heir clubs. And when they came to Gabara, John em with three thousand armed men; but, as I undery their letter, that they had resolved to fight against rose from Chabolo, with three thousand armed men it left in my camp one of my safest friends, and came pata, as desirous to be near them, the distance being e than forty furlongs. Whence I wrote thus to them: u are very desirous that I should come to you, you here are two hundred and forty cities and villages in , I will come to any of them which you please ex5 Gabara, and Gischala; the one of which is John's city, and the other in confederacy and friendship with

When Jonathan and his partners had received this they wrote to me no more answers, but called a 1 of their friends together, and taking John into their tation, they took council together by what means might attack me. John's opinion was, that they should to all the cities and villages that were in Galilee; for here must be certainly one or two persons in every one m that was at variance with me, and that they should vited to come to oppose me as an enemy. He would have them send this resolution of theirs to the city alem, that its citizens, upon the knowledge of my bedjudged to be an enemy by the Galileans, might thems also confirm that determination. He said also, that this was done, even those Galileans who were well ed to me, would desert me out of fear. When John given them this counsel, what he had said was very eable to the rest of them. I was also made acquainted these affairs about the third hour of the night, by the as of one Saccheus, who had belonged to them, but now rted them, and came over to me, and told me what they e about; so I perceived that no time was to be lost. Aclingly, I gave command to Jacob, an armed man of my d, whom I esteemed faithful to me, to take two hun1 men, and to guard the passages that led from Gabara alilee, and to seize upon the passengers, and send them me, especially such as were caught with letters about m: I also sent Jeremias himself, one of my friends, with

Jors of Galilee in anda

to watch the roads that led from this country to the city Jerusalem, and gave him charge to lay hold of such as travelled with letters about them, to keep the men in bonds, upon the place, but to send me the letters.

47. When I had laid these commands upon them, I gave them orders, and bid them to take their arms, and bring three days provision with them, and be with me the next day. I also parted those that were about me into four parts, and ordained those of them that were most faithful to me to be a guard to my body. I also set over thèm centurions, and commanded them to take care that not a soldier, which they did not know, should mingle himself among them. Now on the fifth day following, when I was in Gabaroth, I found the entire plain that was before the village full of armed men, who were come out of Galilee to assist me; many others of the multitude also, out of the village, ran along with me. But as soon as I had taken my place, and begun to speak to them, they all made an acclamation, and called me the benefactor and saviour of the country. And when I had made them my acknowledgments, and thanked them [for their affection to me,] I also advised them to fight * with nobody, nor to spoil the country; but to pitch their tents in the plain, and be content with their sustenance they had brought with them; for I told them that I had a mind to compose these troubles without shedding any blood. Now it came to pass, that on the very same day those who were sent by John with letters, fell among the guards whom I had appointed to watch the roads; so the men were themselves kept upon the place, as my orders were, but I got the letters, which were full of reproaches and lies; and I intended to fall upon these men without saying a word of these matters to any body.

48. Now as soon as Jonathan and his companions heard of my coming, they took all their own friends, and John with them, and retired to the house of Jesus, which indeed was a large castle, and no way unlike a citadel; so they privately laid a band of armed men therein, and shut all the other

*Josephus's direction to his soldiers here, are much the same that John the Baptist gave, Luke, iii. 14. "Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely, and be content with your wages." Whence Dr. Hudson confirms this conjecture, that Josephus, in some things, was, even now, a follower of John the Baptist, which is no way improbable. See the note on § 2.

doors but one, which they kept open, and they expected that I should come out of the road to them, to salute them. And indeed they had given orders to the armed men, that when I came they should let nobody besides me come in, but should exclude others; as supposing that, by this means they should easily get me under their power: but they were deceived in their expectation; for I perceived what snares they had laid for me. Now as soon as I had got off my journey, I took up my lodgings over against them, and pretended to be asleep; so Jonathan and his party thinking that I was really asleep, and at rest, made haste to go down into the plain, to persuade the people that I was an ill governor. But the matter proved otherwise; for upon their appearance, there was a cry made by the Galileans immediately, declaring their good opinion of me as their governor; and they made a clamour against Jonathan and his partners for coming to them, when they had suffered no harm, and as though they would overturn their happy settlement; and desired them by all means to go back again, for that they would never be persuaded to have any other to rule over them but myself. When I heard of this, I did not fear to go down into the midst of them; I went therefore myself down presently to hear what Jonathan and his companions said. As soon as I appeared, there was immediately an acclamation made to me by the whole multitude, and a cry in my commendation by them, who confessed their thanks was owing to me for my good government of them.

