601. AFTER these things were over, Bathyllus came under examination, in order to convict Antipater, who proved the concluding attestation to Antipater's designs; for indeed he was no other than his freed-man. This man came, and brought another deadly potion, the poison of asps, and the juices of other serpents, that if the first potion did not do the business, Pheroras and his wife might be armed with this also to destroy the king. He brought also an addition to Antipater's insolent attempt against his father, which was the letters which he wrote against his brethren, Archelaus and Philip, which were the king's sons, and educated at Rome, being yet youths, but of generous dispositions. Antipater set himself to get rid of these as soon as he could, that they might not be prejudicial to his hopes; and to that end he forged letters against them in the name of his friends at Rome. Some of these he corrupted by bribes to write how they grossly reproached their father, and did openly bewail Alexander and Aristobulus, and were uneasy at their being recalled; for their father had already sent for them, which was the very thing that troubled Antipater.
601. Ἐπὶ τούτοις καὶ Βάθυλλος εἰς τοὺς ἐλέγχους συνέδραμεν, ἡ τελευταία πίστις τῶν Ἀντιπάτρῳ βεβουλευμένων· ἦν μὲν γὰρ ἀπελεύθερος αὐτοῦ, κομίζων δʼ ἧκεν ἄλλο δηλητήριον ἰοὺς ἀσπίδων καὶ χυλοὺς ἑτέρων ἑρπετῶν, ἵνα εἰ τὸ πρῶτον ἀσθενήσει φάρμακον, τούτῳ Φερώρας μετὰ τῆς γυναικὸς ὁπλίσαιτο κατὰ τοῦ βασιλέως. πάρεργον δὲ τῆς ἐπὶ τὸν πατέρα τόλμης ἐκόμιζεν τὰς κατὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἐσκευωρημένας ἐπιστολὰς ὑπʼ Ἀντιπάτρου· ἦσαν γὰρ Ἀρχέλαος καὶ Φίλιππος βασιλέως παῖδες ἐπὶ Ῥώμης παιδευόμενοι μειράκιά τε ἤδη καὶ φρονήματος μεστοί. τούτους ἐπανακύπτοντας αὐτοῦ ταῖς ἐλπίσιν ἀποσκευάσασθαι σπεύδων Ἀντίπατρος ἃς μὲν πλάττεται κατʼ αὐτῶν ἐπιστολὰς ἐξ ὀνόματος τῶν ἐπὶ Ῥώμης φίλων, οὓς δὲ ἔπειθεν γράψαι διαφθείρας χρήμασιν, ὡς πολλὰ μὲν βλασφημοῖεν τὸν πατέρα, φανερῶς δὲ Ἀλέξανδρον καὶ Ἀριστόβουλον ὀδύροιντο, πρὸς δὲ τὴν μετάκλησιν ἀγανακτοῖεν· ἤδη δʼ αὐτοὺς ὁ πατὴρ μετεπέμπετο, καὶ τοῦτο ἦν τὸ μάλιστα ταράσσον Ἀντίπατρον.
604. Nay, indeed, while Antipater was in Judea, and before he was upon his journey to Rome, he gave money to have the like letters against them sent from Rome, and then came to his father, who as yet had no suspicion of him, and apologized for his brethren, and alleged on their behalf that some of the things contained in those letters were false, and others of them were only youthful errors. Yet at the same time that he expended a great deal of his money, by making presents to such as wrote against his brethren, did he aim to bring his accounts into confusion, by buying costly garments, and carpets of various contextures, with silver and gold cups, and a great many more curious things, that so, among the view great expenses laid out upon such furniture, he might conceal the money he had used in hiring men [to write the letters]; for he brought in an account of his expenses, amounting to two hundred talents, his main pretense for which was file law-suit he had been in with Sylleus. So while all his rogueries, even those of a lesser sort also, were covered by his greater villainy, while all the examinations by torture proclaimed his attempt to murder his father, and the letters proclaimed his second attempt to murder his brethren; yet did no one of those that came to Rome inform him of his misfortunes in Judea, although seven months had intervened between his conviction and his return, so great was the hatred which they all bore to him. And perhaps they were the ghosts of those brethren of his that had been murdered that stopped the mouths of those that intended to have told him. He then wrote from Rome, and informed his [friends] that he would soon come to them, and how he was dismissed with honor by Caesar.
