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girdle that tied the garment to the breast was embroidered with five rows of various colours of gold, and purple, and scarlet, as also of fine linen and blue, with which colours we told you before the veils of the temple were embroidered also. The like embroidery was upon the ephod; but the quantity of gold therein was greater. Its figure was that of a stomacher for the breast. There was upon it two golden buttons like small shields, which buttoned the ephod to the garment: in these buttons were enclosed two very large and very excellent sardonyxes, having the names of the tribes of that nation engraved upon them: on the other part there hung twelve stones, three in a row one way, and four in the other; a sardius, a topaz, and an emerald; a carbuncle, a jasper, and a sapphire; an agate, an amethyst and a ligure; an onyx, a beryl, and a chrysolite; upon every one of which was again engraved one of the forementioned names of the tribes A mitre also of fine linen encompassed his head, which was tied by a blue riband, about which there was another golden crown, in which was engraved the sacred name [of God:] it consists of four vowels. However, the high priest did not wear these garments at other times, but a more plain habit; he only did it when he went into the most sacred part of the temple, which he did but once in a year, on that day when our custom is for all of us to keep a fast to God. And thus much concerning the city and the temple; but for the customs and laws hereto relating, we shall speak more accurately another time; for there remain a great many things thereto relating, which have not been here touched upon.

8. Now, as to the tower of Antonia, it was situated at the corner of two clois ters of the court of the temple, of that on the west and that on the north: it was erected upon a rock of fifty cubits in height, and was on a great precipice; it was the work of King Herod, wherein he demonstrated his natural magnanimity. In the first place, the rock itself was covered over with smooth pieces of stone, from its foundation, both for ornament, and that any one, who would either try to get up or to go down it, might not be able to hold his feet upon it. Next to this, and before you come to the edifice of the tower itself, there was a wall three cu. bits high; but within that wall all the space of the tower of Antonia itself was built upon, to the heigh of forty cubits. The inward parts had the largeness and form of a palace, it being parted into all kinds of rooms and other conve niencies, such as courts and places for bathing, and broad spaces for camps; in. somuch that, by having all conveniencies that cities wanted, it might seem to be composed of several cities, but by its magnificence it seemed a palace; and as the entire structure resembled that of a tower, it contained also four other distinct towers at its four corners; whereof the others were but fifty cubits high, whereas that which lay upon the south-east corner was seventy cubits high, that from thence the whole temple might be viewed: but on the corner where it joined to the two cloisters of the temple, it had passages down to them both, through which the guards (for there always lay in this tower a Roman legion,) went several ways among the cloisters, with their arms, on the Jewish festivals, in order to watch the people, that they might not there attempt to make any inno. vations; for the temple was a fortress that guarded the city, as was the tower of Antonia a guard to the temple; and in that tower were the guards* of those three. There was also a peculiar fortress belonging to the upper city, which was Herod's palace; but for the hill Bezetha, it was divided from the tower of Antonia, as we have already told you; and as that hill on which the tower of Antonia stood was the highest of these three, so did it adjoin to the new city, and was the only place that hindered the sight of the temple on the north. And this shall suffice at present to have spoken about the city, and the walls about it, because I have purposed to myself to make a more accurate description of it elsewhere.

Those three guards that lay in the tower of Antonia must be those that guarded the city, the templ and that tower of Autonia.

CHAP. VI.

Concerning the Tyrants Simon and John.

How also, as Titus wus going round the Wall of the City, Nicanor was wounded by a dart; which Accident provoked Titus to press on the Siege.

