Contra Apionem, Buch 1

Book I of this edition contains Josephus's introduction, his response to those who cast doubt on the great antiquity of the Jewish people (a quality highly esteemed by the ancients), his quotations from the antisemitic allegations of Manetho, Chairemon, and Lysimachos, and his refutation of them. All three claimed that the Israelites derived from a group of unclean lepers and cripples who brought a curse on Egypt and were therefore expelled; Josephus exposed the inconsistencies and obvious impossibilities in their accounts. The editor's introduction (pp. xi-lxxxiv) treats mainly the textual history of the work. In addition, each section of the book is accompanied by the editor's preface summarizing its contents; by bio-bibliographical sketches of Josephus's three opponents and others mentioned by him (including Apion, although the debate with him will appear only in Book II); short articles on subjects touched on in the debate, with bibliographies; and copious textual and historical notes. (From the Bibliography of the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism - The Hebrew University of Jerusalem)