in his whole design: for he had no sooner finished the speech that he made to the Jews, but God sent down great showers of rain, contrary to human expectation for that day was a clear day, and gave no sign by the appearance of the sky, of any rain: nay the whole year had been subject to a great drought, and made men despair of any water from above, even when at any time they saw the heavens overcast with clouds: insomuch that when such a great quantity of rain came, and that in an unusual manner, and without any expectation of it, the Jews hoped that Petronius would by no means fail in his petition for them. But as to Petronius, he was mightily surprised when he perceived that God evidently took care of the Jews, and gave very plain signs of his appearance; and this to such a degree, that those that were much inclined to the contrary, had no power left to contradict it. This was also among those other particulars which he wrote to Caius: which all tended to dissuade him, and by all means to intreat him not to make so many thousands of these men go distracted: whom if he should slay, (for without war they would by no means suffer the laws of their worship to be set aside), he would lose the revenue they paid him, and would be publicly execrated by them for all future ages. Moreover, that God, who was their governor, had shewn his power most evidently on their account; and that such a power as left no room for doubt about it.

*

But king Agrippa, who now lived at Rome, was more and more in the favor of Caius. And he once made him a supper, and was careful to exceed all others, both in expences and in such preparations as might contribute most to his pleasure: nay, it was so far from the ability of others, that Caius himself could never equal, much less exceed it ; such care had he taken beforehand to exceed all men, and particularly to make all agreeable to Cæ

sar.

Hereupon Caius admired his understanding and magnificence, that he should force himself to do all to please him, even beyond such expences as he could bear; and was desirous not to be behind Agrippa in that generosity which he exerted in order to please him. So Caius, when he had drank wine plentifully, and was merrier than ordinary, said thus, during the feast, when Agrippa drank to him:

"I knew before now, how great a respect

distress, immediately upon the resolution he had taken 'to preserve the temple unpolluted at the hazard of his own life, without any other miraculous appearance at all in that case: which well deserves to be taken notice of here, and greatly illustrates several texts both in the Old and New Testament.

Josephus's account here of the contents of Petronius's epistle, greatly differs from that of Philo's; Legat. pag.

thou hast had for me, and how great kindness thou hast shewed me, though with those hazards to thyself, which thou underwentest under Tiberius on that account. Nor hast thou omitted any thing to shew thy good will towards me, even beyond thy ability whence it would be a base thing for me to be conquered by thy affection. I am therefore desirous to make thee amends for every thing, in which I have been any way formerly deficient: for all that I have bestowed on thee that may be called my gifts, is but little. Every thing that may contribute to thy happiness shall be at thy service: and that cheerfully, and so far as my ability will reach." And this was what Caius said to Agrippa; thinking he would ask for some large country, or the reve nues of certain cities. But although he had previously resolved what he would ask, yet had he not discovered his intentions; but made answer imme diately, that it was not out of any expectation of gain that he formerly paid his respects to him, contrary to the commands of Tiberius: nor did he now do any thing relating to him out of regard to his own advantage, and in order to receive any thing from him. That the gifts he had already bestowed upon him were great, and beyond the hopes of even a craving man. "For," said he," although they may be beneath thy power, who art the donor; yet are they greater than my inclination and dignity, who am the receiver." And as Caius was astonished at Agrippa's inclinations, and still the more pressed him to make his request for somewhat which he might gratify him with, Agrippa replied, "Since, thou, O my lord, declarest, such is thy readiness to grant, that I am worthy of thy gifts, I will ask nothing relating to my own felicity; for what thou hast already bestowed on me, has made me excel therein; but I desire somewhat which may make thee glorious for piety, and render the Divinity assistant to thee in thy designs; and may be for an honor to me among those that enquire about it; as shewing that I never once fail of obtaining what I desire of thee. For my petition is this; that thou wilt no longer think of the dedication of that statue, which thou hast ordered to be set up in the Jewish temple by Petronius."

Thus did Agrippa venture to cast the die upon this occasion; so great was the affair in his opinion; though he knew how dangerous a thing it was so to speak for had not Caius approved of it, it had

1027, 1028. As does also Agrippa's speech to Caius here greatly differ from Agrippa's epistle to him in Philo; Legat. pag. 1031--1037. Which still farther prove that Josephus never saw that legation.

