ple of Antioch hated Alexander, on Ammonius's account, as we have shewn already; they were easily prevailed with to cast him out of Antioch. He accordingly retired to Cilicia; while Ptolemy came to Antioch, and was made king by its inhabitants, and by the army. So that he was forced to put on two diadems, the one of Asia, the other of Egypt. But being naturally a good and a righteous man, and not desirous of what belonged to others; and besides these dispositions, being also a wise man in reasoning about futurities, he determined to avoid the envy of the Romans. So he called the people of Antioch together, and persuaded them to receive Demetrius; and assured them, that he would not be mindful of what they did to his father, in case he should now be obliged by them; and he undertook that he would himself be a good monitor and governor to him; and promised that he would not permit him to attempt any bad actions. But that for his own part he was contented with the kingdom of Egypt. By which discourse he persuaded the people of Antioch to receive Demetrius.

In the mean time, Alexander assembled a numerous army, and came out of Cilicia into Syria, and burnt the country belonging to Antioch, and pillaged it.* Whereupon Ptolemy, and his son-in-law Demetrius, brought their army against him; (for he had already given him his daughter in marriage;) and beat Alexander, and put him to flight. And accordingly he fled into Arabia. Now it happened in the time of battle that Ptolemy's horse, upon bearing the noise of an elephant, cast him off his back, and threw him on the ground. Upon the sight of this accident his enemies fell upon him, and gave him many wounds upon his head, and brought him into danger of death; for when his guards caught him up, he was so very ill, that for four days' time he was not able either to understand, or to speak. However, Zabdiel, a prince among the Arabians, cut off Alexander's head, and sent it to Ptolemy. Who, recovering of his wounds, and returning to his understanding on the fifth day, heard at once a most agreeable hearing, and saw a most agreeable sight; which were the death, and the head of Alexander. Yet a little after this joy for the death of Alexan

* An. 145. B. C.

der, with which he was so greatly satisfied, he also departed this life. Now Alexander, who was called Balas, reigned over Asia five years.

But when Demetrius who was styled Nicator,* had taken the kingdom, he was so wicked as to treat Ptolemy's soldiers very hardly; neither remembering the league of mutual assistance that was between them, nor that he was his son-in-law and kinsman, by Cleopatra's marriage to him. So the soldiers fled from his wicked treatment, to Alexandria. But Demetrius kept his elephants. In the mean time Jonathan, the high-priest, levied an army out of all Judea, and attacked the citadel at Jerusalem, and besieged it. It was held by a garrison of Macedonians, and by some of those wicked men who had deserted the customs of their forefathers. These men at first despised the attempts of Jonathan for taking the place; as depending on its strength. But some of those wicked men went out by night, and came to Demetrius, and informed him, that the citadel was besieged. He was accordingly irritated with what he heard, and took his army, and came from Antioch against Jonathan. And when he was at Antioch, he wrote to him, and commanded him to come to him quickly, to Ptolemais. Jonathan did not intermit the siege of the citadel; but took with him the elders of the people, and the priests; and carried with him gold, and silver, and garments, and a great number of presents of friendship, and came to Demetrius, and presented him with them, and thereby pacified the king's anger. So he was honoured by him, and received from him the confirmation of his high-priesthood, as he had possessed it by the grants of the kings his predecessors. And when the Jewish deserters accused him, Demetrius was so far from giving credit to them, that when he petitioned him that he would demand no more than three hundred talents for the tribute of all Judea, and the three toparchies of Samaria, Perea, and Galilee, he complied with the proposal, and gave him a letter confirming all those grants: whose contents were as follow:

* This name, Demetrius Nicator, or Demetrius the Conqueror, is so written on his coins still extant; as Hudson and Spanheim informs us. The latter of whom gives us here the entire inscription, "King Demetrius, the god, Philadelphus, Ni

cator."

"King Demetrius* to Jonathan his brother, and to the nation of the Jews, sendeth greeting. We have sent you a copy of that epistle which we have written to Lasthenes, our kinsman, that you may know its contents.

King Demetrius to Lasthenes our father, sendeth greeting. I have determined to return thanks, and to shew favour to the nation of the Jews, which hath observed the rules of justice in our concerns. Accordingly I remit to them the three prefectures, Apherime, Lydda, and Ramatha, which have been added to Judea out of Samaria, with their appurtenances. As also what the kings my predecessors received from those that offered sacrifices in Jerusalem; and what are due from the fruits of the earth, and of the trees, and what else belongs to us; with the salt-pits, and the crowns that used to be presented to us. Nor shall they be compelled to pay any of these taxes from this time to all futurity. Take care therefore that a copy of this epistle be taken, and given to Jonathan; and be set up in an eminent place of their holy temple."

