Sources

The Jewish War

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "The Jewish War." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-jewish-war.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Jewish War. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-jewish-war

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-the-jewish-war,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {The Jewish War},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-jewish-war},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

The Jewish War is the first century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus's own eyewitness account of the Jewish revolt against Rome and the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, written by a former rebel commander who surrendered to and later served under the Roman general Vespasian. Its authority as a primary source is unmatched for the period, no other surviving account was written by someone who fought in the war and then had direct access to Roman commanders and captured Jewish leaders. Its limit is equally well known among historians, Josephus wrote as a client of the Flavian dynasty that had just conquered his own people, with an evident interest in presenting both Rome and himself favorably, so specific claims about Jewish motives or numbers are traditionally weighed against that bias rather than accepted at face value.

Facts

Citation

Author

Flavius Josephus

Publisher

No single modern publisher; the work survives through numerous manuscript traditions and modern critical editions, most commonly consulted today in the Loeb Classical Library edition (Harvard University Press) or in William Whiston's widely used nineteenth century English translation. 1

Publication Year

Source Type

Primary document

Assessment

Reliability Tier

Josephus's own first century account of the Jewish revolt against Rome, an ancient primary source read here without a named modern critical edition to anchor its text.

Notes

Josephus's own first century account of the Jewish revolt against Rome and the destruction of the Second Temple.

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Rome

This source names Rome directly: "account of the Jewish revolt against Rome and the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, written by a former rebel commander who surrendered to and later served under the Roman general Vespasian."

Source The Jewish WarFlavius Josephus

Sources

1. Divinity Atlas Original Articles, Second Edition

Claims Backed By This Source (77 claims)

This source backs 77 claims across the atlas. As facts: 47 well-attested, 3 scholarly debate, 1 open question. As cited relationships: 12 holds, 1 connected. Plus 13 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.

Disposition By Topic

Sacred Sites, 16 claims: 7 well-attested, 7 holds, 2 general references.
Articles, 13 claims: 10 well-attested, 1 connected, 2 general references.
Religious Events, 11 claims: 5 well-attested, 3 scholarly debate, 2 holds, 1 general references.
Open Questions, 10 claims: 7 well-attested, 1 holds, 2 general references.
Sources, 7 claims: 6 well-attested, 1 holds.
Wars & Conflicts, 6 claims: 4 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.
Historical Figures, 5 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 open question, 2 general references.
Religious Roles & Titles, 5 claims: 4 well-attested, 1 general references.
Figures, 3 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 general references.
Cities, 1 claims: 1 general references.