Antiquities of the Jews (3 Volumes in 1)

In this first part of his complete history of the Jewish people (the second is The Jewish War), Josephus provides a comprehensive historical compilation of the Hebrew people's journey from the creation of the world to the time of Nero. He divides his narrative into twenty books, each structured into thematic chapters covering either a specific period or a particular event:

The first ten books follow the historical account of the Old Testament. They range from the creation of the world, through the eras of the patriarchs, judges, and kings of Israel, to the fall and destruction of Jerusalem, the captivity of the Jews in Babylon, and the fall of Babylon to the Medes and Persians. Although the events Josephus narrates in this case are well-known through the biblical account, what is important are the facts and details Josephus adds, drawn from Jewish tradition, which are not found in the Bible text. This covers the years from approximately 0 to 539 B.C.

Book eleven covers the period beginning in the first year of Cyrus and extends from the reconstruction of the Temple in Jerusalem to the time of Alexander the Great. From this point on, Josephus's account becomes much more interesting and valuable from a historical perspective, as it narrates events and details from a period of Jewish history not recorded in the biblical text. Approximately years 540 to 329 B.C.

Books twelve to seventeen range from the death of Alexander the Great, through the Maccabean period and the Roman conquest and domination, to the Census of Quirinius. Approximately years 340 B.C. to 6 A.D.

And finally, books eighteen to twenty cover the era of the Roman emperors Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero, the tetrarchs Herod and Philip, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, Agrippa, and Festus. These are the most interesting from a Christian perspective, as they properly contain Josephus's historical testimony regarding John the Baptist, Jesus, the apostles, and the origins of Christianity. Let's look at some examples:

In Book XVIII, Chapter 3.3, he says about Jesus: "Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day." In Chapter 5.2 of the same book, he recounts the story and execution of John the Baptist: "Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's army came from God, and that with great justice, as a punishment for what he did against John that was called the Baptist. For Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism... he was bound in prison and sent to the fortress of Macherus, of which we have spoken before, and there he was slain."

And in Book XX, Chapter 9.1, Jesus is mentioned again when relating the death of James, his brother: "And Ananus, being of this character, and thinking that he had a fit opportunity because Festus was now dead, and Albinus was still on the road, called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. He brought before it the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned."

Although the so-called "Testimonium Flavianum" has been much debated and questioned by critics of Christianity, alleging philological reasons to assert that it was not Josephus's original text but was introduced later, the fact is that it appears in all known codices or manuscripts of Josephus's text. And the most recent philological research on the matter means that more and more scholars are coming to consider it authentic.

The special and particular value of the present edition of Antiquities of the Jews, besides offering, as we have said, a complete version of the text in updated Spanish, consists of Dr. Ropero's extensive introductions, intended to inform the reader about the historical value and debate of the work and to explain how to study it and make the most of it; in the hundreds of explanatory and clarifying footnotes; and especially in the extensive analytical index of characters, events, and topics included at the end, which make it a reference work of the highest caliber.

It can therefore be said that it is, and by far, the best and most complete Spanish edition of The Jewish War currently available on the market.