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 hand - 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 to put a strong guard on Joseph, saying to send him soon to Nero" (ibid. XNUMX). But..." And when Joseph heard this he sent to Vespasianus, because he had something secret to tell him alone... You think, Vespasianus, that Joseph captured by you is only a prisoner of war, but really I am a messenger sent to speak great things to you. I know the laws of the Jews and I will not lose sight of some straight path of death that the minister of the army will break for him. Therefore I would not have come to you if God had not sent me. Here you say to send me to Nero. why this thing How long will Nero and the heirs to his throne live longer besides you? You, Vespasianus, will be Caesar. Here you are a sole ruler, and with you Titus your son. And not only the lord of my soul shall you be the emperor, but also the lord of the land and the sea and all the seed of man. And I charge you to strengthen the guard over me, so that they may take revenge on me in your exile, because I spoke wonders in your ears in the name of God" (ibid., XNUMX). 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 even exaggerate 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 Zakhai (hereafter Rabbi 70), a moderate leader and pursuer of peace in the 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 Ribaz is trying to communicate with Vespasian outside the walls of Jerusalem by sending letters related to arrows and conveying to him that Ribaz is one of his supporters and lovers. Finally, and this is evidenced by the Talmudic sources in their legendary form, Ribaz, disguised as a dead man, finds himself 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 (Gadalihu Alon) drew attention to the fact that in Yavneh, a Roman ("open") 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 may well be that Rivaz became, even if indirectly, an honorable captive 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, legal and cultural center, similar to the status of Jerusalem until its fall in XNUMX CE. It can therefore be understood that Ribaz, for personal and pragmatic reasons, formulated a pro-Roman position and it turns out that the nature of Ribaz's policy and path 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 well the interests of its drafters/inventors/copyists: Joseph ben Mattathieu could 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 that was not only spiritually and religiously significant but also politically, thereby saving the residents of Judah from a life without a temple and sacrifices, and "however" upgraded his status.
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