604. Ἔτι δὲ καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἀποδημίας ἐν Ἰουδαίᾳ μένων τοιαύτας κατʼ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ Ῥώμης ἠγόραζεν ἐπιστολὰς προσιών τε ὡς ἀνύποπτος εἴη τῷ πατρὶ περὶ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἀπελογεῖτο, τὰ μὲν ψευδῆ λέγων εἶναι τῶν γραφομένων, ἃ δὲ νεότητος ἁμαρτήματα. τηνικαῦτά γε μὴν τοῖς γράφουσιν κατὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν πλεῖστα δοὺς χρήματα συμφύρειν ἐπειρᾶτο τὸν ἔλεγχον, ἐσθῆτάς τε πολυτελεῖς καὶ στρωμνὰς ποικίλας ἐκπώματά τε ἀργυρᾶ καὶ χρυσᾶ συνωνούμενος ἄλλα τε πολλὰ τῶν κειμηλίων, ἵνα τῷ πλήθει τῆς εἰς ταῦτα δαπάνης τοὺς εἰς ἐκεῖνα μισθοὺς ἐγκαταγράψῃ· διακόσια γοῦν ἀναλώματος ἀνήνεγκεν τάλαντα, καὶ τούτων μεγίστη πρόφασις ἦν ἡ πρὸς Συλλαῖον δίκη. πάντων δʼ αὐτοῦ τότε καὶ τῶν βραχυτέρων ἐν τῷ μείζονι κακῷ διακαλυφθέντων, ὅθʼ αἱ μὲν βάσανοι πᾶσαι τὴν πατροκτονίαν, αἱ δʼ ἐπιστολαὶ δευτέρας ἀδελφοκτονίας κεκράγεσαν, ὅμως οὐδεὶς τῶν εἰς Ῥώμην ἀφικνουμένων ἀπήγγειλεν αὐτῷ τὰς ἐν Ἰουδαίᾳ τύχας καίτοι μεταξὺ τῶν ἐλέγχων καὶ τῆς ἐπανόδου διελθόντων ἑπτὰ μηνῶν· τοσοῦτον πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐκ πάντων μῖσος ἦν. τάχα καὶ τοὺς ἀπαγγέλλειν προῃρημένους οἱ τῶν ἀνῃρημένων δαίμονες ἀδελφῶν ἐφίμουν· γράφει γοῦν ἀπὸ Ῥώμης ἄφιξιν ἑαυτοῦ ταχεῖαν εὐαγγελιζόμενος, καὶ ὡς ὑπὸ Καίσαρος μετὰ τιμῆς ἀπολυθείη.
608. Now the king, being desirous to get this plotter against him into his hands, and being also afraid lest he should some way come to the knowledge how his affairs stood, and be upon his guard, he dissembled his anger in his epistle to him, as in other points he wrote kindly to him, and desired him to make haste, because if he came quickly, he would then lay aside the complaints he had against his mother; for Antipater was not ignorant that his mother had been expelled out of the palace. However, he had before received a letter, which contained an account of the death of Pheroras, at Tarentum, and made great lamentations at it; for which some commended him, as being for his own uncle; though probably this confusion arose on account of his having thereby failed in his plot [on his father's life]; and his tears were more for the loss of him that was to have been subservient therein, than for [an uncle] Pheroras: moreover, a sort of fear came upon him as to his designs, lest the poison should have been discovered. However, when he was in Cilicia, he received the forementioned epistle from his father, and made great haste accordingly. But when he had sailed to Celenderis, a suspicion came into his mind relating to his mother's misfortunes; as if his soul foreboded some mischief to itself. Those therefore of his friends which were the most considerate advised him not rashly to go to his father, till he had learned what were the occasions why his mother had been ejected, because they were afraid that he might be involved in the calumnies that had been cast upon his mother: but those that were less considerate, and had more regard to their own desires of seeing their native country, than to Antipater's safety, persuaded him to make haste home, and not, by delaying his journey, afford his father ground for an ill suspicion, and give a handle to those that raised stories against him; for that in case any thing had been moved to his disadvantage, it was owing to his absence, which durst not have been done had he been present. And they said it was absurd to deprive himself of certain happiness, for the sake of an uncertain suspicion, and not rather to return to his father, and take the royal authority upon him, which was in a state of fluctuation on his account only. Antipater complied with this last advice, for Providence hurried him on [to his destruction]. So he passed over the sea, and landed at Sebastus, the haven of Cesarea.
