2,156 texts · Page 19 of 45
It turns out, they often are. And that's precisely what Flavius Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, points out in his work, Against Apion. He's making a case for the anti...
It's easy to imagine them through our own lens, colored by sacred texts and centuries of tradition. But what did the rest of the world see? Well, let’s start with a rather unflatte...
Josephus, the first-century Romano-Jewish historian, certainly felt that way, and in his work Against Apion, he confronts this head-on. Josephus points out that some writers chose ...
In this particular section, Josephus addresses the nasty accusations and outright lies that were being spread about the Jewish people. He argues that these slanders are, well, just...
Take the ancient Egyptians and the Israelites, for example. Their story is filled with power struggles, cultural clashes, and some serious finger-pointing. Josephus, in his work Ag...
Today, we're diving into one such path, guided by the words of Josephus, a first-century Romano-Jewish historian. He's responding to some pretty harsh claims made by an Egyptian pr...
To a bit of ancient Egypt as seen through the eyes of Flavius Josephus, the first-century Romano-Jewish scholar, as he confronts some pretty wild accusations leveled against the Je...
Our story comes to us, indirectly, from Flavius Josephus, the 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian. In his work Against Apion, Josephus is defending Judaism against its detractors. ...
We're diving into the writings of Manetho, an Egyptian priest and historian, and specifically, his account of the Exodus. Now, Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, wasn’t ...
Sometimes, digging into the past brings up unexpected things... and uncomfortable questions. Today, we're wading into one of those uncomfortable corners, a place where ancient bias...
It concerns Moses, the ultimate liberator, and some truly wild accusations leveled against him. Now, Josephus, in his work Against Apion, addresses these very claims, specifically ...
We often think of the classic texts – the Torah, the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) – but there's a whole other world of accounts out there, often written by those not ...
We've been looking at how different writers tried to explain the story of the Israelites leaving Egypt. Last time, we dug into Manetho's version, and now we're going to look at Che...
That’s exactly what we find ourselves facing when we delve into the writings of Lysimachus, a figure who, according to Josephus in his work Against Apion, spun a tale so incredibly...
Remember that feeling when someone tells you something so outrageous, so demonstrably false, that you almost don't want to dignify it with a response? But then you realize, silence...
Our guide for this adventure is Flavius Josephus, the first-century Romano-Jewish scholar and historian, and the story comes from his work, Against Apion. This book is essentially ...
Apion was an Egyptian, and he spun a wild yarn about the Jews' exodus from Egypt. Josephus calls it a "novel account," which is a polite way of saying it was complete fiction. But ...
He's responding to the claims of a writer named Apion, who seems to have a real bone to pick with the Jews of Alexandria. Apion, you see, is going after the Alexandrian Jews, criti...
The Jewish people have faced that challenge for centuries, and in his work Against Apion, Josephus steps up to the plate to set the record straight against a particularly virulent ...
The writer Josephus, in his work Against Apion, deals with just such an argument. He's responding to the claims of a fellow named Apion, who’s taking potshots at the Jewish people....
Enter Apion, a Graeco-Egyptian intellectual from the 1st century CE. Josephus, the famous Jewish historian, wrote a whole treatise Against Apion to defend Judaism against his sland...
That's the situation the Jewish people faced in antiquity, and it's what prompted Flavius Josephus to write his powerful work, Against Apion. You see, back in the day, not everyone...
It's more than just a historical account; it's a defense of the Jewish people and their traditions. Josephus wants to set the record straight about Moses. He argues that when our a...
Most people, as Josephus points out in his treatise Against Apion, are pretty clueless about their own legal systems. They bumble along, accidentally break a rule, and only then do...
The first-century historian Josephus, in his work Against Apion, offers a fascinating perspective on this very question when describing the Jewish people. He highlights a remarkabl...
He argues that the strength of a community isn't found in fleeting celebrations or momentary pleasures, but in the consistent, dedicated education of its children. for a second. Jo...
Josephus, the first-century Romano-Jewish historian, gives us a fascinating glimpse into just that when describing Jewish law in his work, Against Apion. He points out something cr...
The historian Josephus, in his work Against Apion, gives us some insight into this very question. He highlights how Jewish law, as he understood it, navigated the delicate balance ...
In his work, Against Apion, he outlines some of the core principles embedded in Jewish law. And they go way beyond the usual "be nice" platitudes. He points out that our legislator...
What if someone just made up the Torah? What if they presented it to the world and said, "Here, this is how to live," and people just… believed them? That's the thought experiment ...
Let's just say, he wasn't a fan. Josephus minces no words. He tells us that the "wisest men" justly rebuked these notions, openly mocking the idea that gods could be young and bear...
Flavius Josephus, the first-century Romano-Jewish historian, grappled with this very question in his work, Against Apion. And his answer is surprisingly relevant, even today. Josep...
Flavius Josephus, a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian, knew that feeling all too well. In his work, Against Apion, he defends Judaism against its detractors, and in this section,...
Josephus, a Jewish historian writing in the 1st century CE, grappled with this very question in his work, Against Apion. He was defending Judaism against its detractors, and one of...
Ever get the feeling someone's telling stories about you, and they're just... not true? That's kind of the situation the Jewish historian Josephus found himself in during the first...
The ancient writer Josephus, in his powerful work Against Apion, gives us a glimpse into the heart of Jewish values, and it's a vision that still resonates today. He’s essentially ...
The serpent could talk. That detail, buried in Josephus's retelling of creation in the Antiquities of the Jews (c. 93 CE), changes everything about how the story lands. Before the ...
Twenty pounds of silver. That was the price of a human life—the amount Joseph's own brothers accepted from a passing caravan of Ishmaelite merchants in exchange for their seventeen...
She faked an illness to be alone with him. That detail—from Josephus's retelling in the Antiquities—transforms a familiar story into something far more calculated. Potiphar's wife ...
Two years. That is how long Joseph sat in an Egyptian prison after correctly predicting the fate of Pharaoh's cupbearer—who had promised to remember him and then promptly forgot. T...
A golden cup hidden in a sack of grain. That was Joseph's final test—not to punish his brothers, but to see whether they had changed. He planted his own drinking cup in Benjamin's ...
Josephus ends his twenty-volume history of the Jewish people with a list, a boast, and a confession. The list is of every high priest from Aaron to the destruction of the Temple. T...
That’s the kind of fire that burned in the heart of Joseph della Reina. Imagine Hebron, long ago. A city steeped in history, in faith, in the whispers of ancestors. And in this cit...
That's the atmosphere that hangs heavy in the opening of Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, a mystical text describing heavenly ascents and divine secrets. Rabbi Ishmael, a ...
Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, a text steeped in the mystical traditions of the Heikhalot literature, offers us a glimpse into just such a chilling negotiation. It's a n...
That’s the feeling that leaps off the page of this passage from Mitpachat Sefarim (מטפחת ספרים), a fascinating and relatively obscure work. The title itself, "Scroll Covering," hin...
It points out that throughout history, moments of perceived progress, of tikkun (repair) have often been limited in scope. They primarily benefited Israel, while the rest of the wo...
That feeling – that’s a glimpse of something truly profound. The Kalach Pitchei Chokhmah, an important kabbalistic text, touches upon just this. It speaks of a time when all souls ...
