ing now conquered, who was already disposed to forfake the city.

7. Now when at the evening Herod had already difmiffed his friends to re'refh themfelves after their fatigue, and when he was gone himfelf, while he was ftill hot in his armour, like a common foldier to bathe himself, and had but one fervant that attended him, and before he was gotten into the bath, oneof the enemies met him in the face with a fword in his hand, and then a fecond, and then a third and after that more of them; these were men who had run away out of the battle in to the bath in their armour, and they had lain there for fome time in great terror, and in privacy, and when they faw the king, they trembled for fear, and ran by him in a fright, al though he were naked, and endeavoured to get off into the public road; now there was by chance nobody else at hand that might feize upon these men, and for Herod, he was con tented to have come to no harm himself, fo that they all got away in fafety.

8. But on the next day Herod had Pappus's head cut off, who was the general for Antigonus, and was flain in the battle, and fent it to his brother Pheroras, by way of punishment for their flain brother, for he was the man that flew Jofeph. Now as winter was going off Herod marched to Jerufalem, and brought his army to the wall of it; this was the third year fince he had been made king at R me; fo he pitched his camp before the temple, for on that fide it might be befieged, and there it was that Pompey took the city. So he parted the work among the army, and demolished the fuburbs, and raised three bans, and gave orders to have towers built upon those banks, and left the moft laborious of his acquaintance at the works. But he went himself to Samaria, to take the daughter of Alexander, the fon of Ariftobulus to wife, who had been Betrothed to him before, as we have already faid; and thus he accomplished this by the by, during the fiege of the city, for he had his enemy in great contempt already.

When he had thus married Mariamne, he came back to Jerufalem with a greater army; Sofius alfo joined him with a large army, both ol horfemen and footmen, which he fent before him through the midland parts, wife he marched himfelt along Phemcia; and when the whole army was gotten together, which were eleven regiments of footmen, and fix thouand horsemen, befides the Syrian auxiliaries, which was no Imall part of the army, they pitched their camp near to the north wall. Herod's dependance was upon the decree of the fenate, by which he was made king, and Sofius relied upon Antony, who fent the army that was under him to Herod's affiftance.

CHA P. XVIII.

How Herod and Softus took Jerufalem by force; and what Death Antigonus came to. Alfo concerning Cleopatra's avaricious Temper.

§ 1. NOW OW the multitude of the Jews that were in the city were divided into feveral factions; for the people that crowded about the temple, being the weaker part of them, gave it out, that as the times were, he was the happiest and moft religious man who fhould die firft. But as to the more bold and hardy men, they got together in bodies, and fell a robbing others after various manners, and these particularly plundered the places that were about the city, and this because there was no food left either for the horses or the men; yet fome of the warlike men who were ufed to fight regularly, were appointed to defend the city during the fiege, and thefe drove thofe that railed the banks away from the wal, and thefe were always inventing one engine or another to be an hindrance to the engines of the enemy, nor had they fo much fuccefs any way as in the mines underground.

2. Now, as for the robberies which were committed, the king contrived that ambushes fhould be fo laid, that they might reftrain their excurfions; and as for the want of provifions, he provided that they fhould be brought to them from great diftances. He was alfo too hard for the Jews, by the Romans fkill in the art of war; although they were bold to the utmost degree, now they durft not come to a plain battle with the Romans, which was certain death, but through their mines underground they would appear in the midst of them on the fudden, and before they could batter down one wall, they built them another in its flead; and to fum up all at once, they did not fhew any want either of pains taking, or of contrivances, as having refolved to hold out to the very laft. Indeed though they had to great an army lying round about them, they bore a fiege of five months, till fome of Herod's chosen men ventured to get upon the wall, and fell into the city, as did Sofius's centurions after them; and now they firft of all seized upon what was about the temple, and upon the pouring in of the army, there was flaughter of vaft multitudes every where, by reafon of the rage the Romans were in at the length of this fiege, and by reafon that the Jews who were about Herod carneftly endeavoured that none of their adverfaries might remain; fo they were cut to pieces by great multitudes, as they were crowded together in narrow streets, and in houses, or were running away to the temple; nor was there any mercy thewed, either to infants, or to the aged, or to the weaker sex; infomuch, that although the king fent about and defired them