Now when Demetrius saw that there was peace every where, and that there was no danger, nor fear of war, he disbanded the greatest part of his army, and diminished their pay; and even retained in pay no others than such foreigners as came up with him from Crete, and from the other islands. However, this procured him ill will and hatred from the soldiers; on whom he bestowed nothing from this time; while the kings before him used to pay them in times of peace, as they did before; that they might have their good will; and that they might be ready to undergo the difficulties of war, if occasion should require it.

* Dr. Hudson observes, that Josephus gives us this epistle of king Demetrius to Jonathan in purer Greek, than does the translator of the first book of Maccabees; where also it is preserved, 1 Macc xi. 30-37, whence he gathers, how careful Josephus was of elegance in the Greek tongue. Nor is this other than Josephus's usual custom, in producing his other ancient records; which he loves to give us, as much as possible, in his own language However, as I take it, the most material reason of the different purity of these two versions of the present epistle is this, that Josephus wrote the purer Attic, and the translator of the first book of Maccabees the coarser Hellenistic dialect; which would naturally produce this ine. quality.

CHAP. V.

OF THE REVOLT OF TRYPHO, WHO, AFTER HE HAD DEFEATED DEMETRIUS, DELIVERED THE Kingdom TO ANTIOCHUS, the son OF ALEXANDER, AND GAINED JONATHAN FOR HIS ASSISTANT; AND CONCERNING THE ACTIONS AND EMBASSIES OF JONATHAN.

NOW there was a certain commander of Alexander's forces, of Apamia by birth: his name was Diodotus, but he was also called Trypho. This man took notice of the ill will the soldiers bare to Demetrius; and went to Malchus, the Arabian, who brought up Antiochus, the son of Alexander; and told him what ill the armies bare Demetrius; and persuaded him to give him Antiochus, because he would make him king, and recover to him the kingdom of his father. Malchus at first opposed him in this attempt, because he could not believe him: but Trypho over-persuaded him to comply with his intentions and intreaties.

But Jonathan, the high-priest, being desirous to get clear of those that were in the citadel of Jerusalem, and of the Jewish deserters and wicked men, as well as of those in all the garrisons in the country, sent presents and ambassadors to Demetrius, and intreated him to take away his soldiers out of the strong holds of Judea. Demetrius made answer, that after the war, which he was now deeply engaged in, he would not only grant him that, but greater things also. And he desired he would send him some assistance; and informed him that his army had deserted him. So Jonathan chose out three thousand of his soldiers, and sent them to Demetrius.

Now the people of Antioch hated Demetrius; both on account of what mischief he had himself done them; and because they were his enemies also on account of his father Demetrius, who had greatly abused them. So they watched some opportunity, which they might lay hold on, to fall upon him. And when they were informed of the assistance that was coming to Demetrius from Jonathan, and considered at the same time that he would raise a numerous army, unless they prevented him, and seized upon him; they took their weapons immediately,

en.

and encompassed his palace, in the way of a siege; and seizing upon all the ways of getting out, they sought to subdue their king. And when he saw that the people of Antioch were become his bitter enemies, and that they were thus in arms, he took the mercenary soldiers which he had with him, and those Jews who were sent by Jonathan, and assaulted the Antiochians. But he was overpowered by their numbers, and was beatBut when the Jews saw that the Antiochians were superior, they went up to the top of the palace, and shot at them from thence. And because they were so remote from them by their height, that they suffered nothing on their side, but did great execution on the others, as fighting from such an elevation; they drove them out of the adjoining houses, and immediately set them on fire. Whereupon the flame spread itself over the whole city, and burnt it all down. This happened by reason of the closeness of the houses; and because they were generally built of wood. So the Antiochians, when they were not able to help themselves, nor to stop the fire, were put to flight. And as the Jews leaped from the top of one house, to the top of another, and pursued them after that manner; it thence happened that the pursuit was very surprising. But when the king saw that the Antiochians were busied in saving their children and their wives, and so did not fight any longer, he fell upon them in the narrow passages, and fought them, and slew a great many of them; till at last they were forced to throw down their arms, and to deliver themselves up to Demetrius: so he forgave their insolent behaviour, and put an end to the sedition. And when he had given rewards to the Jews of the rich spoils he had gotten, and had returned them thanks, as the cause of his victory, he sent them away to Jerusalem, to Jonathan, with an ample testimony of the assistance they had afforded him. Yet did he prove an ill man to Jonathan afterward, and brake the promises he had made: and he threatened he would make war upon him, unless he would pay all that tribute which the Jewish nation owed to the first kings of Syria. And this he had done, if Trypho had not hindered him, and diverted his preparations against Jonathan, to a concern for his own preservation. For he now returned out of Arabia into Syria, with the child Antiochus; for he was yet in age but a youth; and put the diadem on his head. And as the whole forces that had left De