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Josephus on being left to the last

set in 67 CE, Judaea. His own account of himself, written in the third person.

Where and when

set in 67 CEJudaea

1,959 years ago

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Josephus

, JudaeaHis own account of himself, written in the third person

In plain words, ours

He and one other man were left last, by chance or by God. Not wanting to die or to kill his own people, he talked the other man into living too.

…yet was he with another left to the last, whether we must say it happened so by chance, or whether by the providence of God. And as he was very desirous neither to be condemned by the lot, nor, if he had been left to the last, to imbrue his right hand in the blood of his countrymen, he persuaded him to trust his fidelity to him, and to live as well as himself.

Josephus, The Jewish War 3.387Translated by William Whiston (1737)Read the full passage (Josephus, The Jewish War 3.387, opens scaife.perseus.org)

What was going on, our summary

Judaea, 67 CE, in the revolt against Rome. Josephus, telling it himself in the third person, was with men who had resolved to die, and as their general he had them draw lots to kill one another in turn.

Checked claim by claim against: Judaea rises against Rome, the passage around the quote.

Why it matters

About the event it belongs to: Judaea rises against Rome

The first of three major Jewish rebellions against Rome, the revolt ended with Jerusalem and the Temple destroyed, mass displacement and the end of the Jewish polity.

Based on Wikipedia: First Jewish–Roman War

was the first of three major Jewish rebellions against the Roman Empire.

it resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish Temple, mass displacement, land appropriation, and the dissolution of the Jewish polity.

Wikipedia, First Jewish–Roman War (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-09. Text CC BY-SA 4.0. Our line is checked against these sentences only.

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Just before and after

The text around the quote, word for word from the same translation.

Show the passageHide the passage

And now, said he, since it is resolved among you that you will die, come on, let us commit our mutual deaths to determination by lot. He whom the lot falls to first, let him be killed by him that hath the second lot, and thus fortune shall make its progress through us all; nor shall any of us perish by his own right hand, for it would be unfair if, when the rest are gone, somebody should repent and save himself. This proposal appeared to them to be very just; and when he had prevailed with them to determine this matter by lots, he drew one of the lots for himself also. He who had the first lot laid his neck bare to him that had the next, as supposing that the general would die among them immediately; for they thought death, if Josephus might but die with them, was sweeter than life;

The quote: yet was he with another left to the last, whether we must say it happened so by chance, or whether by the providence of God. And as he was very desirous neither to be condemned by the lot, nor, if he had been left to the last, to imbrue his right hand in the blood of his countrymen, he persuaded him to trust his fidelity to him, and to live as well as himself.

Thus Josephus escaped in the war with the Romans, and in this his own war with his friends, and was led by Nicanor to Vespasian. But now all the Romans ran together to see him; and as the multitude pressed one upon another about their general, there was a tumult of a various kind; while some rejoiced that Josephus was taken, and some threatened him, and some crowded to see him very near; but those that were more remote cried out to have this their enemy put to death, while those that were near called to mind the actions he had done, and a deep concern appeared at the change of his fortune.

Josephus, The Jewish War 3.387–392Translated by William Whiston (1737)Read the full passage (opens scaife.perseus.org)

When, and whose words

Date
set in 67 CE. Set at the fall of Jotapata in 67 CE; he wrote it in the 70s CE.
Whose words
His own account of himself, written in the third person.
How this post was checked
  • The plain-words line was read against the quote alone by a second, independent pass, which found it adds no claim the quote does not make (2026-10-03).
  • Each claim in the summary was checked by an independent pass against only the material it cites.
  • The quote itself is checked by the build: word for word, once, at the cited section of the stored translation.

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