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1. About this very time king Agrippa was going to Alexandria, to
congratulate Alexander upon his having obtained the government of
Egypt from Nero; but as his sister Bernice was come to Jerusalem,
and saw the wicked practices of the soldiers, she was sorely
affected at it, and frequently sent the masters of her horse and
her guards to Florus, and begged of him to leave off these
slaughters; but he would not comply with her request, nor have
any regard either to the multitude of those already slain, or to
the nobility of her that interceded, but only to the advantage he
should make by this plundering; nay, this violence of the
soldiers brake out to such a degree of madness, that it spent
itself on the queen herself; for they did not only torment and
destroy those whom they had caught under her very eyes, but
indeed had killed herself also, unless she had prevented them by
flying to the palace, and had staid there all night with her
guards, which she had about her for fear of an insult from the
soldiers. Now she dwelt then at Jerusalem, in order to perform a
vow which she had made to God; for it is usual with those
that had been either afflicted with a distemper, or with any
other distresses, to make vows; and for thirty days before they
are to offer their sacrifices, to abstain from wine, and to shave
the hair of their head. Which things Bernice was now performing,
and stood barefoot before Florus's tribunal, and besought him [to
spare the Jews]. Yet could she neither have any reverence paid to
her, nor could she escape without some danger of being slain
herself.
2. This happened upon the sixteenth day of the month Artemisius
[Jyar]. Now, on the next day, the multitude, who were in a great
agony, ran together to the Upper Market-place, and made the
loudest lamentations for those that had perished; and the
greatest part of the cries were such as reflected on Florus; at
which the men of power were aftrighted, together with the high
priests, and rent their garments, and fell down before each of
them, and besought them to leave off, and not to provoke Florus
to some incurable procedure, besides what they had already
suffered. Accordingly, the multitude complied immediately, out of
reverence to those that had desired it of them, and out of the
hope they had that Florus would do them no more injuries.
3. So Florus was troubled that the disturbances were over, and
endeavored to kindle that flame again, and sent for the high
priests, with the other eminent persons, and said the only
demonstration that the people would not make any other
innovations should be this, that they must go out and meet the
soldiers that were ascending from Cesarea, whence two cohorts
were coming; and while these men were exhorting the multitude so
to do, he sent beforehand, and gave directions to the centurions
of the cohorts, that they should give notice to those that were
under them not to return the Jews' salutations; and that if they
made any reply to his disadvantage, they should make use of their
weapons. Now the high priests assembled the multitude in the
temple, and desired them to go and meet the Romans, and to salute
the cohorts very civilly, before their miserable case should
become incurable. Now the seditious part would not comply with
these persuasions; but the consideration of those that had been
destroyed made them incline to those that were the boldest for
action.
4. At this time it was that every priest, and every servant of
God, brought out the holy vessels, and the ornamental garments
wherein they used to minister in sacred things. The harpers also,
and the singers of hymns, came out with their instruments of
music, and fell down before the multitude, and begged of them
that they would preserve those holy ornaments to them, and not
provoke the Romans to carry off those sacred treasures. You might
also see then the high priests themselves, with dust sprinkled in
great plenty upon their heads, with bosoms deprived of any
covering but what was rent; these besought every one of the
eminent men by name, and the multitude in common, that they would
not for a small offense betray their country to those that were
desirous to have it laid waste; saying, "What benefit will it
bring to the soldiers to have a salutation from the Jews? or what
amendment of your affairs will it bring you, if you do not now go
out to meet them? and that if they saluted them civilly, all
handle would be cut off from Florus to begin a war; that they
should thereby gain their country, and freedom from all further
sufferings; and that, besides, it would be a sign of great want
of command of themselves, if they should yield to a few seditious
persons, while it was fitter for them who were so great a people
to force the others to act soberly."
5. By these persuasions, which they used to the multitude and to
the seditious, they restrained some by threatenings, and others
by the reverence that was paid them. After this they led them
out, and they met the soldiers quietly, and after a composed
manner, and when they were come up with them, they saluted them;
but when they made no answer, the seditious exclaimed against
Florus, which was the signal given for falling upon them. The
soldiers therefore encompassed them presently, and struck them
with their clubs; and as they fled away, the horsemen trampled
them down, so that a great many fell down dead by the strokes of
the Romans, and more by their own violence in crushing one
another. Now there was a terrible crowding about the gates, and
while every body was making haste to get before another, the
flight of them all was retarded, and a terrible destruction there
was among those that fell down, for they were suffocated, an
broken to pieces by the multitude of those that were uppermost;
nor could any of them be distinguished by his relations in order
to the care of his funeral; the soldiers also who beat them, fell
upon those whom they overtook, without showing them any mercy,
and thrust the multitude through the place called Bezetha,
as they forced their way, in order to get in and seize upon the
temple, and the tower Antonia. Florus also being desirous to get
those places into his possession, brought such as were with him
out of the king's palace, and would have compelled them to get as
far as the citadel [Antonia;] but his attempt failed, for the
people immediately turned back upon him, and stopped the violence
of his attempt; and as they stood upon the tops of their houses,
they threw their darts at the Romans, who, as they were sorely
galled thereby, because those weapons came from above, and they
were not able to make a passage through the multitude, which
stopped up the narrow passages, they retired to the camp which
was at the palace.
6. But for the seditious, they were afraid lest Florus should
come again, and get possession of the temple, through Antonia; so
they got immediately upon those cloisters of the temple that
joined to Antonia, and cut them down. This cooled the avarice of
Florus; for whereas he was eager to obtain the treasures of God
[in the temple], and on that account was desirous of getting into
Antonia, as soon as the cloisters were broken down, he left off
his attempt; he then sent for the high priests and the sanhedrim,
and told them that he was indeed himself going out of the city,
but that he would leave them as large a garrison as they should
desire. Hereupon they promised that they would make no
innovations, in case he would leave them one band; but not that
which had fought with the Jews, because the multitude bore
ill-will against that band on account of what they had suffered
from it; so he changed the band as they desired, and, with the
rest of his forces, returned to Cesarea.
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