49. When Jonathan and his companions heard this, they were in fear of their own lives, and in danger lest they should be assaulted by the Galileans on my account; so they contrived how they might run away. But as they were not able to get off, for I desired them to stay, they looked down with concern at my words to them. I ordered, therefore, the multitude to restrain entirely their acclamations, and placed the most faithful of my armed men upon the avepues, to be a guard to us, lest John should unexpectedly falt upon us; and I encouraged the Galileans to take their weapons, lest they should be disturbed at their enemies, if any sudden insult should be made upon them. And then, in the first place, I put Jonathan and his partners in mind of their [former] letter, and after what manner they had written to me, and declared they were sent by the common consent of the people of Jerusalem, to make up the differences I had

with John, and how they had desired me to come to them: and as I spake thus, I publicly showed that letter they had written, till they could not at all deny what they had done, the letter itself convicting them. I then said, "O Jonathan, and you that are sent with him as his colleagues, if I were to be judged as to my behaviour, compared with that of John's, and had brought no more than two or three witnesses, good men and true, it is plain you had been forced upon the examination of their characters beforehand, to discharge the accusations: that therefore you may be informed that I have acted well in the affairs of Galilee, I think three witnesses too few to be brought by a man that hath done as he ought to do; so I gave you all these for witnesses. I inquire of them how I have lived, and whether I have not behaved myself with all decency, and after a virtuous manner among them. And I farther conjure you, O Galileans, to hide no part of the truth, but to speak before these men as before judges, whether I have in any thing acted otherwise than well."

me.

50. While I was thus speaking, the united voices of all the people joined together, and called me their benefactor and saviour, and attested to my former behaviour, and exhorted me to continue so to do hereafter; and they all said, upon their oaths, that their wives had been preserved free from injuries, and that no one had ever been aggrieved by After this I read to the Galileans two of those epistles which had been sent by Jonathan and his colleagues, and which those whom I had appointed to guard the road had taken, and sent to me. These were full of reproaches, and of lies, as if I had acted more like a tyrant than a governor against them, with many other things besides therein contained, which were no better indeed than impudent falsities. I also informed the multitude how I came by these

* We here learn the practice of the Jews, in the days of Josephus, to inquire into the characters of witnesses before they were ad nitted, and that their number ought to be three, or two at the least, also exactly as in the law of Moses, and in the apostolical constitutions, B. ii. ch. xxxvii. See Horeb Covenant revived, p. 97, 93.

This appeal to he whole body of the Galileans, by Josephus, and the testimony they gave him of integrity in his conduct, as their governor, is very like that appeal and testimony in the case of the prophet Samuel, 1 Sam. xii. 1-5. and perhaps was done by Josephus in imitation of him.

letters, and that those who carried them delivered them up voluntarily; for I was not willing that my enemies should know any thing of the guards I had set,. lest they should be afraid, and leave off writing hereafter.

51. When the multitude heard these things, they were greatly provoked at Jonathan, and his colleagues that were with him, and were going to attack them, and kill them; and this they had certainly done, unless I had restrained the anger of the Galileans, and said that, "I forgave Jonathan and his colleagues what was past, if they would repent and go to their own country, and tell those who sent them the truth, as to my conduct." When I had said this, I let them go, although I knew they would do nothing of what they had promised. But the multitude were very much enraged against them, and entreated me to give them leave to punish them for their insolence; yet did I try all methods to persuade them to spare the men; for I knew that every instance of sedition was pernicious to the public welfare. But the multitude were too angry with them to be dissuaded, and all of them went immediately to the house in which Jonathan and his colleagues abode. However, when I perceived that their rage could not be restrained, I got on horseback, and ordered the multitude to follow me to the village Sogane, which was twenty furlongs off Gabara; and by using this stratagem, I so managed myself, as not to appear to begin a civil war amongst them.

52. But when I was come near Sogane, I caused the multitude to make an halt, and exhorted them not to be so. easily provoked to anger, and to the inflicting such punishments as could not be afterwards recalled; I also gave order, that an hundred men, who were already in years, and were principal men among them, should get themselves: ready to go to the city Jerusalem, and should make a complaint before the people, of such as raised seditions in the country. And I said to them, that "in case they be moved with what you say, and you shall desire the community to write to me, and to enjoin me to continue in Galilee, and to order Jonathan and his colleagues to depart out of it." When I had suggested these instructions to them,, and while they were getting themselves ready as fast as they could, I sent them on this errand the third day after they had been assembled: I also sent five hundred armed men with them [as a guard.] I then wrote to my friends