THE WARS OF THE JEWS
OR
THE HISTORY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM
Book III: Chapter 9
HOW JOPPA WAS TAKEN, AND TIBERIAS DELIVERED UP.
1.
NOW Vespasian returned to Ptolemais on the fourth day
of the month Panemus, [Tamus] and from thence he came
to Cesarea, which lay by the sea-side. This was a very
great city of Judea, and for the greatest part
inhabited by Greeks: the citizens here received both
the Roman army and its general, with all sorts of
acclamations and rejoicings, and this partly out of
the good-will they bore to the Romans, but principally
out of the hatred they bore to those that were
conquered by them; on which account they came
clamoring against Josephus in crowds, and desired he
might be put to death. But Vespasian passed over this
petition concerning him, as offered by the injudicious
multitude, with a bare silence. Two of the legions
also he placed at Cesarea, that they might there take
their winter-quarters, as perceiving the city very fit
for such a purpose; but he placed the tenth and the
fifth at Scythopolis, that he might not distress
Cesarea with the entire army. This place was warm even
in winter, as it was suffocating hot in the summer
time, by reason of its situation in a plain, and near
to the sea [of Galilee].
2. In the mean time, there were gathered together
as well such as had seditiously got out from among
their enemies, as those that had escaped out of the
demolished cities, which were in all a great number,
and repaired Joppa, which had been left desolate by
Cestius, that it might serve them for a place of
refuge; and because the adjoining region had been laid
waste in the war, and was not capable of supporting
them, they determined to go off to sea. They also
built themselves a great many piratical ships, and
turned pirates upon the seas near to Syria, and
Phoenicia, and Egypt, and made those seas unnavigable
to all men. Now as soon as Vespasian knew of their
conspiracy, he sent both footmen and horsemen to
Joppa, which was unguarded in the night time; however,
those that were in it perceived that they should be
attacked, and were afraid of it; yet did they not
endeavor to keep the Romans out, but fled to their
ships, and lay at sea all night, out of the reach of
their darts.
3. Now Joppa is not naturally a haven, for it ends
in a rough shore, whereall the rest of it is straight,
but the two ends bend towards each other, where there
are deep precipices, and great stones that jut out
into the sea, and where the chains wherewith Andromeda
was bound have left their footsteps, which attest to
the antiquity of that fable. But the north wind
opposes and beats upon the shore, and dashes mighty
waves against the rocks which receive them, and
renders the haven more dangerous than the country they
had deserted. Now as those people of Joppa were
floating about in this sea, in the morning there fell
a violent wind upon them; it is called by those that
sail there “the black north wind,” and there dashed
their ships one against another, and dashed some of
them against the rocks, and carried many of them by
force, while they strove against the opposite waves,
into the main sea; for the shore was so rocky, and had
so many of the enemy upon it, that they were afraid to
come to land; nay, the waves rose so very high, that
they drowned them; nor was there any place whither
they could fly, nor any way to save themselves; while
they were thrust out of the sea, by the violence of
the wind, if they staid where they were, and out of
the city by the violence of the Romans. And much
lamentation there was when the ships were dashed
against one another, and a terrible noise when they
were broken to pieces; and some of the multitude that
were in them were covered with waves, and so perished,
and a great many were embarrassed with shipwrecks. But
some of them thought that to die by their own swords
was lighter than by the sea, and so they killed
themselves before they were drowned; although the
greatest part of them were carried by the waves, and
dashed to pieces against the abrupt parts of the
rocks, insomuch that the sea was bloody a long way,
and the maritime parts were full of dead bodies; for
the Romans came upon those that were carried to the
shore, and destroyed them; and the number of the
bodies that were thus thrown out of the sea was four
thousand and two hundred. The Romans also took the
city without opposition, and utterly demolished it.
4. And thus was Joppa taken twice by the Romans in
a little time; but Vespasian, in order to prevent these
pirates from coming thither any more, erected a camp
there, where the citadel of Joppa had been, and left a
body of horse in it, with a few footmen, that these
last might stay there and guard the camp, and the
horsemen might spoil the country that lay round
it, and might destroy the neighboring villages and
smaller cities. So these troops overran the country,
as they were ordered to do, and every day cut to
pieces and laid desolate the whole region.
5. But now, when the fate of Jotapata was related
at Jerusalem, a great many at the first disbelieved it,
on account of the vastness of the calamity, and
because they had no eye-witness to attest the truth of
what was related about it; for not one person was
saved to be a messenger of that news, but a fame was
spread abroad at random that the city was taken, as
such fame usually spreads bad news about. However, the
truth was known by degrees, from the places near
Jotapata, and appeared to all to be too true. Yet were
there fictitious stories added to what was really
done; for it was reported that Josephus was slain at
the taking of the city, which piece of news filled
Jerusalem full of sorrow. In every house also, and
among all to whom any of the slain were allied, there
was a lamentation for them; but the mourning for the
commander was a public one; and some mourned for those
that had lived with them, others for their kindred,
others for their friends, and others for their
brethren, but all mourned for Josephus; insomuch that
the lamentation did not cease in the city before the
thirtieth day; and a great many hired mourners,5 with
their pipes, who should begin the melancholy ditties
for them.
