Musings on biblical studies, politics, religion, ethics, human nature, tidbits from science
We know the account Josephus gives of his telling Vespasian that he would be the next emperor. Less well known is a rabbinic tradition that another prominent rabbi delivered the same prophecy to Vespasian. When Vespasian came to destroy Jerusalem . . . . Vespasian learned that R. Johanan b. Zakkai was friendly to Cæsar … Continue reading “Another prophecy that Vespasian would become the next emperor”
Last month I posted Another Pointer Towards a Late Date for the Gospel of Mark? but this morning I was reminded of an article I read and posted about some years back that surely calls for a date soon after 70 CE. That article does not address the date per se but it does raise … Continue reading “Spit at a Late Date for the Gospel of Mark?”
Continuing from Where does John the Baptist fit in History? . . . . Peter Kirby’s first argument for the authenticity of the John the Baptist passage in Antiquities of Josephus is (1) The Textual Witness Itself All manuscripts contain the passage and Kirby goes one step further and states as a fact: It is … Continue reading “Where does John the Baptist fit in History? — The Evidence of Josephus, Pt 1”
After having frequently questioned the claims that the first Jewish War that began under Nero and ended with the destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 70 CE was motivated by messianic hopes, it is time for me to state where I believe evidence for popular enthusaism for the advent of a messiah does emerge. It … Continue reading “The Troubled “Quiet” before the Jewish Diaspora’s Revolt against Rome: 116-117 C.E.”
318 VII. The Time of Marcus Aurelius. We come to a conclusion and say farewell to the Caesars who ruled the world alongside the gradual rise of Christianity. They all contributed to the formation of the new faith and, in their individuality, depicted with expressive force a feature of the image in which the dissatisfied … Continue reading “BRUNO BAUER: Christ and the Caesars – VII. The Time of Marcus Aurelius”
Over 6 pages Thomas Witulski discusses the evidence for the dates of the Bar Kochba war and over 120 pages the evidence for its causes. I will distill that down to a few key points and conclusions. Dates: It is probable that the Bar Kokhba rebellion broke out openly in the spring or summer of … Continue reading “The Bar Kochba War – Background and Hadrian’s Visit to Judea”
We have seen how emperor worship directed towards Hadrian in Greece and the Roman province of Asia surpassed anything before known: Emperor Worship and the Book of Revelation. The “advent” and “presence” of an emperor, a divine figure, meant salvation for all in the region. As Horace wrote of Augustus: Great guardian of the race … Continue reading “Emperor Hadrian as Revelation’s Beast from the Sea”
A reader of the previous Revelation post commented, But at first glance, Emperor worship seems a pretty minor issue compared to the other shit that was going down in that period. Agreed — “at first glance”. Why would the Book of Revelation make such ado over a cult that had been part and parcel of … Continue reading “Emperor Worship and the Book of Revelation”
Key points in this post: Both Nero and Hadrian waged war with the Jews. Both Nero and Hadrian had a special devotion to enriching and reviving the culture of the Greek world Nero pursued the cultic-religious worship of his own person, Hadrian that of Antinous (and more to be covered in upcoming posts) The travel … Continue reading “Hadrian as Nero Redivivus”
Hi. I’m back again, for better or for worse. Over the past few weeks I have immersed myself in reading but have finally come to a point where I need to pause and take stock. The book I have to blame for pulling me up and forcing me to stop and think afresh is König … Continue reading “New Thoughts on Christian Origins”
When we settle on a date for the composition of the Gospel of Mark soon after 70 CE and the destruction of the Temple by the armies of Vespasian and Titus, then it is only natural that we will want to study the lives and times of Vespasian and Titus. Perhaps the most significant political … Continue reading “If we are going to move the Gospel of Mark to the second century . . . .”
A historian specializing in the study of Josephus, Steve Mason, presents a case that the war that led to the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple was not prompted by any messianic movement among the people of Judaea. Rather, Mason suggests that the prophecy of a ruler to come out of the east and rule … Continue reading “Is Josephus Evidence that a Messianic Movement caused the Jewish War?”
The Caesar’s Messiah myth proponents appear to involve Josephus in some sort of conspiracy to pacify the Jews. Their primary method, according to their view, is that Josephus was involved in the creation of the Christian religion as a kind of pacifist-messiah cult to replace their traditional supposedly militaristic messiah cult said to be found … Continue reading “Did the Roman Emperors Use Josephus to Help Pacify the Jews?”
“[Josephus] was employed to write the official history that we have. The other histories from this period have been destroyed ruthlessly by the Romans. Josephus tells us this in very chilling passages how the Romans exerted complete control of the literature of this period. There were alternative histories of the Jewish war written, while the … Continue reading “Telling lies for Jesus mythicism”