to raise an army, and to receive back the hostages: So he delivered every one of them to his own parents. And thus did Jonathan make his abode at Jerusalem, renewing the city to a better state, and reforming the buildings as he pleased; for he gave orders that the walls of the city should be rebuilt with square stones, that it might be more secure from their enemies. And when those that kept the garrisons that were in Judea saw this, they all left them, and fed to Antioch, excepting those that were in the city Bethsura, and those that were in the citadel of Jerusalem, for the greater part of these was of the wicked Jews and deserters, and on that account these did not deliver up their garrisons.

2. When Alexander knew what promises Demetrius had made Jonathan, and withal knew his courage, and what great things he had done when he fought the Macedonians, and besides what hardships he had undergone by the means of Demetrius, and of Bacchides, the general of Demetrius's army, he told his friends, That " he could not at present find any one else that might afford him better assistance than "Jonathan, who was both courageous against his enemies, " and had a particular hatred against Demetrius, as having "both suffered many hard things from him, and acted many "hard things against him. If therefore they were of opin-"ion that they should make him their friend against Deme"trius, it was more for their advantage to invite him to "assist him now than at another time." It being therefore determined by him and his friends to send to Jonathan, he wrote to him this epistle: "King Alexander to his "brother Jonathan, sendeth greeting: We have long ago "heard of thy courage, and thy fidelity, and for that reason "have sent to thee, to make with thee a league of friend"ship and mutual assistance. We therefore do ordain thee "this day the high-priest of the Jews, and that thou beest "called my friend. I have also sent thee, as presents, a purple robe and a golden crown, and desire, that now thou art by us honoured, thou wilt in like manner respect us " also.'

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3. When Jonathan had received this letter he* put on the pontifical robe at the time of the feast of tabernacles, four

Since Jonathan plainly did not put on the pontifical robes till seven or eight years after the death of his brother Judas, or not till the feast of tabernacles in the 160th of the Seleucida, 1 Maccab. x. 21. Petitus's emendation seems here to deserve consideration, who instead of after four years since the death of his brother, Judas, would have us read, and therefore after eight years since the death of his brother Judas. This would tolerably well agree with the date of the Maccabees, and with Josephus's own exact chronology at the end of the twentieth book of these Antiquities, which the present text cannot be made to do.

years after the death of his brother Judas, for at that time no high-priest had been made. So he raised great forces, and had abundance of armour got ready. This greatly grieved Demetrius, when he heard of it, and made him blame himself for his slowness, that he had not prevented Alexander, and got the good-will of Jonathan, but had given him time so to do. However, he also himself wrote a letter to Jonathan, and to the people; the contents whereof are these: "King "Demetrius to Jonathan, and to the nation of the Jews, "sendeth greeting: Since you have preserved your friend"ship for us; and when you have been tempted by our ene"mies, you have not joined yourselves to them; I both com"mend you for this your fidelity, and exhort you to con"tinue in the same disposition, for which you shall be re

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paid, and receive rewards from us: for I will free you from "the greatest part of the tributes and taxes which you for"merly paid to the kings my predecessors, and to myself: "and I do now set you free from those tributes which "have ever paid; and besides, I forgive you the tax upon "salt, and the value of the crowns which you used to offer "to me: and instead of the third part of the fruits [of the "field,] and the half of the fruits of the trees, I relinquish "my part of them from this day: And as to the poll-money "which ought to be given me for every head of the inhabitants of Judea, and of the three toparchies that adjoin to "Judea, Samaria, and Galilee, and Perea, that I relinquish to you for this time, and for all time to come. I will also, "that the city of Jerusalem be holy and inviolable, and free from the tythe, and from the taxes, unto its utmost "bounds: And I so far recede from my title to the citadel, as to permit Jonathan your high-priest to possess it, that "he may place, such a garrison in it as he approves of for "fidelity and good-will to himself, that they may keep it for I also make free all those Jews who have been made captives and slaves in my kingdom. I also give order, "that the beasts of the Jews be not pressed for our service: "And let their Sabbaths, and all their festivals, and three "days before each of them, be free from any imposition. "In the same manner, I set free the Jews that are inhabitants in my kingdom, and order that no injury be done "them. I also give leave to such of them as are willing to "list themselves in my army, that they may do it, and those as far as thirty thousand; which Jewish soldiers, whereso

< us.

