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Against　Apion。（1）

by　Flavius　Josephus

Translated　by　William　Whiston






BOOK　1。


1。　I　Suppose　that　by　my　books　of　the　Antiquity　of　the　Jews；　most　excellent　Epaphroditus；　（2）　have　made　it　evident　to　those　who　peruse　them；　that　our　Jewish　nation　is　of　very　great　antiquity；　and　had　a　distinct　subsistence　of　its　own　originally；　as　also；　I　have　therein　declared　how　we　came　to　inhabit　this　country　wherein　we　now　live。　Those　Antiquities　contain　the　history　of　five　thousand　years；　and　are　taken　out　of　our　sacred　books；　but　are　translated　by　me　into　the　Greek　tongue。　However；　since　I　observe　a　considerable　number　of　people　giving　ear　to　the　reproaches　that　are　laid　against　us　by　those　who　bear　ill…will　to　us；　and　will　not　believe　what　I　have　written　concerning　the　antiquity　of　our　nation；　while　they　take　it　for　a　plain　sign　that　our　nation　is　of　a　late　date；　because　they　are　not　so　much　as　vouchsafed　a　bare　mention　by　the　most　famous　historiographers　among　the　Grecians。　I　therefore　have　thought　myself　under　an　obligation　to　write　somewhat　briefly　about　these　subjects；　in　order　to　convict　those　that　reproach　us　of　spite　and　voluntary　falsehood；　and　to　correct　the　ignorance　of　others；　and　withal　to　instruct　all　those　who　are　desirous　of　knowing　the　truth　of　what　great　antiquity　we　really　are。　As　for　the　witnesses　whom　I　shall　produce　for　the　proof　of　what　I　say；　they　shall　be　such　as　are　esteemed　to　be　of　the　greatest　reputation　for　truth；　and　the　most　skillful　in　the　knowledge　of　all　antiquity　by　the　Greeks　themselves。　I　will　also　show；　that　those　who　have　written　so　reproachfully　and　falsely　about　us　are　to　be　convicted　by　what　they　have　written　themselves　to　the　contrary。　I　shall　also　endeavor　to　give　an　account　of　the　reasons　why　it　hath　so　happened；　that　there　have　not　been　a　great　number　of　Greeks　who　have　made　mention　of　our　nation　in　their　histories。　I　will；　however；　bring　those　Grecians　to　light　who　have　not　omitted　such　our　history；　for　the　sake　of　those　that　either　do　not　know　them；　or　pretend　not　to　know　them　already。

