Destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem by Francesco Hayez. Oil on canvas, 1867.
Where Science Meets Religion by Trent Dee Stephens, PhD, for the Come Follow Me lesson May 22–28: Joseph Smith—Matthew 1; Matthew 24–25; Mark 12–13; Luke 21
We are told in Joseph Smith—Matthew 1:2-4, “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple; and his disciples came to him, for to hear him, saying: Master, show us concerning the buildings of the temple, as thou hast said—They shall be thrown down, and left unto you desolate. And Jesus said unto them: See ye not all these things, and do ye not understand them? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here, upon this temple, one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down. And Jesus left them, and went upon the Mount of Olives. And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying: Tell us when shall these things be which thou hast said concerning the destruction of the temple, and the Jews; and what is the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world, or the destruction of the wicked, which is the end of the world?”
We read further in Joseph Smith—Matthew 1:12- 20, “When you, therefore, shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, then you shall stand in the holy place; whoso readeth let him understand. Then let them who are in Judea flee into the mountains; Let him who is on the housetop flee, and not return to take anything out of his house; Neither let him who is in the field return back to take his clothes; And wo unto them that are with child, and unto them that give suck in those days; Therefore, pray ye the Lord that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day; For then, in those days, shall be great tribulation on the Jews, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, such as was not before sent upon Israel, of God, since the beginning of their kingdom until this time; no, nor ever shall be sent again upon Israel. All things which have befallen them are only the beginning of the sorrows which shall come upon them. And except those days should be shortened, there should none of their flesh be saved; but for the elect’s sake, according to the covenant, those days shall be shortened.”
The abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet can be found in Daniel 11:31, “And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.” This prophecy also speaks to the destruction of the temple.
Johan Lust has stated, “Abomination of desolation is a phrase from the Book of Daniel describing the pagan sacrifices with which the 2nd century BCE Greek king Antiochus IV Epiphanes replaced the twice-daily offering in the Jewish temple, or alternatively the altar on which such offerings were made.”1
The Bible Dictionary states, “The Feast of the Dedication was instituted in the days of Judas Maccabaeus [c. 190 - 160 BC] to commemorate the dedication of the new altar of burnt offering after the profanation of the temple and the old altar by Antiochus Epiphanes [a Greek Hellenistic king who ruled from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC]. The feast began on the 25th Chisleu, the anniversary of the profanation in 168 B.C., and the dedication in 165 B.C., and lasted eight days, during which no fast or mourning for any calamity or bereavement was allowed. It was kept like the Feast of Tabernacles with great gladness and with the bearing of the branches of palms and of other trees. There was also a general illumination, from which circumstance the feast received the name Feast of Lights.” Today, the feast is more commonly known as Hanukkah. (see also my blog: “The Feast of Dedication”)
But that first abomination of desolation had already occurred before Christ’s time, and the renewal and rededication of the temple had occurred over two hundred years before Christ. Indeed, He participated in the Feast of Dedication. Yet Christ is speaking of a much worse abomination of desolation, when “…there shall not be left here, upon this temple, one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.” (Joseph Smith—Matthew 1:3) The Greeks did not tear down the temple so that no stone would be left upon another, but the Romans did – in 70 AD.
This week’s essay has very little science in it. But, rather, is an eye-witness account of the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. Although I have had a copy of the Complete Works of Josephus in my library for over forty years, and have read parts of it, I have never gone into detail about the fall of Jerusalem until inspired to do so by this weeks’ Come Follow Me lesson. I hope my readers will find this extensive account of the destruction as fascinating as I have, and Christ’s prophesies concerning it as awe-inspiring and faith-inspiring as I have.
