did it now fo happen that they were fometimes very ill treated by those upon whom they tell with fuch violence, and were taken by them as men are taken in war: But ftill they prevented any farther punishment as do robbers, who, as foon as their ravages [are difcovered] run their way. Nor was there now any part of Judea that was not in a miferable condition, as well as its most eminent city also. 3. These things were told Vefpafian by deferters; for although the feditious watched all the paffages out of the city, and destroyed all, whofoever they were, that came thither, yet were there fome that had concealed themselves, and when they had fled to the Romans, perfuaded their General to come to their city's affiftance, and fave the remainder of the people; informing him withal, that it was upon account of the people's good will to the Romans that many of them were already flain, and the furvivors in danger of the fame treatment. Velpafian did indeed already pity the calamities thefe men were in, and arose, in appearance, as though he was going to befiege Jerufalem, but in reality to deliver them from a [worse siege they were already under. However, he was obliged firft to overthrow what remained elsewhere, and to leave nothing out of Jerufalem behind him, that might interrupt him in that fiege. Accordingly he marched againft.Gadara the metropo lis of Perea which was a place of ftrength, and entered that city on the fourth day of the month Dyftrus [Adar]; for the men of power had fent an emballage to him, without the knowledge of the feditious, to treat about a furrender; which they did out of the defire they had of peace, and for faving their effects, because many of the citizens of Gadara were rich men. This embaffy the oppofite party knew nothing of, but discovered it as Vefpafian was approaching near the city. However, they defpaired of keeping poffeffion of the city, as being inferior in number to their enemies which were within the city, and feeing the Romans very near to the city; fo they refolved to fly, but thought it dishonourable to do it without fhedding fome blood, and revenging themfelves on the authors of this furrender; fo they feized upon Dolefus. (a perfon not only the first in rank and family in that city, but one that feemed the occafion of fending such an embassy) and flew him, and treated his dead body after a barbarous manner, fo very violent was their anger at him, and then ran out of the city. And as now the Roman army was just upon them, the people of Gadara admitted Vefpafian with joyful acclamations, and received from him the fecurity of his right hand, as alfo a garrifon of horsemen, and footmen, to guard them against the excursions of the runagates; for as to their wall they had pull Ades of rivers, Acts xvi. 13. or by the fea-fide Antiq. B XIV. ch. x § 23. So did the LXXII. interpreters go to prayer every morning by the fea-fide, before they went to their work, B. XII. ch. ii. § 2. Vol. II. ed it down before the Romans defired them fo to do, that they might thereby give them affurance that they were lovers of peace, and that, if they had a mind, they could not now make war against them. 4. And now Vefpafian fent Placidus against those that had fled from Gadara, with five hundred horfemen, and three thoufand footmen, while he returned himfelf to Cefarea, with the reft of the army. But as foon as thefe fugitives faw the horsemen that pursued them just upon their backs, and before they came to a clofe fight, they ran together to a certain village, which was called Bethennabris, where finding a great multitude of young men, and arming them, partly by their own confent, partly by force, they rafhly and fuddenly affaulted Placidus and the troops that were with him. Thefe horsemen at the first onfet gave way a little, as contriving to entice them fartheroff the wall, and when they had drawn them into a place fit for their purpose, they made their horfe encompass them round, and threw their darts at them. So the horsemen cut off the flight of the fugitives, while the foot terribly destroyed thole that fought against them; for thofe Jews did no more than thew their courage, and then were deftroyed, for as they fell upon the Romans, when they were joined close together, and, as it were walled about with their entire armour, they were not able to find any place where the darts could enter, nor were they any way able to break their ranks, while they were themfelves run through by the Roman darts, and like the wildest of wild beasts, rufhed upon the point of others fwords; fo fome of them were deftroyed, as cut with their enemies fwords upon their faces, and others were dispersed by the horsemen. 5. Now Placidus's concern was to exclude them in their flight from getting into the village, and caufing his horse to march continually on that fide of them, he then turned fhort upon them, and at the fame time his men made ufe of their darts, and easily took their aim at thofe that were the nearest to them, as they made thofe that were farther off turn back by the terror they were in, till at last the most courageous of them brake through thofe horsemen and fled to the wall of the vilJage. And now thofe that guarded the wall were in great doubt what to do; for they could not bear the thoughts of excluding thofe that came from Gadara, because of their own people that were among them; and yet, if they fhould admit them, they expected to perifh with them, which came to país accordingly, for as they were crowding together at the wall, the Roman horfemen were just ready to fall in with them. However, the guards prevented them, and fhut the gates, when Placidus made an affault upom them, and fighting courageoufly till it was dark, he got poffeffion of the people of the wall, and of them that were in the city, when the useless multitude were destroyed, but thofe that were more potent ran away, and the foldiers plundered the houses, and fet the vilVOL. III. M m lage on fire. As for thofe that ran out of the village, they ftirred up fuch as were in the country, and exaggerating their own calamities, and telling them that the whole army of the Romans were upon them, they put them into great fear on every fide: So they got in great numbers together and fled to Jericho, for they knew no other place that could afford them any hope of efcaping, it being a city that had a strong. wall, and a great multitude of inhabitants. But Placidus reJying much upon his horfemen, and his former good fuccefs, followed them, and flew all that he overtook as far as Jordan; and when he had driven the whole multitude to the river fide, where they were ftopped by the current, (for it had been aug mented lately by rains, and was not fordable), he put his foldiers in array over against them, fo the neceffity the others were in provoked them to hazard a battle, because there was no place whither they could flee. They then extended them felves a very great way along the banks of the river, and fuftained the darts that were