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John the Baptist, in prison, heard about Jesus' deeds, sent some disciples to ask if Jesus was the awaited one. Jesus listed his miracles and said: 'Blessed is he who does not reject me'. The disciples returned to John the Baptist. Herod wanted to kill John, but was afraid of the people.
Josephus's works are the chief source next to the Bible for the history and antiquity of ancient Israel, and provide an independent extra-biblical account of such figures as Pontius Pilate, Herod the Great, John the Baptist, James, brother of Jesus, and Jesus of Nazareth.
Josephus' role as leader of the defenders of Yodfat, his subsequent collaboration with the Romans and his servitude to the Flavians have all made his account of the siege of Yodfat suspect. As the sole account of the battle, as well as of many events of the Great Revolt, the credibility of Josephus has been a central subject of historical inquiry.
Josephus also adds a short account of his personal life, Vita, as an appendix to the Judean Antiquities. Antiquities of the Jews contains a good deal of valuable, sometimes unique, historical material. This applies, for example, to the history of the Hellenistic states, Parthia, Armenia, the Nabatean kingdom, and the Roman Empire.
In comparison, Josephus did not want to offend Greek pagan readers of his work, and is ambivalent toward the Maccabees. [ 68 ] [ 69 ] The book of 1 Maccabees is considered mostly reliable, as it was seemingly written by an eyewitness early in the reign of the Hasmoneans, most likely during John Hyrcanus's reign.
The Sadducees did not believe in resurrection of the dead, but believed (contrary to the claim of Josephus) in the traditional Jewish concept of Sheol for those who had died. [18] Josephus also includes a claim that the Sadducees are rude compared to loving and compassionate Pharisees, but this is generally considered more of a sectarian insult ...
Against Apion 1:8 also defines which books Josephus viewed as being in the Hebrew Scriptures: . For we have not an innumerable multitude of books among us, disagreeing from and contradicting one another, [as the Greeks have,] but only twenty-two books, which contain the records of all the past times; which are justly believed to be divine; and of them five belong to Moses, which contain his ...
— Josephus, The Wars of the Jews 1:141 [6] Hyrcanus II still had supporters in the city, who opened a gate, probably along the northwestern section of the city wall, and let the Romans in. This allowed Pompey to take hold of Jerusalem's upper city, including the royal palace, with Aristobulus's party holding the eastern portions of the city ...