The most complete review of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple is that of Josephus, The Wars of the Jews. Flavius Josephus (c. 37 AD – c. 100 AD) was a Jewish priest, Pharisee, and military leader from Jerusalem. At age 25 (around 62 AD), he went to Rome to negotiate the release of several priests who were being held captive there. He became acquainted with Poppea, Nero’s wife and she gave him lavish gifts upon his return to Jerusalem.2 He said that, “…there were a great many very much elevated in hopes of a revolt from the Romans…I foresaw that the end of such a war would be most unfortunate to us. But I could not persuade them; for the madness of desperate men was quite too hard for me.”3 Josephus did not elaborate on the early phases of the rebellion, but he stated that at some unspecified point in the Jewish rebellion, the Romans captured the Antonia Fortress in Jerusalem, which had been built by Herod the Great to protect the Second Temple. It stood at the eastern end of the Second Wall of the temple, at the north-western corner of the Temple Mount. But the Romans were beaten back, and with this success, the rebel faction among the Jews “…had hopes of finally conquering the Romans.” There was also great strife at the time between the Jews and their neighbors. In several towns in Syria, as well as in Damascus, numerous Jews were murdered. The Syrians also forced Jews to take up arms against their neighbor Jews and then killed them all after they were victorious.4
Josephus, with two others, was sent to Galilee, which had not yet revolted against Rome, to persuade them not to join the revolution. At that time, the Jews set on revolt were attacking neighboring towns seen to be friendly to the Romans.5 In 67 AD, Josephus led the Galileans in attacks against the neighboring Syrian towns of Sepphoris (twice), Tiberias (four times), and Gadara.6 He stated that “…the Romans expected no other than that we should destroy one another by our mutual seditions…”7 Josephus led an army in Galilee, which defeated a Roman cavalry under Ebutius.8 He also led an army against Vespasian near the village of Taricheae, where he was defeated, taken alive, bound, but later released. He was sent with Titus to “…the siege of Jerusalem…” and so was an eye-witness to the events there. He was later made a Roman citizen and given tax-free land by Vespasian in Judea.9
Josephus ended his Antiquities of the Jews by stating that, “Now Gessius Florus, who was sent as successor to Albinus by Nero, filled Judea with abundance of miseries…This Florus was so wicked, and so violent in the use of his authority, that the Jews took Albinus to have been [comparatively] their benefactor; so excessive were the mischiefs that he brought upon them. For Albinus concealed his wickedness, and was careful that it might not be discovered to all men; but Gessius Florus, as though he had been sent on purpose to show his crimes to every body, made a pompous ostentation of them to our nation as never omitting any sort of violence, nor any unjust sort of punishment; for he was not to be moved by pity, and never was satisfied with any degree of gain that came in his way; nor had he any more regard to great than to small acquisitions, but became a partner with the robbers themselves. For a great many fell then into that practice without fear, as having him for their security, and depending on him, that he would save them harmless in their particular robberies; so that there were no bounds set to the nation's miseries; but the unhappy Jews, when they were not able to bear the devastations which the robbers made among them, were all under a necessity of leaving their own habitations, and of flying away, as hoping to dwell more easily any where else in the world among foreigners [than in their own country]. And what need I say any more upon this head? Since it was this Florus who necessitated us to take up arms against the Romans, while we thought it better to be destroyed at once, than by little and little. Now this war began in the second year of the government of Florus, and the twelfth year of the reign of Nero [66 AD]. But then what actions we were forced to do, or what miseries we were enabled to suffer, may be accurately known by such as will peruse those books which I have written about the Jewish war.”10
Josephus says that the major issue in Jerusalem that caused the Roman army to react by besieging the city was that, “…the zealots grew more insolate…[whose] thirst was chiefly after the blood of valiant men, and men of good families, the one sort of whom they destroyed out of envy, the other out of fear…they tasted of their own medness in their mutual seditions one against another…there was no part of the people but they found out some pretense to destroy them…the only punishment of crimes [against them]…was death. Nor could any one escape, unless he were very inconsiderable, either on account of the meanness of his birth, or on account of his fortune.”11 “…the sedition [in Jerusalem] was divided into two parts…they fought earnestly against the people, and contended one with another…the city had to struggle with three of the greatest misfortunes, war, and tyranny, and sedition…the war was the least troublesome to the populace of them all.”12
Then, “…a fourth misfortune arose, in order to bring our nation to destruction. There was a fortress of very great strength not far from Jerusalem, which had been built by our ancient kings…It was called Masada. Those that were called Sicarii had taken possession of it formerly; but at this time they overran the neighboring countries, aiming only to procure to themselves necessities…they came down by night, without being discovered by those that could have prevented them…As for such as could not run away, being women and children, they slew them…they…carried away everything out of their houses, and…seized upon all the fruits that were in a flourishing condition, they brought them into Masada. And indeed these men laid all the villages that were about the fortress waste, and made the whole country desolate…At this time all the other regions of Judea that had hitherto been at rest were in motion, by means of the robbers.” This band of robbers was “…too small for an army, and too many for a gang of thieves…Nor was there now any part of Judea that was not in a miserable condition, as well as its most eminent city also.”13