608. Ὁ βασιλεὺς δὲ εἰς χεῖρας λαβεῖν σπεύδων τὸν ἐπίβουλον καὶ δεδοικὼς μή ποτε προγνοὺς φυλάξηται, διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἀνθυπεκρίνετο τά τε ἄλλα φιλοφρονούμενος καὶ σπεύδειν παρακαλῶν· θήσεσθαι γὰρ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰς πρὸς τὴν μητέρα μέμψεις ἐπειχθέντος· οὐ γὰρ ἠγνόει τὴν ἐκβολὴν τῆς μητρὸς Ἀντίπατρος. πρότερον μὲν οὖν εἰλήφει τὴν περὶ τῆς Φερώρα τελευτῆς ἐπιστολὴν ἐν Τάραντι καὶ μέγιστον ἐποιήσατο πένθος, ὅ τινες ὡς ἐπὶ θείῳ καθύμνουν, ἦν δʼ, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐπὶ διαμαρτίᾳ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς ἡ σύγχυσις καὶ οὐ Φερώραν κλαίοντος, ἀλλὰ τὸν ὑπηρέτην· ἤδη δὲ καὶ φόβος ἐπῄει τις αὐτὸν τῶν τετελεσμένων, μή ποτε φωραθείη τὸ φάρμακον. τότε δʼ ἐν Κιλικίᾳ λαβὼν ἣν προειρήκαμεν παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ἐπιστολὴν παραχρῆμα μὲν ἔσπευδεν, ὡς δὲ εἰς Κελένδεριν κατέπλει, λαμβάνει τις αὐτὸν ἔννοια τῶν περὶ τὴν μητέρα κακῶν προμαντευομένης ἤδη καὶ καθʼ ἑαυτὴν τῆς ψυχῆς. οἱ μὲν οὖν προμηθέστεροι τῶν φίλων συνεβούλευον μὴ πρότερον ἐμπίπτειν τῷ πατρὶ πρὶν πυθέσθαι σαφῶς διʼ ἃς αἰτίας ἐξέβαλεν αὐτοῦ τὴν μητέρα· δεδιέναι γάρ, μή ποτε προσθήκη γένοιτο τῶν κατʼ ἐκείνης διαβολῶν. οἱ δὲ ἀσκεπτότεροι καὶ τὴν πατρίδα σπεύδοντες ἰδεῖν μᾶλλον ἢ τὸ συμφέρον Ἀντιπάτρῳ σκοποῦντες, ἐπείγεσθαι παρῄνουν καὶ μὴ τῇ μελλήσει παρασχεῖν τῷ πατρὶ μὲν ὑποψίαν φαύλην, τοῖς διαβάλλουσι δὲ ἀφορμήν· καὶ γὰρ νῦν, εἴ τι κεκίνηται κατʼ αὐτοῦ, παρὰ τὴν ἀπουσίαν γέγονεν· μηδὲ γὰρ ἂν τολμῆσαι παρόντος· ἄτοπον δʼ εἶναι διʼ ἀδήλους ὑποψίας προδήλων ἀγαθῶν στερίσκεσθαι, καὶ μὴ θᾶττον ἀποδοῦναι μὲν ἑαυτὸν τῷ πατρί, κομίσασθαι δὲ τὴν βασιλείαν ἐπʼ αὐτῷ μόνῳ σαλεύουσαν. πείθεται τούτοις, ἐνῆγεν γὰρ τὸ δαιμόνιον, καὶ διαπεράσας εἰς τὸν Σεβαστὸν λιμένα τῆς Καισαρείας κατάγεται.