+ This behavior of Caius to Agrippa, is very like that of Herod Antipas, his uncle, to Herodias, Agrippa's sister, about John the Baptist, Matt, xiv. 6-11.

tended

tended to no less than the loss of his life. So Caius, who was mightily taken with Agrippa's obliging behavior, and on other accounts thinking it a dishonorable thing to be guilty of falsehood before so many witnesses, in points wherein he had, with such alacrity, forced Agrippa to become a petitioner and that it would look as if he had already repented of what he had said; and because he greatly admired Agrippa's virtue, in not desiring him to aug. ment his own dominions, either with larger revenues, or other authority; but took care of the public tranquillity, of the laws, and of the divinity itself; he granted him what he had requested. He also wrote to Petronius, commending him for assembling his army, and then consulting him about those affairs. "If therefore," said he, "thou hast already erected my statue, let it stand: but if thou hast not yet dedicated it, do not trouble thyself farther about it; but dismiss thy army, and go back, and take care of those affairs which I sent thee about at first: for I have now no occasion for the erection of that statue. This I have granted as a favor to Agrippa; a man whom I honor so very greatly, that I am not able to contradict what he would have, or what he desires me to do for him." And this was what Caius wrote to Petronius: which was before he received his letter, informing him that the Jews were ready to revolt about the statue; and that they seemed resolved to threaten war against the Romans, and nothing else. When therefore Caius was much displeased that any attempt should be made against his government, as he was a slave to base and vicious actions on all occasions, and had -no regard to what was virtuous and honorable; and against whomsoever he resolved to shew his anger, and that for any cause whatsoever, he suffered not himself to be restrained by any admonition, but thought the indulging his anger to be a real pleasure; he wrote thus to Petronius, "Seeing thou

* A. D. 41.

I have hitherto compared Josephus's history with the pretended legation to Caius, as if it were genuine; as I, with all learned men, supposed it to be when I wrote the preceding notes. But upon this occasion I shall produce some reasons, which have since occurred to me, on a comparison of this pretended Philo and the real Josephus, why I strongly suspect that neither this satirical legation, nor its second part, as Photius esteemed it, I mean the satire upon Flaccus, are genuine.

I. Josephus, who gives us here a most honorable testi. mony to Philo, the principal of the three Alexandrian ambassadors to Caius; when he writes the history of the madness of Caius, in resolving to be honored as a god, and accordingly, as a god, to have his statue erected in the Jewish temple by Petronius; and hints at the great danger the Jews were in at Alexandria, under Flaccus, about the very same time; says not one word of any writings of Philo on either of these subjects. Whence yet, VOL. 11.-NO. XXXV.

esteemest the presents made thee by the Jews to be of greater value than my commands, and art grown insolent enough to be subservient to their pleasure, I charge thee to become thy own judge and to consider what thou art to do, now thou art under my displeasure: for I will make thee an example to the present and to all future ages, that they may not dare to contradict the commands of their emperor."

This was the epistle which Caius wrote; but Petronius did not receive it while Caius was alive; that ship which carried it sailing so slow, that other letters came to Petronius before this, by which he understood that Caius was dead: for God would not forget the dangers Petronius had undertaken on account of the Jews, and of his own honor. But when he had taken Caius away, out of his indignation of what he had so insolently attempted, in assuming to himself divine worship; both Rome and all that dominion conspired with Petronius, especially those that were of the senatorian order, to give Caius his duc reward, because he had been unmercifully severe to them: for he died not long

after he had written to Petronius that epistle which threatened him with death. But as for the occasion of his death, and the nature of the plot against him, I shall relate them in the progress of this narration. Now that epistle which informed Petronius of Caius's death came first; and a little afterward came that which commanded him to kill himself with his own hands. Hereupon he rejoiced at this coincidence as to the death of Caius; and admired God's provi dence, who, without the least delay, gave him a reward for the regard he had to the temple, and the assistance he afforded the Jews for their avoiding the dangers they were in. And by this means Petronius escaped that danger of death, which he could not foresee.t

had he known of any such genuine writings of this Philo, he would naturally have taken both these histories, as from the most authentic records in the world.

II. Josephus is not only entirely silent about such writings of Philo's, but, as he never mentions Flaccus at all, so does he, as we have seen all along, greatly differ from the legation to Caius; not only in a few circumstantials, but in the main contexture of the history itself. Which it is next to impossible for him to have done, had he read these histories, and believed them to be written by Philo himself; for whom he appears to have had the greatest

esteem.

