232 not to distress the Jews any more, and war was threatened him, in case he persevered to do so. But before the ambassadors returned, Judas died. As soon as Demetrius received news of the defeat and death of Nicanor, he gave the command of a powerful army to Bacchus and Alcimus, composed of the choicest of all his troops, and sent them into Judea. Judas had only three thousand men with him when it arrived there, and these were struck with such a panic, that they all abandoned him, except eight hundred. But Judas, with that small number, through an excess of valour and confidence, had the boldness to hazard a battle with so numerous an army, in which he perished, overpowered by numbers. His loss was deplored throughout all Judea and at Jerusalem, with all the marks of the most lively affliction, and the government put into the hands of Jonathan, his brother. Alcimus being dead, after having committed very great violence against the true Israelites, and Bacchis having returned to Antioch, the country remained quiet, and was not harassed by the Assyrians for two years. Demetrius had undoubtedly received the senate's letter in favour of the Jews, which obliged him to recall Bacchis. Demetrius, indeed, was at this time very cautious in his conduct with regard to the Romans, and used all his endeavours to induce them to acknowledge him king, and to renew the treaty made with the kings, his predecessors. Having received advice, that the Romans had three ambassadors at the court of Ariarathes, king of Cappadocia, he sent Menochares, one of his principal ministers, thither, to enter upon the negotiation. Finding, at his return, by the report he made of what had passed, that the good offices of those ambassadors were absolutely necessary to his success in it, he sent again into Pamphylia, and afterwards to Rhodes, to assure them, that he would conform entirely to their will; and by the force of pressing solicitations, obtained at length, by their means, what he desired. The Romans acknowledged him king of Syria, and renewed the treaties made with that crown.* To cultivate their amity, he sent the same Menochares the following year, in conjunction with some others, upon an embassy to Rome. They were charged with a crown that weighed ten thousand pieces of gold, as a present from him to the senate, in gratitude for their good treatment of him, during his being a hostage at Rome. They carried also with them Leptinus and Isocrates, in order to deliver them up, on account of the assassination of Octavius. This Leptinus was the person who killed him at Laodicia. Isocrates was a Greek, by profession a Grammarian, who being in Syria at that time, had, upon all occasions, taken upon him to vindicate that equally base and unjust action. The senate received the ambassadors with all the usual honours, and accepted the present they brought; but would neither hear nor see two vile men, objects unworthy of their anger, reserving to themselves, without doubt, the right of exacting, when they pleased, a more distinguished satisfaction for the murder of their ambassador.† It was about this time that Demetrius established Holofernes upon the throne of Cappadocia. He was soon after expelled, and took refuge at Antioch. We shall see how far he carried his ingratitude in regard to his benefactor. Demetrius, who found himself without war or occupation, began to give up to pleasure, and to lead an idle life, not a little singular and fantastic in the manner of it. He caused a castle to be built near Antioch, flanked with four good towers, and shut himself up in it, for the sake of abandoning himself entirely on the one side to indolence, not being willing to hear any more of affairs, and on the other, to the pleasure of good cheer and excess of wine. He was drunk at least one half of the day. The memorials, which people were desirous of presenting to him, were never received; justice was not administered; the affairs of the state languished; in a word, there was a general suspension of A. M. 3844. Ant. J. C. 160. Polyb. Legat. cxx. Appian. in Syr. p. 118. Diod. Legat. xxv. government, which soon stirred up the whole people against him. A conspiracy was formed for deposing him. Holofernes, who continued at Antioch, entered into this plot against his benefactor, flattering himself with obtaining the crown, if the enterprise succeeded. It was discovered, and Holofernes put in prison. Demetrius would not deprive him of life. He chose rather to spare him, in order to make use of him upon occasion against Ariarathes, king of Cappadocia, upon whose crown he had some pretensions.