Andreas Ammann

Did Josephus write 4 Maccabees? Reconstructing the authorship debate through editions of the text.

Introduction

Did josephus write 4 maccabees? reconstructing the authorship debate through editions of the text.. Explore the historical debate on 4 Maccabees' authorship, tracing how scholarship moved from attributing it to Josephus to unknown. Hugo Grotius's role in this 16th-20th century shift.

Abstract

In today’s scholarship, no one would question the fact that the author of 4 Maccabees is unknown. However, for many centuries the work was believed to have been written by Flavius Josephus. This article investigates when exactly in the long reception history of this text, and for what reasons, it was first suggested that the Jewish historian could not be its author. Furthermore, it explores how long it took for this view to become the consensus among scholars and other readers of Josephus. By analysing paratexts of editions of 4 Maccabees and other sources from the 16th to the 20th century, this article establishes that Hugo Grotius was most likely the first to argue in print against the text’s authenticity, which makes it probable that 4 Maccabees was first considered spurious in the milieu of Protestant late humanism. Moreover, this article also shows that despite this relatively early scepticism, it took until the beginning of the 20th century for the idea of unknown authorship to be generally accepted by all editors and translators of Josephus.

Review

This article, "Did Josephus write 4 Maccabees? Reconstructing the authorship debate through editions of the text," offers a compelling investigation into a fascinating chapter of textual criticism and the history of scholarship. It tackles the once universally accepted, yet now completely discarded, attribution of 4 Maccabees to Flavius Josephus. The author aims to meticulously reconstruct the precise historical moment and the underlying reasons for the initial challenge to this long-held belief, subsequently tracing the extended period required for the modern consensus of unknown authorship to finally take root among scholars and readers of Josephus. This deep dive into the evolution of critical understanding promises to illuminate broader trends in the reception history of ancient texts. Through a rigorous analysis of paratexts found in editions of 4 Maccabees and other pertinent sources from the 16th to the 20th century, the article presents significant findings regarding the genesis and propagation of skepticism towards Josephus's authorship. It convincingly argues that Hugo Grotius was most likely the first scholar to publicly question the authenticity of the text, thereby situating this critical development within the intellectual milieu of Protestant late humanism. Crucially, the research also highlights the remarkable delay between this relatively early challenge and its widespread acceptance, demonstrating that it was not until the early 20th century that the idea of unknown authorship achieved general consensus among editors and translators of Josephus. The article makes a substantial contribution to the fields of classical studies, Josephus scholarship, and the history of ideas. Its strengths lie in its meticulous historical reconstruction, the innovative use of paratexts as primary evidence, and the precise identification of key intellectual shifts that shaped the modern understanding of 4 Maccabees. By charting the intricate journey from established tradition to scholarly consensus, this piece provides valuable insights into the dynamics of textual criticism and the slow, deliberate process by which new critical perspectives gain traction. It is a well-researched and insightful study that will undoubtedly be of great interest to scholars invested in the reception history of ancient literature.

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