2。　And　now；　in　the　first　place；　I　cannot　but　greatly　wonder　at　those　men；　who　suppose　that　we　must　attend　to　none　but　Grecians；　when　we　are　inquiring　about　the　most　ancient　facts；　and　must　inform　ourselves　of　their　truth　from　them　only；　while　we　must　not　believe　ourselves　nor　other　men；　for　I　am　convinced　that　the　very　reverse　is　the　truth　of　the　case。　I　mean　this；　…　if　we　will　not　be　led　by　vain　opinions；　but　will　make　inquiry　after　truth　from　facts　themselves；　for　they　will　find　that　almost　all　which　concerns　the　Greeks　happened　not　long　ago；　nay；　one　may　say；　is　of　yesterday　only。　I　speak　of　the　building　of　their　cities；　the　inventions　of　their　arts；　and　the　description　of　their　laws；　and　as　for　their　care　about　the　writing　down　of　their　histories；　it　is　very　near　the　last　thing　they　set　about。　However；　they　acknowledge　themselves　so　far；　that　they　were　the　Egyptians；　the　Chaldeans；　and　the　Phoenicians　（for　I　will　not　now　reckon　ourselves　among　them）　that　have　preserved　the　memorials　of　the　most　ancient　and　most　lasting　traditions　of　mankind；　for　almost　all　these　nations　inhabit　such　countries　as　are　least　subject　to　destruction　from　the　world　about　them；　and　these　also　have　taken　especial　care　to　have　nothing　omitted　of　what　was　＇remarkably＇　done　among　them；　but　their　history　was　esteemed　sacred；　and　put　into　public　tables；　as　written　by　men　of　the　greatest　wisdom　they　had　among　them。　But　as　for　the　place　where　the　Grecians　inhabit；　ten　thousand　destructions　have　overtaken　it；　and　blotted　out　the　memory　of　former　actions；　so　that　they　were　ever　beginning　a　new　way　of　living；　and　supposed　that　every　one　of　them　was　the　origin　of　their　new　state。　It　was　also　late；　and　with　difficulty；　that　they　came　to　know　the　letters　they　now　use；　for　those　who　would　advance　their　use　of　these　letters　to　the　greatest　antiquity　pretend　that　they　learned　them　from　the　Phoenicians　and　from　Cadmus；　yet　is　nobody　able　to　demonstrate　that　they　have　any　writing　preserved　from　that　time；　neither　in　their　temples；　nor　in　any　other　public　monuments。　This　appears；　because　the　time　when　those　lived　who　went　to　the　Trojan　war；　so　many　years　afterward；　is　in　great　doubt；　and　great　inquiry　is　made；　whether　the　Greeks　used　their　letters　at　that　time；　and　the　most　prevailing　opinion；　and　that　nearest　the　truth；　is；　that　their　present　way　of　using　those　letters　was　unknown　at　that　time。　However；　there　is　not　any　writing　which　the　Greeks　agree　to　he　genuine　among　them　ancienter　than　Homer's　Poems；　who　must　plainly　he　confessed　later　than　the　siege　of　Troy；　nay；　the　report　goes；　that　even　he　did　not　leave　his　poems　in　writing；　but　that　their　memory　was　preserved　in　songs；　and　they　were　put　together　afterward；　and　that　this　is　the　reason　of　such　a　number　of　variations　as　are　found　in　them。　（3）　As　for　those　who　set　themselves　about　writing　their　histories；　I　mean　such　as　Cadmus　of　Miletus；　and　Acusilaus　of　Argos；　and　any　others　that　may　be　mentioned　as　succeeding　Acusilaus；　they　lived　but　a　little　while　before　the　Persian　expedition　into　Greece。　But　then　for　those　that　first　introduced　philosophy；　and　the　consideration　of　things　celestial　and　divine　among　them；　such　as　Pherceydes　the　Syrian；　and　Pythagoras；　and　Thales；　all　with　one　consent　agree；　that　they　learned　what　they　knew　of　the　Egyptians　and　Chaldeans；　and　wrote　but　little　And　these　are　the　things　which　are　supposed　to　be　the　oldest　of　all　among　the　Greeks；　and　they　have　much　ado　to　believe　that　the　writings　ascribed　to　those　men　are　genuine。

3。　How　can　it　then　be　other　than　an　absurd　thing；　for　the　Greeks　to　be　so　proud；　and　to　vaunt　themselves　to　be　the　only　people　that　are　acquainted　with　antiquity；　and　that　have　delivered　the　true　accounts　of　those　early　times　after　an　accurate　manner？　Nay；　who　is　there　that　cannot　easily　gather　from　the　Greek　writers　themselves；　that　they　knew　but　little　on　any　good　foundation　when　they　set　to　write；　but　rather　wrote　their　histories　from　their　own　conjectures？　Accordingly；　they　confute　one　another　in　their　own　books　to　purpose；　and　are　not　ashamed。　to　give　us　the　most　contradictory　accounts　of　the　same　things；　and　I　should　spend　my　time　to　little　purpose；　if　I　should　pretend　to　teach　the　Greeks　that　which　they　know　better　than　I　already；　what　a　great　disagreement　there　is　between　Hellanicus　and　Acusilaus　about　their　genealogies；　in　how　many　eases　Acusilaus　corrects　Hesiod：　or　after　what　manner　Ephorus　demonstrates　Hellanicus　to　have　told　lies　in　the　greatest　part　of　his　history；　as　does　Timeus　in　like　manner　as　to　Ephorus；　and　the　succeeding　writers　do　to　Timeus；　and　all　the　later　writers　do　to　Herodotus　（3）　nor　could　Timeus　agree　with　Antiochus　and　Philistius；　or　with　Callias；　about　the　Sicilian　History；　no　more　than　do　the　several　writers　of　the　Athide　follow　one　another　about　the　Athenian　affairs；　nor　do　the　historians　the　like；　that　wrote　the　Argolics；　about　the　affairs　of　the　Argives。　And　now　what　need　I　say　any　more　about　particular　cities　and　smaller　places；　while　in　the　most　approved　writers　of　the　expedition　of　the　Persians；　and　of　the　actions　which　were　therein　performed；　there　are　so　great　differences？　Nay；　Thucydides　himself　is　accused　of　some　as　writing　what　is　false；　although　he　seems　to　have　given　us　the　exactest　history　of　the　affairs　of　his　own　time。　（4）

