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1. So the Romans lived in plenty of all things, and rested from
war. However, Herod did not lie at rest, but seized upon Idumea,
and kept it, with two thousand footmen, and four hundred
horsemen; and this he did by sending his brother Joseph thither,
that no innovation might be made by Antigonus. He also removed
his mother, and all his relations, who had been in Masada, to
Samaria; and when he had settled them securely, he marched to
take the remaining parts of Galilee, and to drive away the
garrisons placed there by Antigonus.
2. But when Herod had reached Sepphoris, in a very great
snow, he took the city without any difficulty; the guards that
should have kept it flying away before it was assaulted; where he
gave an opportunity to his followers that had been in distress to
refresh themselves, there being in that city a great abundance of
necessaries. After which he hasted away to the robbers that were
in the caves, who overran a great part of the country, and did as
great mischief to its inhabitants as a war itself could have
done. Accordingly, he sent beforehand three cohorts of footmen,
and one troop of horsemen, to the village Arbela, and came
himself forty days afterwards with the rest of his forces
Yet were not the enemy aftrighted at his assault but met him in
arms; for their skill was that of warriors, but their boldness
was the boldness of robbers: when therefore it came to a pitched
battle, they put to flight Herod's left wing with their right
one; but Herod, wheeling about on the sudden from his own right
wing, came to their assistance, and both made his own left wing
return back from its flight, and fell upon the pursuers, and
cooled their courage, till they could not bear the attempts that
were made directly upon them, and so turned back and ran away.
3. But Herod followed them, and slew them as he followed them,
and destroyed a great part of them, till those that remained were
scattered beyond the river [Jordan;] and Galilee was freed from
the terrors they had been under, excepting from those that
remained, and lay concealed in caves, which required longer time
ere they could be conquered. In order to which Herod, in the
first place, distributed the fruits of their former labors to the
soldiers, and gave every one of them a hundred and fifty drachmae
of silver, and a great deal more to their commanders, and sent
them into their winter quarters. He also sent to his youngest
brother Pheroas, to take care of a good market for them, where
they might buy themselves provisions, and to build a wall about
Alexandrium; who took care of both those injunctions accordingly.
4. In the mean time Antony abode at Athens, while Ventidius
called for Silo and Herod to come to the war against the
Parthians, but ordered them first to settle the affairs of Judea;
so Herod willingly dismissed Silo to go to Ventidius, but he made
an expedition himself against those that lay in the caves. Now
these caves were in the precipices of craggy mountains, and could
not be come at from any side, since they had only some winding
pathways, very narrow, by which they got up to them; but the rock
that lay on their front had beneath it valleys of a vast depth,
and of an almost perpendicular declivity; insomuch that the king
was doubtful for a long time what to do, by reason of a kind of
impossibility there was of attacking the place. Yet did he at
length make use of a contrivance that was subject to the utmost
hazard; for he let down the most hardy of his men in chests, and
set them at the mouths of the dens. Now these men slew the
robbers and their families, and when they made resistance, they
sent in fire upon them [and burnt them]; and as Herod was
desirous of saving some of them, he had proclamation made, that
they should come and deliver themselves up to him; but not one of
them came willingly to him; and of those that were compelled to
come, many preferred death to captivity. And here a certain old
man, the father of seven children, whose children, together with
their mother, desired him to give them leave to go out, upon the
assurance and right hand that was offered them, slew them after
the following manner: He ordered every one of them to go out,
while he stood himself at the cave's mouth, and slew that son of
his perpetually who went out. Herod was near enough to see this
sight, and his bowels of compassion were moved at it, and he
stretched out his right hand to the old man, and besought him to
spare his children; yet did not he relent at all upon what he
said, but over and above reproached Herod on the lowness of his
descent, and slew his wife as well as his children; and when he
had thrown their dead bodies down the precipice, he at last threw
himself down after them.
5. By this means Herod subdued these caves, and the robbers that
were in them. He then left there a part of his army, as many as
he thought sufficient to prevent any sedition, and made Ptolemy
their general, and returned to Samaria; he led also with him
three thousand armed footmen, and six hundred horsemen, against
Antigonus. Now here those that used to raise tumults in Galilee,
having liberty so to do upon his departure, fell unexpectedly
upon Ptolemy, the general of his forces, and slew him; they also
laid the country waste, and then retired to the bogs, and to
places not easily to be found. But when Herod was informed of
this insurrection, he came to the assistance of the country
immediately, and destroyed a great number of the seditions, and
raised the sieges of all those fortresses they had besieged; he
also exacted the tribute of a hundred talents of his enemies, as
a penalty for the mutations they had made in the country.
6. By this time (the Parthians being already driven out of the
country, and Pacorus slain) Ventidius, by Antony's command, sent
a thousand horsemen, and two legions, as auxiliaries to Herod,
against Antigonus. Now Antigonus besought Macheras, who was their
general, by letter, to come to his assistance, and made a great
many mournful complaints about Herod's violence, and about the
injuries he did to the kingdom; and promised to give him money
for such his assistance; but he complied not with his invitation
to betray his trust, for he did not contemn him that sent him,
especially while Herod gave him more money [than the other
offered]. So he pretended friendship to Antigonus, but came as a
spy to discover his affairs; although he did not herein comply
with Herod, who dissuaded him from so doing. But Antigonus
perceived what his intentions were beforehand, and excluded him
out of the city, and defended himself against him as against an
enemy, from the walls; till Macheras was ashamed of what he had
done, and retired to Emmaus to Herod; and as he was in a rage at
his disappointment, he slew all the Jews whom he met with,
without sparing those that were for Herod, but using them all as
if they were for Antigonus.
7. Hereupon Herod was very angry at him, and was going to fight
against Macheras as his enemy; but he restrained his indignation,
and marched to Antony to accuse Macheras of maladministration.
But Macheras was made sensible of his offenses, and followed
after the king immediately, and earnestly begged and obtained
that he would be reconciled to him. However, Herod did not desist
from his resolution of going to Antony; but when he heard that he
was besieging Samosata with a great army, which is a strong
city near to Euphrates, he made the greater haste; as observing
that this was a proper opportunity for showing at once his
courage, and for doing what would greatly oblige Antony. Indeed,
when he came, he soon made an end of that siege, and slew a great
number of the barbarians, and took from them a large prey;
insomuch that Antony, who admired his courage formerly, did now
admire it still more. Accordingly, he heaped many more honors
upon him, and gave him more assured hopes that he should gain his
kingdom; and now king Antiochus was forced to deliver up
Samosata.
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