Antiochus died in the hundred forty and ninth year: But it was Lysias that declared his death to the multitude, and appointed his son Antiochus to be king, (of whom at present he had the care,) and called him Eupator. 3. At this time it was that the garrison in the citadel at Jerusalem with the Jewish runagates, did a great deal of harm to the Jews; for the soldiers that were in that garrison rushed out upon the sudden, and destroyed such as were going up to the temple in order to offer their sacrifices, for this citadel adjoined to, and overlooked the temple. When these misfortunes had often happened to them, Judas resolved to destroy that garrison; whereupon he got all the people together, and vigorously besieged those that were in the citadel. This was in the hundred and fiftieth year of the dominion of the Seleucida. So he made engines of war, and erected bulwarks, and very zealously pressed on to take the citadel: But there were not a few of the runagates who were in the place, that went out by night into the country, and got together some other wicked men like themselves, and went to Antiochus the king, and desired of him, That "he would "not suffer them to be neglected, under the great hardships "that lay upon them from those of their own nation, and "this because their sufferings were occasioned on his father's account, while they left the religious worship of their fa"thers, and preferred that which he had commanded them "to follow that there was danger lest the citadel and those appointed to garrison it by the king, should be taken by "Judas, and those that were with him, unless he would send "them succours." When Antiochus, who was but a child, heard this, he was angry, and sent for his captains, and his friends, and gave order, that they should get an army of mercenaries together, with such men also of his own kingdom as were of an age fit for war. Accordingly an army was collected of about an hundred thousand footmen, and twenty thousand horsemen, and thirty-two elephants. 66 66 4. So the king took this army, and marched hastily out of Antioch, with Lysias, who had the command of the whole, and came to Idumea, and thence went up to the city Bethsura, a city that was strong, and not to be taken without great difficulty, he set about this city, and besieged it. And while the inhabitants of Bethsura courageously opposed him, and sallied out upon him, and burnt his engines of war, a great deal of time was spent in the siege. But when Judas heard of the king's coming, he raised the siege of the citadel, and wanting tuition, when he came to the crown, since Appian informs us, Syriac, p. 177. that he was then but nine years old. met the king, and pitched his camp in certain straits, at a place called Bethzachariah, at the distance of seventy furlongs from the enemy; but the king soon drew his forces from Bethsura, and brought them to those straits. And as soon as it was day he put his men in battle array, and made his elephants follow one another through the narrow passes, because they could not be set sideways one by another. Now round about every elephant there were a thousand footmen, and five hundred horsemen. The elephants also had high towers [upon their backs,] and archers [in them.] And he also made the rest of his army to go up the mountains, and put his friends before the rest: and gave orders for the army to shout aloud, and so he attacked the enemy. He also exposed to sight their golden and brazen shields, so that a glorious splendour was sent from them; and when they shouted, the mountains echoed again. When Judas saw this, he was not / terrified, but received the enemy with great courage, and slew about six hundred of the first ranks. But when his brother Eleazar, whom they called Auran, saw the tallest of all the elephants armed with royal breast-plates, and supposed that the king was upon him, he attacked him with great quickness and bravery. He also slew many of those that were about the elephant, and scattered the rest, and then went under the belly of the elephant, and smote him, and slew him; so the elephant fell upon Eleazar, and by his weight crushed him to death. And thus did this man come to his end, when he had first courageously destroyed many of his enemies. 5. But Judas, seeing the strength of the enemy, retired to Jerusalem, and prepared to endure a siege. As for Antiochus, he sent part of his army to Bethsura, to besiege it, and with the rest of his army he came against Jerusalem; but the inhabitants of Bethsura were terrified at his strength; and seeing that their provisions grew scarce, they delivered themselves up on the security of oaths, that they should suffer no hard treatment from the king. And when Antiochus had thus taken the city, he did them no other harm than sending them out naked. He also placed a garrison of his own in the city. But as for the temple of Jerusalem, he lay at its siege a long time, while they within bravely defended it, for what engines soever the king set against them, they set other engines again to oppose them. But then their provisions failed them; what fruits of the ground they had laid up were spent, and the land not being ploughed that year, continued unsowed, because it was the seventh year, on which by our laws we are obliged to let it lie uncultivated. And withal so many of the besieged ran away for want of necessaries, that but a few only were left in the temple. 6. And these happened to be the circumstances of such as were besieged in the temple. But then, because Lysias, the general of the army, and Antiochus the king, were informed that Philip was coming upon them out of Persia; and was endeavouring to get the management of public affairs to himself, they came into these sentiments, to leave the siege, and to make haste to go against Philip; yet did they resolve not to let this be known to the soldiers, or to the officers: But the king commanded Lysias to speak openly to the soldiers and the officers, without saying a word about the business of Philip; and to intimate to them, that the siege would be very long; that the place was very strong; that they were already in want of provisions; that many affairs of the kingdom wanted regulation; and that it was much better to make a league with the besieged, and to become friends to their whole nation, by permitting them to observe the laws of their fathers, while they broke out into this war only because they were deprived of them, and so to depart home. When Lysias had discoursed thus to them, both the army and the officers were pleased with this resolution. 