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order to prevent any of the reft from going out, in order to propofe terms of fubmiffion, and from receiving any of the horfemen into the city. But John returned Titus this answer, That" for himself he was content to hearken to his propofals, and that he would either perfuade or force those that refufed them. Yet he faid, that Titus ought to have fuch regard to the Jewish law, as to grant them leave to celebrate that day, which was the feventh day of the week, on which it was unlawful not only to remove their arms; but even to treat of peace allo; and that even the Romans were not ignorant how the period of the feventh day was among them a ceffation from all labours; and that he who should compel them to tranfgrefs the law about that day would be equally guilty with thofe that were compelled to tranfgrefs it: And that this delay could be of no difadvantage to him; for why fhould any body think of doing any thing in the night, unless it was to fly away? which he might prevent by placing his camp round about them: And that they fhould think it a great point gained, if they might not be obliged to tranfgrefs the laws of their country; and that it would be a right thing for him, who defigned to grant them peace, without their expectation of fuch a favour, to preferve the laws of those they faved inviolable." Thus did this man put a trick upon Titus, not so much out of regard to the feventh day as to his own prefervation, for he was afraid left he fhould be quite deferted, if the city should be taken, and had his hopes of life in that night, and in his flight therein. Now this was the work of God, who therefore preferved this John, that he might bring on the destruction of Jerufalem; as allo it was his work that Titus was prevailed with by this pretenee for a delay, and that he pitched his camp farther off the city at Cydeffa. This Cydeffa was a strong Mediterranean village of the Tyrians, which always hated, and made war againft the Jews; it had alfo a great number of inhabitants, and was well fortified, which made it a proper place for fuch as was enemies to the Jewish nation.

4. Now, in the night time, when John faw that there was no Roman guard about the city, he feized the opportunity directly, and taking with him not only the armed men that were about him, but a confiderable number of thofe that had little to do, together with their families, he fled to Jerufalem. And indeed, though the man was making hafte to get away, and was tormented with fears of being a captive, or of lofing his life, yet did he prevail with himself to take out of the city along with him a multitude of women and children, as far as twenty furlongs; but there he left them as he proceeded farther on his journey, where those that were left behind made fad lamentations; for the farther every one of them was come from his own people, the nearer they thought themselves to be to their enemies. They alfo affrighted themfelves with this thought, that those who would carry them into captivity were

juft at hand, and ftill turned themselves back at the mere noise they made themselves in this their hafty flight, as if thofe from whom they fled were juft upon them. Many also of them miffed their ways, and the earnestness of such as aimed to outgo the reft threw down many of them. And indeed there was a miferable deftruction made of the women and children; while fome of them took courage to call their husbands and kinfmen back, and to befeech them, with the bittereft lamentations, to ftay for them; but John's exhortation, who cried out to them to fave themselves, and fly away, prevailed. He faid alfo, that if the Romans fhould feize upon those whom they left behind they would be revenged on them for it. So this multitude that run thus away was difperfed abroad, according as each of them was able to run, one fafter or flower than another.

5. Now on the next day Titus came to the wall, to make the agreement, whereupon the people opened their gates to him, and came out to him, with their children and wives, and made acclamations of joy to him, as to one that had been their benefactor, and had delivered the city out of cuftody; they alfo informed him of John's flight, and befought him to fpare them, and to come in, and bring the rest of thofe that were for innovations to punishment. But Titus, not fo much regarding the fupplications of the people, fent part of his horfemen to pursue after John, but they could not overtake him, for he was gotten to Jerufalem before; they alfo flew fix thoufand of the women and children who went out with him,; but returned back and brought with them almoft three thoufand. However Titus was greatly displeased that he had not been able to bring this John, who had deluded him, to punishment; yet he had captives enough, as well as the corrupted part of the city, to fatisfy his anger, when it miffed of John. So he entered the city in the midst of acclamations of joy; and when he had given orders to the foldiers to pull down a fmall part of the wall, as of a city taken in war, he repreffed those that had difturbed the city rather by threatenings than by executions; for he thought that many would accuse innocent perfons, out of their animofities and quarrels, if he fhould attempt to diftinguifh those that were worthy of punishment from the reft: And that it was better to let a guilty perfon alone in his fears, than to destroy with him any one that did not deserve it ; for that probably fuch an one might be taught prudence, by the fear of the punishment he had deferved, and have a fhame upon him for his former offences, when he had been forgiven; but that the punishment of fuch as have been once put to death could never be retrieved. However, he placed a garrifon in the city for its fecurity, by which means he should reftrain those that were for innovations, and fhould leave those that were peaceably difpofed in greater fecurity. And thus was all Galilee taken, but this not till after it had coft the Romans much pains before it could be taken by them.

