Wikipedia's first sentence called it “son of annas and the brother of eleazar”. Today it says “high priest in the second temple in jerusalem from 37 to 41 ad”.
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The opening as it read in 2005
According to Josephus , Antiquities of the Jews , a man named Theophilus served as High Priest in the Temple at Jerusalem from 37 to 41 C.E.1He was the son of Annas and the brother of Eleazar, Jonathan, Matthias and Ananus, all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus appeared.2 In addition his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . According to an ossuary with inscription thereon, Theophilus, the High Priest, had at least one other son named Jonathan who had daughter named Johanna.3Theophilus was therefore a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Palestine during the first century.4Archeological evidence confirms the existence of Theophilus the High Priest as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, Johanna granddaughter of Theophilus, the High Priest.5 The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal. The combination of Theophilus and Johanna appear together in only one document: the Gospel of Luke . Neither name appear anywhere else in the New Testament . There is one additional piece of evidence to consider. Johanna appears in the vertex of a chiasmus in the 24th chapter of Luke that is part one of a two part chiastic structure, the second of which is the “On the Road to Emmaus” pericope. Since it is rare to see the name of a person in a position of prominence in a chiasmus, one can conclude that the author of the Gospel of Luke is directing the attention of most excellent Theophilus to the name of Johanna and to the fact that Johanna is a witness to the resurrection. Johanna must be a person known to Theophilus. Thus it is fair to ask whether or not these facts establish that Theophilus the High Priest is the same person as the "most excellent Theophilus" to whom the author of the Gospel of Luke has addressed his gospel. Sources: This article is a summary of an article appearing in Dossiers d’Archeologie as “A la recherche de Theophile”, Dec 02-Jan 03; A detailed description of the ossuary mentioned in this article is contained in an article by D.6
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Theophilus was the High Priest in the Second Temple in Jerusalem from AD 37 to 41 according to Josephus 's Antiquities of the Jews .He was a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Iudaea Province during the first century.According to some Christian traditions he was the person to whom the Gospel of Luke is addressed ,which would date Luke to within 4 to 8 years of the death of Jesus. Theophilus was the son of Annas and the brother of Eleazar , Jonathan , Matthias and Ananus , all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Joseph Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus appeared. In addition his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . Archeological evidence confirming the existence of Theophilus the High Priest as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, Johanna granddaughter of Theophilus, the High Priest. The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal . Therefore Theophilus had at least one other son named Jonathan, father to Johanna.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 356274306.
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Theophilus was the High Priest in the Second Temple in Jerusalem from AD 37 to 41 according to Josephus 's Antiquities of the Jews . He was a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Iudaea Province during the 1st century. A growing but still uncommon belief points to this person as the person to whom the Gospel of Luke is addressed, but Theophilus is a common enough name that there are many other possibilities for the addressee of Luke's Gospel and Acts. Theophilus was the son of Annas and the brother of Eleazar , Jonathan , Matthias and Ananus , all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Joseph Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus appeared. In addition, his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . Archeological evidence confirming the existence of Theophilus, as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, "Johanna granddaughter of Theophilus, the High Priest". } The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal . Therefore Theophilus had at least one other son named Jonathan, father to Johanna. The name Johanna appears twice in the New Testament in the Gospel of Luke.First as one of women healed by Jesus who travels with Jesus and the disciples to Jerusalem.Her second appearance also in the Gospel of Luke is on Easter Sunday when she and other women visits the empty tomb.It is uncertain, however, whether the Johanna in the Gospel of Luke is the same Johanna as the one mentioned on the ossuary.According to Richard Bauckham, Johanna was "the fifth most popular woman's name in Jewish Palestine," and the Johanna of the Gospel of Luke was likely from Galilee, not from Jerusalem.The earliest known person to suggest that most excellent Theophilus was none other than the High Priest was probably Theodore Hase who contributed a short article to Bibliotheca Bremensissome time prior to 1802 when this contribution is mentioned in the Introduction to the New Testament, tr. and augmented with notes by Johann David Michaelis and Herbert Marsh.The Irony of the Intended Audience (2010); "Theophilus: A Proposal," Evangelical Quarterly 69:3 (1997) 195-215; "The Cross and Atonement from Luke to Hebrews," Evangelical Quarterly 71:2 (1999), 127-149; "Luke and the Parable of the Wicked Tenants," The Journal of Biblical Studies , January–March 2001, Vol. 1, No. 1; "A la recherche de Theophile," Dossiers d'Archeolgie , December 2 – January 3; Josep Rius-Camps, Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, The message of Acts in Codex Bezae: a comparison with the Alexandrian tradition, Volume 4, (2009) 3-4 and prior volumes Robert F.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 652856460.
