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WARS OF THE JEWS.

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As for the dead bodies of the people, their relations carried them out to their own houses; but when any of the zealots were wounded, he went up into the temple, and defiled that facred floor with his blood, infomuch that one may fay it was their blood alone that polluted our fanctuary. Now in thefe conflicts the robbers always fallied out of the temple, and were too hard for their enemies; but the populace grew very angry, and became more and more numerous, and reproached those that gave back, and those behind would not afford room to thofe that were going off, but forced them on again, till at length they made their whole body to turn against their adverfaries, and the robbers could no longer oppose them, but were forced gradually to retire into the temple; when Ananus and his party fell into it at the fame time together with them. This horribly affrighted the robbers, because it deprived them of the first court; fo they fled into the inner court immediNow Ananus did not think fit to ately, and that the gates. make any attack against the holy gates, although the other He also threw their ftones and darts at them from above. deemed it unlawful to introduce the multitude into that court, before they were purified; he therefore chofe out of them all by lot, fix thoufand armed men, and placed them as guards in the cloifters: So there was a fucceffion of fuch guards one after another, and every one was forced to attend in his courfe; although many of the chief of the city were difmiffed by thofe that then took on them the government, upon their hiring fome of the poorer fort, and fending them to keep the guard in their ftead.

13. Now it was John who, as we told you, ran away from Gilchala, and was the occafion of all thefe being deftroyed. He was a man of great craft, and bore about him in his foul a ftrong paffion after tyranny, and at a distance was the advifer in these actions: And indeed at this time he pretended to be of the people's opinion, and went all about with Ananus, when he confulted the great men every day, and in the night time allo when he went round the watch; but he divulged their fecrets to the zealots, and every thing that the people deliberated about was by his means known to their enemies, even before it had been well agreed upon by themselves. And by way of contrivance how he might not be brought into fufpicion, he cultivated the greateft friendship poffible with

It is worth noting here, that this Ananus, the best of the Jews at this time, and the high-prieft, who was fo very uneafy at the profanation of the "Jewish courts" of the temple by the zealots, did not however icruple the profanation of the "court of the Gentiles," as in our Saviour's days it was very much profaned by the Jews, and made a market place, nay, a " den of thieves," without fcruple, Accordingly Jofephus himself, when Mat. xxi. 12, 13. Mark xi. 15, 16, 17. he fpeaks of the two inner courts, calls them both ayia or holy places; but, fo far as I remember, never gives that character of the court of the Gentiles. See B. V. chap ix. § 2.

Ananus, and with the chief of the people; yet did this overdoing of his turn against him, for he flattered them fo extrav agantly, that he was but the more fufpected; and his conftant attendance every where, even when he was not invited to be prefent, made him ftrongly fufpected of betraying their fecrets to the enemy; for they plainly perceived that they understood all the refolutions taken against them at their confultations. Nor was there any one whom they had so much reafon to fufpe& of that discovery as this John; yet was it not eafy to get quit of him, fo potent was he grown by his wicked practices. He was also supported by many of those eminent men, who were to be confulted upon all confiderable affairs; it was therefore thought reasonable to oblige him to give them affurance of his good-will upon oath Accordingly John took fuch an oath readily, that he would be on the people's fide, and would not betray any of their counfels or practices to their enemies, and would affift them in overthrowing thofe that attacked them, and that both by his hand and his advice: So Ananus and his party believed his oath, and did now receive him to their confultations without farther fufpicion ; may, fo far did they believe him, that they fent him as their ambaffador into the temple, to the zealots, with proposals of accommodation; for they were very defirous to avoid the pollution of the temple as much as they poffibly could, and that no one of their nation fhould be flain therein.