* Notwithstanding the discovery, the conspiracy was not suppressed. The malcontents were supported secretly by Ptolemy Philometer, who had the affair of Cyprus at heart, and by Attalus and Ariarathes, who meditated revenging themselves for the war which Demetrius had undertaken against them in favour of Holofernes. Those three princes concerted together to employ Heraclides in preparing somebody to personate the son of Antiochus Epiphanes, and to set up hereditary pretensions to the crown of Syria. This Heraclides had been one of the great favourites of Antiochus Epiphanes, and treasurer of the province of Babylon; at the same time Timarchus, his brother another favourite, was governor of it. When Demetrius succeeded to the crown, the two brothers having been convicted of malversation and other crimes, Timarchus was executed, and the other having made his escape, had taken up his residence at Rhodes. It was there he took pains to form the man intended for the design I have mentioned. He chose for that purpose a young man, named Bala, of mean extraction, but very proper to act the part given him. He modelled him, and instructed him fully in all that was necessary to say or do.t When he was fully prepared, he began by causing him to be acknowledged by the three kings in the secret. He afterwards carried him to Rome, as he did also Laodice, the real daughter of Antiochus Epiphanes, for the better concealing the imposture. By force of address and solicitations, he caused him to be acknowledged there also, and obtained a decree of the senate in his favour, which not only gave him permission to return into Syria, for the recovery of his dominions, but even granted him assistance for that purpose. Though the senate plainly saw through the imposture, and that all which was told of this pretender was mere fiction, they entered into every thing desired of them against Demetrius, with whom they were dissatisfied, and passed that decree in favour of the impostor. With this declaration of the Romans for him, he found no difficulty to raise troops. He then seized upon Ptolemais in Palestine, and there, under the name of Alexander, son of Antiochus Epiphanes, assumed the title of king of Syria. Many of the malcontents came thither to join him, and form his court.‡ This news made Demetrius quit his castle and his indolence, and apply himself to his defence. He assembled all the troops he could. Alexander armed also on his side. The assistance of Jonathan was of great consequence in this conjuncture, and both parties made their court to him. Demetrius wrote to him first, and sent him the commission of general of the king's troops in Judea, which rendered him at that time very superior to all his enemies. Alexander, seeing what Demetrius had done for Jonathan, was thereby induced to make proposals also to him, in order to bring him over to his side. He made him high-priest, granted him the title of " Friend of the King," sent him a purple robe and a crown of gold, marks of the high dignity conferred upon him; for none at that time wore purple except princes and nobles of the first rank. Demetrius, who received advice of this, still outdid him, to secure to himself an ally of such importance. But, after the injuries he had done to all those who had the truest interests of the Jews at heart, and the nation in general, they dared not confide in him, and resolved rather to treat with Alex A. M. 3350. Ant. J. C. 154. ↑ Polyb. Legat. cxxxviii. et clx. Joseph. Antiq. 1. xiii. c. 3. A. M. 3851. Ant. J. C. Athen. 1. x. p. 440. Athen. 1. v. p. 211. 153, Justin. 1. xxxv. c. 1. 1 Maccab. x. 1-50. ander. Jonathan therefore accepted the high-priesthood from him, and with the consent of the whole people, at the feast of the tabernacles, which happened soon after, he put on the pontifical vestments, and officiated as high-priest. The place had been vacant seven years from the death of Alcimus. The high-priesthood, which at that time came into the Asmonean family, continued in it till Herod's time, who, from its being hereditary, as it had been till then, made an employment of it, which he disposed of at pleasure. The two kings having taken the field, Demetrius, who wanted neither valour nor good sense, when his reason was not impaired by wine, was victorious in the first battle; but it was of no advantage to him. Alexander soon received new troops from the three kings who had set him up, and continued to support him vigorously. Having, besides this, the Romans and Jonathan on his side, he retrieved himself, and maintained his ground. The Syrians also continually deserted, because they could not bear Demetrius. That prince, beginning to apprehend the event of the war, sent his two sons, Demetrius and Antiochus, to Cnidos, a city of Caria, so that they might be secure in case of misfortune. He confided them, with a considerable sum of money, to the care of a friend of his in that city; so that, if any accident should happen, they might remain there in safety, and wait some favourable conjuncture.