1. Now, the warlike men that were in the city, and the multitude of the sedi. tious that were with Simon, were ten thousand, besides the Idumeans. Those ten thousand had fifty commanders, over whom this Simon was supreme. The Idumeans that paid him homage were five thousand, and had eight commanders, among whom those of greatest fame were Jacob, the son of Sosas, and Si. mon, the son of Cathlas. John, who had seized upon the temple, had six thou sand armed men under twenty commanders: the zealots also that had come over to him, and left off their opposition, were two thousand four hundred, and had the same commander that they had formerly, Eleazar, together with Simon, the Bon of Arinus. Now, while these factions fought one against another, the people were their prey on both sides, as we have said already; and that part of the people which would not join with them in their wicked practices were plundered by both factions, Simon held the upper city, and the great wall as far as Cedron, and as much of the old wall as bent from Siloam to the east, and which went down to the palace of Monobazus, who was king of the Adiabene beyond Eu. phrates: he also held that fountain and the Acra, which was no other than the lower city he also held all that reached to the palace of Queen Helena, the mother of Monobazus. But John held the temple, and the parts thereto adjoining for a great way, as also Ophla, and the valley called the Valley of Cedron: and when the parts that were interposed between their possessions were burnt by them, they left a space wherein they might fight with each other; for this internal sedition did not cease even when the Romans were encamped near their very walls. But although they had grown wiser at the first onset the Romans made upon them, this lasted but awhile; for they returned to their former madness, and separated one from another, and fought it out, and did every thing that the besiegers could desire them to do; for they never suffered any thing that was worse from the Romans than they made each other suffer; nor was there any misery endured by the city, after these men's actions, that could be esteemed

new.

:

But it was most of all unhappy before it was overthrown, while those that took it did it a greater kindness; for I venture to affirm, that the sedition destroyed the city, and the Romans destroyed the sedition, which it was a much harder thing to do than to destroy the walls; so that we may justly ascribe our misfortunes to our own people, and the just vengeance taken on them to the Romans; as to which matter let every one determine by the actions on both sides. 2. Now, when affairs within the city were in this posture, Titus went round the city on the outside with some chosen horsemen, and looked about for a proper place where he might make an impression upon the walls; but as he was in doubt where he could possibly make an attack on any side (for the place was no way accessible where the valleys were, and on the other side, the first wall appeared too strong to be shaken by the engines,) he thereupon thought it best to make his assault upon the monument of John the high priest; for there it was that the first fortification was lower, and the second was not joined to it, the builders neglecting to build the wall strong where the new city was not much inhabited: here also was an easy passage to the third wall, through which he thought to take the apper city, and, through the tower of Antonia, the temple itself. But, at this time, as he was going round about the city, one of his friends, whose name was Nicanor, was wounded with a dart on his left shoulder, as he approached, toge. ther with Josephus, too near the wall, and attempted to discourse to those tha

were upon the wall about terms of peace; for he was a person known by them On this account it was that Cæsar, as soon as he knew their vehemence that they would not bear even such as reproached them to persuade them to what tended to their own preservation, was provoked to press on the siege. He also, at the same time, gave his soldiers leave to set the suburbs on fire, and ordered that they should bring timber together, and raise banks against the city; and when he had parted his army into three parts, in order to set about those works, he placed those that shot darts and the archers in the midst of the banks that were then raising; before whom he placed those engines that threw javelins, and darts, and stones, that he might prevent the enemy from sallying out upon their works, and might hinder those that were upon the wall from being able to obstruct them. So the trees were now cut down immediately, and the suburbs left naked. But now while the timber was carrying to raise the banks, and the whole army was earnestly engaged in their works, the Jews were not, however, quiet; and it happened that the people of Jerusalem, who had been hitherto plundered and murdered, were now of good courage, and supposed they should have a breathing time, while the others were very busy in opposing their enemies without the city; and that they should now be avenged on those that had been the authors of their mi series, in case the Romans did but get the victory.

3. However, John staid behind out of his fear of Simon, even while his own men were earnest in making a sally upon their enemies without. Yet did not Simon lie still, for he lay near the place of the siege; he brought his engines of war, and disposed of them at due distances upon the wall; both those which they took from Cestius formerly, and those which they got when they seized the garrison that lay in the tower Antonia. But though they had these engines in their possession, they had so little skill in using them, that they were in a great measure use. less to them; but a few there were who had been taught by deserters how to use them, which they did use, though after an awkward manner. So they cast stones and arrows at those that were inaking the banks: they also ran out upon them by companies, and fought with thein. Now, those that were at work covered themselves with hurdles spread over their banks, and their engines were opposed to them when they made their excursions. These engines, that all the legions had ready prepared for them, were admirably contrived; but still more extraordinary ones belonged to the tenth legion: those that threw darts and those that threw stones were more forcible and larger than the rest, by which they not only re. pelled the excursions of the Jews, but drove those away that were upon the walls also. Now the stones that were cast were of the weight of a talent, and were carried two furlongs and farther. The blow they gave was no way to be sus. tained, not only by those that stood first in the way, but by those that were beyond them for a great space. As for the Jews, they at first watched the coming of the stone, for it was of a white colour, and could, therefore, not only be perceived by the great noise it made, but could be seen also before it came by its brightness accordingly, the watchmen that sat upon the towers gave them no. tice when the engine was let go, and the stone came from it, and cried out aloud, in their own country language, THE SON COMETH :* so those that were in its way