to fpare the people, nobody could be perfuaded to withhold their right hand from flaughter, but they flew people of all a ges like madmen. Then it was that Antigonus, without any regard to his former or to his present fortune, came down from the citadel and fell down at Sofius's, feet who, without pitying him at all, upon the change of his condition, laughed at him beyond measure, and called him Antigona. Yet did he not treat him like a woman, or let him go free, but put him into bonds, and kept him in cuftody.

3. But Herod's concern at prefent, now he had gotten his enemies under his power, was to reflrain the zeal of his foreign auxiliaries; for the multitude of the ftrange people were very eager to fee the temple, and what was facred in the holy houfe ittelf; but the king endeavoured to restrain them, partly by his exhortations, partly by his threatenings, nay, partly by force, as thinking the victory worle than a defeat to him if any thing that ought not to be leen were feen by them. He alfo forbade, at the fame time the fpoiling of the city, afking Sofius in the most earnest manner, whether the Romans by thus emptying the city of money and men had a mind to leave him king of a defert; and told him. That" he judged the dominion of the habitable earth too fmall a compenfation for the flaughter of fo many citizens." And when Sofius faid, "That it was but just to allow the foldiers this plunder as a reward for what they fuffered during the fiege," Herod made anfwer, that he would give every one of the foldiers a reward out of his own money," So he purchased the deliverance of his country, and performed his promiles to them, and made prefents after a magnificent manner to each foldier, and proportionably to their commanders, and with a moft royal bounty to Sofius himfelt, whereby nobody went away but in a wealthy condition. Hereupon Sofius dedicated a crown of gold to God, and then went away from Jerufalem, leading Antigonus away in bonds to Antony; then did the tax bring him to his end, who ftill had a fond defire of life, and fome frigid hopes of it to the laft, but by his cowardly behaviour well deserved to die by it.

4. Hereupon king Herod diftinguished the multitude that was in the city, and for those that were of his fide, he made them ftill more his friends by the honours he conferred on them; but for thofe of Antigonus's party he flew them; and as his money ran low, he turned all the ornaments he had into money, and fent it to Antony, and to thofe about him. Yet could he not hereby purchase an exemption from all fufferings; for Antony was now bewitched by his love to Cleopa tra, and was entirely conquered by her charms. Now Cleó

• That is, A woman, not a man,

This death of Antigonus is confirmed by Plutarch and Strabo; the latter of whom is cited for it by Jofephus himself, Autiq. B. XV. ch. i. fe&t. 2. Vol. II. as Dean Aldrich here obferves,

patra had put to death all her kindred, till no one near her in blood remained alive, and after tha the tell a flaying those no way related to her. So the calumniated the principal men among the Syrians to Antony, and perfuaded him to have them frain, that fo fhe might eafily gain to be miftrefs of what they had; nay, the extended her avaricious humour to the Jews and Arabians, and fecretly laboured to have Herod and Malichus, the kings of both thofe nations, flain by his order.

*

5. Now as to these her injunctions to Antony, he complied in part; for though he esteemed it too abominable a thing to kill fuch good and great kings, yet was he thereby alienated He alfo took away a from the friendship he had for them great deal of their country; nay, even the plantation of palm trees at Jericho, where alfo grows the balfam tree, and bestow.. ed them upon her: As alfo all the cities on this fide the river Eleutherus, Tyre and Sidon excepted And when the was become miftrefs of thefe, and had conducted Antony in his expedition against the Parthians, as far as Euphrates, the came by Apamia and Damafcus into Judea; and there did Herod pacify her indignation at him by large prefents. He alfo hir ed of her thofe places that had been torn away from his kingdom, at the yearly rent of two hundred talents. He conducted her alfo as far as Pelufium, and paid all the refpe&is poffible. Now it was not long after this that Antony was come back from Parthia, and led with him Artabazes Tigranes's fon captive. as a prefent for Cleopatra; for this Parthian was preiently given her with his money, and all the prey that was taken with

him.

