The other Josephus

Whilst we're evaluating Josephus' self-redaction, Étienne Nodet in 2011 would alert us to the Slavonic version of The Jewish War. Nodet argues it is a version, and not a translation of the Greek text we got. The Aramaic version has been lost (or nonexistent - but Nodet thinks Mara bar Serapion had it) and the Syriac is a mere transfer of the mainline Greek.

A cynic might flag some intertextuality in Nodet's own work. This narrowly-focused piece precedes a longer argument delivered in 2014 but, it seems, edited from a symposium back in 2007. This lecture-summary was not, unfortunately, edited very well. I consider the 2011 article to be authoritative and the 2007 / 2014 summary to be speculative. (I credit Vridar for pointing us to 2007 / 2014; this inspired me to go looking for better work.) For the mainline opinion: Footnotes 49-50.

The Slavonic version has much more to say about John and Jesus than Antiquities will - rather, about two characters whom Josephus doesn't name. It also has data on their disciples.

As to what the Slavonic says of Bar Anan[ias] we have Leeming and Osinkina, Josephus' Jewish War and Its Slavonic Version (2003):

A certain Jesus, son of Anan, of the simple folk, unlettered, 4 years before the war, while the city was still peaceful and prosperous, had come for the feast-day, when they all celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles according to custom, standing in the temple suddenly began to cry out...

But some of the eminent were angry with him on account of his malediction and, seizing him, they punished him with many blows. But he thought not of his wounds, nor did he plead for himself, nor did he answer to those torturing him...

This is very like the version we have in Greek. It does not look like something that would be cobbled from Jesus' life if our author already knew Jesus' life and was willing to tell it on its own terms, more-or-less; as we have in the Slavonic.