out and threatened him. On which occafion Jofephus again ufed a fecond ftratagem to escape them; for he got upon the top of his house, and with his right hand defired them to be filent, and faid to them, "I cannot tell what you would have, nor can hear what you fay, for the confufed noife you make: But he faid that he would comply with all their demands, in cafe they would but fend fome of their number in to him that might talk with him about it." And when the principal of them, with their leaders, heard this, they came into the house. He then drew them to the moft retired part of the house, and fhut the door of that hall where he put them, and then had them whipped till every one of their inward parts appeared naked. In the mean time the multitude flood round the house, and fuppofed that he had a long difcourfe with thofe that were gone in, about what they claimed of him. He had then the doors fet open immediately, and fent the men out all bloody, which fo terribly affrighted thofe that had before threatened him, that they threw away their arms and ran away.

6. But as for John, his envy grew greater [upon this efcape of Jofephus], and he framed a new plot against him; he pretended to be fick, and by a letter defired that Jofephus would give him leave to ufe the hot baths that were at Tiberias, for the recovery of his health. Hereupon Jofephus, who hitherto fufpected nothing of John's plots against him, wrote to the governors of the city, that they would provide a lodg ing and neceffaries for John; which favours when he had made use of, in two days time he did what he came about; fome he corrupted with delufive frauds, and others with money, and fo perfuaded them to revolt from Jofephus. This Silas who was appointed guardian of the city by Jofephus, wrote to him immediately, and informed him of the plot against him; which epiltle when Jofephus had received, he marched with great diligence all night, and came early in the morning to Tiberias, at which time the rest of the multitude met him. But John, who fufpetted that coming was not for his advantage, fent however one of his friends, and pretended that he was fick, and that being confined to his bed he could not come to pay him his refpects. But as foon as Jofephus had got the people of Tiberias together in the Stadium, and tried to difcourfe with them about the letters that he had received, John privately fent fome armed men, and gave them orders to flay him. But when the people faw that the armed men were a bout to draw their fwords, they cried out; at which cry Jofephus turned himlelt about, and when he faw that the fwords were juft at his throat, he marched away in great hafte to the fea fhore, and left off that fpeech which he was going to make to the people, upon an elevation of fix cubits high. He then feized on a fhip which lay in the haven, and leaped into it, with two of his guards, and fled away into the midst of the lake.

7. But now the foldiers he had with him took up their arms. immediately, and marched against the plotters; but Jofephus, was afraid left a civil war fhould be raised by the envy of a few men, and bring the city to ruin; fo he fent fome of his. party to tell them, that they should do no more than provide for their own fafety, that they fhould not kill any body, nor accufe any for the occafion they had afforded [of a diforder]. Accordingly these men obeyed his orders, and were quiet; but the people of the neighbouring country, when they were informed of this plot, and of the plotter, they got together in great multitudes to oppofe John. But he prevented their attempt, and fled away to Gifchala, his native city, while the Galileans came running out of their feveral cities to Jofephus; and as they were now become many ten thousands of armed men, they cried out, that they were come against John the common plotter against their intereft, and would at the fame time burn him, and that city which had received him. Hereupon Jofephus told them that he took their good will to, him kindly, but ftill he restrained their fury and intended to fubdue his enemies by prudent conduct, rather than by, flaying them; fo he excepted thofe of every city which had joined in this revolt with John, by name, who had readily been thewed him by thofe that came from every city, and caufed. public proclamation to be made, that he would feize upon the effects of thofe that did not forfake John within five days. time, and would burn both their houses and their families with. fire. Whereupon three thousand of John's party left him immediately, who came to Jofephus, and threw their arms. down at his feet. John then betook himlelf, together with his two thousand Syrian runagates, from open attempts, to more fecret ways of treachery. Accordingly he privately fent meffengers to Jerufalem to accufe Jofephus, as having too great power, and to let them know that he would foon come, as a tyrant, to their metropolis, unless they prevented him. This accufation the people were aware of beforehand, but had no regard to it. However, fome of the grandees, out of envy, and fome of the rulers allo, fent money to John privately, that he might be able to get together mercenary fol diers in order to fight Jofephus; they alfo made a decree of themfelves, and this for recalling him from his government, yet did they not think that decree fufficient; fo they fent withal two thousand five hundred armed men, and four perfons of the highest rank amongst them; Joazar, the fon of Nomicus, and Ananias, the fon of Sadduk, as alío Simon and Judas, the fons of Jonathan, all very able men in fpeaking, that these perfons might withdraw the good will of the people from Jofephus. Thefe had it in charge if he would voluntarily come away, they should permit him to [come and] give an account of his conduct, but if he obftinately infifted upon his continuing in his government, they should treat him

as an enemy. Now Jofephus's friends had fent him word that an army was coming against him, but they gave no notice beforehand what the reafon of their coming was, that being only known among fome fecret councils of his enemies; and by this means it was that four cities revolted from him immediately, Sepphoris, and Gamala, and Gifchala, and Tiberias. Yet did he recover thefe cities without war, and when he had routed those four commanders by ftratagems, and had taken the most potent of their warriors, he fent them to Jerufalem ; and the people [of Galilee had great indignation at them, and were in a zealous difpofition to flay, not only thefe forces, but thofe that fent them alfo, had thefe forces prevented it by running away,