7. Accordingly the king sent to Judas, and to those that were besieged with them, and promised to give them peace, and to permit them to make use of, and live according to the laws of their fathers. And they gladly received his proposals: and when they had gained security upon oath, for their performance, they went out of the temple. But when Antiochus came into it, and saw how strong the place was, he broke his oaths, and ordered his army that was there to pluck down the walls to the ground; and when he had so done, he returned to Antioch: he also carried with him Onias the high-priest, who was also called Menelaus; for Lysias advised the king to slay Menelaus, if he would have the Jews be quiet, and cause him no farther disturbance, for that this man was the origin of all the mischief the Jews had done them, by persuading his father to compel the Jews to leave the religion of their fathers: So the king sent Menelaus to Berea, a city of Syria, and there had him put to death, when he had been high-priest ten years. He had been a wicked and an impious man: and, in order to get the government to him, self, had compelled his nation to transgress their own laws. After the death of Menelaus, Alcimus, who was also called Jacimus, was made high-priest. But when king Antiochus found that Philip had already possessed himself of the government, he made war against him, and subdued him, and took him, and slew him. Now, as to Onias, the son of the highpriest, who, as we before informed you, was left a child when his father died, when he saw that the king had slain his uncle Menelaus, and given the high priesthood to Alcimus, who was not of the high-priest stock, but as induced by Lysias to translate that dignity from this family to another house, he fled to Ptolemy, king of Egypt, and when he found he was in great esteem with him, and with his wife Cleopatra, he desired and obtained a place in the Nomus of Heliopolis, wherein he built a temple like to that at Jerusalem: Of which therefore we shall hereafter give an account, in a place more proper for it. CHAP. X. How Bacchides, the general of Demetrius's army, made an expedition against Judea, and returned without success; and how Nicanor was sent a little afterward against Judas, and perished, together with his army: as also concerning the death of Alcimus, and the succession of Judas. 1. ABOUT the same time Demetrius, the son of Seleucus, fled away from Rome, and took Tripoli, a city of Syria, and set the diadem on his own head. He also gathered certain mercenary soldiers together, and entered into his kingdom, and was joyfully received by all who delivered themselves up to him. And when they had taken Antiochus the king, and Lysias, they brought them to him alive; both which were immediately put to death by the command of Demetrius, when Antiochus had reigned two years, as we have already elsewhere related. But there were now many of the wicked Jewish runagates that came together to him, and with them Alcimus the high-priest, who accused the whole nation, and particularly Judas and his brethren; and said, That " they had slain all his friends; and that those in his kingdom that were "of his party, and waited for his return, were by them put "to death; that these men had ejected them out of their own "country, and caused them to be sojourners in a foreign "land; and they desired that he would send some one of his own friends, and know from him what mischief Judas's party "had done." 2. At this Demetrius was very angry, and sent Bacchides, a friend of Antiochus Epiphanes, a good man, and one that *It is no way probable that Josephus would call Bacchides, that bitter and bloody enemy of the Jews, as our present copies have it, a man good, or kind and gentle. What the author of the first book of Maccabees, whom Josephus here had been entrusted with all Mesopotamia, and gave him an army, and committed Alcimus the high-priest to his care; and gave him charge to slay Judas, and those that were with him. So Bacchides made haste, and went out of Antioch with his army; and when he was come into Judea, he sent to Judas and his brethren, to discourse with him about a league of friendship and peace, for he had a mind to take him by treachery: But Judas did not give credit to him, for he saw that he came with so great an army as men do not bring when they come to make peace, but to make war. However, some of the people acquiesced in what Bacchides caused to be proclaimed; and supposing they should undergo no considerable harm from Alcimus, who was their countryman, they went over to them; and when they had received oaths from both of them, that neither they themselves, nor those of the same sentiments, should come to any harm, they entrusted themselves with them: But Bacchides troubled not himself about the oaths he had taken, and slew threescore of them, although by not keeping his faith with those that first went over, he deterred all the rest, who had intentions to go over to him, from doing it. But as he was gone out of Jerusalem, and was at the village called Bethzetho, he sent out, and caught many of the deserters, and some of the people also, and slew them all; and enjoined all that lived in the country to submit to Alcimus. So he left him there, with some part of the army, that he might have wherewith to keep the country in obedience, and returned to Antioch, to king Demetrius. 3. But Alcimus was desirous to have the dominion more firmly assured to him: and understanding, that if he could bring it about that the multitude should be his friends, he should govern with greater security, he spake kind words to them all, and discoursed to each of them after an agreeable and pleasant manner, by which means he quickly had a great body of men and an army about him, although the greater part of them were of the wicked, and the deserters. With these, whom he used as his servants and soldiers, he went all over the country, and slew all that he could find of Judas's party. But when Judas saw that Alcimus was already become great, and had destroyed many of the good and holy men of the country, he also went all over the country, and destroyed those that were of the other's party. But when Alcimus saw that he was not able to oppose Judas, nor was equal to him in strength, he resolved to apply himself to king Demetrius for follows, instead of that character says of him, is, that he was a great man in the kingdom, and faithful to the king: which was very probably Josephus's meaning also. |