According to Christian tradition Paul was tortured and killed in Rome. Above I suggested, based on GJohn 17 and 1 Clement V:7, that maybe Paul safely returned to Jerusalem. The Dutch scholar Pierre Krijbolder is an interesting ally for this thesis. In 1976 (with a second edition in 1989 which I use below) his
Jezus de Nazoreeër ('Jesus the Nazorean') was published. On p. 66-69 of his book Krijbolder discusses one of the first chapters of Josephus’s
Life, verse 13-16. This fragment goes as follows (leaving aside the middle part of Josephus’s shipwreck):
Soon after I completed my twenty-sixth year it fell to my lot to go up to Rome for the reason I will proceed to relate. At the time when Felix was procurator of Judaea, certain priests of my acquaintance, very excellent men, were on a slight and trifling charge sent by him in bonds to Rome to render an account to Caesar. I was anxious to discover some means of delivering these men, more especially as I learnt that, even in affliction, they had not forgotten the pious practices of religion, and supported themselves on figs and nuts.
(the shipwreck story)
Landing safely at Dicaearchia, which the Italians call Puteoli, I formed a friendship with Aliturus, an actor who was a special favourite of Nero and of Jewish origin. Through him I was introduced to Poppaea, Caesar’s consort, and took the earliest opportunity of soliciting her aid to secure the liberation of the priests. Having, besides this favour, received large gifts from Poppaea, I returned to my own country.
These are Krijbolder’s most important observations on the relation between this story and the fate of the apostle Paul:
• Josephus is 26 years old in 63 CE. Paul arrived in Rome in 61 CE, where he was under house arrest for two years (Acts 28:30).
• Paul was arrested by Felix, who found no weighty charges for a trial (Acts 26:31) – the slight and trifling charge in Josephus.
• Paul was sent to Rome because he appealed to Caesar.
• Josephus was a crypto-Essene, while Paul clearly was an Essene priest. This explains Josephus’s ‘certain priests of my acquaintance’.
We see that the time frame is identical, and also the connection with Felix, the charge and the transfer to Rome, and finally the Essene ideological connection. Josephus tells that his mission was successful, which means that Paul was liberated. In the last sentence Josephus says that he returned home; he does not mention the return home of the liberated persons. This could be an indirect indication that Paul made a detour (through Spain) before returning home.