Violence at the Temple on Passover
Josephus
ca. 75
The usual crowd had converged on Jerusalem for the feast of unleavened bread, and the Roman cohort had taken up position on the roof of the temple colonnade—there is always an armed guard on duty at the festivals, to prevent any rioting among the concentrated mass of people. One of the soldiers pulled up his clothing, bent over obscenely to present…
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Creator Bio
Josephus
Flavius Josephus was born into a prominent Jewish priestly family and served as a general stationed in the Galilee during the First Jewish Revolt (66–73 CE). He was captured by the Romans and eventually integrated into the Flavian imperial aristocracy, who commissioned him to compose chronicles of the Jewish–Roman war and the history of the Jews. Josephus’ works, all written in Greek, include The Jewish War, Jewish Antiquities, Against Apion, and his autobiography, Life of Josephus. These writings provide important insights into the Judaisms of the Second Temple period and include one of the few surviving accounts of the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE.
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