14. But now this John, as if his oath had been made to the zealots, and for confirmation of his good-will to them, and not against them, went into the temple, and flood in the midst of them, and spake as follows: That" he had run many hazards on their accounts, and in order to let them know of every thing that was fecretly contrived against them by Ananus and his party; but that both he and they fhould be caft into the moft imminent danger, unless fome providential affiftance. were afforded them; for that Ananus made no longer delay, but had prevailed with the people to fend ambafladors to Vefpafian, to invite him to come prefently and take the city; and that he had appointed a faft for the next day against them, that they might obtain admiffion into the temple on a religious account, or gain it by force, and fight with them there; that he did not fee how long they could either endure a fiege, or how they could fight against so many enemies." He added farther, "That it was by the providence of God he was himself fent as an ambaffador to them for an accommodation; for that Ananus did therefore offer them fuch proposals, that he might come upon them when they were unarmed: That they ought to choose one of these two methods, either to intercede with thofe that guarded them, to fave their lives, or to provide fome foreign affiftance for themselves: That if they toftered themselves with the hopes of pardon, in cafe they were subdned, they had forgotten what desperate things they had done,

or could fuppofe that as foon as the actors repented, thofe that had fuffered by them must be prefently reconciled to them, while thofe that have done injuries, though they pretend to repent of them, are frequently hated by the others for that fort of repentance; and that the fufferers, when they get the power into their hands, are ufually fill more fevere upon the actors: That the friends and kindred of those that had been deftroyed would always be laying plots against them: And that a large body of people were very angry on account of their grofs breaches of their laws, and [illegal] judicatures infomuch that although fome part might commiferate them, thofe would be quite overborne by the majority.."

CHAP. IV.

The Idumeans, being sent for by the Zealots, cone immediately to Jerufalem: And when they were excluded out of the City, they lay all night there. Felus, one of the High Priests, makes a Speech to them; and Simon the Idumean makes a reply to it.

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TOW by this crafty Speech John made the zealots afraid; yet durft he not directly name what foreign affiftance he meant, but in a covert way only intimated at the Idumeans. But now that he night particularly irritate the Jeaders of the zealous, he calumniated Ananus, that he was about a piece of barbarity, and did in a pecial manner threaten them. These leaders were Eleazar the ion of Simon, who feemed the most plaufible man of them all, both in confidering what was fit to be done, and in the execution of what he had determined upon, and Zacharias the fan of Phalek, both of whom derived their families from the priests. Now when these two men had heard not only the common threatenings which belonged to them all, but thofe peculiarly levelled against themfelves, and befides how Ananus and his party, in order to fecure their own dominion, had invited the Romans to come to them, for that alfo was part of John's lie, they hefitated a great while what they thould do, confidering the Shortness of the time by which they were ftraitened; because the people were prepared to attack them very foon, and because the fuddennels of the plot laid against them had almoft cut off all their hopes of getting any foreign affiftance; for they might be under the height of their afflictions before any of their confederates could be informed of it. However, it was refolved to call in the Idumeans; so they wrote a fhort Jetter to this effect, That "Ananus had impoled on the pepple, and was betraying their metropolis to the Romans. That they themselves had revolted from the reft, and were in cuftody in the temple, on account of the prefervation of their liberty. That there was but a fmall time left, wherein they

might hope for their deliverance; and that unless they would come immediately to their affiftiance, they fhould themselves. be foon in the power of Ananus, and the city would be in the power of the Romans." They alfo charged the meffengers to tell many more circumftances to the rulers of the Ldumeans. Now there were two active men proposed for the carrying this meffage, and fuch as were well able to fpeak, and to perfuade them that things were in this pofture, and what was a qualification fill more neceffary than the former, they were very fwift of foot; for they knew well enough that thefe would immediately comply with their defires, as being ever a tumultuous and diforderly nation, always on the watch upon every motion, delighting in mutations; and upon your flattering them ever fo little, and petitioning them, they foon take their arms, and put themselves into motion, and make hafte to a battle, as if it were to a feast. There was indeed occafion for quick difpatch in the carrying of this meffage, in which point the meffengers were no way defective. Both their names were Ananias; and they foon came to the rulers of the Idumeans..