6. But as the truth came out in time, it appeared
how the affairs of Jotapata really stood; yet was it
found that the death of Josephus was a fiction; and
when they understood that he was alive, and was among
the Romans, and that the commanders treated him at
another rate than they treated captives, they were as
vehemently angry at him now as they had showed their
good-will before, when he appeared to have been dead.
He was also abused by some as having been a coward,
and by others as a deserter; and the city was full of
indignation at him, and of reproaches cast upon him;
their rage was also aggravated by their afflictions,
and more inflamed by their ill success; and what
usually becomes an occasion of caution to wise men, I
mean affliction, became a spur to them to venture on
further calamities, and the end of one misery became
still the beginning of another; they therefore
resolved to fall on the Romans the more vehemently, as
resolving to be revenged on him in revenging
themselves on the Romans. And this was the state of
Jerusalem as to the troubles which now came upon it.
7. But Vespasian, in order to see the kingdom of
Agrippa, while the king persuaded himself so to do,
(partly in order to his treating the general and his
army in the best and most splendid manner his private
affairs would enable him to do, and partly that he
might, by their means, correct such things as were
amiss in his government,) he removed from that Cesarea
which was by the sea-side, and went to that which is
called Cesarea Philippi 6 and there he refreshed his
army for twenty days, and was himself feasted by king
Agrippa, where he also returned public thanks to God
for the good success he had had in his undertakings.
But as soon as he was informed that Tiberias was fond
of innovations, and that Tarichere had revolted, both
which cities were parts of the kingdom of Agrippa, and
was satisfied within himself that the Jews were every
where perverted [from their obedience to their
governors], he thought it seasonable to make an
expedition against these cities, and that for the sake
of Agrippa, and in order to bring his cities to
reason. So he sent away his son Titus to [the other]
Cesarea, that he might bring the army that lay there
to Seythopous, which is the largest city of Decapolis,
and in the neighborhood of Tiberias, whither he came,
and where he waited for his son. He then came with
three legions, and pitched his camp thirty furlongs
off Tiberias, at a certain station easily seen by the
innovators; it is named Sennabris. He also sent
Valerian, a decurion, with fifty horsemen, to speak
peaceably to those that were in the city, and to
exhort them to give him assurances of their fidelity;
for he had heard that the people were desirous of
peace, but were obliged by some of the seditious part
to join with them, and so were forced to fight for
them. When Valerian had marched up to the place, and
was near the wall, he alighted off his horse, and made
those that were with him to do the same, that they
might not be thought to come to skirmish with them;
but before they could come to a dis
course one with
another, the most potent men among the seditious made
a sally upon them armed; their leader was one whose
name was Jesus, the son of Shaphat, the principal head
of a band of robbers. Now Valerian, neither thinking
it safe to fight contrary to the commands of the
general, though he were secure of a victory, and
knowing that it was a very hazardous undertaking for a
few to fight with many, for those that were unprovided
to fight those that were ready, and being on other
accounts surprised at this unexpected onset of the
Jews, he ran away on foot, as did five of the rest in
like manner, and
left their horses behind them; which horses Jesus
led away into the city, and rejoiced as if they had
taken them in battle, and not by treachery.
8. Now the seniors of the people, and such as were
of principal authority among them, fearing what would
be the issue of this matter, fled to the camp of the
Romans; they then took their king along with them, and
fell down before Vespasian, to supplicate his favor,
and besought him not to overlook them, nor to impute
the madness of a few to the whole city, to spare a
people that have been ever civil and obliging to the
Romans; but to bring the authors of this revolt to due
punishment, who had hitherto so watched them, that
though they were zealous to give them the security of
their right hands of a long time, yet could they not
accomplish the same. With these supplications the
general complied, although he were very angry at the
whole city about the carrying off his horses, and this
because he saw that Agrippa was under a great concern
for them. So when Vespasian and Agrippa had accepted
of their right hands by way of security, Jesus and his
party thought it not safe for them to continue at
Tiberias, so they ran away to Tarichete. The next day
Vespasian sent Trajan before with some horsemen to the
citadel, to make trial of the multitude, whether they
were all disposed for peace; and as soon as he knew
that the people were of the same mind with the
petitioner, he took his army, and went to the city;
upon which the citizens opened to him their gates, and
met him with acclamations of joy, and called him their
savior and benefactor. But as the army was a great
while in getting in at the gates, they were so narrow,
Vespasian commanded the south wall to be broken down,
and so made a broad passage for their entrance.
However, he charged them to abstain from rapine and
injustice, in order to gratify the king; and on his
account spared the rest of the wall, while the king
undertook for them that they should continue [faithful
to the Romans] for the time to come. And thus did he
restore this city to a quiet state, after it had been
grievously afflicted by the sedition.
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