The Jewish Historian Flavius Josephus: A Biographical Investigation

extremely severe action against this town. In our context as well we therefore encounter the
opposition between Josephus and Tarichea. Namely when Josephus, according to 609, promises
to erect walls for the Taricheans, then this is not to be interpreted as some magnanimity on
the part of Josephus, rather — as a means of deception; because the people [71] who lend
credence to Josephus’ words are designated as “those who have been deceived” in 610;
therefore the promise to build walls was only a ruse by Josephus in order to be freed from the
noose, and when in so doing he promises first of all to fortify Tarichea but then also the other
towns, then this is only a consequence of [the fact] that he is indeed hard pressed above all by
the Taricheans with whom he is staying and therefore must win them over as a priority. It is
however incompatible with this fact that the Taricheans are addressed as Josephus’ friends in
sections 602 (beginning) and 608 (end); this view belongs rather into the context of the
insertion and therefore the words καὶ μάλιστα τὧν [sic] Ταριχεατῶν in 602 and ἦσαν δὲ εἰς
τετρακισμυρίους Ταριχεᾶται in 608 are to be deleted from the passage that has just been
reconstructed (page 70). Josephus introduced them into his text at the same time as the
insertion [consisting] of 602 (end) to 608 (beginning).
Thus the original report of the War read: when the crowd from the hippodrome
beleaguered Josephus’ house, he sees no escape other than to present himself, humbled, before
the mob. He thereby arouses the compassion of those close to him who then also sided with
him such that his opponents are split. This state of affairs grants Josephus courage, he dares to
give a speech in which he promises, in pretence, to fortify Tarichea and then the other towns;
the crowd falls for it and, even though infuriated, disperses.
When Josephus composed the War by imitating and using the administrative report, he
enriched his presentation through this narrative. On what is it based? — Indeed, it is not
inherently impossible that Josephus should have later remembered an aspect that he had
originally forgotten or perhaps even intentionally suppressed. On the other hand, his powers
of imagination, as we shall recognize more and more clearly, operated in such a way that truth
and fiction flowed into each other[. The fact] that the fabulist is speaking to us here is proven
by a consideration of the theme of building the walls to which we can return after our
stratification [Zergliederung] of the War.
The report about the intended building of the walls of Jerusalem, as it was given by
Josephus in the administrative report [that was] [ 72] the source of the War, became
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