Apion 2.1-78

Some great stuff! I keep hitting myself for not reading straight through Josephus before. It really enhances so much that I think every PhD in New Testament, even many MAs, should read through significant portions. Alas...

Apion 2 begins with a dedication of the second volume to Epaphroditus that is really similar to the introduction to Acts. "Through the first book, my most honored Epaproditus..." Presumably this was conventional dedication to one's patron.

In the second volume, we finally meet Apion, who led the opposite delegation to Philo to Rome under Caligula after the pogrom of AD38. He wrote a book on Egypt much like Manetho's and dependant on Manetho's.

Good description of Alexandria and where the Jews primarily lived in the city. He mentions a stele in Alexandria that recorded the rights given the Jews by Julius Caesar (37). Josephus is not completely to be trusted. For example, when Claudius in the early 40s issued a verdict on whether the Jews were citizens of Alexandria, he answered that they never really were. Obviously, both Philo and Josephus disagreed.

The Greek text is missing for a significant portion, starting at 52. Fun to see the Greek switch to Latin till 114.

Allusion to the crisis of 3 Maccabees, although there are significant questions about when and if this persecution took place. Josephus also backdates the Jewish position to Alexander, when it seems more likely that Ptolemy 1 Soter settled many Jews there against their will. Ptolemy II Philadelphus seems to have been more favorable.

Mention of primary sources like letters from Caesar are interesting (61).

A significant text for Hebrews scholarship is 2.77, where Josephus speaks of temple practice as if it were still currently taking place. In reality of course, the temple had been destroyed for almost 30 years by the time Josephus was writing. The present tense of Hebrews in relation to the offering of sacrifices is thus no argument for a pre-70 date for the sermon.