* It was at the same time, and perhaps in imitation of Alexander Bala, that Andriscus played the same part in Macedonia. He had retired to Demetrius, who had given him up to the Romans, from the hope of conciliating their favour.t The two competitors for the crown of Syria, having assembled all their troops, came to a decisive battle. At first, the left wing of Demetrius broke that of the enemy which opposed it, and put it to flight. But being too eager in the pursuit, a common fault in battles, and which almost always occasions their being lost, at their return, they found the right, at the head of which Demetrius fought in person, routed, and the king himself killed in the pursuit. As long as he had been in a condition to support the enemy's charge, he had omitted nothing that valour and conduct were capable of, which might con duce to his success. At length his troops gave way, and, in the retreat, his horse plunged into a bog, where those who pursued him killed him with their arrows. He had reigned twelve years. Alexander, by this victory, found himself master of the empire of Syria. As soon as Alexander saw himself at repose, he sent to demand Cleopatra, the daughter of Ptolemy king of Egypt, in marriage. She was granted him, and her father conducted her in person to Ptolemais, where the nuptials were celebrated. Jonathan was invited to that feast, and went thither, where he was received by the two kings with all possible marks of honour.S Onias, son of Onias III. having been disappointed of the high-priesthood after the death of his uncle Menelaus, had retired into Egypt. He had found means to insinuate himself so well into the favour of Ptolemy Philometer and Cleopatra his wife, that he was become their favourite and most intimate confidant. He made use of his influence at that court to obtain the king's permission for building a temple for the Jews in Egypt, like that in Jerusalem; assuring him that that favour would bring the whole nation into his party against Antiochus Epiphanes: at the same time the high-priesthood there was granted to him and his descendants for ever. The great difficulty was to bring the Jews to consent to this innovation; it being forbid by the law to offer sacrifices in any place but the temple of Jerusalem. It was not without difficulty he overcame their repugnance, by a passage in Isaiah, wherein the prophet foretells this event in these terms: In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the Lord of hosts; the A. M. 3852. Ant. J. C. 152. 1 Maccab. x. 51-56. † A. M. 3353. Ant. J. C. 151. A. M. 3854. Ant. J. C. 150 Joseph. contra Appian. ↳ i. one shall be called the City of Destruction;" M. Rollin says, the City of the Sun, or Heliopolis. "In that day there shall be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt; and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord. And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall find them a saviour and a great one, and he shall deliver them. And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it."* The event here foretold by Isaiah is one of the most singular, and, at the same time, the most remote from all probability. Nothing was more strictly forbidden to the Jews, than to offer sacrifices to God in any other place than the temple built by his order at Jerusalem; how much more then, to build a temple elsewhere, especially in a land polluted with the most gross idolatry, and always at enmity with the people of God? This, however, came to pass, exactly as the prophet Isaiah had foretold. I shall not enter into a circumstantial exposure of this prophecy, which would carry me too far from my subject. Alexander Bala, finding himself in the peaceable possession of the crown of Syria, thought he had nothing more to do than to take all the pleasures which the abundance and power to which he had attained would admit. He abandoned himself therefore to his natural inclination for luxury, idleness, and debauch. He left the care of affairs entirely to a favourite, named Ammonias. That insolent and cruel minister put to death Laodice, the sister of Demetrius, and widow of Perseus, king of Macedonia; Antigonus, the son of Demetrius, who continued in Syria when the two others were sent to Cnidos; in fine, all the persons of the royal blood he could find, in order to secure to his master, by that means, the possession of the crown he had usurped by an imposture. That conduct soon drew upon both the abhorrence of the people.t Demetrius, the eldest son of Demetrius, was at Cnidos, and began to be of an age capable of council and action. When he was advised of this aversion of the people, he thought the occasion favourable for repossessing himself of his right. Lasthenes, the friend in whose house he lived, procured him some companies of Cretans. with which he landed in Cilicia. There soon joined him a sufficient number of malcontents to form an army, with which he made himself master of the whole province. Alexander opened his eyes, and quitted his seraglio, to apply himself to his affairs. He left the government of Antioch to Hierax and Diodotus, who is also called Tryphon, put himself at the head of an army formed of all the troops he could assemble; and upon receiving advice that Apollonius, governor of Coelosyria and Phoenicia, had declared for Demetrius, he sent to demand aid of Ptolemy his father-in-law. The first thoughts of Apollonius were to reduce Jonathan, who persisted in his attachment to Alexander; but his success did not answer his design, and in one day he lost more than eight thousand men. Ptolemy Philometer, to whom Alexander had applied in the extreme danger