* What should be the meaning of this signal or watchword, when the watchmen saw a stone coming from the engine, THE SON COMETH, or what mistake there is in the reading, I cannot tell. The MSS. both Greek and Latin, all agree in this reading; and I cannot approve of any groundless conjectural alteration of the text from IOE to JOZ, that not the son or a stone, but that the arrow or dart cometh; as hath been made by Dr. Hudson, and not corrected by Havercamp. Had Josephus written even his first edition of these books of the war in pure Hebrew, or had the Jews then used the pure Hebrew at Jerusalem, the Hebrew word for a son is so like that for a stone, Ben and Eben, that such a correction might have been more easily admitted. But Josephus wrote his former edition for the use of the Jews beyond Euphrates, and so in the Chaldee language, as he did this second edition in the Greek language, and Bar was the Chaldee word for son, instead of the Hebrew Ben, and was used not only in Chaldea, &c. but m Judea also, as the New Testament informs us. Dio also lets us know that the very Romans at Rome pronounce I the name of Simon, the son of Gioras, Bar Poras for Bar Gioras, as we learn from Xi philine, p. 217. Reland takes notice. "That many will here look for a mystery, as though the meaning were that the Son of Gori came now to take vengeance on the sins of the Jewish nation," which is, in

stood off, and threw themselves down upon the ground; by which means, and by their thus guarding themselves, the stone fell down, and did them no narm. But the Romans contrived how to prevent that by blacking the stone, who then could aim at them with success, when the stone was not discerned beforehand, as it had been till then; and so they destroyed many of them at one blow. Yet did not the Jews, under all this distress, permit the Romans to raise their banks in quiet; but they shrewdly and boldly exerted themselves, and repelled them both by night and by day.

4. And now, upon the finishing the Roman works, the workmen measured the distance there was from the wall, and this by lead and line, which they threw to it from their banks; for they could not measure it any otherwise, because the Jews would shoot at them, if they came to measure it themselves; and when they found that the engines could reach the wall, they brought them thither. Then did Titus set his engines at proper distances, so much nearer to the wall, that the lews might not be able to repel them, and gave orders they should go to work: and when thereupon a prodigious noise echoed round about from three places, and that, on the sudden, there was a great noise made by the citizens that were within the city, and no less a terror fell upon the seditious themselves; whereupon both sorts, seeing the common danger they were in, contrived to make a like defence. So those of different factions cried out one to another, that they acted entirely as in concert with their ene.nies; whereas they ought, however, notwithstanding God did not grant ther. a lasting concord, in their present circumstances to lay aside their enmities one against another, and to unite together against the Ro. mans. Accordingly, Simon gave those that came from the temple leave, by pro clamation, to go upon the wall; John also himself, though he could not believe that Simon was in earnest, gave them the same leave. So, on both sides, they aid aside their hatred and their peculiar quarrels, and formed themselves into one body; they then ran round the walls, and having a vast number of torches with them, they threw them at the machines, and shot darts perpetually upon hose that impelled those engines which battered the wall; nay, the bolder sort feaped out by troops upon the hurdles that covered the machines, and pulled them to pieces, and fell upon those that belonged to them, and beat them, not so much by any skill they had, as principally by the boldness of their attacks. However, Titus himself still sent assistance to those that were the hardest set, and placed both horsemen and archers on the several sides of the engines, and thereby beat off those that brought the fire to them; he also thereby repelled those that shot stones or darts from the towers, and then set the engines to work in good ear. nest: yet did not the wall yield to these blows, excepting where the batteringram of the fifteenth legion moved the corner of a tower, while the wall itself continued unhurt; for the wall was not presently in the same danger with the tower, which was extant far above it: nor could the fall of that part of the tower easily break down any part of the wall itself together with it.