The opening as it stood in 2020
Theophilus ( ) was the High Priest in the Second Temple in Jerusalem from 37 to 41 CE according to Josephus 's Antiquities of the Jews . He was a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Iudaea Province during the 1st century. A growing but still uncommon belief points to this person as the person to whom the Gospel of Luke is addressed, but Theophilus is a common enough name that there are many other possibilities for the addressee of Luke's Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles . Theophilus was the son of Ananus ( ) and the brother of Eleazar , Jonathan , Matthias and Ananus , all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Joseph Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus of Nazareth appeared. In addition, his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . Archeological evidence confirming the existence of Theophilus, as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, "Yehoḥanah (Johanna) daughter of Yehoḥanan (Jonathan) son of Thefilus (Theophilus) the High Priest". The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal . Therefore, Theophilus had at least one other son named Jonathan, father to Johanna. The name Johanna appears twice in the New Testament in the Gospel of Luke. First as one of women healed by Jesus who travels with Jesus and the disciples to Jerusalem. Her second appearance also in the Gospel of Luke is on Easter Sunday when she and other women visits the empty tomb. It is uncertain, however, whether the Johanna in the Gospel of Luke is the same Johanna as the one mentioned on the ossuary. According to Richard Bauckham , Johanna was "the fifth most popular woman's name in Jewish Palestine," and the Johanna of the Gospel of Luke was likely from Galilee, not from Jerusalem. Spelling based on an ossuary inscription discovered in Israel in 1984.Israel Exploration Journal . 36 (1/2): 39– 44. Josephus, Antiquities xix.vi.§ 2 The earliest known person to suggest that most excellent Theophilus was none other than the High Priest was probably Theodore Hase who contributed a short article to Bibliotheca Bremensissome time prior to 1802 when this contribution is mentioned in the Introduction to the New Testament, tr. and augmented with notes by Johann David Michaelis and Herbert Marsh. The Irony of the Intended Audience (2010); "Theophilus: A Proposal," Evangelical Quarterly 69:3 (1997) 195-215; "The Cross and Atonement from Luke to Hebrews," Evangelical Quarterly 71:2 (1999), 127-149; "Luke and the Parable of the Wicked Tenants," The Journal of Biblical Studies , January–March 2001, Vol. 1, No. 1; "A la recherche de Theophile," Dossiers d'Archeolgie , December 2 – January 3; Josep Rius-Camps, Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, The message of Acts in Codex Bezae: a comparison with the Alexandrian tradition, Volume 4, (2009) 3-4 and prior volumes Robert F. The Ossuary of Yehohanah Granddaughter of the High Priest Theophilus", Israel Exploration Journal , 36 (1986), 39-44.There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 965508628.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
Theophilus ( ) was the High Priest in the Second Temple in Jerusalem from 37 to 41 CE according to Josephus 's Antiquities of the Jews . He was a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Iudaea Province during the 1st century. A growing but still uncommon belief points to High Priest Theophilus as the person to whom the Gospel of Luke is addressed, but Theophilus is a common enough name that there are many other possibilities for the addressee of Luke's Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles . In its favor is the fact that in Luke Theophilus is called by the title Most Excellent ( kratiste ), indicating he held a political office like high priest, the ethnarch under the Romans.In Acts 1:1 he does not have this honorific indicating that he no longer held an office of the Roman government.This provides an unusual identifier that eliminates other candidates for whom such a change in office was not effected.The honorific, kratiste , would also provide evidence that the Gospel of Luke was written during his high priesthood, 37 to 41 CE.The period coincides with the reign of Gaius Caligula , his persecution and planned ethnocide of the Jews and Nazarenes, and the desecration of the Temple with his giant, idolatrous statue. Theophilus was the son of Ananus ( ) and the brother of Eleazar , Jonathan , Matthias and Ananus , all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Joseph Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus of Nazareth appeared. In addition, his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . Archeological evidence confirming the existence of Theophilus, as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, "Yehoḥanah (Johanna) daughter of Yehoḥanan (Jonathan) son of Thefilus (Theophilus) the High Priest". The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal . Therefore, Theophilus had at least one other son, named Jonathan, father to Johanna. The name Johanna appears twice in the New Testament in the Gospel of Luke. First as one of women healed by Jesus who travels with Jesus and the disciples to Jerusalem. Her second appearance also in the Gospel of Luke is on Easter Sunday when she and other women visits the empty tomb. It is unlikely, however, that the Johanna in the Gospel of Luke is the same Johanna as the one mentioned on the ossuary. According to Richard Bauckham , Johanna was "the fifth most popular woman's name in Jewish Palestine," and the Johanna of the Gospel of Luke was likely from Galilee, not from Jerusalem. High Priests took office when at least 30 years old (Hebrew reckoning).Caiaphas was thus probably older than Theophilus.It was unusual for a son-in-law to take precedence over a son.If Theophilus was in his thirties in the period 37-41 CE, then a granddaughter, Johanna, would not have been born in the period of the Gospels up to 30 CE. Spelling based on an ossuary inscription discovered in Israel in 1984. Israel Exploration Journal . 