The Execution of the Saulides according to Josephus

This essay examines Josephus' account of the execution of the Saulides in Ant. 7.294-297 in relation to its Biblical source, 2 Sam 21,1-14, (as attested by MT, the Vaticanus and Lucianic/Antiochene manuscripts and Targum Jonathan on the Former Prophets) as well as the Rabbinic treatments of the episode. The study makes clear that, notwithstanding its brevity, the passage offers noteworthy examples of Josephus' «rewriting techniques», just as it exemplifies the care and purposefulness with which he developed his own version of Israel's history