6. And now the Jews intermitted their sallies for a while; but when they ob. served the Romans dispersed all abroad at their works, and in their several camps (for they thought the Jews had retired out of weariness and fear,) these all at once made a sally at the tower Hippicus, through an obscure gate, and at the same time brought fire to burn the works, and went boldly up to the Romans and to their very fortifications themselves, where, at the cry they made, those that were near came presently to their assistance, and those farther off came running deed, the truth of the fact, but hardly what the Jews could now mean; unless, possibly by way of derision of Christ's threatenings so often made, that he would come at the head of the Roman army for their destruction. But even this interpretation has hut a very small degree of probability. If I were to make an emendation, by mere conjecture, I would read ПEТРОΣ instead of rioz, though the likeness be not 80 great as in 102; because that is the word used by Josephus just before, as I have already noted, on his very occasion, while 102, an arrow or dart, is only a poetical word, and never used by Josephus elsewhere, and is, indeed, no way suitable to the occasion, this engine not throwing arrows or darts out great stones, at this time

after them; and here the boldness of the Jews was too hard for the good order of the Romans; and as they beat those whom they first fell upon, so they pressed upon those that were now gotten together. So this fight about the machines was very hot, while the one side tried hard to set them on fire, and the other side to prevent it; on both sides there was a confused cry made, and many of those in the fore-front of the battle were slain. However the Jews were now too hard for the Romans, by the furious assaults they made like madmen; and the fire caught hold of the works, and both all those works and the engines themselves had been in danger of being burnt, had not many of those select soldiers that came from Alexandria opposed themselves to prevent it, and had they not behaved themselves with greater courage than they themselves supposed they could have done : for they outdid those in this fight that had greater reputation than themselves before. This was the state of things till Cæsar took the stoutest of his horsemen, and attacked the enemy, when he himself slew twelve of those that were in the fore-front of the Jews; which death of these men, when the rest of the multitude saw, they gave way, and he pursued them, and drove them all into the city, and saved the works from the fire. Now it happened at this fight that a certain Jew was taken alive, who, by Titus's order, was crucified before the wall, to see whether the rest of them would be affrighted, and abate of their obstinacy. But after the Jews were retired, John, who was commander of the Idumeans, and was talking to a certain soldier of his acquaintance before the wall, was wounded by a dart shot at him by an Arabian, and died immediately, leaving the greatest lamentation to the Jews and sorrow to the seditious: for he was a man of great eminence both for his actions and his conduct also.

CHAP. VII.

How one of the Towers erected by the Romans fell down of its own Accord; and how the Romans, after great Slaughter had been made, got possession of the first Wall. How also Titus made his Assaults upon the second Wall:

as also concerning Longinus the Roman and Castor the Jew.

§ 1. Now, on the next night a surprising disturbance fell upon the Romans; for whereas Titus had given orders for the erection of three towers of fifty cubits nigh, that by setting men upon them at every bank, he might from thence drive those away who were upon the wall, it so happened that one of these towers fell down about midnight; and as its fall made a very great noise, fear fell upon the army, and they supposing that the enemy was coming to attack them, ran all to their arms. Whereupon a disturbance and a tumult arose among the legions; and as nobody could tell what had happened, they went on after a disconsolate manner; and seeing no enemy appeared, they were afraid one of another, and every one demanded of his neighbour the watchword, with great earnestness, as though the Jews had invaded their camp. And now were they like people under a panic of fear, till Titus was informed of what had happened, and gave orders that all should be acquainted with it; and then, though with some difficulty, they got clear of the disturbance they had been under.

2. Now these towers were very troublesome to the Jews, who otherwise opposed the Romans very courageously; for they shot at them out of their lighter engines from those towers, as they did also by those that threw darts, and the archers, and those that flung stones. For neither could the Jews reach those that were over them, by reason of their height, and it was not practicable to take them, nor to overturn them, they were so heavy, nor to set them on fire, because they were covered with plates of iron. So they retired out of the reach of the darts, and did no longer endeavour to hinder the impressions of their rams, which, by continually beating upon the wall, did gradually prevail against it; so

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