ment.

And though this Alexandria was the greatest of all cities next to Rome, it proved too narrow to contain the multitude that then came to it. So upon this confirmation of Vespasian's entire government, which was now settled; and upon the unexpected deliverance of the public affairs of the Romans from ruin; Vespasian turned his thoughts to what remained unsubdued in Judea. However, he himself made haste to go to Rome, as the winter was now almost over; and soon set the affairs of Alexandria in order : but he sent his son Titus, with a select part of his army, to destroy Jerusalem. So Titus marched on foot as far as Nicopolis; which is distant twenty furlongs from Alexandria. There he put his army on board some long ships, and sailed upon the river along the Mendesian Nomus as far as the city Thmuis. There he got out of the ships, and walked on foot, and lodged all night at a small city called *Tanis. His second station was Heracleopolis; and his third Pelusium. He then refreshed his army at that place, for two days. And on the third passed over the mouth of the Nile at Pelusium. He then proceeded one station over the desert, and pitched his camp at the temple of the †Casian Jupiter; and on the next day at Ostracine. This station had no water but the people of the country make use of water brought from other places. After this he rested at Rhinocolura; and from thence he went to Raphia, which was his fourth station : this city is the beginning of Syria. For his fifth station he pitched his camp at Gaza. After which he came to Ascalon, and thence to Jamnia, and after that to Joppa, and from Joppa to Cæsarea: having taken a resolution to gather all his other forces together at that place.

*Zoan in the Old Testament.

+ There are coins of this Casian Jupiter, still extant, as Spanheim here informs us.

THE

JEWISH WAR. .

BOOK V.

Containing an Interval of near Six Months.

#4

FROM THE COMING OF TITUS TO BESIEGE JERUSALEM, TO THE GREAT EXTREMITY TO WHICH THE JEWS WERE REDUCED.

CHAP. I.

CONCERNING THE SEDITIOUS AT JERUSALEM; AND THE TERRIBLE MISERIES WHICH AFFLICTED THE CITY BY THEIR MEANS.

WHEN Titus had marched over that desert which lies between Egypt and Syria, in the manner before mentioned, he came to Cæsarea having resolved to set his forces in order at that place, before he began the war. Nay, indeed, while he was assisting his father at Alexandria, in settling that government which had been newly conferred upon them by God, it so happened, that the sedition at Jerusalem was revived, and parted into three factions and that one faction fought against the other. Which partition in such evil cases may be said to be a good thing, and the effect of divine justice. Now as to the attack the zealots made upon the people, and which I esteem the beginning of the city's destruction, it hath been already explained after an accurate manner; as also whence it arose, and to how great a mischief it was increased. But for the present sedition, one should not mistake if he called it a sedition begotten by another sedition: and to be like a wild beast grown mad, which, for want of food from abroad, fell now upon eating its own flesh.

For Eleazar, the son of Simon, who made the first separation of the zealots from the people, and made them retire into the tem

ple, appeared very angry at John's insolent attempts, which he made every day upon the people. For this man never left off murdering. But the truth was, that he could not bear to submit to a tyrant, who set up after him. So he being desirous of gaining the entire power and dominion to himself, revolted from John, and took to his assistance John the son of Chelcias, and Simon the son of Ezron, who were among the men of greatest power. There was also with him Hezekiah, the son of Chobar, a person of eminence. Each of these were followed by a great many of the zealots. These seized upon the inner court of the temple, and laid their arms upon the holy gates, and over the holy fronts of that court. And because they had plenty of provisions, they were of good courage. For there was great abundance of what was consecrated to sacred uses, and they scrupled not the making use of them. Yet were they afraid on account of their small number. And when they had laid up their arms there, they did not stir from the place they were in. Now as to John, what advantage he had above Eleazar in the multitude of his followers, the like disadvantage he had in the situation he was in: since he had his enemies over his head. And as he could not make any assault upon them without some terror, so was his anger too great to let him be at rest. Nay, although he suffered more mischief from Eleazar and his party than he could inflict upon them, yet would he not leave off assaulting them. Insomuch that there were continual sallies made one against another; as well as darts thrown at one another, and the temple was defiled every where with murders.

