was emptied of its Jewish inhabitants; for Florus caught such as ran away, and sent them in bonds to the galleys. Upon which stroke that the Jews received at Cæsarea, the whole nation was greatly enraged; so they divided themselves into several parties, and laid waste the villages of the Syrians, and their neighbouring cities, Philadelphia, and Sebonitis, and Gerasa, and Pella, and Scythopolis, and after them Gadara, and Hippos; and falling upon Gaulonitis, some cities they destroyed there and some they set on fire, and then they went to Kedasa, belonging to the Tyrians, and to Ptolemais, and to Gaba, and to Cæsarea; nor was either Sebaste [Samaria] or Askelon able to oppose the violence with which they were attacked; and when they had burned these to the ground, they entirely demolished Anthedon and Gaza; many also of the villages that were about every one of those cities were plundered, and an immense slaughter was made of the men who were caught in them.

"However, the Syrians were even with the Jews in the multitude of the men whom they slew; for they killed those whom they caught in their cities, and that not only out of the hatred they bore them, as formerly, but to prevent the danger under which they were from them; so that the disorders in all Syria were terrible, and every city was divided into two armies encamped one against another, and the preservation of one party was in the destruction of the other; so the daytime was spent in shedding blood, and the night in fear. It was then common to see cities filled with dead bodies, still lying unburied, and those of old men, mixed with infants all dead and scattered about together; women also lay amongst them, without any covering for their nakedness; you might then see the whole province full of inexpressible calamities, while the dread of still more barbarous practices which were threatened, was everywhere greater than what had been already perpetrated."

The historian then relates the circumstances under which above thirteen thousand of the Jews were treacherously slain at Scythopolis, and plundered of all that they had; and proceeds further to say:-"Besides this murder at Scythopolis, the other cities rose up against the Jews that were among

them those of Askelon slew two thousand five hundred, and those of Ptolemais two thousand, and put not a few into bonds; those of Tyre also put a great number to death, but kept a greater number in prison; moreover, those of Hippos and those of Gadara did the like, while they put to death the boldest of the Jews, but kept those of whom they were the most afraid in custody; as did the rest of the cities of Syria.

"There was also a plot laid against the Jews in Agrippa's kingdom. But for Alexandria, the sedition of the people of the place against the Jews was perpetual. At this time especially, when there were tumults in other places also, the disorders among them were put into a greater flame. Now when Alexander, the governor of the city perceived that those that were for innovations would not be pacified till some great calamity should overtake them, he sent out upon them those two Roman legions that were in the city, and together with them five thousand other soldiers, who, by chance, were come together out of Lybia, to the ruin of the Jews. They were also permitted not only to kill them, but to plunder them of what they had, and set fire to their houses. These soldiers rushed violently into that part of the city which was called Delta, where the Jewish people lived together, and did as they were bidden, though not without bloodshed on their own side also; for the Jews got together, and set those that were the best armed among them in the front, and made resistance for a great while; but when they once gave back, they were destroyed unmercifully; and this their destruction was complete, some being caught in the open. field, and others forced into their houses, which houses were first plundered of what was in them, and then set on fire by the Romans; wherein no mercy was shown to the infants, and no regard had to the aged; but they went on in the slaughter of persons of every age, till all the place was overflowed with blood, and fifty thousand of them lay dead upon heaps; nor had the remainder been preserved, had they not betaken themselves to supplication. So Alexander commiserated their condition, and gave orders to the Romans to retire; accordingly, these, being accustomed

to obey orders, left off killing at the first intimation; but the populace of Alexandria bare so very great hatred to the Jews, that it was difficult to recall them; and it was a hard thing to make them leave their dead bodies. And this was the miserable calamity which at this time befell the Jews at Alexandria."

Josephus then informs us, that hereupon Cestius, seeing the Jews were everywhere up in arms, collected a large body of Roman troops and also of auxiliaries-marched hastily to Zebulon, a strong city of Galilee-plundered and set fire to that city-overran all the country-set fire to the villages that were round about-returned to Ptolemaismarched to Cæsarea-sent part of his army to Joppa, which took that city and slew its inhabitants, with their families, to the number of eight thousand four hundred-sent another party to the toparchy of Narbatene, that adjoined to Cæsarea, which destroyed the country, slew a great multitude of the people, plundered what they had, and burnt their villagesand also sent Gallus with an army into Galilee to subdue that country, who, having set down all appearances of innovation, returned with his army to Cæsarea.

