Did Nerva relaxing the fiscus Judaicus help Christianity?

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MrMacSon
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Did Nerva relaxing the fiscus Judaicus help Christianity?

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The fiscus Judaicus (aka fiscus Iudaicus) was the tax-collecting agency instituted to collect the new tax imposed on Jews throughout the Roman Empire a,by Vespasian after the destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple in AD 70 (Josephus BJ 7. 218; Dio Cassius 66.7.2). Revenues were directed to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus in Rome.

It replaced the levy (Tithe) payable by Jews towards the upkeep of the Temple, which had been payable only by adult men between the ages of 20 and 50. The fiscus Iudaicus was imposed on all Jews, including women, children, and elderly —and even Jewish slaves. It was humiliating to the Jews. Those who had abandoned Judaism were exempt from paying it.

One of the consequences of the Jewish Tax was that it forced the various communities to define themselves as either Jewish or non-Jewish. One the one hand there were those traditional Jews who saw themselves as Torah observant and covenant members of Israel and would never shrink from that identity; they would clearly pay the tax. On the other hand, there were those who, although Jewish by blood, tried to hide their Jewishness in order to prevent having to pay the tax ... This was quite widespread.

For example, there were thousands of Jews who had been captured as slaves and been brought to Rome during Pompey's assault on Jerusalem in 63 BCE. By the mid 1st century onwards, many of their offspring saw themselves as thoroughly Roman, so they bitterly resented having to pay such a heavy tax.

Finally, there were those who, although not Jewish by blood, nevertheless practiced the Jewish faith in both Messianic and traditional Jewish communities. Of these groups, the early Messianic Community found itself particularly vulnerable since these followers of "The Way" belonged to a faith that was still considered a party of Judaism.


Domitian, who ruled from 81 to 96 AD, expanded the fiscus Iudaicus so that, besides those born Jewish and converts to Judaism, those who concealed the fact that they were Jews, or who merely observed Jewish customs, also became subject to it. Suetonius relates that, when he was young, an old man of 90 was examined to see whether he was circumcised, which shows that during this period the tax was levied even on those above the age of 62.

Louis Feldman has argued that Domitan's increased harshness was caused by the success of the Jewish and possibly messianic proselytism.


After the murder of Domitian in 96 AD, Nerva relaxed the rules of collection, limiting the tax to those who openly practised Judaism: according to Cassius Dio, "followed their ancestral customs".

The coins of Nerva bear the legend fisci Iudaici calumnia sublata -"abolition of malicious prosecution in connection with the Jewish tax"- in reference to his reform of the harsh -malicious- policies of Domitian.

But, ironically, Nerva's relaxtion of the Jewish Tax would prove to be even more destructive under Nerva - Gentile believers new to the [Jewish] Messianic faith, and who, up to this time, had never felt any identification with the Jews, found themselves the recipients of a growing anti-Gentile polemic within the Traditional Jewish communities. And to renounce the faith was to renounce any hope of being part of a proposed 'world to come'.
  • Interestingly, as an aside, in relation to Nerva,
    Nerva’s Attempt to relieve the Poor. —One of the characteristic features of Nerva’s short reign was his attempt to relieve the poor. In the first place, he bought up large lots of land from the wealthy landlords, and let them out to the needy citizens. It is noteworthy that he submitted this law to the assembly of the people. In the next place, he showed his great interest in the cause of public education. He set apart a certain fund, the interest of which was used to educate the children of poor parents. This interest in providing for the care and education of the poorer classes was continued by his successors. http://www.forumromanum.org/history/morey26.html

It remains unclear when exactly the fiscus Iudaicus was eventually abolished. Documentary evidence confirms the collection of the tax in the middle of the 2nd century, and literary sources indicate that the tax was still in existence in the early 3rd century. It is not known when the tax was formally abolished. Some historians credit the emperor Julian the Apostate with its abolition in about 361 or 362.



Bibliography


Marius Heemstra (2010) The Fiscus Judaicus and the Parting of the Ways (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck)
  • based on his PhD dissertation: http://www.rug.nl/research/portal/files ... s.pdf!null

