0
The assertion is commonly made that there is evidence that Luke borrowed from the work of Josephus, at least in some of the details in the book of Acts.
This is an assumption rather than real 'evidence of borrowing.' What exists are two documents. What exists are similarities between those two documents. What further exists beyond these are a whole range of possibilities which are discussed by scholars to explain the similarities.
There are at least four possible explanations:
1. Luke borrowed from Josephus (as above).
2. Josephus borrowed from Luke.
3. Luke and Josephus each borrowed from another independent and unknown source.
4. Luke and Josephus each had independent access directly to the facts they reported and happened to write similar accounts about the same events.
Not all of these can be true, and probably only one is true. However, it is not possible to state categorically that there is evidence of Luke having borrowed from Josephus. This is based on certain unproven assumptions about the dating of Luke in particular. Those assumptions are themselves doubtful and have been shown to be less and less likely since scholars have recognized the likelihood of Luke having been written earlier than was previously thought. This is part of a trend by scholars on both sides of the fence to date the New Testament documents earlier rather than later.
The dates of Luke's works are tied together since they are both addressed to the same person, appear to be written by a common author, with Acts following Luke in terms of chronology. The relatively abrupt ending of Acts, with no record of the end of Paul's life give a final date for Acts at no later than 68 AD (which is the latest date assigned by scholars to Paul's death). Many would place it earlier, in 64 AD, with Acts having been written prior to this, as early as 61 AD.
Luke recorded a number of significant event in the life of the early church, including the first Christian martyrs. It is inconceivable that he would have failed to record the martyrdom of his companion Paul, nor that of James the brother of Jesus, nor indeed the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Josephus wrote the Antiqities of the Jews in 93 AD and so it is clear from these dates that Luke's having borrowed from Josephus is eliminated as a possibility. In this regard, it is thus more likely that Josephus borrowed from Luke than the other way around. Josephus himself refers to an earlier version of his work, written in aramaic (like the Gospel of Matthew), but this work is not extant. In any case, it could not have been written many years before the version we now have, due to the circumstances of Josephus' own life.
With regard to the book of Acts it is the general consensus of the evidence both internal and external, that Luke wrote all of Acts. Both Acts and the Gospel of Luke are addressed to the same person Theophilus. The 'we' sections indicate where Luke personally participated as a fellow-traveller with Paul (16:10-17; 20:5-21:18; 27:-28:16).
Conclusion of most modern Scholars are, that the evidences that Luke borrowed from Josephus is very strong.
"Luke almost certainly knew and drew upon the works of Josephus (or else an amazing series of coincidences remains in want of an explanation), and therefore Luke and Acts were written at the end of the 1st century, or perhaps the beginning of the 2nd." See related link.
Modern scholars see a number of areas in which Luke and Josephus touch on the same historical details. In line with recent biblical scholarship, (including that of liberals who are inclined to date things later) which concludes that Luke was written earlier than previously thought, modern Bible scholars conclude that it is more likely that Josephus borrowed from Luke since he wrote later.
It is interesting that Richard Carrier automatically rules out the possibility that Luke wrote first, since he is evidently following a particular bias against the historicity and accuracy of Luke as written. The other alternative is that he is unaware of modern biblical scholarship. Either way, such assertions are unreliable and do not square with the total body of evidence. It is also incorrect to assert 'most modern scholars' come to a certain conclusion contrary to the available evidence.
Wiki User
∙ 8y ago
Scholars debate this topic. Some believe that Luke borrowed from Josephus for historical details in the Gospel of Luke, while others argue that any similarities are coincidental or that both authors drew from a common pool of historical sources. Ultimately, it is difficult to definitively prove direct borrowing.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
Who were the sicarii?
The Sicarii were a group of Jewish zealots who used concealed daggers (sicae) to assassinate their Roman enemies in ancient Judea during the First Jewish-Roman War. They were known for their violent tactics and were associated with acts of terrorism and insurgency against the Roman authorities.
Who is Theophilus in Acts of Apostles?
Theophilus means "lover of God" luke addressed all his gospels to Theophilus although there was no such person. Since Theophilus means lover of God...Luke is saying his gosples are addressed to any of God's followers
Was Luke a slave in the bible?
No, Luke was not a slave in the Bible. He was a physician and companion of the apostle Paul, who wrote the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament.
What book's did luke write in the kjv?
The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles were written by Luke in the King James Version of the Bible.
Why did Luke write the gospel to the Gentiles?
Luke wrote his gospel to Theophilus, who was likely a Roman official, in order to provide him with an orderly account of the life and teachings of Jesus. By focusing on Jesus' universal message of salvation for all people, Luke intended to reach out to a Gentile audience and show that the message of Jesus was relevant to them as well.
Why could Jesus question the pharisees at age 12?
-----------------------Luke's Gospel presents this as evidence of Jesus' thorough religious knowledge. Interestingly, Josephus also wrote in his Autobiography that he too questioned and amazed the pharisees and scribes at about the same age. Since it appears that the author of Luke's Gospel did borrow some other ideas from Josephus, it is possible that this passage was inspired by Josephus, but it is also possible that this was a common boast by proud parents around the beginning of the first century.
Is Josephus mentioned in the Bible?
