamed Hebrew noblewoman, distant relatives of each other and direct descendants of Simon Psellus.〔(Josephus’ Lineage ), History of the Daughters〕 Josephus's family was wealthy. He descended through his father from the priestly order of the Jehoiarib, which was the first of the 24 orders of priests in the Temple in Jerusalem.〔Fergus Millar, ''The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ'' pp. 45–6〕 Josephus was a descendant of the high priest Jonathon. Jonathon may have been Alexander Jannaeus, the high priest and Hasmonean ruler who governed Judea from 103 BC–76 BC.〔 Born and raised in Jerusalem, Josephus was educated alongside his brother.〔Josephus, ''Flavius Josephus: Translation and Commentary,'' p.13〕 He fought the Romans in the First Jewish-Roman War of 66–73 as a Jewish military leader in Galilee. Prior to this, in his early twenties, he traveled to negotiate with Emperor Nero for the release of several Jewish priests. Upon his return to Jerusalem, he was drafted as a commander of the Galilean forces. After the Jewish garrison of Yodfat fell under siege, the Romans invaded, killing thousands; the survivors committed suicide. According to Josephus, he was trapped in a cave with forty of his companions in July 67 CE. The Romans (commanded by Flavius Vespasian and his son Titus, both subsequently Roman emperors) asked the group to surrender, but they refused. Josephus suggested a method of collective suicide:〔 Josephus, The Jewish War Book 3, Chapter 8, par. 7 〕 they drew lots and killed each other, one by one, counting to every third person. Two men were left (this method as a mathematical problem is referred to as the Josephus problem, or ''Roman roulette''),〔Cf. this example, (''Roman Roulette'' ). 〕 who surrendered to the Roman forces and became prisoners. In 69 CE Josephus was released.〔Jewish War IV.622–629〕 According to his account, he acted as a negotiator with the defenders during the Siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE, in which his parents and first wife died. It was while being confined at Yodfat (Jotapata) that Josephus claimed to have experienced a divine revelation, that later led to his speech predicting Vespasian would become emperor. After the prediction came true, he was released by Vespasian, who considered his gift of prophecy to be divine. Josephus wrote that his revelation had taught him three things: that God, the creator of the Jewish people, had decided to "punish" them, that "fortune" had been given to the Romans, and that God had chosen him "to announce the things that are to come".〔Rebecca Gray, ''Prophetic Figures in Late Second Temple Jewish Palestine: The Evidence from Josephus'', pp. 35–38 (Oxford University Press, 1993). ISBN 0-19-507615-X〕〔David Edward Aune, ''Prophecy In Early Christianity and the Ancient Mediterranean World'', page 140 (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991; first published 1983). ISBN 0-8028-0635-X〕〔Robert Karl Gnuse, ''Dreams & Dream Reports in the Writings of Josephus: A Traditio-Historical Analysis'', pages 136-142 (E. J. Brill, 1996). ISBN 90-04-10616-2〕 In 71 CE, he went to Rome in the entourage of Titus, becoming a Roman citizen and client of the ruling Flavian dynasty (hence he is often referred to as Flavius Josephus—see below). In addition to Roman citizenship, he was granted accommodation in conquered Judaea and a decent, if not extravagant, pension. While in Rome and under Flavian patronage, Josephus wrote all of his known works. Although he uses "Josephus", he appears to have taken the Roman praenomen Titus and nomen Flavius from his patrons.〔Attested by the third-century Church theologian Origen (''Comm. Matt.'' 10.17).〕 This was standard practice for "new" Roman citizens. Vespasian arranged for the widower Josephus to marry a captured Jewish woman, who ultimately left him. About 71 CE, Josephus married an Alexandrian Jewish woman as his third wife. They had three sons, of whom only Flavius Hyrcanus survived childhood. Josephus later divorced his third wife. Around 75 CE, he married his fourth wife, a Greek Jewish woman from Crete, who was a member of a distinguished family. They had a happy married life and two sons Flavius Justus and Flavius Simonides Agrippa. Josephus's life story remains ambiguous. He was described by Harris in 1985 as a law-observant Jew who believed in the compatibility of Judaism and Graeco-Roman thought, commonly referred to as Hellenistic Judaism.〔 Before the nineteenth century, the scholar Nitsa Ben-Ari notes that his work was shunned like that of converts, then banned as those of a traitor, whose work was not to be studied or translated into Hebrew.〔(Nitsa Ben-Ari, "The double conversion of ''Ben-Hur'': a case of manipulative translation" ), ''Target'', Vol. 14, No. 2, 2003, pp. 263–301, Quote: "The converts themselves were banned from society as outcasts and so was their historiographic work or, in the more popular historical novels, their literary counterparts. Josephus Flavius, formerly Yosef Ben Matityahu (34-95), had been shunned, then banned as a traitor.", accessed 28 November 2011.〕 His critics were never satisfied as to why he failed to commit suicide in Galilee and, after his capture, accepted the patronage of Romans. The historian E. Mary Smallwood writes:
Author Joseph Raymond calls Josephus "the Jewish Benedict Arnold" for betraying his own troops at Jotapata.〔(Herodian Messiah: Case For Jesus As Grandson of Herod ) (Tower Grover Publishing 2010) at page 222.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Josephus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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