    Heemstra assumes, as most people do, that Christianity had started before 96 AD and thus talks of Jewish Christians and the impact of the Fiscus Judaicus on them and Nerva's changes exacerbating the parting of the ways. I'm not so sure Christianity or even 'Jewish Christianity' was defined before then.
    Our information about the fiscus Judaicus derives primarily (aside from tax receipts from the province of Egypt) from three literary passages: one from the Jewish War of Josephus, one from Suetonius’s Life of Domitian (son of Vespasian, brother of Titus, and emperor 81–96 C.E.), and one from Cassius Dio, a Roman historian of the early third century C.E. Although no Christian text mentions the fiscus Judaicus, Marius Heemstra argues in this book that this tax had an important role in the development of “Christianity” as a social and cultural system separate from “Judaism,” a process commonly called “the parting of the ways.” https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/rev ... -the-ways/
    http://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2011/2011-12-07.html

http://www.livius.org/articles/concept/fiscus-judaicus/

http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/artic ... s-judaicus

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/dai ... ewish-tax/

http://www.ableever.net/Messianic/Keep_ ... daicus.pdf

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Last edited by MrMacSon on Tue May 08, 2018 1:19 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Ben C. Smith
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Re: Did Nerva relaxing the fiscus Judaicus help Christianity?

Post by Ben C. Smith »

MrMacSon wrote: Sun Oct 29, 2017 12:09 am .
The fiscus Judaicus (aka fiscus Iudaicus) was the tax-collecting agency instituted to collect the tax imposed on Jews throughout the Roman Empire after the destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple in AD 70. Revenues were directed to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus in Rome.
Jupiter Optimus Maximus sounds like the protagonist of a Transformers movie, does it not?

Thought I might send some good will your way on this thread. I read a trio of articles today on the fiscus Iudaicus:
  1. "Reading the Judeans and the Judean War in Martial's Liber Spectaculorum," by Honora Howell Chapman: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/do ... 1&type=pdf.
  2. "The Date of Mark's Gospel Apart from the Temple and Rumors of War: The Taxation Episode (12:13–17) as Evidence," by Chris Zeichmann:
    https://www.academia.edu/34194619/The_D ... s_Evidence.
  3. "Martial and the Fiscus Iudaicus Once More," by Chris Zeichmann: https://www.academia.edu/18983283/Marti ... _Once_More.
I also looked up the main literary passages concerning this tax:

Josephus, Wars 7.6.6 §216-218: 216 Περὶ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν ἐπέστειλε Καῖσαρ Βάσσῳ καὶ Λαβερίῳ Μαξίμῳ, οὗτος δὲ ἦν ἐπίτροπος, κελεύων πᾶσαν γῆν ἀποδόσθαι τῶν Ἰουδαίων. 217 οὐ γὰρ κατῴκισεν ἐκεῖ πόλιν ἰδίαν αὑτῷ τὴν χώραν φυλάττων, ὀκτακοσίοις δὲ μόνοις ἀπὸ τῆς στρατιᾶς διαφειμένοις χωρίον ἔδωκεν εἰς κατοίκησιν, ὃ καλεῖται μὲν Ἀμμαοῦς, ἀπέχει δὲ τῶν Ἱεροσολύμων σταδίους τριάκοντα. 218 φόρον δὲ τοῖς ὁπουδηποτοῦν οὖσιν Ἰουδαίοις ἐπέβαλεν δύο δραχμὰς ἕκαστον κελεύσας ἀνὰ πᾶν ἔτος εἰς τὸ Καπετώλιον φέρειν, ὥσπερ πρότερον εἰς τὸν ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις νεὼν συνετέλουν. καὶ τὰ μὲν Ἰουδαίων τότε τοιαύτην εἶχε κατάστασιν. / 216 About the same time it was that Caesar sent a letter to Bassus, and to Liberius Maximus, who was the procurator, and gave order that all Judea should be exposed to sale, 217 for he did not found any city there, but reserved the country for himself. However, he assigned a place for eight hundred men only, whom he had dismissed from his army, which he gave them for their habitation; it is called Emmaus, and is distant from Jerusalem threescore furlongs. 218 He also laid a tribute upon the Jews wheresoever they were, and enjoined every one of them to bring two drachmae every year into the Capitol, as they used to pay the same to the temple at Jerusalem. And this was the state of the Jewish affairs at this time.