thrown at them, as well as the attacks of the horefemen, who beat many of them and pushed them into the current. At which fight, hand to hand, filteen thoufand of them were flain, while the number of those that were unwillingly forced to leap into Jordan was prodigious. There were befides, two thousand and two hundred taken prisoners. A mighty prey was taken alfo, confifting of alles, and theep, and camels, and oxen. 6. Now this destruction that fell upon the Jews as it was not inferior to any of the reft in itfelt, fo did it fill appear greater than it really was; and this because not only the whole country through which they fled was filled with flaughter and Jordan could not be paffed over by reafon of the dead bodies that were in it, but because the lake Afphaltitis was alfo full of dead bodies, that were carried down into it by the river. And now Placidus, after this good fuccefs that he had had, fell vioJently upon the neighbouring fmaller cities and villages; when he took Abila, and Julias, and Bezemoth, and all thofe that lay as far as the lake Asphaltitis, and put fuch of the deferters into each of them as he thought proper. He then put his foldiers on board the fhips, and flew fuch as had fled to the lake; info much that all Perea had either furrendered themselves, or were: taken by the Romans, as far as Macherus. CHAP. VIII. How Vefpafian, upon hearing of Jome Commotions in * Gall, made hafle to finish the Jewish War. A defcription of Jericho, and of the Great piain; with an account befides of the Lake Afphaltitis. f.I. IN N the mean time an account came, that there were commotions in Gall, and that Vindex, together with the men of power in that country, had revolted from Nero; which affair is more accurately defcribed elfewhere. This report, thus related to Vefpafian, excited him to go on brifkly with the war; for he forefaw already the civil wars which were coming upon them, nay, that the very government was in danger, and he thought it he could first reduce the eastern parts of the empire to peace, he fhould make the fears for Italy the lighter; while therefore the winter was his hindrance, [from going into the field), he put garrifons into the villages and fmaller cities for their lecurity; he put decurions alío into the villages, and centurions into the cities; he befides this built many of the cit jes that had been laid wafte; but at the beginning of the fpring he took the greateft part of his army, and led it from Cefarea, to Antipatris, where he spent two days in fettling the affairs of that city, and then, on the third day, he marched on, laying waste and burning all the neighbouring villages. And when he had laid waste all the places about the toparchy of Thamnas, he paffed on to Lydda, and Jamnia, and when both thofe cities had come over to him, he placed a great many of thofe that had come over to him [from other places] as inhabitants therein, and then came to Emmaus, where he leized upon the paffages which led thence to their metropolis, and fortified his camp and leaving the fifth legion therein, he came to the toparchy of Bethletephon. He then deftroyed that place, and the neighbouring places by fire, and fortified at proper places the strong holds all about Idumea ; and when he had feized upon two villages, which were in the very midft of Idumea, Betaris and Capartobas, he flew above ten thousand of the people, and carried into captivity above a thousand, and drove away the rest of the multitude, and placed no fmall part of his own forces in them, who over-ran and laid waste the whole mountainous country; while he, with the rest of his forces, returned to Emmaus, whence he came down, through the country of Samaria, and hard by the city, by others called Neapolis (or Sicher), but by the people of that country Mabortha, to Corea, where he pitched his camp, on the fecond day of the month Defius, [Sianj; and on the day following he came to Jericho, on which • Gr. Galatia, and fo every where. day Trajan, one of his commanders, joined him with the forces he brought out of Perea, all the places beyond Jordan being fubdued already. 2. Hereupon a great multitude prevented their approach, and came out of Jericho, and fled to those mountainous parts that Jay over against Jerufalem, while that part which was left behind was in a great measure deftroyed; they alfo found the city defolate. It is fituated in a plain, but a naked and barren mountain, of a very great length, hangs over it, which extends itfelf to the land about Scythopolis northward, but as far as the country of Sodom, and the utmoft limits of the lake Afphalti tis fouthward. This mountain is all of it very uneven and uninhabited by reafon of its barrennefs; there is an oppofite mountain that is fituated over against it, on the other fide of Jordan; this laft begins at Julias, and the northern quarters, and extends itfelf fouthward as far as Somorrhon, which is the bounds of Petra, in Arabia. In this ridge of mountains there is one called the Iron mountain, that runs in length as far as Moab. Now the region that lies in the middle between these ridges of mountains, is called the Great plain; it reaches from the village Ginnabries, as far as the lake Afphaltitis; its length is two hundred and thirty furlongs, and its breadth an hundred and twenty, and it is divided in the midft by Jordan. It hath two lakes in it, that of Afphaltitis, and that of Tiberias, whole natures are oppofite to each other; for the former is falt and unfruitful, but that of Tiberias is fweet and fruitful. This plain is much burnt up in fummer time, and by reafon of the extraordinary heat, contains a very unwholefome air; it is all deftitute of water except the river Jordan, which water of Jordan is the occafion why thofe plantations of palm trees that are near its banks, are more flourishing, and much more fruitful, as are thofe that are remote from it not so flourishing, or fruitful. 3. Notwithstanding which, there is a fountain by Jericho, that runs plentifully, and is very fit for watering the ground; it arifes near the old city, which Jofhua, the fon of Naue, the general of the Hebrews, took the firft of all the cities of the land of Canaan, by right of war. The report is, that this fountain, at the beginning, caufed not only the blafting of the earth and the trees, but of the children born of women, and that it was entirely of a fickly and corruptive nature, to all things whatsoever, but that it was made gentle, and very whole!ome and fruitful by the prophet Elifha. This prophet was familiar with Elijah, and was his fucceffor, who, when he once was the guest of the people at Jericho, and the men of the place had treated him very *Whether this Somorrhon or Somorrha, ought not to be here written Gomorrha, as fome MSS. in a manner have it, (for the place meant by jolephus feems to be near Segor or Zoar, at the very fouth of the dead fea, hard by which stood Sodom and Gomorrha), cannot now be certainly determined, but fecins by no means improbable |