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1. Now the people of Cesarea had slain the Jews that were among
them on the very same day and hour [when the soldiers were
slain], which one would think must have come to pass by the
direction of Providence; insomuch that in one hour's time above
twenty thousand Jews were killed, and all Cesarea was emptied of
its Jewish inhabitants; for Florus caught such as ran away, and
sent them in bonds to the galleys. Upon which stroke that the
Jews received at Cesarea, the whole nation was greatly enraged;
so they divided themselves into several parties, and laid waste
the villages of the Syrians, and their neighboring cities,
Philadelphia, and Sebonitis, and Gerasa, and Pella, and
Scythopolis, and after them Gadara, and Hippos; and falling upon
Gaulonitis, some cities they destroyed there, and some they set
on fire, and then went to Kedasa, belonging to the Tyrians, and
to Ptolemais, and to Gaba, and to Cesarea; nor was either Sebaste
[Samaria] or Askelon able to oppose the violence with which they
were attacked; and when they had burnt these to the ground; they
entirely demolished Anthedon and Gaza; many also of the villages
that were about every one of those cities were plundered, and an
immense slaughter was made of the men who were caught in them.
2. However, the Syrians were even with the Jews in the multitude
of the men whom they slew; for they killed those whom they caught
in their cities, and that not only out of the hatred they bare
them, as formerly, but to prevent the danger under which they
were from them; so that the disorders in all Syria were terrible,
and every city was divided into two armies, encamped one against
another, and the preservation of the one party was in the
destruction of the other; so the day time was spent in shedding
of blood, and the night in fear, which was of the two the more
terrible; for when the Syrians thought they had ruined the Jews,
they had the Judaizers in suspicion also; and as each side did
not care to slay those whom they only suspected on the other, so
did they greatly fear them when they were mingled with the other,
as if they were certainly foreigners. Moreover, greediness of
gain was a provocation to kill the opposite party, even to such
as had of old appeared very mild and gentle towards them; for
they without fear plundered the effects of the slain, and carried
off the spoils of those whom they slew to their own houses, as if
they had been gained in a set battle; and he was esteemed a man
of honor who got the greatest share, as having prevailed over the
greatest number of his enemies. It was then common to see cities
filled with dead bodies, still lying unburied, and those of old
men, mixed with infants, all dead, and scattered about together;
women also lay amongst them, without any covering for their
nakedness: you might then see the whole province full of
inexpressible calamities, while the dread of still more barbarous
practices which were threatened was every where greater than what
had been already perpetrated.
3. And thus far the conflict had been between Jews and
foreigners; but when they made excursions to Scythopolis, they
found Jew that acted as enemies; for as they stood in
battle-array with those of Scythopolis, and preferred their own
safety before their relation to us, they fought against their own
countrymen; nay, their alacrity was so very great, that those of
Scythopolis suspected them. These were afraid, therefore, lest
they should make an assault upon the city in the night time, and,
to their great misfortune, should thereby make an apology for
themselves to their own people for their revolt from them. So
they commanded them, that in case they would confirm their
agreement and demonstrate their fidelity to them, who were of a
different nation, they should go out of the city, with their
families to a neighboring grove; and when they had done as they
were commanded, without suspecting any thing, the people of
Scythopolis lay still for the interval of two days, to tempt them
to be secure; but on the third night they watched their
opportunity, and cut all their throats, some as they lay
unguarded, and some as they lay asleep. The number that was slain
was above thirteen thousand, and then they plundered them of all
that they had.
4. It will deserve our relation what befell Simon; he was the son
of one Saul, a man of reputation among the Jews. This man was
distinguished from the rest by the strength of his body, and the
boldness of his conduct, although he abused them both to the
mischieving of his countrymen; for he came every day and slew a
great many of the Jews of Scythopolis, and he frequently put them
to flight, and became himself alone the cause of his army's
conquering. But a just punishment overtook him for the murders he
had committed upon those of the same nation with him; for when
the people of Scythopolis threw their darts at them in the grove,
he drew his sword, but did not attack any of the enemy; for he
saw that he could do nothing against such a multitude; but he
cried out after a very moving manner, and said, "O you people of
Scythopolis, I deservedly suffer for what I have done with
relation to you, when I gave you such security of my fidelity to
you, by slaying so many of those that were related to me.