Suetonius, Life of Domitian 12.1-2: 1 Exhaustus operum ac munerum inpensis stipendioque, quod adiecerat, temptavit quidem ad relevandos castrenses sumptus numerum militum deminuere; sed cum et obnoxium se barbaris per hoc animadverteret neque eo setius in explicandis oneribus haereret, nihil pensi habuit quin praedaretur omni modo. Bona vivorum ac mortuorum usquequaque quolibet et accusatore et crimine corripiebantur. Satis erat obici qualecumque factum dictumve adversus maiestatem principis. 2 Confiscabantur alienissimae hereditates vel uno exsistente, qui diceret audisse se ex defuncto, cum viveret, heredem sibi Caesarem esse. Praeter ceteros Iudaicus fiscus acerbissime actus est; ad quem deferebantur, qui vel inprofessi Iudaicam viverent vitam vel dissimulata origine imposita genti tributa non pependissent. Interfuisse me adulescentulum memini, cum a procuratore frequentissimoque consilio inspiceretur nonagenarius senex, an circumsectus esset. / 1 Reduced to financial straits by the cost of his buildings and shows, as well as by the additions which he had made to the pay of the soldiers, he tried to lighten the military expenses by diminishing the number of his troops; but perceiving that in this way he exposed himself to the attacks of the barbarians, and nevertheless had difficulty in easing his burdens, he had no hesitation in resorting to every sort of robbery. The property of the living and the dead was seized everywhere on any charge brought by any accuser. It was enough to allege any action or word derogatory to the majesty of the prince. 2 Estates of those in no way connected with him were confiscated, if but one man came forward to declare that he had heard from the deceased during his lifetime that Caesar was his heir. Besides other taxes, that on the Jews was levied with the utmost rigour, and those were prosecuted who without publicly acknowledging that faith yet lived as Jews, as well as those who concealed their origin and did not pay the tribute levied upon their people. I recall being present in my youth when the person of a man ninety years old was examined before the procurator and a very crowded court, to see whether he was circumcised.

Dio Cassius, Roman History 65.7.2; 67.14.1-2; 68.1.2: 65.7.2 Thus was Jerusalem destroyed on the very day of Saturn, the day which even now the Jews reverence most. From that time forth it was ordered that the Jews who continued to observe their ancestral customs should pay an annual tribute of two denarii [δίδραχμον] to Jupiter Capitolinus [τῷ Καπιτωλίῳ Διὶ]. In consequence of this success both generals received the title of imperator, but neither got that of Judaïcus, although all the other honours that were fitting on the occasion of so magnificent a victory, including triumphal arches, were voted to them. .... 67.14.1 At this time the road leading from Sinuessa to Puteoli was paved with stone. And the same year Domitian slew, along with many others, Flavius Clemens the consul, although he was a cousin and had to wife Flavia Domitilla, who was also a relative of the emperor's. 2 The charge brought against them both was that of atheism, a charge on which many others who drifted into Jewish ways were condemned. Some of these were put to death, and the rest were at least deprived of their property. .... 68.1.2 Nerva also released all who were on trial for maiestas and restored the exiles; moreover, he put to death all the slaves and the freedmen who had conspired against their masters and allowed that class of persons to lodge no complaint whatever against their masters; and no persons were permitted to accuse anybody of maiestas or of adopting the Jewish mode of life. Many of those who had been informed were condemned to death, among others Seras, the philosopher.

Martial, Epigrams 7.55: 55 Nulli munera, Chreste, si remittis, nec nobis dederis remiserisque, credam te satis esse liberalem. Sed si reddis Apicio Lupoque et Gallo Titioque Caesioque, linges non mihi - nam proba et pusilla est - sed quae de Solymis venit perustis damnatam modo mentulam tributis. / 55 If you give presents in return to no man, Chrestus, give and return none to me either: I will believe you to be generous enough. But if you give them to Apicius, and Lupus, and Gallus and Titius and Caesius, you shall assault, not my person (for that is chaste and petty), but the one that comes from Solyma now consumed by fire, and is lately condemned to tribute.

Martial, Epigrams 11.94: 94 Quod nimium lives nostris et ubique libellis detrahis, ignosco: verpe poeta, sapis. hoc quoque non curo, quod cum mea carmina carpas, compilas: et sic, verpe poeta, sapis. illud me cruciat, Solymis quod natus in ipsis pedicas puerum, verpe poeta, meum. ecce negas iurasque mihi per templa Tonatis. non credo: iura, verpe, per Anchialum. / 94 That you are green with jealousy and run down my little books wherever you go, I forgive: circumcised poet, you show your sense. This too leaves me indifferent, that you plunder my poems while you carp at them: circumcised poet, herein also you show your sense. What does upset me is that born in Jerusalem itself you sodomize my boy, circumcised poet. So! You deny it, you swear to me by the temple of the Thunderer. I don’t believe you. Swear, circumcised one, by Anchialus.