AnswerNo. The Bible is entirely about events that occurred before the time of Josephus. However, some scholars say that the author of Luke's Gospel and Acts of the Apostles relied heavily on the works of Josephus to place his own writings in a historical context.
What historical writings influenced the writers of the New Testament?
A:There can be no doubt that the works of the first-century Jewish historian, Josephus, influenced the author of Luke's Gospel and Acts of the Apostles. There are many parallels, and as many attempts to explain them as coincidences or that Josephus was influenced by Luke/Acts, but in at least one instance an error of chronology proves that the influence is from Josephus to Luke/Acts. Of course there are many other writings that influenced the evangelists, including the Old Testament, Paul's epistles (evident in the gospels), Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, Euripedes' play known as the Bacchae and others.
Where is the place where Jesus was preaching at the age of 12?
In Luke's Gospel, Jesus is said to have been found in the Temple talking to the priests and scribes, when he was only twelve years old, and amazing them with his knowledge. This the only such account in the canonical gospels and closely parallels Josephus' story of his own childhood in his The Life of Flavius Josephus. Given Luke's apparent reliance on Josephus for historical background, some scholars say that it is possible that the passage in Luke was really about Josephus.
Who is Josephus in Luke's Gospel?
A:Josephus was a priest in Jerusalem, then the Jewish military commander of Galilee at the start of the First Roman-Jewish War. He defected to the Romans and prophesied that the Roman commander would become the emperor of Rome. When this really did happen a few years later, Josephus was adopted into the royal family and began his career as a historian. His most important work was Antiquities of the Jews, published in 93 CE. Josephus is not mentioned in Luke's Gospel nor in Acts of the Apostles. However it has been convincingly demonstrated that some of the material in Acts is based on Antiquities. It is also probable that some material in Luke was based on the works of Josephus, particularly Antiquities, but conclusive proof has not yet been established in the way that it has been for Acts.
What parts in the Acts of the Apostle are believed to be sourced from the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus?
The author of Acts of the Apostles did not use the writings of Josephus as his main source, but did rely on them for historical background. Many parallels have been found between the works of Josephus and some representative examples follow: * Josephus used the term sects or 'philosophical schools' (Greek: haireseis), to describe the Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes. Luke was the only other author known to have described the Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes this way (Acts 5:17, 15:5, 26:5), and he also referred to Christianity as another philosophical school of the Jews (Acts 24:5, 28:22). * Moreover, Luke had Paul call the Pharisees the 'most precise school' among the Jews in the reference at 26:5. Only Josephus and Luke referred to the Pharisees as the 'most precise school'. * Luke had Gamaliel speak about an uprising that had taken place under Theudas, placing this speech in Acts 5:36, before the martyrdom of Stephen. In the next verse, Luke said that after this man, Judas of Galilee rose up. The uprising by Theudas occurred within the procuratorship of Fadus, who was procurator in the years 44-46 CE. However, Acts 11:25-28, tells us that Paul was already a Christian before the famine that also started around the same time as this uprising. It is evident that Luke knew nothing of Theudas from Christian sources, but inserted mention of him into the account as a piece of useful history that Luke learnt from Josephus, and no where else. We can establish that because, when Josephus mentioned Theudas, he immediately followed with commentary on the sons of Judas and then took the opportunity to describe the much earlier actions of Judas himself. Luke repeated the incorrect sequence of Theudas and Judas, which only makes sense in the context of Josephus' narrative - a clear sign that Luke relied on information from Josephus. * Luke, writing in Greek, used the term sicarii, a Latin word for assassins. Josephus, who also wrote in Greek, seems to have been the first to use this foreign word as a term for Jewish rebels who carried out assassinations under cover of urban crowds. * Both Josephus and Luke mentioned three specific rebel leaders, and no other, even though Josephus says there were numerous such men. These rebels were Theudas, Judas and 'the Egyptian'. Luke had the chief captain ask Paul whether he was the Egyptian who led four thousand sicarii (KJV translated as 'murderers') into the desert (Acts 21:38). Far from leading anyone into the desert, 'the Egyptian' wanted to bring down the walls of Jerusalem by a miracle. Ancient writers did not acknowledge their sources using footnotes in the style of modern academic authors, but they did have another way of acknowledge their sources, known as mimesis. This was an intellectually amusing technique that required placing a clue, or flag, within the text, enabling others to identify the source. But the flag must not be obvious - it had to be a clue that needed to be searched for and identified. Josephus had dedicated Jewish Antiquities to Epaphroditus, a real name that meant 'Touched by Aphrodite'. Luke dedicated both the Gospel and Acts to Theophilus, which means 'Friend of God'. This could be a real name but is an apparent transvaluation of Epaphroditus.
Is there a copy of a book written by Josephus Josephus ben Matthias or Josephus Flavius available to be read?
The books of Josephus are commonly available. Check the website of Abebooks.
Who was the famous Jewish general who joined the Romans and wrote a detailed history of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD?
He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.He was Josephus ben Matthias, who later changed his name to Flavius Josephus, in honor of his patron Vespasian.
What has the author Josephus written?
Josephus. has written: 'The Jewish War'
When was Josephus Tethool born?
Josephus Tethool was born in 1934.
When did Josephus Adjutus die?
Josephus Adjutus died in 1668.
When was Josephus Adjutus born?
Josephus Adjutus was born in 1602.
