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[there] the first priest of God, and first built a temple [there], and called the city Jerusalem, which was formerly called Salem. However, David, the king of the Jews, ejected the Canaanites, and settled his own people therein. It was demolished entirely by the Babylonians four hundred and seventy-seven years and six months after him. And from King David, who was the first of the Jews who reigned therein, to this destruction under Titus, were one thousand one hundred and seventy-nine years; but from its first building till this last destruction were two thousand one hundred seventy-seven years: yet hath not its great antiquity, nor its vast riches, nor the diffusion of its nation over all the habitable earth, nor the greatness of the veneration paid to it on a religious account, been sufficient to preserve it from being destroyed. And thus ended the siege of Jerusalem.

BOOK VII.

CONTAINING THE INTERVAL OF ABOUT THREE YEARS.

From the Taking of Jerusalem by Titus to the Sedition of the Jews at Cyrene.

CHAP. I.

How the entire City of Jerusalem was demolished, excepting the three Towers: and how Titus commended his Soldiers in a Speech made to them, and distributed Rewards to them, and then dismissed many of them.

§ 1. Now as soon as the army had no more people to slay or to plunder, because there remained none to be the objects of their fury (for they would not have spared any, had there remained any other such work to be done), Cæsar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as were of the greatest eminency, that is, Phasaelus, and Hippicus, and Mariamne, and so much of the wall as enclosed the city on the west side. This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison, as were the towers also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valour had subdued; but for all the rest of the wall,

it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it had ever been inhabited. This was the end which Jerusalem came to by the madness of those that were for innovations; a city otherwise of great magnificence, and of mighty fame among all mankind.

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2. But Cæsar resolved to leave there as a guard the tenth legion, with certain troops of horsemen and companies of footmen. So having entirely completed this war, he was desirous to commend his whole army on account of the great exploits they had performed, and to bestow proper rewards on such as had signalized themselves therein. He had, therefore, a great tribunal made for him in the midst of the place where he had formerly encamped, and stood upon it with his principal commanders about him, and spake so as to be heard by the whole army the manner following:- "That he returned them abundance of thanks for their good will which they had showed to him: he commended them for that ready obedience they had exhibited in this whole war; which obedience had appeared in the many and great dangers which they had courageously undergone; as also for that courage they had showed, and had thereby augmented of themselves their country's power, and had made it evident to all men, that neither the multitude of their enemies, nor the strength of their places, nor the largeness of their cities, nor the rash boldness and brutish rage of their antagonists, were sufficient at any time to get clear of the Roman valour, although some of them may have fortune in many respects on their side. He said farther, that it was but reasonable for them to put an end to this war, now it had lasted so long; for they had nothing better to wish for when they entered into it; and that this happened more favourably for them, and more for their glory, that all the Romans had willingly accepted of those for their governors, and the curators of their dominions, whom they had chosen for them, and had sent into their own country for that purpose, which still continued under the management of those whom they had pitched on, and were thankful to them for pitching upon them: that, accordingly, although he did both admire and tenderly regard them all, because he knew that every one of them had gone as cheerfully about their work as their abilities and opportunities would give them leave; yet, he said, that he would immediately bestow rewards and dignities on those that had fought the most bravely, and with greater force, and had signalized their conduct in the most glorious manner, and had made his army more famous by their noble exploits; and that no one who had been willing to take more pains than another should miss of a just retribution for the same for that he had been exceeding careful about this matter, and that the more, because he had much rather reward

the virtues of his fellow soldiers than punish such as had offended."

3. Hereupon Titus ordered those whose business it was to read the list of all that had performed great exploits in this war, whom he called to him by their names, and commended them before the company, and rejoiced in them in the same manner as a man would have rejoiced in his own exploits. He also put on their heads crowns of gold, and golden ornaments about their necks, and gave them long spears of gold, and ensigns that were made of silver, and removed every one of them to a higher rank; and, besides this, he plentifully distributed among them out of the spoils, and the other prey they had taken, silver, and gold, and garments. So when they had all these honours bestowed on them, according to his own appointment made to every one, and he had wished all sorts of happiness to the whole army, he came down, among the great acclamations which were made to him, and then betook himself to offer thank offerings [to the gods], and at once sacrificed a vast number of oxen, that stood ready at the altars, and distributed them among the army to feast And when he had staid three days among the principal commanders, and so long feasted with them, he sent away the rest of his army to the several places where they would be every one best situated; but permitted the tenth legion to stay as a guard at Jerusalem, and did not send them away beyond Euphrates, where they had been before. And as he remembered that the twelfth legion had given way to the Jews under Cestius their general, he expelled them out of all Syria; for they had lain formerly at Raphanea, and sent them away to a place called Meletine, near Euphrates, which is in the limits of Armenia and Cappadocia he also thought fit that two of the legions should stay with him till he should go into Egypt. He then went down with his army to that Cæsarea which lay by the seaside, and there laid up the rest of his spoils in great quantities, and gave order that the captives should be kept there; for the winter season hindered him then from sailing into Italy.