III, The time of this legation to Caius, and command to Petronius in Josephus, cannot be till the third year of the reign of Caius; because he says his two first years were very good, chap. 7. Whereas the legation brings them on not long after the sickness Caius had when he had reigned seven months only. So that still Josephus and this author seem irreconcileable.

CHAP.

CHAP. IX.

Of what befel the Jews that were in Babylon, on occasion of two brethren, called Asincus and Anileus.

A

Sad calamity now befel the Jews that were in Mesopotamia, and especially those that dwelt in Babylonia. Inferior it was to none of the calamities which had gone before; and came together. with a great slaughter of them, and that greater than any upon record before. Concerning all which I shall speak accurately, and shall explain the occasions whence these miseries came upon them. There was a city of Babylonia called Neerda; not only a very populous one, but one that had a good and a large territory about it; and, besides its other ad. vantages, full of men also: it was besides not easily to be assaulted by enemies, from the river Euphrates encompassing it all round, and from the walls that were built about it. There was also the city Nisibis, situate on the same current of the river. For which reason the Jews, depending on the natu

IV. What is put into Caius's mouth in the legation, upon occasion of Petronius's letter to him, pag. 1027, 1028, 1029. is more agreeable to the contents of that letter in Josephus, than in the Legation: which affords no small suspicion of some prevarication in this case, and confirms the authority of Josephus's accounts against itself in other matters also.

V. The title, the whole pompous, tedious style; the long, juvenile, swelling, romantic, and paganish composition of the introduction; the strange exaggeration of circumstances in the narrative as to Agrippa's fainting away, and the very long letter of Agrippa to Caius, are highly improbable, very unlike to an honest and plain narration, and every way disagreeable to the grave style of Philo the Jew; especially when he is herein described as an old man at this time also, pag. 1018.

VI. What Eusebius says, on occasion of the writings against Caius, ascribed to Philo, which he informs us were five, though we have now but two remaining; viz. that they were said to be recited by the author, with great ap plause, before the Roman senate, in the days of Claudius ; and were thereupon solemnly laid up in their public libraries; Hist. Eccl. II. 18. seems to afford us a key to this whole matter; viz. that some other Philo, who was in favor at Rome in the days of Claudius, having procured some imperfect accounts of these affairs belonging to Egypt and Judea, wrought them up into their present form, in order to expose Caius, and his governor of Alexandria, Flaccus, to the utmost contempt possible. Nor could the honors done to this author at Rome, be at all supposed done to the Jewish genuine allegorical Philo; but might easily be done to some rhetorical grammarian, who fell in with the humor of the time and place, and largely exposed wicked Caius, now dead and despised, to the indignation of all men. But those that consider

ral strength of these places, deposited in them that half shekel which every one, by the custom of our country, offers unto God; as well as they did their other things devoted to him: for they made use of these cities as a treasury, whence, at a proper time, they were transmitted to Jerusalem: and many thousand men undertook the carriage of those donations, out of fear of the ravages of the Parthians, to whom the Babylonians were then subject. Now there were two men. Asineus and Anileus, of the city Neerda by birth, and brethren to one another. They were destitute of a father, and their mother put them to learn the art of weaving curtains it not being esteemed a disgrace among them for men to be weavers of cloth. Now he that taught them that art, and was set over them, complained that they came too late to their work, and punished them with stripes. But they took this just punishment as an affront; and carried off all the weapons which were kept in that house, which were not a few, and went into a certain place where was a parti ion of the rivers, and a place naturally fit for the feeding of cattle, and for preserving such fruits as we e usually laid up against winter. The pobrest son of

the

great contempt and hatred the Romans bore to the Jews in this age, will find any such encouragement or reEpect to Philo, the Jew, by the senate and people of Rome, to be perfectly incredible.

VII. Photius's account of these two books of Philo's Cod. cv. is this, "That they are more rhetorical than Philo's other works, but that the author is guilty, in many respects, as to the wildness of his supposals, and the insertion of what is remote from the philosophical reasoning of Jews." Which very just censure is a strong confirmation of my opinion; that both these works, as we now have them, belong to some other Philo, a rhetorician; and not to the grave and allegorical Philo, the Jew, so famous in antiquity: which seems to be the truth of the case before us. Herennius Philo of Byblus, who lived somewhat later than Josephus, and wrote a treatise about the Jews, (perhaps one of those very treatises now under our consideration), and was 3 learned grammarian also, seems to me more likely to be the author of the two satirical treatises, as we now have them, than Philo of Alexandria, who was considerably older than Josephus. Yet might he make these orations at Rome before the death of Claudius; though they might not be published till to wards the end of the reign of Domitian; which was the very time when this Herennius Philo began to be famous for his writings. See Fabricius's Bibliotheca Græca, Lib. IV. pag. 120. Possibly the preface, and three of four chapters, may be the genuine Philo's; though this is very uncertain: but the most part of the rest of this legation is little to the purpose, spurious and additional.

