The Jewish Historian Flavius Josephus: A Biographical Investigation

conducting the war against Rome. Even if he encountered inhibiting inner difficulties so that
he felt it necessary to address these also – surely the war that he was appointed to lead does
belong as the central focus of the report. But what do we find instead of this? – The old
report – after discarding the additions that have already been separated out – actually
passes over the war, and this becomes all the more apparent when we bear in
mind that it is in these [very] additions that there seems to be a constant need
to mention the war. First I give the evidence:
1. In sections 27 and 412 Josephus refers to his books περὶ τοῦ Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πολέμου
with two similar phrases and in 412 he mentions his deeds in the Jewish War as well: τὰ
πεπραγμένα μοι κατὰ τὸν Ἰουδαϊκὸν πόλεμον, while in 413 one finds the abbreviated
formula: ὅσα μὴ κατὰ τὸν Ἰουδαϊκὸν πόλεμον ἀνέγραψα. It has been demonstrated on
page 54 that both 27 and 412/13 belong to the added segments.
2. In section 182 Josephus speaks of the rumour that was afloat about Philip: ὡς
στρατηγοίη τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἐπὶ τὸν πρὸς Ῥωμαίους πόλεμον. The proof that an
insertion is at hand here has been provided on page 48 ff.
3. In the segment concerning Justus 390 - 393 Josephus dates an incident: λαβόντος
ἀρχὴν Ἰουδαίοις τοῦ πρὸς Ῥωμαίους πολέμου. The Justus parts were composed after
the year 100 (cf. page 49).
Even though we do apparently find ourselves within a period of the Jewish-Roman War,
the official designation that this war has acquired is not at all noted in the original text; the
extent to which it is factually unavoidable, however, [100] is recognized by [the fact] that the
pertinent language usage appears immediately in the additions. Hence arises the inevitable
conclusion that Josephus did not yet entertain the concept of the Jewish War while he
composed his report about the actions in Galilee. And since, as we saw, the concept of the
Ἰουδαϊκὸς πόλεμος must have been coined from the Roman side, one would furthermore
expect that it was still unknown to Josephus because he had not yet come into contact with the
Romans while he was composing the report. All this is indeed correct and will be confirmed for
us from another aspect further on; but it is only half the truth; because in the old
administrative report not only is the fixed expression ‘the Jewish War’ lacking,
but even the clear-cut idea of standing within the great war directed against
Rome is [also] missing, which is much more important. A comparison with the
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