614. And here he found a perfect and unexpected solitude, while ever body avoided him, and nobody durst come at him; for he was equally hated by all men; and now that hatred had liberty to show itself, and the dread men were in at the king's anger made men keep from him; for the whole city [of Jerusalem] was filled with the rumors about Antipater, and Antipater himself was the only person who was ignorant of them; for as no man was dismissed more magnificently when he began his voyage to Rome so was no man now received back with greater ignominy. And indeed he began already to suspect what misfortunes there were in Herod's family; yet did he cunningly conceal his suspicion; and while he was inwardly ready to die for fear, he put on a forced boldness of countenance. Nor could he now fly any whither, nor had he any way of emerging out of the difficulties which encompassed him; nor indeed had he even there any certain intelligence of the affairs of the royal family, by reason of the threats the king had given out: yet had he some small hopes of better tidings; for perhaps nothing had been discovered; or if any discovery had been made, perhaps he should be able to clear himself by impudence and artful tricks, which were the only things he relied upon for his deliverance.
614. Παρυπήντησεν δʼ αὐτῷ παρὰ δόξαν ἐρημία πολλὴ πάντων ἐκτρεπομένων καὶ μηδενὸς προσιέναι τολμῶντος· ἐμισεῖτο μὲν γὰρ ἐπίσης, καὶ τότε φανῆναι τὸ μῖσος ἔσχεν παρρησίαν, πολλοὺς δὲ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ βασιλέως φόβος ἀπέστρεψεν, ἐπειδὴ πᾶσα πόλις ἤδη τῆς κατʼ Ἀντιπάτρου φήμης πεπλήρωτο καὶ μόνος ἠγνόει τὰ κατʼ αὐτὸν Ἀντίπατρος· οὔτε δὲ προεπέμφθη λαμπρότερόν τις ἐκείνου πλέοντος ἐπὶ Ῥώμης οὔτε ἀτιμότερον ὑπεδέχθη. ὁ δὲ ἤδη μὲν ἐνενόει τὰς οἴκοι συμφοράς, ἔτι δὲ ἐκ πανουργίας ὑπεκρύπτετο καὶ τῷ δέει τεθνηκὼς ἔνδοθεν σοβαρὸς εἶναι τὸ πρόσωπον ἐβιάζετο. φυγὴ δʼ οὐκέτι ἦν οὐδʼ ἐκ τῶν περιεχόντων ἀνάδυσις, καὶ σαφὲς μὲν οὐδὲ ἐκεῖ τι τῶν οἴκοθεν ἀπηγγέλλετο διὰ τὴν ἐκ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀπειλήν, ὑπελείπετο δὲ ἐλπὶς ἱλαρωτέρα, τάχα μὲν μηδὲν πεφωρᾶσθαι, τάχα δʼ, εἴ τι καὶ πεφώραται, διασκευάσειν ἀναιδείᾳ καὶ δόλοις, ἅπερ ἦν αὐτῷ μόνα τὰ τῆς σωτηρίας ἐφόδια.
617. And with these hopes did he screen himself, till he came to the palace, without any friends with him; for these were affronted, and shut out at the first gate. Now Varus, the president of Syria, happened to be in the palace [at this juncture]; so Antipater went in to his father, and, putting on a bold face, he came near to salute him. But Herod Stretched out his hands, and turned his head away from him, and cried out, “Even this is an indication of a parricide, to be desirous to get me into his arms, when he is under such heinous accusations. God confound thee, thou vile wretch; do not thou touch me, till thou hast cleared thyself of these crimes that are charged upon thee. I appoint thee a court where thou art to be judged, and this Varus, who is very seasonably here, to be thy judge; and get thou thy defense ready against tomorrow, for I give thee so much time to prepare suitable excuses for thyself.” And as Antipater was so confounded, that he was able to make no answer to this charge, he went away; but his mother and wife came to him, and told him of all the evidence they had gotten against him. Hereupon he recollected himself, and considered what defense he should make against the accusations.