The synoptic gospels appear to refer to this tax, as well (quite anachronistically, as it happens):

Mark 12.13-17: 13 Καὶ ἀποστέλλουσιν πρὸς αὐτόν τινας τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ τῶν Ἡρῳδιανῶν ἵνα αὐτὸν ἀγρεύσωσιν λόγῳ. 14 καὶ ἐλθόντες λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς εἶ καὶ οὐ μέλει σοι περὶ οὐδενός· οὐ γὰρ βλέπεις εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διδάσκεις· ἔξεστιν δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι ἢ οὔ; δῶμεν ἢ μὴ δῶμεν; 15 ὁ δὲ εἰδὼς αὐτῶν τὴν ὑπόκρισιν εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· τί με πειράζετε; φέρετέ μοι δηνάριον ἵνα ἴδω. 16 οἱ δὲ ἤνεγκαν. καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· τίνος ἡ εἰκὼν αὕτη καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή; οἱ δὲ εἶπαν αὐτῷ· Καίσαρος. 17 ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· τὰ Καίσαρος ἀπόδοτε Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. καὶ ἐξεθαύμαζον ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ. / 13 And they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him, in order to trap Him in a statement. 14 And they came and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not? 15 "Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?" But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at." 16 And they brought one. And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" And they said to Him, "Caesar's." 17 And Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.

Matthew 22.15-22: 15 Τότε πορευθέντες οἱ Φαρισαῖοι συμβούλιον ἔλαβον ὅπως αὐτὸν παγιδεύσωσιν ἐν λόγῳ. 16 καὶ ἀποστέλλουσιν αὐτῷ τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτῶν μετὰ τῶν Ἡρῳδιανῶν λέγοντες· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς εἶ καὶ τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ διδάσκεις καὶ οὐ μέλει σοι περὶ οὐδενός. οὐ γὰρ βλέπεις εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων, 17 εἰπὲ οὖν ἡμῖν τί σοι δοκεῖ· ἔξεστιν δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι ἢ οὔ; 18 γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὴν πονηρίαν αὐτῶν εἶπεν· τί με πειράζετε, ὑποκριταί; 19 ἐπιδείξατέ μοι τὸ νόμισμα τοῦ κήνσου. οἱ δὲ προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ δηνάριον. 20 καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· τίνος ἡ εἰκὼν αὕτη καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή; 21 λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Καίσαρος. τότε λέγει αὐτοῖς· ἀπόδοτε οὖν τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. 22 καὶ ἀκούσαντες ἐθαύμασαν, καὶ ἀφέντες αὐτὸν ἀπῆλθαν. / 15 Then the Pharisees went and counseled together how they might trap Him in what He said. 16 And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any. 17 "Tell us therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?" 18 But Jesus perceived their malice, and said, "Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? 19 "Show Me the coin used for the poll-tax." And they brought Him a denarius. 20 And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" 21 They said to Him, "Caesar's." Then He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's." 22 And hearing this, they marveled, and leaving Him, they went away.

Luke 20.20-26: 20 Καὶ παρατηρήσαντες ἀπέστειλαν ἐγκαθέτους ὑποκρινομένους ἑαυτοὺς δικαίους εἶναι, ἵνα ἐπιλάβωνται αὐτοῦ λόγου, ὥστε παραδοῦναι αὐτὸν τῇ ἀρχῇ καὶ τῇ ἐξουσίᾳ τοῦ ἡγεμόνος. 21 καὶ ἐπηρώτησαν αὐτὸν λέγοντες· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ὀρθῶς λέγεις καὶ διδάσκεις καὶ οὐ λαμβάνεις πρόσωπον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διδάσκεις· 22 ἔξεστιν ἡμᾶς Καίσαρι φόρον δοῦναι ἢ οὔ; 23 κατανοήσας δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν πανουργίαν εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· 24 δείξατέ μοι δηνάριον· τίνος ἔχει εἰκόνα καὶ ἐπιγραφήν; οἱ δὲ εἶπαν· Καίσαρος. 25 ὁ δὲ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· τοίνυν ἀπόδοτε τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. 26 καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυσαν ἐπιλαβέσθαι αὐτοῦ ῥήματος ἐναντίον τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ θαυμάσαντες ἐπὶ τῇ ἀποκρίσει αὐτοῦ ἐσίγησαν. / 20 And they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order that they might catch Him in some statement, so as to deliver Him up to the rule and the authority of the governor. 21 And they questioned Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. 22 "Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" 23 But He detected their trickery and said to them, 24 "Show Me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?" And they said, "Caesar's." 25 And He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." 26 And they were unable to catch Him in a saying in the presence of the people; and marveling at His answer, they became silent.