CHA P. III.

Concerning John of Gifchala. Concerning the Zealots, and the High-Prieft Ananus: As alfo how the Jews railed Seditions one against another [in Jerufalem].

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Now

OW upon John's entry into Jerufalem, the whole body of the people were in an uproar, and ten thoufand of them crowded about every one of the fugitives that were come to them, and inquired of them what miferies had happened abroad, when their breath was fo fhort, and hot, and quick, that of itself it declared the great diftrefs they were in; yet did they talk big under their misfortunes and pretended to fay, that they had not fled away from the Romans, but came thither in order to fight them with lefs hazard; for that it would be an unreasonable and a fruitless thing for them to expofe themfelves to defperate hazards about Gifchala, and fuch weak cities, whereas they ought to lay up their weapons and their zeal, and referve it for their metropolis. But when they related to them the taking of Gifchala, and their decent departure, as they pretended, from that place, many of the people understood it to be no better than a flight; and efpecially when the people were told of thofe that were made captives, they were in great confufion, and gueffed thofe things to be plain indications that they should be taken alfo. But for John, he was very little concerned for thofe whom he had left be hind him, but went about among all the people, and perfuaded them to go to war, by the hopes he gave them. He affirmed that the affairs of the Romans were in a weak condition, and extolled his own power. He alfo jefted upon the ignorance of the unfkilful, as if thofe Romans, although they fhould take to themfelves wings, could never fly over the wall of Jerufalem, who found fuch great difficulties in taking the villages of Galilee, and had broken their engines of war againit their walls.

2. These harangues of John's corrupted a great part of the young men, and puffed them up for the war; but as to the more prudent part, and those in years, there was not a man of them but forefaw what was coming, and made lamentation on that account, as if the city was already undone : And in this confufion were the people. But then it must be observed, that the multitude that came out of the country were at difcord before the Jerufalem fedition began; for Titus went from Gifchala to Cefarea, and Velpafian from Cefarea to Jamnia and Azotus, and took them both; and when he had put garrifons into them he came back with a great number of the people, who were come over to him, upon his giving them his right hand for their prefervation. There were besides difor,

ders and civil wars in every city, and all these that were at quiet from the Romans turned their hands one against another. There was also a bitter contest between thofe that were fond of war, and those that were defirous of peace. At the firft this quarrellome temper caught hold of private families, who could not agree among themselves; after which those people that were the dearest to one another brake through all reftraints with regard to each other, and every one affeciated with those of his own opinion, and began already to ftand in oppofition one to another; fo that feditions arole every where, while thofe that were for innovations, and were defirous of war, by their youth and boldnefs were too hard for the aged and the prudent men. And, in the first place, all the people of every place betook themselves to rapine; after which they got together in bodies, in order to rob the people of the country, infomuch that for barbarity and iniquity thofe of the fame nation did no way differ from the Romans; nay, it feemed to be a much lighter thing to be ruined by the Romans than by themselves.