617. Φραξάμενος οὖν αὐτοῖς ἧκεν εἰς τὸ βασίλειον δίχα τῶν φίλων· οὗτοι γὰρ ὑβρισθέντες ἐπὶ τοῦ πρώτου πυλῶνος εἴρχθησαν· ἔτυχεν δʼ ἔνδον ὢν Οὔαρος ὁ τῆς Συρίας ἡγεμών. ὁ δὲ εἴσεισι πρὸς τὸν πατέρα καὶ τῇ τόλμῃ παρακροτήσας ἑαυτὸν ἤγγιζεν ὡς ἀσπασόμενος. κἀκεῖνος τὰς χεῖρας προβαλὼν καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν παρακλίνας, ἔστιν, ἐξεβόησεν, καὶ τοῦτο πατροκτόνου τὸ περιπλέκεσθαί μοι θέλειν ἐν τηλικαύταις αἰτίαις ὄντα. φθείρου, δυσσεβεστάτη κεφαλή, μηδέ μου ψαύσῃς πρὶν ἀποσκευάσασθαι τὰ ἐγκλήματα. δίδωμι δέ σοι δικαστήριον καὶ δικαστὴν εὐκαίρως ἥκοντα Οὔαρον. ἴθι καὶ σκέπτου τὴν ἀπολογίαν εἰς αὔριον· παρέχω γάρ σου καιρὸν τοῖς πανουργεύμασιν. πρὸς ταῦτα μηδὲν ὑπʼ ἐκπλήξεως ἀποκρίνασθαι δυνηθεὶς αὐτὸς ὑπέστρεψεν, παραγενόμεναι δὲ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐκδιηγήσαντο πάντας τοὺς ἐλέγχους ἥ τε μήτηρ καὶ ἡ γυνή. καὶ τότε μὲν ἀνανήψας ἐν σκέψει τῆς ἀπολογίας ἦν.
620. NOW the day following the king assembled a court of his kinsmen and friends, and called in Antipater's friends also. Herod himself, with Varus, were the presidents; and Herod called for all the witnesses, and ordered them to be brought in; among whom some of the domestic servants of Antipater's mother were brought in also, who had but a little while before been caught, as they were carrying the following letter from her to her son: “Since all those things have been already discovered to thy father, do not thou come to him, unless thou canst procure some assistance from Caesar.” When this and the other witnesses were introduced, Antipater came in, and falling on his face before his father's feet, he said, “Father, I beseech thee, do not condemn me beforehand, but let thy ears be unbiassed, and attend to my defense; for if thou wilt give me leave, I will demonstrate that I am innocent.”
620. Τῇ δʼ ἐπιούσῃ συνέδριον μὲν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀθροίζει τῶν συγγενῶν καὶ φίλων, εἰσκαλεῖ δὲ καὶ τοὺς Ἀντιπάτρου φίλους. προκαθέζεται δὲ αὐτὸς ἅμα Οὐάρῳ καὶ τοὺς μηνυτὰς πάντας ἐκέλευσεν εἰσαγαγεῖν, ἐν οἷς εἰσήχθησαν καὶ τῆς Ἀντιπάτρου μητρὸς οἰκέται τινὲς οὐ πρὸ πολλοῦ συνειλημμένοι, κομίζοντες γράμματα παρʼ αὐτῆς πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν τοιάδε· ἐπεὶ πεφώραται πάντα ἐκεῖνα τῷ πατρί σου, μὴ παραγίνου πρὸς αὐτόν, ἂν μή τινα πορίσῃ παρὰ τοῦ Καίσαρος δύναμιν. τούτων σὺν τοῖς ἄλλοις εἰσηγμένων Ἀντίπατρος εἰσέρχεται καὶ πεσὼν πρηνὴς πρὸ τῶν ποδῶν τοῦ πατρός, ἱκετεύω, πάτερ, ἔφη, μηδέν μου προκατεγνωκέναι, παρασχεῖν δέ μοι τὰς ἀκοὰς ἀκεραίους εἰς τὴν ἀπολογίαν· ἀποδείξω γὰρ ἐμαυτὸν καθαρόν, ἂν σὺ θέλῃς.