Wherefore we very justly experience the perfidiousness of
foreigners, while we acted after a most wicked manner against our
own nation. I will therefore die, polluted wretch as I am, by
nine own hands; for it is not fit I should die by the hand of our
enemies; and let the same action be to me both a punishment for
my great crimes, and a testimony of my courage to my
commendation, that so no one of our enemies may have it to brag
of, that he it was that slew me, and no one may insult upon me as
I fall." Now when he had said this, he looked round about him
upon his family with eyes of commiseration and of rage (that
family consisted of a wife and children, and his aged parents);
so, in the first place, he caught his father by his grey hairs,
and ran his sword through him, and after him he did the same to
his mother, who willingly received it; and after them he did the
like to his wife and children, every one almost offering
themselves to his sword, as desirous to prevent being slain by
their enemies; so when he had gone over all his family, he stood
upon their bodies to be seen by all, and stretching out his right
hand, that his action might be observed by all, he sheathed his
entire sword into his own bowels. This young man was to be
pitied, on account of the strength of his body and the courage of
his soul; but since he had assured foreigners of his fidelity
[against his own countrymen], he suffered deservedly.
5. Besides this murder at Scythopolis, the other cities rose up
against the Jews that were among them; those of Askelon slew two
thousand five hundred, and those of Ptolemais two thousand, and
put not a few into bonds; those of Tyre also put a great number
to death, but kept a greater number in prison; moreover, those of
Hippos, and those of Gadara, did the like while they put to death
the boldest of the Jews, but kept those of whom they were afraid
in custody; as did the rest of the cities of Syria, according as
they every one either hated them or were afraid of them; only the
Antiochtans the Sidontans, and Apamians spared those that dwelt
with them, and would not endure either to kill any of the Jews,
or to put them in bonds. And perhaps they spared them, because
their own number was so great that they despised their attempts.
But I think the greatest part of this favor was owing to their
commiseration of those whom they saw to make no innovations. As
for the Gerasans, they did no harm to those that abode with them;
and for those who had a mind to go away, they conducted them as
far as their borders reached.
6. There was also a plot laid against the Jews in Agrippa's
kingdom; for he was himself gone to Cestius Gallus, to Antioch,
but had left one of his companions, whose name was Noarus, to
take care of the public affairs; which Noarus was of kin to king
Sohemus. Now there came certain men seventy in number, out
of Batanea, who were the most considerable for their families and
prudence of the rest of the people; these desired to have an army
put into their hands, that if any tumult should happen, they
might have about them a guard sufficient to restrain such as
might rise up against them. This Noarus sent out some of the
king's armed men by night, and slew all those [seventy] men;
which bold action he ventured upon without the consent of
Agrippa, and was such a lover of money, that he chose to be so
wicked to his own countrymen, though he brought ruin on the
kingdom thereby; and thus cruelly did he treat that nation, and
this contrary to the laws also, until Agrippa was informed of it,
who did not indeed dare to put him to death, out of regard to
Sohemus; but still he put an end to his procuratorship
immediately. But as to the seditious, they took the citadel which
was called Cypros, and was above Jericho, and cut the throats of
the garrison, and utterly demolished the fortifications. This was
about the same time that the multitude of the Jews that were at
Machorus persuaded the Romans who were in garrison to leave the
place, and deliver it up to them. These Romans being in great
fear, lest the place should be taken by force, made an agreement
with them to depart upon certain conditions; and when they had
obtained the security they desired, they delivered up the
citadel, into which the people of Macherus put a garrison for
their own security, and held it in their own power.
7. But for Alexandria, the sedition of the people of the place
against the Jews was perpetual, and this from that very time when
Alexander [the Great], upon finding the readiness of the Jews in
assisting him against the Egyptians, and as a reward for such
their assistance, gave them equal privileges in this city with
the Grecians themselves; which honorary reward Continued among
them under his successors, who also set apart for them a
particular place, that they might live without being polluted [by
the Gentiles], and were thereby not so much intermixed with
foreigners as before; they also gave them this further privilege,
that they should be called Macedonians. Nay, when the Romans got
possession of Egypt, neither the first Caesar, nor any one that
came after him, thought of diminishing the honors which Alexander
had bestowed on the Jews. But still conflicts perpetually arose
with the Grecians; and although the governors did every day
punish many of them, yet did the sedition grow worse; but at this
time especially, when there were tumults in other places also,
the disorders among them were put into a greater flame; for when
the Alexandrians had once a public assembly, to deliberate about
an embassage they were sending to Nero, a great number of Jews
came flocking to the theater; but when their adversaries saw
them, they immediately cried out, and called them their enemies,
and said they came as spies upon them; upon which they rushed
out, and laid violent hands upon them; and as for the rest, they
were slain as they ran away; but there were three men whom they
caught, and hauled them along, in order to have them burnt alive;
but all the Jews came in a body to defend them, who at first
threw stones at the Grecians, but after that they took lamps, and
rushed with violence into the theater, and threatened that they
would burn the people to a man; and this they had soon done,
unless Tiberius Alexander, the governor of the city, had
restrained their passions. However, this man did not begin to
teach them wisdom by arms, but sent among them privately some of
the principal men, and thereby entreated them to be quiet, and
not provoke the Roman army against them; but the seditious made a
jest of the entreaties of Tiberius, and reproached him for so
doing.
