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[111]
As Josephus spoke these words, with groans and tears in his eyes,
his voice was intercepted by sobs. However, the Romans could not but pity
the affliction he was under, and wonder at his conduct. But for John, and
those that were with him, they were but the more exasperated against the
Romans on this account, and were desirous to get Josephus also into their
power: yet did that discourse influence a great many of the better sort;
and truly some of them were so afraid of the guards set by the seditious,
that they tarried where they were, but still were satisfied that both they
and the city were doomed to destruction. Some also there were who, watching
a proper opportunity when they might quietly get away, fled to the Romans,
of whom were the high priests Joseph and Jesus, and of the sons of high
priests three, whose father was Ishmael, who was beheaded in Cyrene, and
four sons of Matthias, as also one son of the other Matthias, who ran away
after his father's death, 1
and whose father was slain by Simon the son of Gioras, with three of his
sons, as I have already related; many also of the other nobility went over
to the Romans, together with the high priests. Now Caesar not only received
these men very kindly in other respects, but, knowing they would not willingly
live after the customs of other nations, he sent them to Gophna, and desired
them to remain there for the present, and told them, that when he was gotten
clear of this war, he would restore each of them to their possessions again;
so they cheerfully retired to that small city which was allotted them,
without fear of any danger. But as they did not appear, the seditious gave
out again that these deserters were slain by the Romans, which was done
in order to deter the rest from running away, by fear of the like treatment.
This trick of theirs succeeded now for a while, as did the like trick before;
for the rest were hereby deterred from deserting, by fear of the like treatment.
1 Josephus had before told us, B. V. ch. 13. sect. 1, that this fourth son of Matthias ran away to the Romans "before" his father's and brethren's slaughter, and not "after" it, as here. The former account is, in all probability, the truest; for had not that fourth son escaped before the others were caught and put to death, he had been caught and put to death with them. This last account, therefore, looks like an instance of a small inadvertence of Josephus in the place before us.
Flavius Josephus. The Works of Flavius Josephus. Translated by. William Whiston, A.M. Auburn and Buffalo. John E. Beardsley. 1895.
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