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together as they returned from the king, and would not fuf. fer any body, either man-fervant or maid-servant, to be there; while one of the free women discovered the matter.

3. Upon this Herod tortured the maid- fervants every one by themselves feparately, who all unanimoufly agreed in the foregoing difcoveries, and that accordingly by agreement they went away, Antipater to Rome, and Pheroras to Perea; for that they oftentimes talked to one another thus, "That after Herod had flain Alexander and Ariftobulus, he would fall upon them, and upon their wives, becaufe, after he had not fpared Mariamne and her children, he would not ipare nobo dy; and that for this reason it was beft to get as far off the wild beast as they were able." And that Antipater oftentimes lamented his own cafe before his mother, and said to her, That "he had already grey hairs upon his head, and that his father grew younger again every day, and that perhaps death would overtake him before he fhould begin to be a king in earneft; and that in cafe Herod fhould die, which yet nobody knew when it would be, the enjoyment of the fucceffion could certainly be but for a little time; for that these heads of Hydra, the fons of Alexander and Ariftobulus, were growing up: That he was deprived by his father of the hopes of being lucceeded by his children, for that his fucceffor after his death was not to be any one of his own fons, but Herod the fon of Mariamne: That in this point Herod was plainly dif tracted, to think that his testament (hould therein take place; for he would take care that not one of his pofterity should remain, because he was of all fathers the greatest hater of his children. Yet does he hate his brother still worse, whence it was that he awhile ago gave himlelf an hundred talents, that he fhould not have any intercourse with Pheroras. And when Pheroras faid, Wherein have we done him any harm ? Antipater replied, I wish he would but deprive us of all we have, and leave us naked and alive only; but it is indeed impoffible to escape this wild beast, who is thus given to murder, who will not permit us to love any perfon openly, although we be together privately; yet may we be fo openly too, it we have but the courage and the hands of men.'

4. These things were faid by the women upon the torture; as also that Pheroras refolved to fly with them to Perea. Now Herod gave credit to all they faid on account of the affair of the hundred talents; for he had had no difcourfe with any body about them, but only with Antipater. So he vented his anger first of all against Antipater's mother, and took away from her all the ornaments which he had given her, which coft a great many talents, and caft her out of the palace a fe cond time. He alfo took care of Pheroras's women after their tortures, as being now reconciled to them; but he was in great confternation himfelt, and inflamed upon every fuf picion, and had many innocent perfons led to the tortur VOL. III. N

out of his fear, left he should leave any guilty person untortured."

5. And now it was that he betook himself to examine Antipater of Samaria, who was the fteward of [his fon] Antipater; and upon torturing him he learned, that Antipater bad fent for a potion of deadly poifon for him out of Egypt, by Antiphilus, a companion of his; that Theudio, the uncle of Antipater, had it from him, and delivered it to Pheroras; for that Antipater had charged him to take his father off while he was at Rome, and fo free from the fufpicion of doing it himfelf: That Pheroras alfo committed this potion to his wife. Then did the king fend for her, and bid her bring to him what fhe had received immediately. So fhe came out of her houfe as if fhe would bring it with her, but threw herself down from the top of the house, in order to prevent any examination and torture from the king. However, it came to pass, as it feems by the providence of God, when he intended to bring Antipater to punishment, that fhe fell not upon her head, but upon other parts of her body, and efcaped. The king, when he was brought to him, took care of her, (for the was at firft quite fenfelets upon her fall), and afked her why fhe had thrown herfelf down? And gave her his oath, that if fhe would fpeak the real truth, he would excufe her from punishment; but that if the concealed any thing, he would have her body torn to pieces by torments, and leave no part of it to be buried.