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CHAP. II.

How Titus exhibited all Sorts of Shows at Caesarea Philippi. Concerning Simon the Tyrant, how he was taken, and reserved for the Triumph.

1. Now, at the same time that Titus Cæsar lay at the siege of Jerusalem, did Vespasian go on board a merchant ship, and sailed from Alexandria to Rhodes, whence he sailed away in ships with three rows of oars; and as he touched at several cities that lay in his road, he was joyfully received by them all,

and so passed over from Ionia into Greece; whence he set sail from Corcyra to the promontory of Iapyx, whence he took his journey by land. But as for Titus, he marched from that Cæsarea which lay by the seaside, and came to that which is named Casarea Philippi, and staid there a considerable time, and exhibited all sorts of shows there. And here a great number of the captives were destroyed, some being thrown to wild beasts, and others in multitudes forced to kill one another, as if they were their enemies. And here it was that Titus was informed of the seizure of Simon, the son of Gioras, which was made after the manner following:-This Simon, during the siege of Jerusalem, was in the upper city, but when the Roman army was gotten within the walls, and were laying the city waste, he then took the most faithful of his friends with him, and among them some that were stonecutters, with those iron tools which belonged to their occupation, and as great a quantity of provisions as would suffice them for a long time, and let himself and all of them down into a certain subterraneous cavern that was not visible above ground. Now so far as had been digged of old, they went onward along it without disturbance; but where they met with solid earth, they dug a mine under ground, and this in hopes that they should be able to proceed so far as to rise from under ground in a safe place, and by that means escape. But when they came to make the experiment, they were disappointed of their hope: for the miners could make but small progress, and that with difficulty also; insomuch that their provisions, though they distributed them by measure, began to fail them. And now Simon, thinking he might be able to astonish and delude the Romans, put on a white frock, and buttoned upon him a purple cloak, and appeared out of the ground in the place where the temple had formerly been. At the first, indeed, those that saw him were greatly astonished, and stood still where they were; but afterward they came nearer to him, and asked him, who he was? Now Simon would not tell him, but bid them call for their captain; and when they ran to call him, Terentius Rufus*, who was left to command the army there, came to Simon, and learned of him the whole truth, and kept him in bonds, and let Cæsar know that he was taken. Thus did God bring this man to be punished, for what bitter and savage tyranny he had exercised against his countrymen, by those who were his worst enemies; and this while he was not subdued by violence, but voluntarily delivered himself up to them to be punished, and that on the very

*This Terentius Rufus, as Reland in part observes here, is the same person whom the Talmudists call Turnus Rufus, of whom they relate, that he ploughed up Sion as a field, and made Jerusalem become as heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest; which was long before foretold by the pro phet Micah, iii. 12, and quoted from him in the prophecies of Jeremiah, xxvi. 18

VOL. IV.

Q

same account that he had laid false accusations against many Jews, as if they were falling away to the Romans, and had barbarously slain them; for wicked actions do not escape the divine anger, nor is justice too weak to punish offenders, but in time overtakes those that transgress its laws, and inflicts its punishments upon the wicked in a manner so much more severe, as they expected to escape it, on account of their not being punished immediately*. Simon was made sensible of this by falling under the indignation of the Romans. This rise of his out of the ground did also occasion the discovery of a great number of others of the seditious at that time, who had hidden themselves under ground. But for Simon, he was brought to Cæsar in bonds, when he was come back to that Cæsarea which was on the seaside, who gave order that he should be kept against that triumph which he was to celebrate at Rome upon this occasion.

CHAP. III.

How Titus, upon the Celebration of his Brother's and Father's Birthdays, had many of the Jews slain. Concerning the Danger the Jews were in at Antioch by Means of the Transgression and Impiety of one Antiochus a Jew.

§ 1. WHILE Titus was at Cæsarea, he solemnized the birthday of his brother [Domitian] after a splendid manner, and inflicted a great deal of the punishment intended for the Jews in honour of him; for the number of those that were now slain in fighting with the beasts, and were burnt, and fought with one another, exceeded two thousand five hundred. Yet did all this seem to the Romans, when they were thus destroyed ten thousand several ways, to be a punishment beneath their deserts. After this, Cæsar came to Berytust, which is a city of Phoenicia, and a Roman colony, and staid there a longer time, and exhibited a still more pompous solemnity about his father's birth-day, both in the magnificence of the shows, and in the other vast expenses he was at in his devices thereto belonging; so that a great multitude of the captives were here destroyed after the same manner as before.

2. It happened also about this time that the Jews who remained at Antioch were under accusations, and in danger of perishing, from the disturbances that were raised against them by the Antiochians, and this both on account of the slanders spread abroad at this time against them, and on account of what pranks * See Eccles. viii. 11.

+ This Berytus was certainly a Roman colony, and has coins extant that witness the same, as Hudson and Spanheim inform us. See the note on Antiq. B. xvi. ch. xi. sect. 1.

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