4。　As　for　the　occasions　of　so　great　disagreement　of　theirs；　there　may　be　assigned　many　that　are　very　probable；　if　any　have　a　mind　to　make　an　inquiry　about　them；　but　I　ascribe　these　contradictions　chiefly　to　two　causes；　which　I　will　now　mention；　and　still　think　what　I　shall　mention　in　the　first　place　to　be　the　principal　of　all。　For　if　we　remember　that　in　the　beginning　the　Greeks　had　taken　no　care　to　have　public　records　of　their　several　transactions　preserved；　this　must　for　certain　have　afforded　those　that　would　afterward　write　about　those　ancient　transactions　the　opportunity　of　making　mistakes；　and　the　power　of　making　lies　also；　for　this　original　recording　of　such　ancient　transactions　hath　not　only　been　neglected　by　the　other　states　of　Greece；　but　even　among　the　Athenians　themselves　also；　who　pretend　to　be　Aborigines；　and　to　have　applied　themselves　to　learning；　there　are　no　such　records　extant；　nay；　they　say　themselves　that　the　laws　of　Draco　concerning　murders；　which　are　now　extant　in　writing；　are　the　most　ancient　of　their　public　records；　which　Draco　yet　lived　but　a　little　before　the　tyrant　Pisistratus。　（5）　For　as　to　the　Arcadians；　who　make　such　boasts　of　their　antiquity；　what　need　I　speak　of　them　in　particular；　since　it　was　still　later　before　they　got　their　letters；　and　learned　them；　and　that　with　difficulty　also。　（6）

5。　There　must　therefore　naturally　arise　great　differences　among　writers；　when　they　had　no　original　records　to　lay　for　their　foundation；　which　might　at　once　inform　those　who　had　an　inclination　to　learn；　and　contradict　those　that　would　tell　lies。　However；　we　are　to　suppose　a　second　occasion　besides　the　former　of　these　contradictions；　it　is　this：　That　those　who　were　the　most　zealous　to　write　history　were　not　solicitous　for　the　discovery　of　truth；　although　it　was　very　easy　for　them　always　to　make　such　a　profession；　but　their　business　was　to　demonstrate　that　they　could　write　well；　and　make　an　impression　upon　mankind　thereby；　and　in　what　manner　of　writing　they　thought　they　were　able　to　exceed　others；　to　that　did　they　apply　themselves；　Some　of　them　betook　themselves　to　the　writing　of　fabulous　narrations；　some　of　them　endeavored　to　please　the　cities　or　the　kings；　by　writing　in　their　commendation；　others　of　them　fell　to　finding　faults　with　transactions；　or　with　the　writers　of　such　transactions；　and　thought　to　make　a　great　figure　by　so　doing。　And　indeed　these　do　what　is　of　all　things　the　most　contrary　to　true　history；　for　it　is　the　great　character　of　true　history　that　all　concerned　therein　both　speak　and　write　the　same　things；　while　these　men；　by　writing　differently　about　the　same　things；　think　they　shall　be　believed　to　write　with　the　greatest　regard　to　truth。　We　therefore　＇who　are　Jews＇　must　yield　to　the　Grecian　writers　as　to　language　and　eloquence　of　composition；　but　then　we　shall　give　them　no　such　preference　as　to　the　verity　of　ancient　history；　and　least　of　all　as　to　that　part　which　concerns　the　affairs　of　our　own　several　countries。

6。　As　to　the　care　of　writing　down　the　records　from　the　earliest　antiquity　among　the　Egyptians　and　Babylonians；　that　the　priests　were　intrusted　therewith；　and　employed　a　philosophical　concern　about　it；　that　they　were　the　Chaldean　priests　that　did　so　among　the　Babylonians；　and　that　the　Phoenicians；　who　were　mingled　among　the　Greeks；　did　especially　make　use　of　their　letters；　both　for　the　common　affairs　of　life；　and　for　the　delivering　down　the　history　of　common　transactions；　I　think　I　may　omit　any　proof；　because　all　men　allow　it　so　to　be。　But　now　as　to　our　forefathers；　that　they　took　no　less　care　about　writing　such　records；　（for　I　will　not　say　they　took　greater　care　than　the　others　I　spoke　of；）　and　that　they　committed　that　matter　to　their　high　priests　and　to　their　prophets；　and　that　these　records　have　been　written　all　along　down　to　our　own　times　with　the　utmost　accuracy；　nay；　if　it　be　not　too　bold　for　me　to　say　it；　our　history　will