But the tyrant Simon, the son of Gioras, whom the people had invited in, out of the hopes they had of his assistance in the great distresses they were in; having in his power the upper city, and a great part of the lower, did now make more vehement assaults

* This appears to be the first time that the zealots ventured to pollute this most sacred court of the temple, which was the court of the priests, wherein the temple itself and the altar stood. So that the conjecture of those that would interpret that Zacharias, who was slain between the temple and the altar, several months before, IV. 5, as if he were slain there by these zealots, is groundless: as I have noted on that place already.

+ The court of the priests.

upon John, and his party: because these were fought against from above also. Yet was he beneath their situation, when he attacked them as were they beneath the attacks of the others above them. Whereby it came to pass, that John did both receive and inflict great damage, and that easily: as he was fought against on both sides. And the same advantage that Eleazar and his party had over him, since he was beneath them; the same advantage had he, by his higher situation, over Simon. On which account he easily repelled the attacks that were made from beneath, by the weapons thrown with their hands only: but was obliged to repel those that threw their darts from the temple above him, by his engines of war. For he had such engines as threw darts, javelins, and stones; and that in no small number. By which he did not only defend himself from such as fought against him, but also slew many of the priests, as they were about their sacred ministrations. For notwithstanding these men were mad with all sorts of impiety, yet did they still admit those that desired to offer their sacrifices; although they took care to search the people of their own country beforehand; and both suspected and watched them. While they were not so much afraid of strangers: who, although they had gotten leave of them, how cruel soever they were, to come into that court, were yet often destroyed by this sedition. For those darts that were thrown by the engines came with such force, that they went over all the buildings, and reached as far as the altar, and the temple itself: and fell upon the priests, and *those that were about the sacred offices. Insomuch that many persons who came thither with great zeal from the ends of the earth, to offer sacrifices, at this celebrated place, which was esteemed holy by all mankind, fell down before their own sacrifices, and sprinkled that altar which was venerable among all men, both Greeks and barbarians, with their own blood, till the dead bodies of strangers were mingled together with those of their own country; and those of profane persons with those of priests: and the blood of all sorts of dead carcasses stood in lakes in the holy courts themselves. And now, O most wretched city! what inisery so great as this didst thou suffer from the Romans, when they came to purify

thee from thy intestine hatred? For thou couldst be no longer a place fit for God; nor couldst thou long continue in being, after thou hadst been a sepulchre for the bodies of thy own people; and hadst made the holy house itself a burial place in this civil war. Yet *mayest thou again grow better, if perchance thou wilt hereafter appease the anger of that God who is the author of thy destruction. But I must refrain myself from these passions by the rules of history since this is not a proper time for domestic lamentations, but for historical narrations; I, therefore, return to the operations that follow in this sedition.

Now there were three treacherous factions in the city, the one parted from the other. Eleazar and his party, that kept the sacred first-fruits, came against John in their cups. Those that were with John plundered the populace, and went out with zeal against Simon. This Simon had his supply of provisions from the city, in opposition to the seditious. When, therefore, John was assaulted on both sides, he made his men turn about, throwing darts upon those citizens that came up against him, from the cloisters he had in his possession; while he opposed those that attacked him from the temple, by his engines of war. And if at any time he was freed from those that were above him, which happened frequently, from their being tired or inebriated, he sallied out with a greater number upon Simon and his party. And this he did always in such parts of the city as he could come at, till he set on fire those houses that were full of †corn, and of all other provisions. The same thing was done by Simon, when, upon the others' retreat, he attacked the city also as if they had on purpose done it to serve the Romans, by destroying what the city

This is an excellent reflection of Josephus: including his hopes of the restoration of the Jews, upon their repentance. See Antiquities, IV. 8. Which is the grand Hope of Israel, as Manasseh ben Israel, the famous Jewish Rabbi, styles it, in his small but remarkable treatise on that subject; of which the Jewish prophets are every where full.

+ This destruction of such a vast quantity of corn and other provisions, as was sufficient for many years, was the direct occasion of that terrible famine, which consumed incredible numbers of Jews in Jerusalem during its siege. Nor probably could the Romans have taken this city, after all, had not these seditious Jews been so infatuated as thus madly to destroy what Josephus here justly styles, "The nerves of their power."