36 (1/2): 39– 44. Josephus, Antiquities xix.vi.§ 2 The earliest known person to suggest that most excellent Theophilus was none other than the High Priest was probably Theodore Hase who contributed a short article to Bibliotheca Bremensissome time prior to 1802 when this contribution is mentioned in the Introduction to the New Testament, tr. and augmented with notes by Johann David Michaelis and Herbert Marsh. The Irony of the Intended Audience (2010); "Theophilus: A Proposal," Evangelical Quarterly 69:3 (1997) 195-215; "The Cross and Atonement from Luke to Hebrews," Evangelical Quarterly 71:2 (1999), 127-149; "Luke and the Parable of the Wicked Tenants," The Journal of Biblical Studies , January–March 2001, Vol. 1, No. 1; "A la recherche de Theophile," Dossiers d'Archeolgie , December 2 – January 3; Josep Rius-Camps, Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, The message of Acts in Codex Bezae: a comparison with the Alexandrian tradition, Volume 4, (2009) 3-4 and prior volumes Robert F. The Ossuary of Yehohanah Granddaughter of the High Priest Theophilus", Israel Exploration Journal , 36 (1986), 39-44. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1109583687.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Theophilus ( Hebrew : תפלוס בר חנן ) was the High Priest in the Second Temple in Jerusalem from 37 to 41 CE according to Josephus 's Antiquities of the Jews . He was a member of one of the wealthiest and most influential Jewish families in Iudaea Province during the 1st century. - points to High Priest Theophilus as the person to whom the Gospel of Luke is addressed, but Theophilus is a common enough name that there are many other possibilities for the addressee of Luke's Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles . In its favor is the fact that in Luke Theophilus is called by the title Most Excellent ( kratiste ), indicating he held a political office like high priest, the ethnarch under the Romans. In Acts 1:1 he does not have this honorific indicating that he no longer held an office of the Roman government. This provides an unusual identifier that eliminates other candidates for whom such a change in office was not effected. The honorific, kratiste , can in no way be interpreted as providing any evidence that the Gospel of Luke was written during his high priesthood, 37 to 41 CE. The period coincides with the reign of Gaius Caligula , his persecution and planned ethnocide of the Jews and Nazarenes, and the desecration of the Temple with his giant, idolatrous statue. Theophilus was the son of Ananus ( Hebrew : חנן ) and the brother of Eleazar , Jonathan , Matthias and Ananus , and Joshua Ben Ananus. all of whom served as High Priests. He was also the brother-in-law of Joseph Caiaphas , the High Priest before whom Jesus of Nazareth appeared. In addition, his son Matthias served as the next to the last High Priest before the destruction of the Temple by the Romans . Archeological evidence confirming the existence of Theophilus, as an ossuary has been discovered bearing the inscription, "Yehoḥanah (Johanna) daughter of Yehoḥanan (John) son of Thefilus (Theophilus) the High Priest". The details of this ossuary have been published in the Israel Exploration Journal . Therefore, Theophilus had at least one other son, named John, father to Johanna. The name Johanna appears twice in the New Testament in the Gospel of Luke. First as one of women healed by Jesus who travels with Jesus and the disciples to Jerusalem. Her second appearance also in the Gospel of Luke is on Easter Sunday when she and other women visits the empty tomb. It is unlikely, however, that the Johanna in the Gospel of Luke is the same Johanna as the one mentioned on the ossuary. According to Richard Bauckham , Johanna was "the fifth most popular woman's name in Jewish Palestine," and the Johanna of the Gospel of Luke was likely from Galilee, not from Jerusalem. High Priests took office when at least 30 years old (Hebrew reckoning). Caiaphas was thus probably older than Theophilus. It was unusual for a son-in-law to take precedence over a son. If Theophilus was in his thirties in the period 37-41 CE, then a granddaughter, Johanna, would not have been born in the period of the Gospels up to 30 CE. Spelling based on an ossuary inscription discovered in Israel in 1984. Israel Exploration Journal . 36 (1/2): 39– 44. Josephus, Antiquities xix.vi.§ 2 The earliest known person to suggest that most excellent Theophilus was none other than the High Priest was probably Theodore Hase who contributed a short article to Bibliotheca Bremensissome time prior to 1802 when this contribution is mentioned in the Introduction to the New Testament, tr. and augmented with notes by Johann David Michaelis and Herbert Marsh. The Irony of the Intended Audience (2010); "Theophilus: A Proposal," Evangelical Quarterly 69:3 (1997) 195-215; "The Cross and Atonement from Luke to Hebrews," Evangelical Quarterly 71:2 (1999), 127-149; "Luke and the Parable of the Wicked Tenants," The Journal of Biblical Studies , January–March 2001, Vol. 1, No. 1; "A la recherche de Theophile," Dossiers d'Archeolgie , December 2 – January 3; Josep Rius-Camps, Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, The message of Acts in Codex Bezae: a comparison with the Alexandrian tradition, Volume 4, (2009) 3-4 and prior volumes Robert F. The Ossuary of Yehohanah Granddaughter of the High Priest Theophilus", Israel Exploration Journal , 36 (1986), 39-44. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).
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Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “son of annas and the brother of eleazar”. Today it says “high priest in the second temple in jerusalem from 37 to 41 ad”. Read the current article and compare.
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son of annas and the brother of eleazar
Now
high priest in the second temple in jerusalem from 37 to 41 ad
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