* Nesibi, on the coins, as Spanheim assures us. AIthough Josephus seems to be here mistaken in its situation; for it stood, not upon Euphrates, but upon Mygdonius, a river which ran into the Tigris, as Dr. Hudson here observés.

the

the young men also resorted to them; whom they armed with the weapons they had gotten, and became their captains. And nothing hindered them from being their leaders into mischief: for as soon as they were become invincible, and had built them a citadel, they sent to such as fed cattle, and ordered them to pay them so much tribute out of them as might be sufficient for their maintenance; proposing also that they would be their friends, if they would submit to them; and that they would defend them from all their other enemies on every side; but that they would kill the cattle of those that refused to obey them. So they hearkened to their proposals, for they could do nothing else, and sent them as many sheep as were required of them. Hereby their forces grew greater, and they became lords over all they pleased; because they marched suddenly, and did them a mischief: inso much that every body who had to do with them chose to pay them respect; and they became formidable to such as came to assault them; till the report about them came to the ears of the king of Parthia.

But when the governor of Babylonia understood this, and had a mind to check them, before they grew greater, and before greater mischiefs should arise from them, he got together as great an army as he could, both of Parthians and Babylonians, and marched against them; thinking to attack and destroy them, before any one should carry them the news, that he had got an army together. He then encamped at a lake, and lay still. But on the next day, it was the sabbath, (which is among the Jews a day of test from all sorts of work) he supposed that the enemy would not dare to fight him thereon: but that he should take them, and carry them away prisoners, without fighting. He therefore proceeded gradually, and thought to fall upon them on the sudden. Now Asineus was sitting with the rest, and their weapons lay by them; upon which he said, "Sirs, I hear a neighing of horses; not of such as are feeding, but such as have men on their backs: I also hear such a noise of their bridles, that I am afraid that some enemies are coming upon as, to encompass us round. However, let some body go to look about, and make report of what reality there is in the present state of things. And may what I have said prove a false alarm." when he had said this, some of them went out to spy out what was the matter; and they came again immediately, and said to him, "Neither hast thou been mistaken in telling us what our enenties were doing, nor will those enemies permit us to be injurious to people any longer. We are caught by their

And

This joining of the right hands was esteemed among the Persians and Parthians in particular, a most inviolable obligation to fidelity; as Dr. Hudson here observes; and

intrigues, like brute beasts; and there is a large. body of cavalry marching upon us: while we are destitute of hands to defend ourselves withal, because we are restrained from doing it by the prohibition of our law, which obliges us to rest on this day." But Asineus did not by any means agree with the opinion of his spy, as to what was to be done but thought it more agreeable to the law to pluck up their spirits in this necessity, and break their law by avenging themselves, although they should die in the action, than, by doing nothing, to please their enemies in submitting to be slain by them. Accordingly he took up his weapons, and infused courage into those that were with him, to act as courageously as himself. So they fell upon their enemies, and slew a great many of them: because they despised them, and came as to a certain victory; and put the rest to flight.

When the news of this fight came to the king of Parthia, he was surprised at the boldness of these brethren, and was desirous to see and speak with them. He therefore sent the most trusty of all his guards to say to them: "King Artabanus, although he hath been unjustly treated by you, who have made an attempt against his government; yet hath he more regard to your courageous behavior, than to the anger he bears you; and hath sent me to give vou his right hand, and security; and he permits you to come to him safely, and without any violence upon the road; and he wishes you to address yourselves to him as his friends, without meaning any guile or deceit to you. He also promises to make you presents; and to pay you those respects which will make an addition of his power to your courage, and thereby be of advantage to you. Yer did Asineus put off his journey thither: but sent his brother Anileus, with all such presents as he could procure. So he went, and was admitted to the king's presence. And when Artabanus saw Anileus coming alone, he enquired the reason why Asineus avoided to come along with him? And when he understood that he was afraid, and staid by the lake, he took an oath by the gods of his country, that he would do them no harm, if they came to him, upon the assurances he gave them, and gave him his right hand. This is of the greatest force there with all these barbarians, and affords a firm security to those who converse with them: for none of them will deceive a person, when once they have given him their right hand; nor will any one doubt of their fidelity when that is once given, even though they were before suspected of injustice. When Artabanus had done this, he sent away Anileus, to persuade his brother to come to him.