The historian then says in chapter 19:-"Now Cestius removed with his whole army to Antipatris; but when he had marched from thence to Lydda, he found the city empty of its men, for the whole multitude were gone up to Jerusalem to the feast of tabernacles; yet did he destroy fifty of those that showed themselves, and burnt the city, and so marched forwards; and ascending by Bethoron, he pitched his camp at a certain place called Gabao, fifty furlongs distant from Jerusalem.

"But as for the Jews, when they saw the war approaching to their metropolis, they left the feast, and betook themselves to their arms; and taking courage greatly from their multitude, went in a sudden and disorderly manner to the fight, with a great noise, and without any consideration had of the rest of the seventh day; but that rage which made. them forget the religious observation of the Sabbath, made them too hard for their enemies in the fight: with such violence, therefore, did they fall upon the Romans, as to

break into their ranks, and to march through the midst of them, making a great slaughter as they went; insomuch that unless the horsemen, and such part of the footmen as were not yet tired in the action, had wheeled round and succoured that part of the army which was not yet broken, Cestius, with his whole army would have been in danger: however, five hundred and fifteen of the Romans were slain, whilst the Jews lost only twenty-two. When the front of the Jewish army had been cut off, the Jews retired into the city; but still Simon, the son of Giora, fell upon the backs of the Romans as they were ascending Bethoron, and put the hindmost of the army into disorder, and carried off many of the beasts that carried the weapons of war, and led them into the city; but as Cestius tarried there three days, the Jews seized upon the elevated parts of the city, and appeared openly resolved not to rest when once the Romans. should begin to march.

"But now Cestius, observing that disturbances which had begun among the Jews, afforded him a proper opportunity to attack them, took his whole army along with him, and put the Jews to flight, and pursued them to Jerusalem. He then pitched his camp upon the elevation called Scopus, which was distant seven furlongs from the city; yet did he not assault them in three days' time, out of expectation. that those within might perhaps yield a little; and in the meantime, he sent out a great many of his soldiers into the neighbouring villages to seize upon their corn; and on the fourth day, when he put his army in array, he brought it into the city. Now as for the people, they were kept under by the seditious; but the seditious themselves were greatly affrighted at the good order of the Romans, and retired from the suburbs, and retreated into the inner part of the city, and into the temple. But when Cestius was come into the city, he set the part called Bezetha on fire; as he did also to the timber-market, after which he came into the upper city, and pitched his camp over against the royal palace; and had he but at this very time attempted to get within the walls by force, he had won the city presently, and the war had been put an end to at once; but

Tyrannius Priscus, the muster-master of the army, and a great number of the officers of the horse, had been corrupted by Florus, and diverted him from that his attempt; and that was the occasion that this war lasted so very long, and thereby the Jews were involved in such incurable calamities.

“In the meantime, many of the principal men of the city were persuaded by Ananus, the son of Jonathan, and invited Cestius into the city, and were about to open the gates for him; but he overlooked this offer, partly out of his anger at the Jews, and partly because he did not thoroughly believe that they were in earnest; whence it was, that he delayed the matter so long, that the seditious perceived the treachery, and threw Ananus and those of his party down from the walls; and pelting them with stones, drove them into their houses; but they stood themselves at proper distances in the towers, and threw their darts at those that were getting over the wall. Thus did the Romans make their attack against the wall for five days, but to no purpose. But on the next day, Cestius took a great many of his choicest men, and with them the archers, and attempted to break into the temple at the northern quarter of it; but the Jews beat them off from the cloisters, and repulsed them several times when they were gotten near to the wall, till at length the multitude of the darts cut them off, and made them retire; but the first rank of the Romans rested their shields on the wall, and so did those that were behind them, and the like did those that were still more backward, and guarded themselves with what they call Testudo, a tortoise, upon which the darts that were thrown fell, and slided off without doing them any harm; so the soldiers undermined the wall, without being themselves hurt, and got all things ready for setting fire to the gate of the temple.

"And now it was that a horrid fear seized upon the seditious, insomuch that many of them ran out of the city, as though it were to be taken immediately; but the people upon this took courage, and where the wicked part of the city gave ground, thither did they come in order to set open the gates, and to admit Cestius as their benefactor, who, had he but continued the siege a little longer had certainly taken