There is a wealth of information in studies of and the Works of Josephus themselves to add to New Testament studies.

In my youtube video (do a youtube search on WBFbySteefen to see the videos I have posted), the 2 hour plus presentation includes a timeline with the gospels and the works of Josephus on it. Josephus was born after the death of the biblical Jesus.

Did Josephus hear or read Q source, etc.?

Did his testimony of Jesus come from Q source, etc.?

During and after the Jewish Revolt (years 66 to 96) there was an explosion of written New Testament material: Mark, Matthew, Luke, Acts of the Apostles, John, and Revelation. Did, Josephus’ testimony in Antiquities of the Jews come from draft forms or written forms of Mark, Matthew, Luke or any of the Letters of Paul?

There is interplay between the New Testament and the Works of Josephus. Is this a way God intervenes in history through his Word, or, is this evidence the New Testament is not “Word of God (for the People of God)” and one should not respond, “Thanks be to God.”

Jesus challenges everyone to mark his prophecy of the apocalypse of Jerusalem surrounded by armies within a generation of him. Did that happen? Yes, it did.

Mark 14: 57-58 Some took the stand and testified falsely against Jesus, alleging, “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands and within three days I will build another not made with hands.” The Bible says, in the Parable of the Wicked Tenants, the land will be taken from you and given to another. That other was Rome. The Jews lost the Jewish Revolt to the Romans. Yes, God gave it to another and the Jews tried to stop it from happening and lost. So while the Jewish Messiah-king may not have said I will destroy this temple, the new Jesus of Rome did say it and did do it.

• The land the Jewish tenants had were given to another: the Holy Land was given to Rome
• The role of Messiah-king, the role of Jesus was given to another: Vespasian (and his son Titus)
• The Star of Bethlehem prophecy was given to another: Josephus gave it to Vespasian
• The outline of New Covenant scripture was taken and used in the works of Josephus

Let us say, Jesus, a prophet, did not make a prophecy about Jerusalem being surrounded by armies within a generation. Let us say, Jesus did not foretell the destruction of the Temple before it happened. The destruction of the Temple appears in Mark, which could date to three or four years before AD 70. If that is true, then the 13th Chapter of Mark was added. Why should it not have been added by the victors of the Jewish Revolt–since the truism is: victors write history.

This is the gravity of this thread.