2. Now thefe rulers were greatly surprised at the contents of the letter, and at what thofe that came with it further told them; whereupon they ran about the nation like mad men, and made proclamation that the people fhould come to war fo a multitude was fuddenly gotten together, fooner indeed than the time appointed in the proclamation, and every body caught up their arms, in order to maintain the liberty of their metropolis; and twenty thousand of them were put in battle array, and came to Jerufalem under four commanders, John, and Jacob the fon of Sofas; and befides these was Simon the fon of Cathlas, and Phineas the fon of Clufothus..

3. Now this exit of the meffengers was not known either to Ananus, or to the guards, but the approach of the Idumeans was known to him; for as he knew of it before they came, he ordered the gates to be fhut against them, and that the walls fhould be guarded.. Yet did not he by any means think of fighting againft them, but before they came to blows, to try what perfuafions would do.. Accordingly Jefus, the eldest of the high-priefs next to Ananus, flood upon the tower that was over against them, and faid thus," Many troubles indeed, and thofe of various kinds have fallen upon this city, yet in none of them have I fo much wondered at her fortune as now, when you are come to affift wicked. men, and this after a manner very extraordinary; for 1 fee that you are come to fupport the vileft of men against us, and this with fo great alacrity, as you could hardly put on the like, in cafe our metropolis had called you to her affiftance againft barbarians. And if I had perceived that your army was compofed of men like unto those who invited them, I had not deemed your attempt fo abfurd. For nothing does fo much cement the minds of men together

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as the alliance there is between their manners. But now for thefe men who have invited you, if you were to examine them one by one, every one of them would be found to have deferved ten thousand deaths; for the very rafcality and off-fcouring of the whole country, who have fpent in debauchery their own substance, and by way of trial beforehand, have madly plundered the neighbouring villages and cities, in the upshot of all, have privately run together into this holy city. They are robbers, who by their prodigious wickedness have profaned this moft facred floor, and who are to be now feen drinking themselves drunk in the fanctuary, and expending the fpoils of those whom they have flaughtered upon their unfatiable bellies. And for the multitude that is with you, one may fee them fo decently adorned in their armour, as it would become to be, had their metropolis called them to her affiftance against foreigners. What can a man call this procedure of yours, but the fport of fortune, when he fees a whole nation coming to protect a fink of wicked wretches? I have for a good while been in doubt what it could poffibly be that should move you to do this fo fuddenly; becaufe certainly you would not take on your armour on the behalf of robbers, and against a people of kin to you, without fome very great cause for your fo doing. But we have an item that the Romans are pretended, and that we are supposed to be going to betray this city to them; for some of your men have lately made a clamour about those matters and have faid they are come to set their metropolis free. Now we cannot but admire at these wretches in their devifing fuch a lie as this against us men that were naturally defirous of liberty, and on that account the beft difpofed to fight against foreign enemies, but by framing a tale as if we were going to betray that most defirable thing, liberty. But you ought to confider what fort of people they are that raile this calumny, and againft what fort of people that calumny is raised, and to gather the truth of things, not by fictitious speeches, but out of the actions of both parties; for what occafion is there for us to fell ourfelves to the Romans? while it was in our power not to have revolted from them at the firft, or when we had once revolted, to have returned under their dominion again; and this while the neighbouring countries were not yet laid wafte: Whereas it is not an eafy thing to be reconciled to the Romans, it we were defirous of it, now they have fubdued Galilee, and are thereby become proud and infolent; and to endeavour to please them at the time when they are fo near us, would bring fuch a reproach upon us as were worfe than death. As for myfelf indeed, I fhould have preferred we have once made peace with them before death; but now war upon them, and fought with them, I prefer death, with reputation, before living in captivity under them. But farther, whether do they pretend that we, who are the rulers of the people, have fent thus privately to the Romans, or hath

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