CHAP. XIX.

How Antony, at the Perfuafion of Cleopatra, fent Herod to fight against the Arabians; and how, after Jeveral Battles, he at length got the Victory. As also, concerning a great Earthquake.

§ 1. [OW when the war about A&tium was begun, Herod NOW prepared to come to the affiftance of Antony, as being already freed from his troubles in Judea, and having gained Hyrcania which was a place that was held by Antigonus's fifter. However, he was cunningly hindered from partaking of the hazards that Antony went through by Cleopatra; for fince, as we have already noted, fhe had laid a plot against the

This ancient liberty of Tyre and Sidon under the Romans, taken notice of by Jofephus, both here and Antiq. B. XV. ch. iv. fect. 1 Vol. II. is confirmed by the testimony of Strabo, B. XVI p. 757, as Dean Aldrich remarks; although as he justly adds, this liberty lafted but a little while longer, when Auguftus took it away from them.

kings [of Judea and Arabia,] the prevailed with Antony to commit the war against the Arabians to Herod; that fo, if he got the better, the might become miftrefs of Arabia, or if he were worfted, of Judea; and that the might deftroy one of thole kings by the other.

2. However this contrivance tended to the advantage of Herod; for at the very firft he took hoflages from the enemy, and got together a great body of horie, and ordered them to march against them about Diofpolis, and he conquered that army although it fought refolutely against him. After which defeat, the Arabians were in great motion, and affembled themfelves together at Kanatha, a city of Celefyria, in vast multi. tudes, and waited for the Jews. And when Herod was come thither, he tried to manage this war with particular prudence, and gave orders that they fhould build a wall about their camp; yet did not the multitude comply with thofe orders, but were to emboldened by their foregoing victory, that they presently attacked the Arabians, and beat them at the firft onfet, and then purfued them; yet were there fnares laid for Herod in that purfuit; while Athenio, who was one of Cleopatra's generals, and always an antagonift to Herod, fent out of Kanatha the men of that country against him; for, upon this fresh onfet, the Arabians took courage, and returned back, and both joined their numerous forces about ftoney places that were hard to be gone over, and there put Herod's men to the rout, and made a great flaughter of them: But thofe that escaped out of the battle fled to Ormiza, where the Arabians furrounded their camp, and took it, with all the men in it.

3. In a little time after this calamity, Herod came to bring them fuccours; but he came too late. Now the occafion of that blow was this that the officers would not obey orders; for had not the fight began fo fuddenly Athenio had not found a proper feafon for the fnares he laid for Herod: However, he was even with the Arabians afterward, and over run their country, and did them more harm than their fingle victory could compenfate. But as he was avenging himself on his enemies, there fell upon him another providential calamity; for in the feventh year of his reign, when the war about Actium was at the height, at the beginning of the fpring, the earth was fhaken, and deftroyed an immenfe number of cattle, with thirty thousand men; but the army received no harm,

*This feventh year of the reign of Herod [from the conquefts or death of Antiganus,] with the great earthquake in the beginning of the fame fpring, which are here fully implied to be not much before the fight at Actium, between Octavius and Antony, and which is known from the Roman hiftorians to have been in the beginning of September, in the 3:ft year before the Chriftian æra, determines the chronology of jofephus as to the reign of Herod, viz that he began in the year 37, beyond rational contradidion Nor is it quite unworthy of our notice, that this feventh year of the reign of Herod, or the 31 before the Chriftian æra, contained the latter part of a Sabbatic year; of which Sabbatic year, therefore, it is plain this great earthquake happened in Judea.