Based on the "Kingdom" book appendix we know that Josephus wrote regarding a 70 years desolation of Judea and Jerusalem , in his "Antiquites Jews". Now , I remember I red somewhere that Josephus also mentioned 40 (or maybe 50) years desolation in a second statement in his book , probably he get confused . Obviusly the Watchtower did not mention the second statement. I never had any opportunity to look to "Antiquites Jews" directly. Any of you can confirm that second statement exists and eventually scan or link ? thanks
Josephus mentioned also 40 (or 50) years for desolation of Judea ?
by Ancientofdays 7 Replies latest watchtower bible
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Alwayshere
Ancientofdays, I heard Josephus done research and found out it was 50 years for the desolation. 537 from 587 = 50 years. Watchtower can no longer agree with Josephus now because this proves Jerusalem was desolated in 587 not 607. Maybe someone can confirm this for us.
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BluesBrother
Not the best scans, but..., from my copy of The Works of Josephus, translated by William Whiston
The Antiquities Of The Jews , book 11 ,chapt 1
The editors comments - Dissertation , Chronology p857
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Leolaia
The relevant reference is here:
"These accountsagree with the true history in our books; for in them it is written that Nebuchadnezzar, in the eighteenth year of his reign, laid our temple desolate, and so it lay in that state of obscurity for fifty years, but that in the second year of the reign of Cyrus, its foundations were laid, and it was finished again in the second year of Darius" (Josephus, Contra Apionem, 1.21).
Josephus is not confused here, for he had just quoted a lengthy excerpt from Berossus in the previous paragraph which gives the exact lengths of the Neo-Babylonian kings: "Nebuchadnezzar ... reigned forty-three years, whereupon his son Evil-merodach obtained the kingdom and ... reigned but two years. After he was slain, Neriglissar, who plotted against him, succeeded him in the kingdom, and reigned four years; his son Labashi-Marduk obtained the kingdom, though he was but a child and kept it nine months ... After his death, the conspirators got together and by common consent put the crown on the head of Nabonidus, a man of Babylon, ... but when he was in the seventeenth year of his reign, Cyrus came out of Persia with a great army ... hereupon Cyrus took Babylon" (Contra Apionem, 1.20). This history of Berossus constitute the "these accounts" in the above quote, which Josephus says agrees with sacred scripture. It is thus no coincidence that when you do the math, the "fifty years" is in accord with the length of the Neo-Babylonian period stated in the previous paragraph. What is more, Josephus then presents information from Phoenician records which gives the same length of time from the reign of Nebuchadnezzar to Cyrus, adding "thus the records of the Chaldeans and the Tyrians agree with our writings about the temple" (Contra Apionem, 1.21).
The earlier statement in Antiquities is as follows:
"The king of Babylon, who brought out the two tribes, by which means all Judea and Jerusalem, and the temple, continued to be a desert for seventy years" (Antiquities, 10.9.7).
The careful way Josephus handles the data in Contra Apionem contrasts with this statement, which is simply based on popular exegesis of the statements in Jeremiah. The certainty that Josephus expresses in Contra Apionem (twice referring to agreement of Hebrew and secular sources) indicates that he has changed his interpretation of scripture, correcting his earlier view. It should also be noted that Josephus was very sloppy in his paraphrase of Berossus in Antiquities 10.11.2, where he blundered the lengths of the reigns of Evil-merodach and Neriglissar, and erroneously referred to Nabonidus as Baltasar. The exact quotation of this section of Berossus in Contra Apionem is more careful, and corrects the earlier erroneous paraphrase.
Josephus is however confused about the length of the Persian period that followed, giving several different computations. This is in accord with the variable reckoning of the Persian period in such sources as Daniel 9, the Jewish historian Demetrius, the Animal Apocalypse of 1 Enoch, the Seder Olam, etc.
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Ancientofdays
Thank Blues for the scan. Leo this was exactly what I was looking for, I can't remember the book was "Contra Apionen". I'll look for a copy in a public library , here in Italy. ciao
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Black Sheep
Against Apion is available online
http://evans-experientialism.freewebspace.com/josephus_against_%20apion01.htm
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Black Sheep
The same passage can be used to show that they had returned to Jerusalem in 538 BC which is another spanner in the works for the WT.
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Jeffro
Not only did Josephus mention the 50 years in Against Apion, but he also indicates in Antiquities of the Jews, Book I, that the period "From the captivity of the ten tribes to the first year of Cyrus" was "one hundred and eighty-two years and a half", which does not work if 607BC is assumed for the fall of Jerusalem.