6. Upon this the woman paufed a little and then faid, Why do I fpare to speak of these grand fecrets, now Pheroras is dead, that would only tend to fave Antipater who is all our deftruction. Hear then, O king, and be thou, and God himfelf, who cannot be deceived, witneffes to the truth of what I am going to fay. When thou didst fit weeping by Pheroras as he was dying, then it was that he called me to him, and fard, My dear wife, I have been greatly mistaken as to the difpofition of my brother towards me, and have hated him that is so affectionate to me, and have contrived to kill him who is in fuch disorder for me before I am dead. As for myfelf, I receive the recompence of my impiety; but do thou bring what poifon was left with us by Antipater, and which thou keepeft in order to deftroy him, and confume it immediately in the fire in my fight, that I may not be liable to the avenger in the invifible world. This I brought as he bid me, and emptied the greateft part of it into the fire, but reserved a little of it for my own ufe against uncertain futurity, and out of my fear of thee."

7. When fhe had faid' this, fke brought the box, which had a fmall quantity of this potion in it: But the king let her alone, and transferred the tortures to Antiphilus's mother and brother who both confeffed that Antiphilus brought the box out of Egypt, and that they had received the potion from a broth

er of his, who was a phyfician at Alexandria. Then did the ghofts of Alexander and Ariftobulus go round all the palace, and became the inquifitors and discoverers of what could not otherwife have been found out and brought such as were the treeft from fufpicion to be examined; whereby it was difcovered, that Mariamne the high-prieft's daughter was confcious of this plot, and her very brothers, when they were tortured declared it to to be. Whereupon the king avenged this infolent attempt of the mother upon her fon and blotted Herod, whom he had by her, out of his teftament, who had been be tore named therein as fucceffor to Antipater.

CHAP. XXXI.

Antipater is Convicted by Bathyllus: But heftill returns from Rome without knowing it. Herod brings him to his Trial.

§ I. FTER these things were over, Bathyllus came under examination, in order to convift Antipater, who proved the concluding atteftation to Antipater's defigns; for indeed he was no other than his treed man. This man came and brought another deadly potion, the poifon of afps, and the juices of other ferpents, that if the first potion did not do the bufinefs, Pheroras and his wife might be armed with this allo to deftroy the king. He brought alfo an addition to Antipater's infolent attempt against his father, which was the letters which he wrote against his brethren. Archelaus and Philip which were the king's fons, and educated at Rome, being yet youths, but of generous difpofitions, Antipater fet himfelt to get rid of these as foon as he could, that they might not be prejudicial to his hopes, and to that end he forged letters against them in the name of his friends at Rome. Some of these The corrupted by bribes to write how they grofsly reproached their father, and did openly bewail Alexander and Ariftobulus, and were uneafy at their being recalled; for their father had already fent for them, which was the very thing that troubled Antipater,

2. Nay indeed, while Antipater was in Judea, and before he was upon his journey to Rome, he gave money to have the like letters against them fent from Rome, and then came to his father, who as yet had no fufpicion of him, and apologiz ed for his brethren and alledged on their behalf, that fome of the things contained in those letters were falfe, and others of them were only youthful errors, Yet at the fame time that he expended a great deal of his money, by making presents to fuch as wrote against his brethren, did he aim to bring his accounts into contufion, by buying coftly garments, and carpets of various contextures, with filver and gold cups, and a great many more curious things, that fo, among the very great ex

T

pences laid out upon fuch furniture, he might conceal the money he had ufed in hiring men [to write the letters]; for he brought in an account of his expences, amounting to two hundred talents, his main pretence for which was the law-fuit he had been in with Sylleus. So while all his rogueries, even thofe of a leffer fort allo, were covered by his greater villany, while all the examinations by torture proclaimed his attempt to murder his father, and the letters proclaimed his fecond attempt to murder his brethren; yet did no one of those that came to Rome inform him of his misfortunes in Judea, al though feven months had intervened between his conviction and his return, fo great was the hatred which they all bore to him. And perhaps they were the ghofts of those brethren of his that had been murdered, that ftopped the mouths of thofe that intended to have told him. He then wrote from Rome, and informed [his friends] that he would foon come to them, and how he was difmiffed with honour by Cæfar.

