I just finished reading the complete work of Flavius Josephus and in one of the several books relating to the Jewish Civil War leading up to the Roman Siege of Jerusalem circa 79 A.D. or there about a reference was made of a provocative incidence that happened in the then Roman Province of Syria involving the migrant Greeks and the then Jewish Populace.

There was an on going rebellion in Judea against Roman rule due to a series of complex and myriad reasons and in one particular Palestine Province (Which is what the Romans refereed to Judea and Israel territory back then), a bunch of Zealot Jews slaughtered a regiment of Roman soldiers.
This action led to wave of attacks overseas on Jewish communities usually as an excuse to pillage the more successful Jews of their wealth.

In Syria the situation was know different and the pogrom started when a bunch of Greeks decided to sacrifice a bird in front of the Jewsih Synagogue in Antioch. This act may seem innocent but it was a symbolic mockery of both Jewish Laws religion and history.

The Greeks were maliciously implying by offering a sacrifice of a bird in front of the synagogue based on the Mosaic laws on cleansing of an individual afflicted with leprosy (Lev : 14 v 3) on behalf of the Jewish people as a whole. This sparked a riot between the Jews and the Greeks leading to many of the Jews being killed and later expelled from their homes.

The origin of this began within the Greek Historians quoting a particular Egyptian Historian who gave a different narrative to why and how the Jews left Egypt.

This Egyptian historian (Manetho) gave a totally different narrative of the reason why the Jews were evicted from Egypt citing an epidemic of Leprosy within the Jewish parts of Egypt.

will brb

Although there is more than enough evidence to dispute Manetho's narrative given inconsistencies and dates as aptly noted by Josephus in his later publication (see Flavius Josephus Against Apion -Book 1 http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/apion-1.htm ) I can't but wonder if there is an iota of truth with Manetho's claim owing to biblical accounts in Exodus of several narratives concerning Leprosy.


For why would Moses put in place strict quarantine measures for Leprosy?

There is also the instance where Moses hands became temporarily withered on the account of God's command (Exodus 4:6) and there is also the case of Moses sister who after criticizing her brother of marrying a Cushite (Yes, Moses wife was Black) , God rebuked her by turning her skin pale and withered Numbers 12 : 1-16 ( Leprosy was any ailment that may affect the skin including the classic clinic case as we know ).