This group of thugs sounds very much like the Gadianton robbers described in the Book of Mormon. It was toleration of this group of robbers that played a major role in the destruction of the Nephite civilization.14
“These things were told Vespasian by deserters; for although the seditious watched all the passages out of the city, and destroyed all…that came thither, yet were there some who had concealed themselves, and, when they had fled to the Romans, persuaded their general to come to their city’s assistance, and save the remainder of the people; informing him withal, that it was upon account of the people’s good-will toward the Romans that many of them were already slain, and the survivors in danger of the same treatment. Vespasian did indeed already pity the calamities these men were in, and arose…as though he were going to besiege Jerusalem – but in reality to deliver them from a [worse] siege they were already under.”15
However, Nero died by his own hand in June of 68 AD and Vespasian was declared emperor by his legions in July 69 AD. Vespasian left his son, Titus, in charge of the siege of Jerusalem and went to Rome to secure the empire. He defeated his rival, Vitellius and was confirmed emperor by the Senate.16
Josephus described what was happening at the Temple in Jerusalem at this time, “As now …on the feast of unleavened bread [when there were a lot of extra people in Jerusalem], which was now come, it being the fourteenth day of the month Xanthicus, [Nisan, April 70 AD] …Eleazar and his party opened the gates of this [inmost court of the] temple, and admitted such of the people as were desirous to worship God into it. But John [leader of the robbers] made use of this festival as a cloak for his treacherous designs, and armed the most inconsiderable of his own party, the greater part of whom were not purified, with weapons concealed under their garments, and sent them with great zeal into the temple, in order to seize upon it; which armed men, when they were gotten in, threw their garments away, and presently appeared in their armor. Upon which there was a very great disorder and disturbance about the holy house; while the people, who had no concern in the sedition, supposed that this assault was made against all without distinction, as the zealots thought it was made against themselves only. So these left off guarding the gates any longer, and leaped down from their battlements before they came to an engagement, and fled away into the subterranean caverns of the temple; while the people that stood trembling at the altar, and about the holy house, were rolled on heaps together, and trampled upon, and were beaten both with wooden and with iron weapons without mercy. Such also as had differences with others slew many persons that were quiet, out of their own private enmity and hatred, as if they were opposite to the seditious; and all those that had formerly offended any of these plotters were now known, and were now led away to the slaughter; and when they had done abundance of horrid mischief to the guiltless, they granted a truce to the guilty, and let those go off that came out of the caverns. These followers of John also did now seize upon this inner temple, and upon all the warlike engines therein, and then ventured to oppose Simon. And thus that sedition, which had been divided into three factions, was now reduced to two.”17
At that point Titus arrived with his legions. “…Titus, intending to pitch his camp near…to the city…placed as many of his choice horsemen and footmen as he thought sufficient opposite to the Jews, to prevent their sallying out upon them, while he gave orders for the whole army to level the distance, as far as the wall of the city. So they threw down all the hedges and walls which the inhabitants had made about their gardens and groves of trees, and cut down all the fruit trees that lay between them and the wall of the city, and filled up all the hollow places and the chasms, and demolished the rocky precipices with iron instruments; and thereby made all the place level from Scopus to Herod's monuments, which adjoined to the pool called the Serpent's Pool.”18
While Titus was preparing the siege, the two main factions inside the city – under the commands of Simon and John, were fighting against each other and killing the innocent.19
Josephus continued his narrative, “Now when affairs within the city were in this posture, Titus went round the city on the outside with some chosen horsemen, and looked about for a proper place where he might make an impression upon the walls; but as he was in doubt where he could possibly make an attack on any side, (for the place was no way accessible where the valleys were, and on the other side the first wall appeared too strong to be shaken by the engines,) he thereupon thought it best to make his assault upon the monument of John the high priest; for there it was that the first fortification was lower, and the second was not joined to it, the builders neglecting to build strong where the new city was not much inhabited; here also was an easy passage to the third wall, through which he thought to take the upper city, and, through the tower of Antonia, the temple itself. But at this time, as he was going round about the city, one of his friends, whose name was Nicanor, was wounded with a dart on his left shoulder, as he approached, together with Josephus, too near the wall, and attempted to discourse to those that were upon the wall, about terms of peace; for he was a person known by them. On this account it was that Caesar, as soon as he knew their vehemence, that they would not hear even such as approached them to persuade them to what tended to their own preservation, was provoked to press on the siege.”20
Progress of the Roman army during the siege; Wikipedia. The first and third walls appear to be reversed in this map compared to the description in Josephus.
