Selections from Josephus - Free Audiobook
1/22Introduction Life
Selections from Josephus
The Pharisees and Sadducees
The Pharisees and Sadducees
Of the two first-named schools, the Pharisees have the reputation of being the most accurate expositors of the laws, and owe to this[356] their position as the leading sect. They attribute everything to Fate and God; yet they admit that to act rightly or otherwise rests for the most part with men, though in each action Fate is an auxiliary.[357] Every soul, they maintain, is imperishable, but the soul of the good alone passes into another body, while the souls of the wicked suffer eternal punishment.
The Sadducees, the second of the orders, do away with Fate altogether, and remove God beyond, not merely the commission, but the very sight, of evil. They maintain that good and evil lie open to men’s choice and that it rests with every man’s will whether he embraces the one or the other. As for the permanence of the soul, penalties in the underworld[358] and rewards, they will have none of them.
The Pharisees are affectionate to each other, and cultivate harmonious relations with the community. The Sadducees, even to one another, are rather boorish in their behaviour, and in their intercourse with their fellows are as harsh as with aliens.
Such is what I have to say on the Jewish philosophical schools.—B.J. II. 8. 2-14 (119-166).
About
Jewish historian, military leader and Roman citizen, Titus Flavius Josephus, provides the most thorough history of the 1st century Roman Empire deals with the Jewish people. Born in Jerusalem during the reign of Caligula; present with the Roman Army of Vespasian and Titus at the siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple, Josephus stands preeminent among early Christian period writers.
"I have selected the passages most relevant to Christian origins and New Testament study," writes Henry St. James Thackery of King's College, UK, leading biblical scholar on Josephus and Koine Greek translator.
"Some figures which in the New Testament are little more than names, become clothed with life" by Josephus as he "gives us the background of Jewish and world history in the time of our Lord and the infant church. ... And we have full and life-like portraits of Roman governors and generals."
More than 400 footnotes and extensive appendix notes have been woven through the audio recording that the listener might experience Thackery's insights and teaching, as if in his class at King's. Many of the names and places are read with Erasmian Koine Greek pronunciation. (Summary by Rebecca Eden Walker)
Comments
Be the first to comment
There aren't any comments on this content yet. Start the conversation!