622. Hereupon Herod cried out to him to hold his peace, and spake thus to Varus: “I cannot but think that thou, Varus, and every other upright judge, will determine that Antipater is a vile wretch. I am also afraid that thou wilt abhor my ill fortune, and judge me also myself worthy of all sorts of calamity for begetting such children; while yet I ought rather to be pitied, who have been so affectionate a father to such wretched sons; for when I had settled the kingdom on my former sons, even when they were young, and when, besides the charges of their education at Rome, I had made them the friends of Caesar, and made them envied by other kings, I found them plotting against me. These have been put to death, and that, in great measure, for the sake of Antipater; for as he was then young, and appointed to be my successor, I took care chiefly to secure him from danger: but this profligate wild beast, when he had been over and above satiated with that patience which I showed him, he made use of that abundance I had given him against myself; for I seemed to him to live too long, and he was very uneasy at the old age I was arrived at; nor could he stay any longer, but would be a king by parricide. And justly I am served by him for bringing him back out of the country to court, when he was of no esteem before, and for thrusting out those sons of mine that were born of the queen, and for making him a successor to my dominions. I confess to thee, O Varus, the great folly I was guilty for I provoked those sons of mine to act against me, and cut off their just expectations for the sake of Antipater; and indeed what kindness did I do them; that could equal what I have done to Antipater? to I have, in a manner, yielded up my royal while I am alive, and whom I have openly named for the successor to my dominions in my testament, and given him a yearly revenue of his own of fifty talents, and supplied him with money to an extravagant degree out of my own revenue; and’ when he was about to sail to Rome, I gave him three talents, and recommended him, and him alone of all my children, to Caesar, as his father's deliverer. Now what crimes were those other sons of mine guilty of like these of Antipater? and what evidence was there brought against them so strong as there is to demonstrate this son to have plotted against me? Yet does this parricide presume to speak for himself, and hopes to obscure the truth by his cunning tricks. Thou, O Varus, must guard thyself against him; for I know the wild beast, and I foresee how plausibly he will talk, and his counterfeit lamentation. This was he who exhorted me to have a care of Alexander when he was alive, and not to intrust my body with all men! This was he who came to my very bed, and looked about lest any one should lay snares for me! This was he who took care of my sleep, and secured me from fear of danger, who comforted me under the trouble I was in upon the slaughter of my sons, and looked to see what affection my surviving brethren bore me! This was my protector, and the guardian of my body! And when I call to mind, O Varus, his craftiness upon every