Bibliography
| Title: Josephus' Portrait of Jacob Secondary Title: Proceedings of the Tenth World Congress of Jewish Studies (Jerusalem, August 16-24 1989) Pages: 261-268 Type: Book Section Year: 1990 Abstract: "Dans son portrait de Jacob, Josèphe fait face à un double problème: dû au caractère apologétique de son oeuvre il doit magnifier Jacob, l'ancêtre d'Israel, mais il ne peut pas le faire sur le dos d'Esau, considéré comme l'ancêtre des Romains; Josèphe a résolu le problème "by diminishing or omitting the alleged defects of Jacob's character, by diminishing or omitting the defects in Eau's character, and by diminishing or omitting the conflict between the two brothers". En plus, et afin de rendre son oeuvre plus inéressante pour ses lecteurs, "Josephus presents themes familiar to his audience from Homer, from the greek tragedians and from Hellenistic novels. Thus he increases the suspense and romantic element in his account of the metting of Jacob and Rachel, and he heightens the pathos in the account of Jacob's dealings with Laban"".
"In his portrayal of Jacob, Josephus presented a most readable account that would defend the Jews and would appeal to, and not offend, his Roman audience. This investigation of Josephus' narrative considers the importance of Jacob for Josephus, Jacob's qualities of character, the alleged defects in Jacob's character, Josephus' treatment of Esau, the equation of Esau and Rome, answers to anti-Jewish charges, Jacob and nationalism, detheologizing and avoidance of theological difficulties in Josephus' narrative of Jacob, and dramatic and romantic motifs. Josephus' changes vis-á-vis the biblical account emanated both from his following in the Hellenistic historiographical tradition and his apologetic concern to reconcile Jews and Romans". - C.R.M.
"In his portrayal of Jacob, Josephus' main goals are apologetic, namely to win the favor of his Roman hosts, and to present the biblical narrative in a more interesting form. In depicting Jacob he walked a tightrope between adulation and denigration. On the one hand, as with his other biblical heroes, Josephus stresses Jacob's genealogy, appearance, wealth, and possession of the cardinal virtues (wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice) plus piety; on the other hand, because he apparently identified Esau with Rome, his patron, he is careful not to stress the shortcomings of Esau, Jacob's twin brother and bitter rival, or the strife between Jacob and Esau. Although, in general, he closely paraphrases the biblical text, he omits references that would be embarrassing and he seeks to arouse more sympathy for Esau. However, the scene in which Jacob and Esau are reconciled becomes in Josephus a central event and is narrated at great length. Indeed, Josephus ever eager to diminish the tension between the brothers claims that Esau approached Jacob with no thought of treachery. Moreover, aware that the Romans were sensitive to the great expansion of the Jewish population especially through proselytism, and that Jacob is the direct ancestor of the Jewish people. Josephus departs from the biblical text in order to avoid any indication that the Jews seek to convert others to Judaism or that the Jews will establish an independent state in the future. To make the narrative more appealing to his primary audience, which consisted of pagans, Josephus diminishes the role of God in several places, rationalises miracles, and omits those passages that raise serious questions about the authorship and date of the revelation of the Torah. Furthermore, he introduces an element of suspense, increases the pathos, and employs romantic motifs such as are frequently found in Homer and in the greek novels". Keywords: Antiquities |