8. Now John was detained afterward within the walls of Gifchala, by the fear he was in of Jofephus; but within a few days Tiberias revolted again, the people within it inviting king Agrippa to return to the exercife of his authority there]. And when he did not come at the time appointed, and when a few Roman horfemen appeared that day, they expelled Jofephus out of the city. Now this revolt of theirs was prefently known at Taricheæ; and as Jofephus had fent out all the foldiers that were with him to gather corn, he knew not how either to march out alone against the revolters, or to stay where he was, because he was afraid the king's foldiers might prevent him if he tarried and might get into the city; for he did not intend to do any thing on the next day, because it was the fabbath day, and would hinder his proceeding. So he contrived to circumvent the revolters by a stratagem; and in the first place he ordered the gates of Tarichea to be fhut, that nobody might go out and inform [those of Tiberias], for whom it was intended, what ftratagem he was about: He then got together all the fhips that were upon the lake, which were found to be two hundred and thirty, and in each of them he put no more than four mariners. So he failed to Tiberias with hafte. and kept at fuch a distance from the city, that it was not eafy for the people to fee the veffels, and ordered that the empty veffels thould float up and down there, while himfelf, who had but seven of his guards with him, and thole unarmed alfo, went fo near as to be feen; but when his adverfaries, who were ftill reproaching him, faw him from the walls, they were fo aftonifhed that they fuppofed all the ships were full of armed men, and threw down their arms, and by signals of interceffion they befought him to fpare the city.

9. Upon this Jofephus threatened them terribly, and reproached them, that when they were the firft that took up arms against the Romans, they should spend their force before hand in civil diffenfions, and do what their enemies defired above all things; and that befides they should endeavour fo hastily to feize upon him, who took care of their fafety, and had not been ashamed to fhut the gates of their city

against him that built their walls; that, however, he would admit of any interceffors from them that might make fome excufe for them, and with whom he would make fuch agreements as might be for the city's fecurity. Hereupon ten of the most potent men of Tiberias came down to him prefently, and when he had taken them into one of his veffels, he ordered them to be carried a great way off from the city. He then commanded that fifty others of their fenate, fuch as were men of the greatest eminence, fhould come to him, that they alfo might give him fome fecurity on their behalf. After which, under one new pretence or another, he called forth others, one after another, to make the leagues between them. He then gave order to the masters of thofe veffels which he had thus filled, to fail away immediately for Tarichea, and to confine those men in the prifon there; till at length he took all their fenate, confifting of fix hundred perfons, and about two thousand of the populace, and carried them away to Taricheæ.

10. And when the rest of the people cried out, that it was one Clitus that was the chief author of this revolt, they defired him to spend his anger upon him [only]; but Jofephus, whose intention it was to flay nobody, commanded one Levius, belonging to his guards, to go out of the veffel in order to cut off both Clitus's hands; yet was Levius afraid to go out by himself alone, to fuch a large body of enemies, and refufed to go. Now Clitus faw that Jofephus was in a great paffion in the fhip, and ready to leap out of it, in order to execute the punishment himfelf; he begged therefore from the fhore, that he would leave him one of his hands, which Jofephus agreed to, upon condition that he would himfelf cut off the other hand; accordingly he drew his fword, and with his right hand cut off his left, to great was the fear he was in of Jofephus himself. And thus he took the people of Tiberias prifoners, and recovered the city again with empty fhips and feven of his guard. Moreover, a few days afterward he retook Gifchala, which had revolted with the people of Sepphoris, and gave his foldiers leave to plunder it; yet did he get all the plunder together, and reffored it to the inhabitants, and the like he did to the inhabitants of Sepphoris, and Tiberias, For when he had fubdued those cities, he had a mind, by letting them be plundered, to give them fome good inftruction, while at the fame time he regained their good-will by refloring them their money again.

I cannot but think this ftratagem of Jofephus, which is related both here and in his life, 32, 33 Vol. III. to be one of the finest that ever was invented and executed by any warrior whatsoever.

CHAP. XXII.

The Jews make all ready for the War. And Simon the Son of Gioras falls to the plundering.

§ 1. AND thus were the difturbances of Galilee quieted,

when upon their ceafing to profecute their civil diffenfions, they betook themselves to make preparations for the war with the Romans, Now in Jerufalem the high-prieft Ananus, and as many of the men of power as were not in the intereft of the Romans, both repaired the walls, and made a great many warlike inftruments, infomuch that in all parts of the city darts and all forts of armour were upon the anvil. Although the multitude of the young men were engaged in exercifes, without any regularity, and all places were full of tumultuous doings; but the moderate fort were exceedingly fad, and a great many there were who, out of the profpect they had of the calamities that were coming upon them, made great lamentations. There were alfo fuch omens obferved as were underflood to be forerunners of evils, by fuch as loved peace, but were by those that kindled the war interpreted fo as to fuit their own inclinations; and the very ftate of the city, even before the Romans came against it, was that of a place doomed to deftruction. However, Ananus's concern was this, to lay afide, for a while, the preparations for the war, and to perfuade the feditious to confult their own intereft, and to reftrain the madness of those that had the name of zealots; but their violence was too hard for him, and what end he came to we fhall relate hereafter.

2. But as for the Acrabbene to parchy, Simon, the fon of Gioras got a great number of thofe that were fond of innovations together, and betook himself to ravage the country; nor did he only harraf's the rich mens houses, but tormented their bodies; and appeared openly and beforehand to affect tyranny in his government. And when an army was fent against him by Ananus, and the other rulers, he and his band retired to the robbers that were at Mafada, and flaid there, and plundered the country of Idumea with them, till both Ananus, and his other adverfaries were flain, and until the rulers of that country were fo afflicted with the multitude of thofe that were flain, and with the continual ravage of what they had, that they raised an army, and put garrifons into the villages, to fecure them from thofe infults; and in this flate were the affairs of Judea at that time,