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Take Grotius's note here, "The Jews, says he, were wont to present crowns to the kings [of Syria;] afterwards that gold, which was paid instead of "those crowns, or which was expended in making them, was called the crown # gold and crown tax." On 1 Maccab. x. 29.

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ever they go, shall have the same pay as my own army "hath: and some of them I will place in my garrisons, and some as guards about mine own body, and as rulers over "those that are in my court. I give them leave also to use "the laws of their forefathers, and to observe them; and I

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will, that they have power over the three toparchies that are "added to Judea; and it shall be in the power of the high"priest, to take care that no one Jew shall have any other "temple for worship but only that at Jerusalem. I bequeath

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also, out of my own revenues, yearly, for the expences about "the sacrifices, one hundred and fifty thousand [drachmæ ;] "and what money is to spare, I will that it shall be your 66 own. I also release to you those ten thousand drachmæ "which the kings received from the temple, because they appertain to the priests that minister in that temple. And "whosoever shall fly to the temple at Jerusalem, or to the "places thereto belonging, or who owe the king money, or are there on any other account, let them be set free, and "let their goods be in safety. I also give you leave to re“pair and rebuild your temple, and that all be done at my ઃઃ expences. I also allow you to build the walls of your ci"ty, and to erect high towers, and that they be erected at "my charge. And if there be any fortified town that would "be convenient for the Jewish country to have very strong, "let it be so built at my expences."

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1

4. This was what Demetrius promised, and granted to the Jews, by this letter. But king Alexander raised a great army of mercenary soldiers, and of those that deserted to him out of Syria, and made an expedition against Demetrius. And when it was come to a battle, the left wing of Demetrius put those that opposed them to flight, and pursued them a great way, and slew many of them, and spoiled their camp; but the right wing, where Demetrius happened to be, was beaten; and as for all the rest, they ran away: but Demetrius fought courageously, and slew a great many of the enemy; but as he was in the pursuit of the rest, his horse carried him into a deep bog, where it was hard to get out, and there it happened, that upon his horse's falling down, he could not escape being killed; for when his enemies saw what had befallen him, they returned back, and encompassed Demetrius round, and they all threw their darts at him; but he being now on foot, fought bravely, but at length he received so many wounds, that he was not able to bear up any longer, but fell. And this is the end that Demetrius came to, when he had reigned eleven years, as we have elsewhere related.

*Since the rest of the historians now extant give this Demetrius 13 years,

CHAP. III.

The friendship that was between Onias and Ptolemy Philometor; and how Onias built a temple in Egypt like to that at Jerusalem.

§ 1. BUT then the son of Onias the high-priest, who was

of the same name with his father, and who fled to king Ptolemy, who was called Philometor, lived now at Alexandria, as we have said already. When this Onias saw that Judea was oppressed by the Macedonians, and their kings, out of a desire to purchase to himself a memorial and eternal fame, he resolved to send to king Ptolemy and queen Cleopatra, to ask leave of them that he might build a temple in Egypt like to that at Jerusalem, and might ordain Levites and priests out of their own stock. The chief reason why he was desirous so to do, was, that he relied upon the prophet Isaiah, who lived about six hundred years before, and foretold, that there certainly was to be a temple built to Almighty God in Egypt, by a man that was a Jew. Onias was elevated with this prediction; and wrote the following epistle to Ptolemy and Cleopatra: "Having done many and great things for you in the "affairs of the war, by the assistance of God, and that in "Celesyria and Phenicia, I came at length with the Jews to "Leontopolis, and to other places of your nation, where I "found that the greatest part of your people had temples in "an improper manner, and that on this account they bare "ill-will one against another, which happens to the Egyp"tians by reason of the multitude of their temples, and the difference of opinions about divine worship. Now I found fit place in a castle that hath its name from the country Diana; this place is full of materials of several "sorts, and replenished with sacred animals; I desire there"fore that you will grant me leave to purge this holy place, "which belongs to no master, and is fallen down, and to "build there a temple to Almighty God, after the pattern of "that in Jerusalem, and of the same dimensions, that may "be for the benefit of thyself, and thy wife and children, "that those Jews which dwell in Egypt may have a place "whither they may come and meet together in mutual harmony one with another, and be subservient to thy advantages; for the prophet Isaiah foretold, that there should