Matthew 17.24-27: 24 Ελθόντων δὲ αὐτῶν εἰς Καφαρναοὺμ προσῆλθον οἱ τὰ δίδραχμα λαμβάνοντες τῷ Πέτρῳ καὶ εἶπαν· ὁ διδάσκαλος ὑμῶν οὐ τελεῖ [τὰ] δίδραχμα; 25 λέγει· ναί. καὶ ἐλθόντα εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν προέφθασεν αὐτὸν ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· τί σοι δοκεῖ, Σίμων; οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς ἀπὸ τίνων λαμβάνουσιν τέλη ἢ κῆνσον; ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτῶν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων; 26 εἰπόντος δέ· ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων, ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἄρα γε ἐλεύθεροί εἰσιν οἱ υἱοί. 27 ἵνα δὲ μὴ σκανδαλίσωμεν αὐτούς, πορευθεὶς εἰς θάλασσαν βάλε ἄγκιστρον καὶ τὸν ἀναβάντα πρῶτον ἰχθὺν ἆρον, καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ εὑρήσεις στατῆρα· ἐκεῖνον λαβὼν δὸς αὐτοῖς ἀντὶ ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ. / 24 And when they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter, and said, "Does your teacher not pay the didrachma tax?" 25 He said, "Yes." And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?" 26 And upon his saying, "From strangers," Jesus said to him, "Consequently the sons are exempt. 27 "But, lest we give them offense, go to the sea, and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me."

Finally, as your OP mentions, there are lots of tax receipts from Edfu in Egypt, dating from just after the fall of Jerusalem to AD 116. The volume which published these receipts has this to say:

Corpus Papyrorum Judaicarum 2, pages 111-112: The richest material furnished by the Edfu ostraka concerns the Jewish tax. From this material we learn the official names of the tax, the year when it was first imposed, its exact amount in Egyptian drachmai, the mode of payment, etc. The information given by the ostraka does not contradict our knowledge derived from other sources.... The usual name of the Jewish tax was Ἰουδαϊκὸν τέλεσμα (cf. also Nos. 421 and 460). Yet it was not the only name of the tax in Edfu: a great number of ostraka, when speaking of the tax, call it τιμὴ δηναρίων δύο Ἰουδαίων ('the price of two denars of the Jews').

Just adding a few of the ancient sources for reference. Cheers.
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Re: Did Nerva relaxing the fiscus Judaicus help Christianity?

Post by MrMacSon »

Ben C. Smith wrote: Sun Jan 14, 2018 6:53 pm
Thought I might send some good will your way on this thread. I read a trio of articles today on the fiscus Iudaicus:
  1. "Reading the Judeans and the Judean War in Martial's Liber Spectaculorum," by Honora Howell Chapman: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/do ... 1&type=pdf.
    .
  2. "The Date of Mark's Gospel Apart from the Temple and Rumors of War: The Taxation Episode (12:13–17) as Evidence," by Chris Zeichmann:
    https://www.academia.edu/34194619/The_D ... s_Evidence.
    .
  3. "Martial and the Fiscus Iudaicus Once More," by Chris Zeichmann: https://www.academia.edu/18983283/Marti ... _Once_More.
Cheers Ben. I seemed to have missed this, or have set it aside temporarily only to then completely overlooked it.

I have edited the OP^^ slightly.

Ben C. Smith wrote: Sun Jan 14, 2018 6:53 pm
I also looked up the main literary passages concerning this tax:

Josephus, Wars 7.6.6 §216-218: 216 Περὶ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν ἐπέστειλε Καῖσαρ Βάσσῳ καὶ Λαβερίῳ Μαξίμῳ, οὗτος δὲ ἦν ἐπίτροπος, κελεύων πᾶσαν γῆν ἀποδόσθαι τῶν Ἰουδαίων. 217 οὐ γὰρ κατῴκισεν ἐκεῖ πόλιν ἰδίαν αὑτῷ τὴν χώραν φυλάττων, ὀκτακοσίοις δὲ μόνοις ἀπὸ τῆς στρατιᾶς διαφειμένοις χωρίον ἔδωκεν εἰς κατοίκησιν, ὃ καλεῖται μὲν Ἀμμαοῦς, ἀπέχει δὲ τῶν Ἱεροσολύμων σταδίους τριάκοντα. 218 φόρον δὲ τοῖς ὁπουδηποτοῦν οὖσιν Ἰουδαίοις ἐπέβαλεν δύο δραχμὰς ἕκαστον κελεύσας ἀνὰ πᾶν ἔτος εἰς τὸ Καπετώλιον φέρειν, ὥσπερ πρότερον εἰς τὸν ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις νεὼν συνετέλουν. καὶ τὰ μὲν Ἰουδαίων τότε τοιαύτην εἶχε κατάστασιν. / 216 About the same time it was that Caesar sent a letter to Bassus, and to Liberius Maximus, who was the procurator, and gave order that all Judea should be exposed to sale, 217 for he did not found any city there, but reserved the country for himself. However, he assigned a place for eight hundred men only, whom he had dismissed from his army, which he gave them for their habitation; it is called Emmaus, and is distant from Jerusalem threescore furlongs. 218 He also laid a tribute upon the Jews wheresoever they were, and enjoined every one of them to bring two drachmae every year into the Capitol, as they used to pay the same to the temple at Jerusalem. And this was the state of the Jewish affairs at this time.