The Romans breached the first and second walls.21 Titus did not at that time attempt to take the third wall but sent Josephus to offer piece to the besieged city.22 “As Josephus was speaking thus with a loud voice, the seditious would neither yield to what he said, nor did they deem it safe for them to alter their conduct; but as for the people, they had a great inclination to desert to the Romans; accordingly, some of them sold what they had, and even the most precious things that had been laid up as treasures by them, for every small matter, and swallowed down pieces of gold, that they might not be found out by the robbers; and when they had escaped to the Romans, went to stool, and had wherewithal to provide plentifully for themselves; for Titus let a great number of them go away into the country, whither they pleased. And the main reasons why they were so ready to desert were these: That now they should be freed from those miseries which they had endured in that city, and yet should not be in slavery to the Romans: however, John and Simon, with their factions, did more carefully watch these men's going out than they did the coming in of the Romans; and if any one did but afford the least shadow of suspicion of such an intention, his throat was cut immediately.”23
“But as for the richer sort, it proved all one to them whether they staid in the city, or attempted to get out of it; for they were equally destroyed in both cases; for every such person was put to death under this pretense, that they were going to desert, but in reality that the robbers might get what they had. The madness of the seditious did also increase together with their famine, and both those miseries were every day inflamed more and more; for there was no corn which any where appeared publicly, but the robbers came running into, and searched men's private houses; and then, if they found any, they tormented them, because they had denied they had any; and if they found none, they tormented them worse, because they supposed they had more carefully concealed it.”24
Titus surrounded Jerusalem with his own wall – thus intensifying the famine in the city and all hope of escape was cut off.25 Josephus was again sent to negotiate peace but the zealots refused.26 There was great fighting at the temple walls and many Jews and Romans were killed in the battle. “… when Titus perceived that his endeavors to spare a foreign temple turned to the damage of his soldiers, and then be killed, he gave order to set the gates on fire…But then, on the next day, Titus commanded part of his army to quench the fire, and to make a road for the more easy marching up of the legions”27
The Romans occupied the Antonia Fortress, which overlooked the Temple compound and gave them a perfect point from which to attack the Temple itself. “…the next day they [the Jews] gathered their whole force together, and ran upon those that guarded the outward court of the temple…through the east gate…However, Caesar [Titus] seeing, from the tower of Antonia, that this squadron was likely to give way, he sent some chosen horsemen to support them. Hereupon the Jews found themselves not able to sustain their onset, and upon the slaughter of those in the forefront, many of the rest were put to flight. But as the Romans were going off, the Jews turned upon them, and fought them; and as those Romans came back upon them, they retreated again…they were overborne, and shut themselves up in the inner [court of the] temple.”28
“Titus…resolved to storm the temple the next day, early in the morning, with his whole army, and to encamp round about the holy house. But as for that house, God had, for certain, long ago doomed it to the fire; and now that fatal day was come…it was the tenth day of the month Lous, [Ab; sometime in August 70 AD] …these flames took their rise from the Jews themselves…for upon Titus’s retiring, the seditious…attacked the Romans again, when those that guarded the holy house fought with those that quenched the fire that was burning the inner [court of the] temple; but these Romans put the Jews to flight, and proceeded as far as the holy house itself. At which time one of the soldiers, without staying for any orders…snatched somewhat out of the materials that were on fire, and …set fire to a golden window, through which there was a passage to the rooms that were round about the holy house, on the north side of it. As the flames went upward, the Jews made a great clamor, such as so mighty an affliction required, and ran together to prevent it; and now they spared not their lives any longer, nor suffered any thing to restrain their force, since that holy house was perishing, for whose sake it was that they kept such a guard about it.” Titus had not planned to burn the Temple; apparently he wanted to capture it and transform it into a temple dedicated to the Roman pantheon and the Roman Emperor. However, the fire spread quickly and was soon out of control. The flames also spread to other parts of the city.29
“While the holy house was on fire, every thing was plundered that came to hand, and ten thousand of those that were caught were slain; nor was there a commiseration of any age, or any reverence of gravity, but children, and old men, and profane persons, and priests were all slain in the same manner; so that this war went round all sorts of men, and brought them to destruction, and as well those that made supplication for their lives, as those that defended themselves by fighting. The flame was also carried a long way, and made an echo, together with the groans of those that were slain; and because this hill was high, and the works at the temple were very great, one would have thought the whole city had been on fire. Nor can one imagine any thing either greater or more terrible than this noise; for there was at once a shout of the Roman legions, who were marching all together, and a sad clamor of the seditious, who were now surrounded with fire and sword.”30
