Josephus

Flavius Josephus, born Yosef ben Matityahu in Jerusalem around 37 CE, was a Jewish historian and a former commander in the First Jewish–Roman War who later became a Roman citizen and court writer. From a priestly family, he joined the Jewish revolt in Galilee and was captured by the Romans in 67 or 68. He defected to Vespasian’s side, and after his release and subsequent settlement in Rome, he was granted Roman citizenship and adopted the name Flavius Josephus. The exact date of his death is uncertain, but it is placed sometime after 100 CE.

Josephus wrote in Greek and produced several historical works intended for a broad readership. The major works are The Jewish War (Bellum Judaicum), which recounts the revolt from 66 to 70 CE, and Antiquities of the Jews (Antiquitates Judaicae), a comprehensive history from Creation to the revolt. He also wrote The Life (Vita), a brief autobiography defending his conduct, and Against Apion, a polemical defense of Judaism against Greek literature. His writings blend narrative history with ethnographic detail and apologetic elements, and they are among the principal sources for this period.

Josephus is a key source for information on Second Temple Judaism and early Christian origins. His works provide accounts of figures such as Jesus, James the brother of Jesus, and John the Baptist; however, the passage about Jesus in Antiquities is widely debated and considered by many scholars to contain later Christian interpolation. His depiction of Jewish–Roman relations and temple life has influenced later scholarship, though his proximity to imperial patrons invites critical scrutiny of potential bias.

His writings influenced later historians, including Eusebius, and helped shape Western understanding of antiquity. The surviving texts, preserved and translated in various traditions, remain central to modern studies of Jewish history and the broader context of early Christianity.