8. Now when he perceived that those who were for innovations
would not be pacified till some great calamity should overtake
them, he sent out upon them those two Roman legions that were in
the city, and together with them five thousand other soldiers,
who, by chance, were come together out of Libya, to the ruin of
the Jews. They were also permitted not only to kill them, but to
plunder them of what they had, and to set fire to their houses.
These soldiers rushed violently into that part of the city that
was called Delta, where the Jewish people lived together, and did
as they were bidden, though not without bloodshed on their own
side also; for the Jews got together, and set those that were the
best armed among them in the forefront, and made a resistance for
a great while; but when once they gave back, they were destroyed
unmercifully; and this their destruction was complete, some being
caught in the open field, and others forced into their houses,
which houses were first plundered of what was in them, and then
set on fire by the Romans; wherein no mercy was shown to the
infants, and no regard had to the aged; but they went on in the
slaughter of persons of every age, till all the place was
overflowed with blood, and fifty thousand of them lay dead upon
heaps; nor had the remainder been preserved, had they not
be-taken themselves to supplication. So Alexander commiserated
their condition, and gave orders to the Romans to retire;
accordingly, these being accustomed to obey orders, left off
killing at the first intimation; but the populace of Alexandria
bare so very great hatred to the Jews, that it was difficult to
recall them, and it was a hard thing to make them leave their
dead bodies.
9. And this was the miserable calamity which at this time befell
the Jews at Alexandria. Hereupon Cestius thought fit no longer to
lie still, while the Jews were everywhere up in arms; so he took
out of Antioch the twelfth legion entire, and out of each of the
rest he selected two thousand, with six cohorts of footmen, and
four troops of horsemen, besides those auxiliaries which were
sent by the kings; of which Antiochus sent two thousand horsemen,
and three thousand footmen, with as many archers; and Agrippa
sent the same number of footmen, and one thousand horsemen;
Sohemus also followed with four thousand, a third part whereof
were horsemen, but most part were archers, and thus did he march
to Ptolemais. There were also great numbers of auxiliaries
gathered together from the [free] cities, who indeed had not the
same skill in martial affairs, but made up in their alacrity and
in their hatred to the Jews what they wanted in skill. There came
also along with Cestius Agrippa himself, both as a guide in his
march over the country, and a director what was fit to be done;
so Cestius took part of his forces, and marched hastily to
Zabulon, a strong city of Galilee, which was called the City of
Men, and divides the country of Ptolemais from our nation; this
he found deserted by its men, the multitude having fled to the
mountains, but full of all sorts of good things; those he gave
leave to the soldiers to plunder, and set fire to the city,
although it was of admirable beauty, and had its houses built
like those in Tyre, and Sidon, and Berytus. After this he overran
all the country, and seized upon whatsoever came in his way, and
set fire to the villages that were round about them, and then
returned to Ptolemais. But when the Syrians, and especially those
of Berytus, were busy in plundering, the Jews pulled up their
courage again, for they knew that Cestius was retired, and fell
upon those that were left behind unexpectedly, and destroyed
about two thousand of them.
10. And now Cestius himself marched from Ptolemais, and came to
Cesarea; but he sent part of his army before him to Joppa, and
gave order, that if they could take that city [by surprise] they
should keep it; but that in case the citizens should perceive
they were coming to attack them, that they then should stay for
him, and for the rest of the army. So some of them made a brisk
march by the sea-side, and some by land, and so coming upon them
on both sides, they took the city with ease; and as the
inhabitants had made no provision beforehand for a flight, nor
had gotten any thing ready for fighting, the soldiers fell upon
them, and slew them all, with their families, and then plundered
and burnt the city. The number of the slain was eight thousand
four hundred. In like manner, Cestius sent also a considerable
body of horsemen to the toparchy of Narbatene, that adjoined to
Cesarea, who destroyed the country, and slew a great multitude of
its people; they also plundered what they had, and burnt their
villages.
11. But Cestius sent Gallus, the commander of the twelfth legion,
into Galilee, and delivered to him as many of his forces as he
supposed sufficient to subdue that nation. He was received by the
strongest city of Galilee, which was Sepphoris, with acclamations
of joy; which wise conduct of that city occasioned the rest of
the cities to be in quiet; while the seditious part and the
robbers ran away to that mountain which lies in the very middle
of Galilee, and is situated over against Sepphoris; it is called
Asamon. So Gallus brought his forces against them; but while
those men were in the superior parts above the Romans, they
easily threw their darts upon the Romans, as they made their
approaches, and slew about two hundred of them. But when the
Romans had gone round the mountains, and were gotten into the
parts above their enemies, the others were soon beaten; nor could
they who had only light armor on sustain the force of them that
fought them armed all over; nor when they were beaten could they
escape the enemies' horsemen; insomuch that only some few
concealed themselves in certain places hard to be come at, among
the mountains, while the rest, above two thousand in number, were
slain.
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