lol: a tribute and a tax -- [was the tribute taxed? :P ]


Suetonius, Life of Domitian 12.1-2: 1 Exhaustus operum ac munerum inpensis stipendioque, quod adiecerat, temptavit quidem ad relevandos castrenses sumptus numerum militum deminuere; sed cum et obnoxium se barbaris per hoc animadverteret neque eo setius in explicandis oneribus haereret, nihil pensi habuit quin praedaretur omni modo. Bona vivorum ac mortuorum usquequaque quolibet et accusatore et crimine corripiebantur. Satis erat obici qualecumque factum dictumve adversus maiestatem principis. 2 Confiscabantur alienissimae hereditates vel uno exsistente, qui diceret audisse se ex defuncto, cum viveret, heredem sibi Caesarem esse. Praeter ceteros Iudaicus fiscus acerbissime actus est; ad quem deferebantur, qui vel inprofessi Iudaicam viverent vitam vel dissimulata origine imposita genti tributa non pependissent. Interfuisse me adulescentulum memini, cum a procuratore frequentissimoque consilio inspiceretur nonagenarius senex, an circumsectus esset. / 1 Reduced to financial straits by the cost of his buildings and shows, as well as by the additions which he had made to the pay of the soldiers, he tried to lighten the military expenses by diminishing the number of his troops; but perceiving that in this way he exposed himself to the attacks of the barbarians, and nevertheless had difficulty in easing his burdens, he had no hesitation in resorting to every sort of robbery. The property of the living and the dead was seized everywhere on any charge brought by any accuser. It was enough to allege any action or word derogatory to the majesty of the prince. 2 Estates of those in no way connected with him were confiscated, if but one man came forward to declare that he had heard from the deceased during his lifetime that Caesar was his heir. Besides other taxes, that on the Jews was levied with the utmost rigour, and those were prosecuted who without publicly acknowledging that faith yet lived as Jews, as well as those who concealed their origin and did not pay the tribute levied upon their people. I recall being present in my youth when the person of a man ninety years old was examined before the procurator and a very crowded court, to see whether he was circumcised.

Dio Cassius, Roman History 65.7.2; 67.14.1-2; 68.1.2: 65.7.2 Thus was Jerusalem destroyed on the very day of Saturn, the day which even now the Jews reverence most. From that time forth it was ordered that the Jews who continued to observe their ancestral customs should pay an annual tribute of two denarii [δίδραχμον] to Jupiter Capitolinus [τῷ Καπιτωλίῳ Διὶ]. In consequence of this success both generals received the title of imperator, but neither got that of Judaïcus, although all the other honours that were fitting on the occasion of so magnificent a victory, including triumphal arches, were voted to them. .... 67.14.1 At this time the road leading from Sinuessa to Puteoli was paved with stone. And the same year Domitian slew, along with many others, Flavius Clemens the consul, although he was a cousin and had to wife Flavia Domitilla, who was also a relative of the emperor's. 2 The charge brought against them both was that of atheism, a charge on which many others who drifted into Jewish ways were condemned. Some of these were put to death, and the rest were at least deprived of their property ...

68.1.2 Nerva also released all who were on trial for maiestas and restored the exiles; moreover, he put to death all the slaves and the freedmen who had conspired against their masters and allowed that class of persons to lodge no complaint whatever against their masters; and no persons were permitted to accuse anybody of maiestas or of adopting the Jewish mode of life. Many of those who had been informed were condemned to death, among others Seras, the philosopher.


.
Martial, Epigrams 7.55: 55 Nulli munera, Chreste, si remittis, nec nobis dederis remiserisque, credam te satis esse liberalem. Sed si reddis Apicio Lupoque et Gallo Titioque Caesioque, linges non mihi - nam proba et pusilla est - sed quae de Solymis venit perustis damnatam modo mentulam tributis. /
  • 55 If you give presents in return to no man, Chrestus, give and return none to me either1: I will believe you to be generous enough. But if you give them to Apicius, and Lupus, and Gallus and Titius and Caesius, you shall assault, not my person (for that is chaste and petty), but the one that comes from Solyma now consumed by fire, and is lately condemned to tribute.