wherein he found himself, came at last to the assistance of his son-in-law, and entered Palestine with a numerous army. All the cities opened their gates to him, according to the orders they had received from Alexander to that effect: Jonathan came to join him at Joppa, and followed him to Ptolemais. Upon his arrival, a conspiracy was discovered, formed by Ammonius against the life of Philometer. As Alexander refused to deliver up that traitor, he concluded that he had entered into the conspiracy himself, and, in consequence, took his daughter from him, gave her to Demetrius, and made a treaty with him, by which he engaged to aid him in re-ascending the throne of his father. The people of Antioch, who bore a violent hatred to Ammonius, believed it time to show their resentment. Having discovered him disguised like a wo Isa. xix. 18-21. A. M. 3856. Ant. J. C. 148. Liv. Epit. lib. 1. Justin. 1. xxxv. c. 2. Jos. Antiq. lxii. i. c. 8. 1 Maccab. x 67-89. Diod. in Excerpt. Vales. A. M. 3958. Ant. J. C. 146. 346. P. man, they sacrificed him to their rage. Not content with that revenge, they declared against Alexander himself, and opened their gates to Ptolemy. They would even have set him upon the throne, but that prince, assuring them that he was content with his own dominions, instead of accepting that offer, recommended to them Demetrius, the lawful heir, who accordingly was placed upon the throne of his ancestors, and acknowledged by all the inhabitants. Alexander, who was at that time in Cilicia, marched with the utmost diligence, and put all to fire and sword around Antioch. The two armies came to a battle. Alexander was beaten, and fled with five hundred horse to Zabdiel,* an Arabian prince, with whom he had entrusted his children. Betrayed by the person in whom he had placed most confidence, his head was cut off, and sent to Ptolemy, who expressed great joy at the sight of it. That joy was not of long duration, for he died a few days after, of a wound he had received in the battle. Thus Alexander, king of Syria, and Ptolemy Philometer, king of Egypt, died at the same time; the first after a reign of five years, and the second after one of thirty-five. Demetrius, who had attained the crown by this victory, assumed the surname of Nicator, that is to say, the Conqueror. The succession of Egypt was attended with more difficulties.† SECTION IV.-PHYSCON ESPOUSES CLEOpatra, and ASCENDS THE THRONE OF EGYPT. CLEOPATRA, queen of Egypt, after the death of her husband, who was at the same time her brother, endeavoured to place the crown upon the head of the son she had by him. As he was yet very young, others laboured to obtain it for Physcon, king of Cyrenaica, the late king's brother, and sent to desire him to come to Álexandria. Cleopatra, thereby reduced to the necessity of her defence, caused Onias and Dosithæs, with an army of Jews, to come to her assistance. There was at that time a Roman ambassador at Alexandria, named Thermus, who by his mediation accommodated affairs. It was agreed, that Physcon should marry Cleopatra, and educate her son, who should be declared heir to the crown; and that Physcon should possess it during his life. He had no sooner married the queen, and taken possession of the crown, than, even on the very day of the nuptials, he killed her son in her arms. I have already observed, that the surname of Physcon, given to this prince, was only a nickname. That which he took to himself was Evergetes, which signifies the Benefactor. The Alexandrians changed it into that of Cacoergetes, that is to say, on the contrary, one who delights in doing harm;" a surname to which he was better entitled. 66 In Syria, affairs went on little better. Demetrius, a young prince, without experience, left every thing to Lasthenes, who had procured him the Cretans, by whose aid he had ascended the throne. He was a corrupt and rash man, and behaved himself so ill, that he soon lost his master the hearts of those who were most necessary to his support.§ The first wrong step which he took, was in regard to the soldiers, whom Ptolemy, upon his march, had put into the maritime places of Phœnicia and Syria, to reinforce the garrisons. If he had left those garrisons in them, they would have very much augmented his forces. Instead of gaining them, or at least of treating them well, upon some umbrage which he conceived, he sent orders to the troops in Syria, who were in the same garrisons, to cut the throats of all the Egyptian soldiers; which massacre was accordingly executed. The army of Egypt, which was still in Syria, and had placed him upon the throne, full of just horror for so barbarous a cruelty, abandoned him immediately, and returned home. After which, he caused the strictest search to be made for all those who had been concerned against himself or his father in the last wars, † A. M. 3859. *He is called Emalcuel in the Maccabees. Ant. J. C. 145. A. M. 3859. Ant. J. C. 145. Joseph. contra App. I. ii. Justin. 1. xxxviii. c. 8. Val. Max. 1. ix. c. 1 Diod. in Excerpt. Vales. p. 346. 1 Maccab. ix. 20-37. Joseph. Antiq. 1. xiii. c. 8. |