refers to the commentary of Justin, XI. 15. for its con firmation. We often meet with the like use of it in Josephus. Now

:

Now this the king did, because he wanted to curb. his own governors of provinces by the courage of these Jewish brethren, lest they should make a league with them for they were ready for a revolt, and were disposed to rebel, had they been sent on an expedition against them. He was also afraid, lest, when he was engaged in a war, in order to sublue those governors of provinces that had revoited, the party of Asineus, and those in Babylonia, should be augmented; and either make war upon him when they should hear of that revolt, or, if they should be disappointed in that case, they would not fail of doing farther mischief to him.

When the king had these intentions, he sent away Anileus; and Anileus prevailed on his brother to come to the king, when he had related to him the king's good will, and the oath that he had taken. Accordingly they made haste to go to Artabanus: who received them when they were come with pleasure: and admired Asineus's courage in the actions he had done; and this because he was a little man, and at first sight appeared contemptible. He also said to his friends, how, upon the comparison, he shewed his soul to be, in all respects, superior to his body. And when, as they were drinking together, he once shewed Asincus to Abdagases, one of the generals of his army, and told him his name, and described the great courage he was of in war; and Abdagases had desired leave to kill him, and thereby to inflict on him a punishment for those injuries he had done to the Parthian government; the king replied, "I will never give thee leave to kill a man who hath depended upon my faith; especially after I have sent him my right hand, and endeavored to gain his belief by oaths made by the gods. But if thou art a truly warlike man, thou standest not in need of my perjury. Go then, and avenge the Parthian government: attack this man when he is returned back, and conquer him by the forces that are under thy command, without my privity." Hereupon the king called for Asineus, and said to him, "It is time for thee, O young man, to return home, and not to provoke the indignation of my generals in this place any farther; lest they attempt to murder thee, and that without my approbation. I commit to thee the country of Babylonia in trust; that it may by thy care be preserved free from robbers, and from other mischiefs. I have kept my faith inviolable to thee, and that not in trifling affairs, but in those that concerned thy safety; and I therefore deserve that thou shouldest be kind to me." When he had said this,

and given Asineus some presents, he sent him away immediately who when he was come home built fortresses, and became great in a little time; and managed things with such courage and success, as no other person, that had no higher a beginning, ever did before him. Those Parthian governors also who were sent that way, paid him great respect. And the honor that was paid him by the Babylonians seemed to them too small, and beneath his deserts; although he were in no small dignity and power there. Nay, all the affairs of Mesopotamia depended upon him: and he flourished more and more in this happy condition for fifteen years.

But as their affairs were in so flourishing a state, there sprang up a calamity among them on the fol lowing occasion. When once they had deviated from that course of virtue, whereby they had obtained so great power, they affronted and transgressed the laws of their forefathers, and fell under the dominion of their lusts and pleasures. A certain Parthian, who came as general of an army into those parts, had a wife followed him, who had a vast reputation for other accomplishments, and was particularly admired above all other women for her beauty. Anileus, the brother of Asineus, either heard of her beauty from others, or perhaps saw her himself; and so became at once her lover, and her enemy: partly because he could not hope to possess this woman but by obtaining power over her, as a captive; and partly because he thought he could not conquer his inclinations for her. As soon therefore as her busband had been declared an enemy to them, and was fallen in the battle, the widow of the deceased was married to this. her lover. However, she did not come into their house without producing great misfortune both to Anileus himself, and to Asineus : but brought great mischiefs upon them, on the following occasion. Since she was led away captive, upon the death of her husband, she concealed the images of those gods which were their country gods, common to her husband and to herself. Now it is the+ custom of that country for all to have the idols they worship in their own houses, and to carry them along with them when they go into a foreign land: agreeably to which custom she carried her idols with her. Now at first she performed her worship to them privately. But when she was become Anileus's wife, she worshipped them in her accustomed manner, and with the same appointed ceremonies which she used in her former husband's days. Upon which their most esteemed friends blamed him at first, that he did not act after the manner of the Hebrews, nor per

unobserved, what great miseries came on these Jews, because they suffered one of their leaders to marry an idolatrous wife, contrary to the law of Moses. Of which matter see the Note on XI. 5,

form