THE WARS OF THE JEWS
OR
THE HISTORY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM
Book II: Chapter 15
CONCERNING BERNICE’S PETITION TO FLORUS, TO SPARE
THE JEWS, BUT IN VAIN; AS ALSO HOW, AFTER THE
SEDITIOUS FLAME WAS QUENCHED, IT WAS KINDLED AGAIN BY
FLORUS.
1. ABOUT this very time king Agrippa was going
to Alexandria, to congratulate Alexander upon his
having obtained the government of Egypt from Nero; but
as his sister Bernice was come to Jerusalem, and saw
the wicked practices of the soldiers, she was sorely
affected at it, and frequently sent the masters of her
horse and her guards to Florus, and begged of him to
leave off these slaughters; but he would not comply
with her request, nor have any regard either to the
multitude of those already slain, or to the nobility
of her that interceded, but only to the advantage he
should make by this plundering; nay, this violence of
the soldiers brake out to such a degree of madness,
that it spent itself on the queen herself; for they
did not only torment and destroy those whom they had
caught under her very eyes, but indeed had killed
herself also, unless she had prevented them by flying
to the palace, and had staid there all night with her
guards, which she had about her for fear of an insult
from the soldiers. Now she dwelt then at Jerusalem, in
order to perform a vow 22 which she had made to God;
for it is usual with those that had been either
afflicted with a distemper, or with any other
distresses, to make vows; and for thirty days before
they are to offer their sacrifices, to abstain from
wine, and to shave the hair of their head. Which
things Bernice was now performing, and stood barefoot
before Florus’s tribunal, and besought him [to spare
the Jews]. Yet could she neither have any reverence
paid to her, nor could she escape without some danger
of being slain herself.
2. This happened upon the sixteenth day of the
month Artemisius [Jyar]. Now, on the next day, the
multitude, who were in a great agony, ran together to
the Upper Market-place, and made the loudest
lamentations for those that had perished; and the
greatest part of the cries were such as reflected on
Florus; at which the men of power were aftrighted,
together with the high priests, and rent their
garments, and fell down before each of
them, and besought them to leave off, and not to
provoke Florus to some incurable procedure, besides
what they had already suffered. Accordingly, the
multitude complied immediately, out of reverence to
those that had desired it of them, and out of the hope
they had that Florus would do them no more injuries.
3. So Florus was troubled that the disturbances
were over, and endeavored to kindle that flame again,
and sent for the high priests, with the other eminent
persons, and said the only demonstration that the
people would not make any other innovations should be
this, that they must go out and meet the soldiers that
were ascending from Cesarea, whence two cohorts were
coming; and while these men were exhorting the
multitude so to do, he sent beforehand, and gave
directions to the centurions of the cohorts, that they
should give notice to those that were under them not
to return the Jews’ salutations; and that if they made
any reply to his disadvantage, they should make use of
their weapons. Now the high priests assembled the
multitude in the temple, and desired them to go and
meet the Romans, and to salute the cohorts very
civilly, before their miserable case should become
incurable. Now the seditious part would not comply
with these persuasions; but the consideration of those
that had been destroyed made them incline to those
that were the boldest for action.
4. At this time it was that every priest, and every
servant of God, broughtout the holy vessels, and the
ornamental garments wherein they used to minister in
sacred things. The harpers also, and the singers of
hymns, came out with their instruments of music, and
fell down before the multitude, and begged of them
that they would preserve those holy ornaments to them,
and not provoke the Romans to carry off those sacred
treasures. You might also see then the high priests
themselves, with dust sprinkled in great plenty upon
their heads, with bosoms deprived of any covering but
what was rent; these besought every one of the eminent
men by name, and the multitude in common, that they
would not for a small offense betray their country to
those that were desirous to have it laid waste;
saying, “What benefit will it bring to the soldiers to
have a salutation from the Jews? or what amendment of
your affairs will it bring you, if you do not now go
out to meet them? and that if they saluted them
civilly, all handle would be cut off from Florus to
begin a war; that they should thereby gain their
country, and freedom from all further sufferings; and
that, besides, it
would be a sign of great want of command of
themselves, if they should yield to a few seditious
persons, while it was fitter for them who were so
great a people to force the others to act soberly.”
5. By these persuasions, which they used to the
multitude and to theseditious, they restrained some by
threatenings, and others by the reverence that was
paid them. After this they led them out, and they met
the soldiers quietly, and after a composed manner, and
when they were come up with them, they saluted them;
but when they made no answer, the seditious exclaimed
against Florus, which was the signal given for falling
upon them. The soldiers therefore encompassed them
presently, and struck them with their clubs; and as
they fled away, the horsemen trampled them down, so
that a great many fell down dead by the strokes of the
Romans, and more by their own violence in crushing one
another. Now there was a terrible crowding about the
gates, and while every body was making haste to get
before another, the flight of them all was retarded,
and a terrible destruction there was among those that
fell down, for they were suffocated, an broken to
pieces by the multitude of those that were uppermost;
nor could any of them be distinguished by his
relations in order to the care of his funeral; the
soldiers also who beat them, fell upon those whom they
overtook, without showing them any mercy, and
thrust the multitude through the place called Bezetha,
23 as they forced their way, in order to get in and
seize upon the temple, and the tower Antonia. Florus
also being desirous to get those places into his
possession, brought such as were with him out of the
king’s palace, and would have compelled them to get as
far as the citadel [Antonia;] but his attempt failed,
for the people immediately turned back upon him, and
stopped the violence of his attempt; and as they stood
upon the tops of their houses, they threw their darts
at the Romans, who, as they were sorely galled
thereby, because those weapons came from above, and
they were not able to make a passage through the
multitude, which stopped up the narrow passages, they
retired to the camp which was at the palace.
6. But for the seditious, they were afraid lest
Florus should come again, and get possession of the
temple, through Antonia; so they got immediately upon
those cloisters of the temple that joined to Antonia,
and cut them down. This cooled the avarice of Florus;
for whereas he was eager to obtain the treasures of
God [in the temple], and on that account was
desirous of getting into Antonia, as soon as the
cloisters were broken down, he left off his attempt;
he then sent for the high priests and the sanhedrim,
and told them that he was indeed himself going out of
the city, but that he would leave them as large a
garrison as they should desire. Hereupon they promised
that they would make no innovations, in case he would
leave them one band; but not that which had fought
with the Jews, because the multitude bore ill-will
against that band on account of what they had suffered
from it; so he changed the band as they desired, and,
with the rest of his forces, returned to Cesarea.
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