“And now the Romans, judging that it was in vain to spare what was round about the holy house, burnt all those places, as also the remains of the cloisters and the gates…They also burnt down the treasury chambers, in which was an immense quantity of money, and an immense number of garments, and other precious goods there reposited; and, to speak all in a few words, there it was that the entire riches of the Jews were heaped up together, while the rich people had there built themselves chambers [to contain such furniture]. But before Caesar [Titus] had … given the commanders any orders relating to them, the soldiers were in such a rage, that they set that cloister on fire; by which means it came to pass that some of these [people] were destroyed by throwing themselves down headlong, and some were burnt in the cloisters themselves. Nor did any one of them escape with his life. A false prophet was the occasion of these people's destruction, who had made a public proclamation in the city that very day, that God commanded them to get upon the temple, and that there they should receive miraculous signs of their deliverance. Now there was then a great number of false prophets suborned by the tyrants to impose on the people, who denounced this to them, that they should wait for deliverance from God; and this was in order to keep them from deserting, and that they might be buoyed up above fear and care by such hopes.”31
Christ had warned his disciples of the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, and of false prophets only thirty seven years earlier, “Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here, upon this temple, one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down…And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another; And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many; And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold…Then let them who are in Judea flee into the mountains; Let him who is on the housetop flee, and not return to take anything out of his house; Neither let him who is in the field return back to take his clothes; and wo unto them that are with child, and unto them that give suck in those days; Therefore, pray ye the Lord that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day; For then, in those days, shall be great tribulation on the Jews, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, such as was not before sent upon Israel, of God, since the beginning of their kingdom until this time; no, nor ever shall be sent again upon Israel.”32
Apparently many of the early Christians heeded Christ’s warning and were spared the great calamity. I have often read of the warning against false prophets but I did not realize just how quickly that prophecy was fulfilled.
After the Temple was set alight, Titus himself, by way of an interpreter stood at a bridge between the Temple mount and the upper city and offered peace to the defeated. “To that offer of Titus they made this reply: That they could not accept of it, because they had sworn never to do so; but they desired they might have leave to go through the wall that had been made about them, with their wives and children; for that they would go into the desert, and leave the city to him. At this Titus had great indignation, that when they were in the case of men already taken captives, they should pretend to make their own terms with him, as if they had been conquerors. So he ordered this proclamation to be made to them, That they should no more come out to him as deserters, nor hope for any further security; for that he would henceforth spare nobody, but fight them with his whole army; and that they must save themselves as well as they could; for that he would from henceforth treat them according to the laws of war. So he gave orders to the soldiers both to burn and to plunder the city…on the next day they set fire to the repository of the archives, to Acra, to the council-house, and to the place called Ophlas; at which time the fire proceeded as far as the palace of queen Helena, which was in the middle of Acra; the lanes also were burnt down, as were also those houses that were full of the dead bodies of such as were destroyed by famine.”33
“On the same day it was that the sons and brethren of Izates the king, together with many others of the eminent men of the populace, got together there, and besought Caesar to give them his right hand for their security; upon which, though he was very angry at all that were now remaining, yet did he not lay aside his old moderation, but received these men. At that time, indeed, he kept them all in custody, but still bound the king's sons and kinsmen, and led them with him to Rome, in order to make them hostages for their country's fidelity to the Romans.”34
So Titus took his captives and the spoils of the city and the Temple, and returned to Rome, where there was a triumphal parade, recorded in sculpture relief on the inner walls of the Arch of Titus. The final scene in the destruction and dispersal of the Jews of Jerusalem took place in 73 AD at Masada, which was the final stronghold of the Sicarii robbers. Flavius Silva led the Roman legions still in Judea against this final nest of rebels. I always thought that those who held out at Masada were zealots, yes, and rebels, yes, but nothing more. I did not realize until now that they were the very band of robbers who had been much of the cause of the fall of Jerusalem in the first place.35
Today, the Arch of Titus and the account of Josephus remain as the principal testimonies to the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem. The site of the Temple is now occupied by the Islamic Dome of the Rock, built in 691-692 AD and rebuilt in 1022-1023. Many Muslims even deny that there ever was a Jewish temple on the site. All that remains of the temple complex is the Western Wall, also called the Wailing Wall – with some of the rubble from the Temple at its base. Not one stone of the Temple was left standing on another.