a very

and Josephus only 11 years, Dean Prideaux does not amiss in ascribing to him the mean number 12.

* It seems to me, contrary to the opinion of Josephus, and of the moderns, both Jews and Christians, that this prophecy of Isaiah, xix. 19. &c. In that day

be an altar in Egypt to the Lord God: " And many other such things did he prophecy relating to that place."

2. And this was what Onias wrote to king Ptolemy. Now any one may observe his piety, and that of his sister and wife Cleopatra's by that epistle which they wrote in answer to it; for they laid the blame and the transgression of the law upon the head of Onias. And this was their reply: "King Ptole"my and queen Cleopatra to Onias, send greeting: We have "read thy petition, wherein thou desirest leave to be given "thee to purge that temple which is fallen down at Leonto

polis, in the Nomus of Heliopolis, and which is named from "the country Buhastis; on which account we cannot but "wonder that it should be pleasing to God to have a temple ❝erected in a place so unclean, and so full of sacred animals : "But since thou sayest that Isaiah the prophet foretold this long ago, we give thee leave to do it, if it may be done according to your law, and so that we may not appear to have "at all offended God herein."

3. So Onias took the place, and built a temple, and an altar to God, like indeed to that in Jerusalem, but smaller and poorer. I do not think it proper for me now to describe its dimensions, or its vessels, which have been already described there shall be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, &c. directly foretold the building of this temple of Onias in Egypt, and was a sufficient warrant to the Jews for building it, and for worshipping the true God, the God of Israel, therein. See Authentic. Rec. II. p. 755. That God seems to have soon better accepted of the sacrifices and prayers here offered him than of those at Jerusalem, see the note on ch. x. § 7. And truly the marks of Jewish corruption or interpolation in this text, in order to discourage their people from approving of the worship of God here, are very strong, and highly deserve our consideration and correction. The foregoing verse in Isaiah runs thus in our common copies, In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, [the Hebrew language; shall be full of Jews, whose sacred books were in Hebrew], and swear to the Lord of hosts. One [or the first] shall be called the city of destruction, Isa. xx. 18. A strange name, city of destruction! upon so joyful an occasion, and a name never heard of in the land of Egypt, or perhaps in any other nation. The old reading was evidently the city of the sun, or Heliopolis; and Onkelos in effect, and Symmachus, with the Arabic version, entirely confess that to be the true reading. The Septuagint also, though they have the text disguised in the common copies, and call it Asedek, the city of righteousness; yet in two or three other copies the Hebrew word itself for the sun, Acheres or Thares, is preserved. And since Onias insists with the king and queen, that Isaiah's prophecy contained many other predictions relating to this place besides the words by himn recited, it is highly probable that these were especially meant by him; and that one main reason why he applied this prediction to himself, and to his prefecture of Heliopolis, which Dean Prideaux well proves was in that part of Egypt, and why he chose to build in that prefecture of Heliopolis, though otherwise an improper place, was this, that the same authority that he had for building this temple in Egypt, the very same he had for building it in his own prefecture of Heliopolis also, which he desired to do, and which he did accordingly. Dean Prideaux has much ado to avoid seeing this corruption of the Hebrew, but it being in support of his own opinion about this temple, he durst not see it ; and indeed he reasons here in the most weak and injudicious manner possible. See him at the year 149.