Matthias (father of Josephus)

Matthias (Greek: Ματθίας; 6–70) was a Jew living in Jerusalem.

Matthias came from a wealthy family and through his father he descended from the priestly order of the Jehoiarib, which was the first of the twenty four-orders of Priests in the Temple in Jerusalem. He was the son born to Josephus and his wife, an unnamed Jewish noblewoman. The parents of Matthias were distant relatives. Matthias’ mother was a descendant of Josephus’ paternal great grandfather, Simon Psellus. His paternal grandparents were Matthias Curtus and his unnamed Jewish wife. Through his paternal grandfather, he was the descendant of the High Priest Jonathon. Jonathon may have been Alexander Jannaeus, the High Priest and Hasmonean ruler who governed Judea from 103 BC-76 BC.

He was a contemporary to the Herodian Dynasty governing Judea and the surrounding territories. Matthias followed his paternal ancestors and served as a Priest in the Temple in Jerusalem. He was an aristocratic priest. One of his duties was to oversee the affairs of the Jewry in Jerusalem and Palestine during the Roman occupation.

Matthias married an unnamed Jewish noblewoman, who had descended from royalty and of the former ruling Hasmonean Dynasty. Matthias with his wife had two sons:

• Matthias
• Josephus, the Roman Jewish Historian

Josephus in his writings highly praises his father and describes him as a distinguished Jew. He describes him that way because not just of his birth alone but he was praised for his sense of justice for being a very eminent man in Jerusalem. Matthias and his family had connections to the Sadducees.

Matthias and his wife were alive during the First Jewish–Roman War. The war occurred from 66 until 73. In the year 70 during the Roman Siege of Jerusalem, Matthias; his wife and Josephus’ first wife were in the city during the siege. The three were held as prisoners by the Jewish rebels because they didn’t trust them. Josephus who was commander-in-chief in Galilee received news through his father about the situation in Jerusalem. Josephus through his intervention was able to save his brother from Roman imprisonment, however he was unable to save his father; mother and his first wife as the three perished during the siege.

Sources

• Josephus’ Lineage
• Buzzle.com Intelligent Life on the Web The Life and Times of Flavius Josephus
• M. Fergus, S. Emil & V. Geza, The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ (175 B.C. - A.D. 135), Continuum International Publishing Group, 1973
• W.E. Mills & R.A. Bullard, Mercer dictionary of the Bible, Mercer University Press, 1990
• É. Nodet, A search for the origins of Judaism: from Joshua to the Mishnah, Continuum International Publishing Group, 1997
• F. Josephus & S. Mason, Flavius Josephus: translation and commentary, BRILL, 2001