Excavated stones from the Wall of the 2nd Temple (Jerusalem), knocked onto the street below by Roman battering rams in August 70 AD. This first century street is located at the base of the Temple Mount where the western and southern walls meet. The property may be accessed via the Davidson Archeological Center in Jerusalem. Photograph taken by Mark A. Wilson (Department of Geology, The College of Wooster).
Please join me for my weekly discussions of Where Science Meets Religion – The Infinite Creation – 6 PM each Thursday at the Century Ward meeting house Primary room (at 4th and Fredregill, Pocatello). Last week we discussed: Who is God? This week we will discuss: The Creation of Man. I also will be Zooming the sessions: Meeting ID: 935 754 2152 Passcode: nka
Trent Dee Stephens
trentdeestephens.com
References
1. Lust, Johan, “Cult and Sacrifice in Daniel. The Tamid and the Abomination of Desolation.” In Collins, John Joseph, and Flint, Peter W., eds., The Book of Daniel: Composition and Reception. Vol. 2. BRILL Academic Pub, 2001
2. The Life of Flavius Josephus, In, Josephus: Complete Works, translated by William Whiston, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI, 1978
3. Life, 4; Josephus p. 2
4. Life, 5-6; Josephus p. 2
5. Life, 7-8; Josephus pp. 2-3
6. Life, 15; Josephus p. 5
7. Life, 19; Josephus p. 6
8. Life, 24; Josephus pp. 6-7
9. Life, 74-76; Josephus pp. 20-21
10. The Antiquities of the Jews, book XX, chapter XI, paragraph 1; Josephus p. 426
11. The Wars of the Jews, book IV, chapter 1, paragraph 1; Josephus p. 522
12. Wars, book IV, chapter VII; Josephus pp. 537-538
13. Wars, book IV, chapter VII, paragraph 1-2; Josephus p. 537
14. Helaman 6:17-41
15. Wars, book IV, chapter VII, paragraph 3; Josephus p. 537
16. Wars, book IV, chapters IX-XI; Josephus pp. 540-546
17. Wars, book V, chapter III, paragraph 1; Josephus pp. 551
18. Wars, book V, chapter III, paragraph 2; Josephus pp. 551
19. Wars, book V, chapter VI; Josephus pp. 556-557
20. Wars, book V, chapter VI paragraph 2, 4; Josephus pp. 557
21. Wars, book V, chapter VII; Josephus pp. 558-559
22. Wars, book V, chapter IX; Josephus pp. 561-564
23. Wars, book V, chapter X, paragraph 1; Josephus pp. 564
24. Wars, book V, chapter X, paragraph 2; Josephus pp. 564
25. Wars, book V, chapter XII; Josephus pp. 567-568
26. Wars, book VI, chapter II; Josephus pp. 574-577
27. Wars, book VI, chapter IV, paragraph 1, 3; Josephus pp. 579-580
28. Wars, book VI, chapter IV, paragraph 4; Josephus p. 580
29. Wars, book VI, chapter IV, paragraph 5; Josephus pp. 580
30. Wars, book VI, chapter V, paragraph 1; Josephus p. 581
31. Wars, book VI, chapter V, paragraph 2; Josephus p. 582
32. Joseph Smith – Matthew 1:3, 8-10, 13-18
33. Wars, book VI, chapter VI, paragraphs 2-3; Josephus pp. 584-585
34. Wars, book VI, chapter VI, paragraph 4; Josephus p. 585
35. Wars, book VII, chapters VIII and IX; Josephus pp. 598-603