3. Now the Roman garrifons, which guarded the cities, partly out of their uneafinefs to take fuch trouble upon them, and partly out of the hatred they bare to the Jewith nation, did little or nothing towards the relieving the milerable till the captains of thele troops of robbers being fatiated with rapines in the country, got all together from all parts, and became a band of wickedness, and all together crept into Jerufalem, which was now become a city without a governor, and, as the ancient custom was, received without diftinction all that belonged to their nation; and these they then received, because all men fuppofed that those who came fo faft into the city, came out of kindnefs, and for their affiflance, although these very men, befides the feditions they railed, were otherwife the direct caufes of the city's deftruction alfo; for as they were in an unprofitable and a ufelefs multitude they spent. thofe provifions beforehand which might otherwise have been fufficient for the fighting men. Moreover, befides the bringing on the war, they were the occafions of fedition and lainine therein,

4. There were befides these other robbers that came out of the country, and came into the city, and joining to them thofe that were worse than themselves, omitted no kind of barbari

for they did not measure their courage by their rapines and plunderings only, but proceeded as far as murdering men; and this not in the night time or privately, or with regard to ordinary men, but did it openly in the day time, and began with the most eminent perlons in the city; for the firft man they meddled with was Antipas, one of the royal lineage, and the most potent man in the whole city, infomuch that the public treasures were committed to his care: Him they took and confined, as they did in the next place to Levias, a perfon of

great note, with Sophas the fon of Raguel; both which were of royal lineage alfo. And befides thefe they did the fame to the principal men of the country. This caused a terrible confternation among the people, and every one contented himself with taking care of his own fafety, as they would do if the city had been taken in war.

5. But these were not fatisfied with the bonds into which they had put the men forementioned; nor did they think it fafe for them to keep them thus in cuflody long, fince they were men very powerful, and had numerous families of their own that were able to avenge them. Nay, they thought the very people would perhaps be fo moved at thefe unjust proceedings as to rife in a body against them: It was therefore refolved to have them flain. Accordingly they fent one John, who was the most bloody minded of them all, to do that execution: This man was alfo called the fon of Dorcas, in the language of our country. Ten more men went along with him into the prifon, with their fwords drawn, and fo they cut the throats of thofe that were in cuftody there. The grand lying pretence thefe men made for fo flagrant an enormity was this, that these men had had conferences with the Romans, for a furrender of Jerufalem to them; and fo they faid they had flain only fuch as were traitors to their common liberty. Upon the whole, they grew the more infolent upon this bold prank of theirs, as though they had been the benefactors and faviours of the city.

6. Now the people were come to that degree of meanness and fear, and thefe robbers to that degree of madness, that these laft took upon them to appoint + high-priests. So when they had difannulled the fucceffion, according to those families out of which the high-priests used to be made, they ordained certain unknown and ignoble perfons for that office, that they might have their affiftance in their wicked undertakings; for fuch as obtained this highest of all honours, without any defert, were forced to comply with those that bestowed it on them, They alfo fet the principal men at variance one with another,

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*This name Dorcas in Greek, was Tabitha in Hebrew or Syriac, as Acts ix. Accordingly fome of the manufcripts fet it down here Tabetha or Tabeta. Nor can the context in jofephus be made out by fuppofing the reading to have been this, The fon of Tabitha, "which in the language of our country denotes" Dorcas, [or a doe].

+ Here we may difcover the utter difgrace and ruin of the high priesthood among the Jews, when undeferving, ignoble, and vile perfons were advanced to that noble office by the feditious; which fort of high-prielts, as Jofephus well remarks here, were thereupon obliged to comply with, and aflift thofe that advanced them in their impious practices The names of thefe high-priefts, or rather ridiculous and profane perfons, were Jelus the fon of Damnens, Jefus the fon of Gamaliel, Matthias the ion of Theophilus, and that prodigious ignoramus Phannias, the fon of Samuel; all which we shall meet with in Jofephus's future hiftory of this war nor do we meet with any other to much as pretended high-prieit after Phannias, till Jerufalem was taken and destroyed.

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