Martial, Epigrams 11.94: 94 Quod nimium lives nostris et ubique libellis detrahis, ignosco: verpe poeta, sapis. hoc quoque non curo, quod cum mea carmina carpas, compilas: et sic, verpe poeta, sapis. illud me cruciat, Solymis quod natus in ipsis pedicas puerum, verpe poeta, meum. ecce negas iurasque mihi per templa Tonatis. non credo: iura, verpe, per Anchialum. /
  • 94 That you are green with jealousy and run down my little books wherever you go, I forgive: circumcised poet, you show your sense. This too leaves me indifferent, that you plunder my poems while you carp at them: circumcised poet, herein also you show your sense. What does upset me is that born in Jerusalem itself you sodomize my boy, circumcised poet. So! You deny it, you swear to me by the temple of the Thunderer. I don’t believe you. Swear, circumcised one, by Anchialus.


1 the reference to Chrestus there is interesting, especially as Epigrams, is said to have been published in Rome between AD 86 and 103 (during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan).


Also interesting is "the one that comes from Solyma now consumed by fire (and is lately condemned to tribute)".
  • Solyma is a Greek variant - Σόλυμα - of the name Salem which refers to Jerusalem, as is evidenced by Psalm 76:2 which uses "Salem" as a parallel for "Zion", the citadel of Jerusalem [and evidenced by the 2nd quote there^, Epigrams 11.94]. The same identification is made by Josephus and the Aramaic translations of the Bible. It is believed by some scholars that the name of Jerusalem comes from Uru + Shalem, meaning the foundation of Shalem or founded by Shalem or city of Shalem, and that Shalem was the city god of the place before El Elyon.[28] Shalem was the Canaanite god of dusk, sunset, and the end of the day, also spelled Shalim.
    - via - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_Jerusalem#Shalem
.

The synoptic gospels appear to refer to this tax, as well (quite anachronistically, as it happens):

Mark 12.13-17: 13 Καὶ ἀποστέλλουσιν πρὸς αὐτόν τινας τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ τῶν Ἡρῳδιανῶν ἵνα αὐτὸν ἀγρεύσωσιν λόγῳ. 14 καὶ ἐλθόντες λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς εἶ καὶ οὐ μέλει σοι περὶ οὐδενός· οὐ γὰρ βλέπεις εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διδάσκεις· ἔξεστιν δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι ἢ οὔ; δῶμεν ἢ μὴ δῶμεν; 15 ὁ δὲ εἰδὼς αὐτῶν τὴν ὑπόκρισιν εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· τί με πειράζετε; φέρετέ μοι δηνάριον ἵνα ἴδω. 16 οἱ δὲ ἤνεγκαν. καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· τίνος ἡ εἰκὼν αὕτη καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή; οἱ δὲ εἶπαν αὐτῷ· Καίσαρος. 17 ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· τὰ Καίσαρος ἀπόδοτε Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. καὶ ἐξεθαύμαζον ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ. / 13 And they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him, in order to trap Him in a statement. 14 And they came and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not? 15 "Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?" But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at." 16 And they brought one. And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" And they said to Him, "Caesar's." 17 And Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.

A poll-tax, being a tax levied as a fixed sum on every liable individual, certainly would be referring to all the population



Matthew 22.15-22: 15 Τότε πορευθέντες οἱ Φαρισαῖοι συμβούλιον ἔλαβον ὅπως αὐτὸν παγιδεύσωσιν ἐν λόγῳ. 16 καὶ ἀποστέλλουσιν αὐτῷ τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτῶν μετὰ τῶν Ἡρῳδιανῶν λέγοντες· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς εἶ καὶ τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ διδάσκεις καὶ οὐ μέλει σοι περὶ οὐδενός. οὐ γὰρ βλέπεις εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων, 17 εἰπὲ οὖν ἡμῖν τί σοι δοκεῖ· ἔξεστιν δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι ἢ οὔ; 18 γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὴν πονηρίαν αὐτῶν εἶπεν· τί με πειράζετε, ὑποκριταί; 19 ἐπιδείξατέ μοι τὸ νόμισμα τοῦ κήνσου. οἱ δὲ προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ δηνάριον. 20 καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· τίνος ἡ εἰκὼν αὕτη καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή; 21 λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Καίσαρος. τότε λέγει αὐτοῖς· ἀπόδοτε οὖν τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. 22 καὶ ἀκούσαντες ἐθαύμασαν, καὶ ἀφέντες αὐτὸν ἀπῆλθαν. / 15 Then the Pharisees went and counseled together how they might trap Him in what He said. 16 And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any. 17 "Tell us therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?" 18 But Jesus perceived their malice, and said, "Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? 19 "Show Me the coin used for the poll-tax." And they brought Him a denarius. 20 And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" 21 They said to Him, "Caesar's." Then He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's." 22 And hearing this, they marveled, and leaving Him, they went away.

