Dr. Yehiam Sorek
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During the events of the Great Revolt, 66-73 AD, two dramatic and exciting events took place, one in a cave in Yodafat and the other in besieged Jerusalem. The events are similar to each other in their format and duration: the rebels are on the verge of collapse and collapse; A small part of them decides to surrender and surrender to the Romans; These prophesy to the commander of the Romans that his political future will be upgraded (he will be imprisoned) and in return they receive a personal and socio-political reward. Whether the two events never happened; Whether only one of them is original and the other is copied and fabricated; Whether the two events occurred during a different development, different from what appears in the sources, in any case the similarity between them, when only 3 years separate one event from the other, requires clarification and investigation.
In the summer of 67 CE, the Romans besieged the fortress of Yodaphat (north of Zipori and southeast of Acre), which was one of the centers of the rebellion in the Galilee. They breached its walls and in one of the caves the commander of the rebellion sector in the Galilee, Yosef ben-Matatihu, hid with a group of fighters. Yosef ben Matatiyoh convinces his people to commit group suicide on the basis of casting lots among them. Finally, there were two left, Yosef and his enemy to kiss, and this is what the sources testify: "Recently only Yosef was left with his friend (Nikanor) alone - maybe it was a coincidence and maybe God's finger - and he did not want to be trapped by fate and die, nor to defile his hands with the blood of his brothers, if he was the last one left , and therefore enticed his friend to make an alliance with the Romans and live" (Wars of the Jews against the Romans, XNUMX).
"Vespasian ordered a strong guard to be placed on Joseph, saying to send him soon to Nero" (ibid. 8). But..."And when Joseph heard this, he sent to Vespasianus, because he had something secret to tell him alone... You think, Vespasianus, that Joseph, who is captured by you, is only a prisoner of war, but really I am a messenger sent to speak great things to you. I know your laws The Jews, and there is no righteous way of death for him, therefore I would not have come to you if God had not sent me. Why is this thing? Shall Nero and his heirs live longer? You, Vespasian, will be the sole ruler, and with you, Titus, you will be the emperor, but also the lord of the land and the whole race of men You took revenge on me in my exile to you, because I spoke wonders in your ears in the name of God" (ibid., 10). Josephus buys his freedom, joins the Roman camp, receives the imperial name ("Flavius") and becomes the historian of the great rebellion. I do not intend here to argue with those who claim that Yosef ben Matthiyehu "sold" his soul to the Romans and became their slave, a follower of their word, and some of them even criticize when they call him a criminal traitor. It is clear on the one hand, that it is impossible to ignore parts of the trend of his writing, which have, at least seemingly, a pro-Roman orientation, whether this stems from personal pragmatism and realism or not. However, it is impossible to ignore, on the other hand, the confirmed and supported assumption by most scholars, that Josephus is considered a reliable historian.
Three years later, on the eve of the end of the Great Revolt in Jerusalem, in approximately 70 AD, we are exposed to a story similar in its general lines to the Yosef ben Mattatihu incident in Yodfat. Rabbi Yohanan Ben-Zakai (hereafter Ribaz), a moderate leader and pursuer of peace in besieged Jerusalem, understands that the question of the fall of Jerusalem is only a matter of time, and therefore must be saved and saved, redeeming the individual and the individuals (society) together. For this reason Rivaz tries to communicate with Vespasian outside the walls of Jerusalem by sending letters related to arrows and conveying to him that Rivaz is one of his supporters and lovers This is what the Talmudic sources testify to in their legendary form, Rivaz, disguised as a dead man, goes outside the walls of Jerusalem, and when he meets Vespasian he predicts that soon the Roman commander will be defeated. While the prophetic prediction is being delivered to the Roman governor, a delegation from Rome arrives and confirms the "prophecy". Vespasianus in return gives Ribaz "Yavna and its sages" according to one version and according to another version Ribaz is privileged to establish a kind of religious center there, in Yavne. One of the first Israeli researchers to discuss this issue (Gedalihu Alon) drew attention to the fact that in Yavneh, a Roman ("open") Roman POW camp was established, as was customary for the Romans in similar circumstances, where all those who surrendered to the Romans and were held in favorable conditions, for tactical and pragmatic reasons, were brought and concentrated there Romans are clear. It is quite possible that Ribaz became, even if indirectly, an honorable prisoner of the Romans. He asked them to ease the conditions of his arrest/captivity (as implied in the Talmudic literature) and in any case he turned Yavne into a religious and ritual center first and then into a political, economic, social, and legal center and cultural, similar to the status of Jerusalem until its fall in AD 70. It can therefore be understood that Ribaz, for personal reasons and pragmatic, he formulated a pro-Roman position and it turns out that the nature of Ribaz's policies and ways can also be examined in an interesting way in light of the special relationship forged between him and the Romans.
So what did we have?
Two very similar stories of extradition to the Romans, arrest, prophecy, release, retribution and pro-Roman stance.
We do not know and may never be able to know who the source is (if any) and whether they even had a hold on reality. In any case, each story served the interests of its drafters/inventors/copyists well: Joseph ben Mattathieu would be able to explain how he became the commander of the rebellion, a fighter against the Romans, to a historian whose version is quite flattering for the Romans, their army and their actions. Rivaz would be able to explain how he avoided the besieged Jerusalem, moved the center to the city of Yavneh, bore a title with not only spiritual and religious significance but also political, thereby saving the residents of Judah from a life without a temple and sacrifices, and "however" upgraded his status.
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