3. Now the king being defirous to get this plotter against him into his hands, and being alfo afraid left he should fome way come to the knowledge how his affairs tood, and be upon his guard, he diffembled his anger in his epiftle to him, as in other points, he wrote kindly to him, and defired him to make hafte, because. it he came quickly, he would then lay afide the complaints he had against his mother; for Antipater was not ignorant that his mother had been expelled out of the palace. However, he had before received a letter, which con tained an account of the death of Pheroras, at * Tarentum, and made great lamentations at it, for which fome commended him, as being for his own uncle; though probably this confufion arofe on account of his having thereby failed in his plot [on his father's life], and his tears were more for the lofs of him that was to have been fabfervient therein, than for [an uncle] Pheroras: Moreover, a fort of fear came upon him as to his defigns, left the poifon fhould have been discovered. However, when he was in Cilicia, he received the forementioned epiftle from his father, and made great hafte accordingly. But when he had failed to Celenderis, à fufpicion came into his mind relating to his mother's misfortunes; as if his foul foreboded fome mifchief to itself. Those therefore of his friends which were the most confiderate, advised him not rafhly to go to his father, till he had learned what were the occafions why his mother had been ejected, because they were afraid that he might be involved in the calumnies that had been caft upon his mother: But thofe that were lefs confiderate, and had more regard to their own defires of feeing their native country, than to Antipater's fafety, perfuaded him to make hafte home. and not, by delaying his journey, afford his father ground for an ill suspicion, and gave an handle to those that

This Tarentum has coins ftill extant, as Reland informs us here in his note,

raised stories against him; for that in cafe any thing had been moved to his difadvantage, it was owing to his abfence which durft not have been done had he been prefent. And they faid, it was abfurd to deprive himself of certain happiness, for the fake of an uncertain fufpicion, and not rather to return to his father, and take the royal authority upon him, which was in a ftate of fluctuation on his account only. Antipater_complied with this laft advice, for Providence hurried him on [to his de ftruction. So he paffed over the fea, and landed at Sebaftus, the haven of Cefarea,

4. And here he found a perfect and unexpected folitude, while every body avoided him, and no body durft come at him; for he was equally hated by all men; and now that hat. red had liberty to thew itfelf, and the dread men were in at the king's anger made men keep from him; for the whole city [of Jerufalem was filled with the rumours about Antipater, and Antipater himself was the only person who was ignorant of them; for as no man was difmiffed more magnificently when he began his voyage to Rome, fo was no man now received back with greater ignominy. And indeed he began already to fufpect what misfortunes there were in Herod's family; yet did he cunningly conceal his fufpicion; and while he was inwardly ready to die for fear, he put on a forced boldnefs of countenance. Nor could he now fly any whither, nor had he any way of emerging out of the difficulties which encompaffed him; nor indeed had he even there any certain intelligence of the affairs of the royal family, by reafon of the threats the king had given out: Yet had he fome small hopes of better tidings; for perhaps nothing had been discovered; or, if any discovery had been made, perhaps he fhould be able to clear himself by impudence, and artful tricks,, which were the only things he relied upon for his deliverance.

5. And with thefe hopes did he skreen himself, till he came to the palace, without any friends with him; for these were affronted, and that out at the first gate. Now Varus, the prefident of Syria, happened to be in the palace [at this juncture So Antipater went in to his father, and, putting on a bold face, he came near to falute him; but Herod ftretched out his hands, and turned his head away from him, and cried out, "Even this is an indication of a parricide, to be defirous to get me into his arms, when he is under fuch heinous crimes. God confound thee, thou vile wretch, do not thou touch me, till thou haft cleared thy felt of these crimes that are charged upon thee. I appoint thee a court where thou art to be judged, and this Varus, who is very feasonably here, to be thy judge; and get thou thy defence ready against to-morrow; for I give thee so much time to prepare fuitable excuses for thy felf." And as Antipater was fo confounded that he was a ble to make no answer to this charge, he went away; but his mother and wife came to him,and told him of all the evidence

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