Luke 20.20-26: 20 Καὶ παρατηρήσαντες ἀπέστειλαν ἐγκαθέτους ὑποκρινομένους ἑαυτοὺς δικαίους εἶναι, ἵνα ἐπιλάβωνται αὐτοῦ λόγου, ὥστε παραδοῦναι αὐτὸν τῇ ἀρχῇ καὶ τῇ ἐξουσίᾳ τοῦ ἡγεμόνος. 21 καὶ ἐπηρώτησαν αὐτὸν λέγοντες· διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ὀρθῶς λέγεις καὶ διδάσκεις καὶ οὐ λαμβάνεις πρόσωπον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διδάσκεις· 22 ἔξεστιν ἡμᾶς Καίσαρι φόρον δοῦναι ἢ οὔ; 23 κατανοήσας δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν πανουργίαν εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· 24 δείξατέ μοι δηνάριον· τίνος ἔχει εἰκόνα καὶ ἐπιγραφήν; οἱ δὲ εἶπαν· Καίσαρος. 25 ὁ δὲ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· τοίνυν ἀπόδοτε τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. 26 καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυσαν ἐπιλαβέσθαι αὐτοῦ ῥήματος ἐναντίον τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ θαυμάσαντες ἐπὶ τῇ ἀποκρίσει αὐτοῦ ἐσίγησαν. / 20 And they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order that they might catch Him in some statement, so as to deliver Him up to the rule and the authority of the governor. 21 And they questioned Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. 22 "Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" 23 But He detected their trickery and said to them, 24 "Show Me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?" And they said, "Caesar's." 25 And He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." 26 And they were unable to catch Him in a saying in the presence of the people; and marveling at His answer, they became silent.

Matthew 17.24-27: 24 Ελθόντων δὲ αὐτῶν εἰς Καφαρναοὺμ προσῆλθον οἱ τὰ δίδραχμα λαμβάνοντες τῷ Πέτρῳ καὶ εἶπαν· ὁ διδάσκαλος ὑμῶν οὐ τελεῖ [τὰ] δίδραχμα; 25 λέγει· ναί. καὶ ἐλθόντα εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν προέφθασεν αὐτὸν ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· τί σοι δοκεῖ, Σίμων; οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς ἀπὸ τίνων λαμβάνουσιν τέλη ἢ κῆνσον; ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτῶν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων; 26 εἰπόντος δέ· ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων, ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἄρα γε ἐλεύθεροί εἰσιν οἱ υἱοί. 27 ἵνα δὲ μὴ σκανδαλίσωμεν αὐτούς, πορευθεὶς εἰς θάλασσαν βάλε ἄγκιστρον καὶ τὸν ἀναβάντα πρῶτον ἰχθὺν ἆρον, καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ εὑρήσεις στατῆρα· ἐκεῖνον λαβὼν δὸς αὐτοῖς ἀντὶ ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ. / 24 And when they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter, and said, "Does your teacher not pay the didrachma tax?" 25 He said, "Yes." And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?" 26 And upon his saying, "From strangers," Jesus said to him, "Consequently the sons are exempt. 27 "But, lest we give them offense, go to the sea, and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me."


Finally, as your OP mentions, there are lots of tax receipts from Edfu in Egypt, dating from just after the fall of Jerusalem to AD 116. The volume which published these receipts has this to say:

Corpus Papyrorum Judaicarum 2, pages 111-112: The richest material furnished by the Edfu ostraka concerns the Jewish tax. From this material we learn the official names of the tax, the year when it was first imposed, its exact amount in Egyptian drachmai, the mode of payment, etc. The information given by the ostraka does not contradict our knowledge derived from other sources.... The usual name of the Jewish tax was Ἰουδαϊκὸν τέλεσμα (cf. also Nos. 421 and 460). Yet it was not the only name of the tax in Edfu: a great number of ostraka, when speaking of the tax, call it τιμὴ δηναρίων δύο Ἰουδαίων ('the price of two denars of the Jews').

Just adding a few of the ancient sources for reference. Cheers.
Cheers! :cheers:

Ben C. Smith wrote: Sun Jan 14, 2018 6:53 pm
MrMacSon wrote: Sun Oct 29, 2017 12:09 am .
The fiscus Judaicus (aka fiscus Iudaicus) was the tax-collecting agency instituted to collect the tax imposed on Jews throughout the Roman Empire after the destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple in AD 70. Revenues were directed to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus in Rome.
Jupiter Optimus Maximus sounds like the protagonist of a Transformers movie, does it not?
lol, yes.
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