He was a friend of Lucius Vitellius, who appointed him after sending Pontius Pilate to Rome (in 36 or 37) to render account. It may be assumed, however, that Marcellus was not really a governor of Judea, but only a subordinate official of Vitellius. Indeed, this is the only instance where Josephus, in designating the office of Marcellus, uses the Greek expression epimeletes (ἐπιμελητής), "overseer", which is uncommon, and we are not certain whether Marcellus really had the powers of a prefect or was merely a caretaker. No official act of Marcellus is reported. In 37, he was replaced by Marullus.
However, some insight into the changed situation in Jerusalem after the departure of Pilate is seen in the contrast between the trial and execution of Jesus and that of the first Christian martyrSaint Stephen (Acts 7). In the former, the Sanhedrin (Jewish Council) passed the death sentence but dared not carry it out without the prefect's endorsement, and the execution was carried out by the Roman state (Luke 23.24). In the case of Stephen, the Romans were ignored and the hurried execution was by the old Jewish method of stoning. It would appear that a temporary overseer may have preferred to stay in Caesarea and turn a blind eye to the growing confidence and aggression of the Jewish leaders.[clarification needed]
marcellus, prefect, judea, marcellus, roman, prefect, province, judea, biography, edithe, friend, lucius, vitellius, appointed, after, sending, pontius, pilate, rome, render, account, assumed, however, that, marcellus, really, governor, judea, only, subordinat. Marcellus was the 6th Roman Prefect of the province of Judea Biography EditHe was a friend of Lucius Vitellius who appointed him after sending Pontius Pilate to Rome in 36 or 37 to render account It may be assumed however that Marcellus was not really a governor of Judea but only a subordinate official of Vitellius Indeed this is the only instance where Josephus in designating the office of Marcellus uses the Greek expression epimeletes ἐpimelhths overseer which is uncommon and we are not certain whether Marcellus really had the powers of a prefect or was merely a caretaker No official act of Marcellus is reported In 37 he was replaced by Marullus However some insight into the changed situation in Jerusalem after the departure of Pilate is seen in the contrast between the trial and execution of Jesus and that of the first Christian martyr Saint Stephen Acts 7 In the former the Sanhedrin Jewish Council passed the death sentence but dared not carry it out without the prefect s endorsement and the execution was carried out by the Roman state Luke 23 24 In the case of Stephen the Romans were ignored and the hurried execution was by the old Jewish method of stoning It would appear that a temporary overseer may have preferred to stay in Caesarea and turn a blind eye to the growing confidence and aggression of the Jewish leaders clarification needed References Edit This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain Gotthard Deutsch and Samuel Krauss 1901 1906 Procurators In Singer Isidore et al eds The Jewish Encyclopedia New York Funk amp Wagnalls External links EditLivius org MarcellusMarcellus prefect of Judea Roman Rulers of JudeaPreceded byPontius Pilate Prefect of Judaea Succeeded byMarullus Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Marcellus prefect of Judea amp oldid 1142268256, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