occasion, and his art of dissembling, I can hardly believe that I am still alive, and I wonder how I have escaped such a deep plotter of mischief. However, since some fate or other makes my house desolate, and perpetually raises up those that are dearest to me against me, I will, with tears, lament my hard fortune, and privately groan under my lonesome condition; yet am I resolved that no one who thirsts after my blood shall escape punishment, although the evidence should extend itself to all my sons.”
622. Ὁ δʼ αὐτῷ σιγᾶν ἐγκραγὼν πρὸς τὸν Οὔαρον εἶπεν· ἀλλʼ ὅτι μὲν καὶ σύ, Οὔαρε, καὶ πᾶς δικαστὴς ὅσιος Ἀντίπατρον ἐξώλη κρινεῖ, πέπεισμαι. δέδοικα δέ, μὴ κἀμοῦ μισήσῃς τὴν τύχην κἀμὲ κρίνῃς πάσης ἄξιον συμφορᾶς τοιούτους υἱοὺς γεγεννηκότα. χρὴ δέ με διὰ τοῦτο ἐλεεῖσθαι πλέον, ὅτι πρὸς οὕτω μιαροὺς καὶ φιλοστοργότατος πατὴρ ἐγενόμην. τοὺς μὲν γὰρ προτέρους βασιλείας τε ἔτι νέους ἀξιώσας καὶ πρὸς τοῖς ἐν Ῥώμῃ τροφείοις φίλους Καίσαρος, ζηλωτοὺς δὲ ποιήσας βασιλεῦσιν ἑτέροις, εὗρον ἐπιβούλους, οἳ τεθνήκασι τὸ πλέον Ἀντιπάτρῳ· νέῳ γὰρ ὄντι καὶ διαδόχῳ τούτῳ μάλιστα τὴν ἀσφάλειαν ἐποριζόμην. τὸ δὲ μιαρὸν τοῦτο θηρίον τῆς ἐμῆς ὑπερεμπλησθὲν ἀνεξικακίας ἤνεγκεν κατʼ ἐμοῦ τὸν κόρον· ἔδοξα γὰρ αὐτῷ πολὺν ζῆν χρόνον, καὶ τὸ ἐμὸν γῆρας ἐβαρύνθη βασιλεύς τε οὐχ ὑπέμεινεν εἰ μὴ διὰ πατροκτονίας γενέσθαι, δίκαια γοῦν βουλευσάμενος, ὅτι καταγαγὼν αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῆς χώρας ἀπερριμμένον καὶ παρωσάμενος τοὺς ἐκ βασιλίδος μοι γεγενημένους ἀπέδειξα τῆς ἀρχῆς διάδοχον. ἐξομολογοῦμαί σοι, Οὔαρε, τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ φρενοβλάβειαν· ἐγὼ τοὺς υἱοὺς ἐκείνους κατʼ ἐμαυτοῦ παρώξυνα δικαίας αὐτῶν ἀποκόψας ἐλπίδας διʼ Ἀντίπατρον. καὶ τί μὲν ἐκείνους εὐεργέτησα τηλικοῦτον, ἡλίκον τοῦτον; ᾧ γε ζῶν μὲν ὀλίγου δεῖν παρεχώρησα τῆς ἐξουσίας, φανερῶς δὲ ταῖς διαθήκαις ἐνέγραψα τῆς ἀρχῆς διάδοχον καὶ πρόσοδον μὲν ἰδίᾳ πεντήκοντα ταλάντων ἔνειμα, τῶν δʼ ἐμῶν ἐχορήγησα χρημάτων ἀνέδην, πλέοντι δὲ νῦν εἰς Ῥώμην ἔδωκα τριακόσια τάλαντα, Καίσαρι δʼ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς γενεᾶς μόνον ὡς σωτῆρα τοῦ πατρὸς παρεθέμην. τί δʼ ἐκεῖνοι τοιοῦτον ἠσέβησαν, οἷον Ἀντίπατρος; ἢ τίς ἔλεγχος ἠνέχθη κατʼ αὐτῶν, ἡλίκος ἀποδείκνυσιν τοῦτον ἐπίβουλον; ἀλλὰ φθέγγεσθαί τι τετόλμηκεν ὁ πατροκτόνος καὶ πάλιν δόλοις τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπικαλύψειν ἐλπίζει. Οὔαρε, σοὶ φυλακτέον· ἐγὼ γὰρ οἶδα τὸ θηρίον καὶ προορῶμαι τὴν μέλλουσαν ἀξιοπιστίαν καὶ τὸν ἐπίπλαστον ὀλοφυρμόν· οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ παραινῶν ἐμοί ποτε φυλάττεσθαι ζῶντα Ἀλέξανδρον καὶ μὴ πᾶσιν πιστεύειν τὸ σῶμα· οὗτος ὁ μέχρι τῆς κοίτης εἰσάγων καὶ μή μέ τις ἐνεδρεύοι περιβλέπων· οὗτος ὁ ταμίας τῶν ὕπνων καὶ χορηγὸς τῆς ἀμεριμνίας, ὁ παραμυθούμενος τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνῃρημένοις λύπην καὶ διακρίνων τὴν τῶν ζώντων εὔνοιαν ἀδελφῶν, ὁ ὑπερασπιστὴς ὁ ἐμός, ὁ σωματοφύλαξ. ὅταν ἀναμνησθῶ, Οὔαρε, τὸ πανοῦργον ἐν ἑκάστῳ καὶ τὴν ὑπόκρισιν, ἀπιστία με τοῦ ζῆν εἰσέρχεται καὶ θαυμάζω, πῶς βαρὺν οὕτως ἐπίβουλον διέφυγον. ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ δαίμων τις ἐξερημοῖ τὸν ἐμὸν οἶκον καί μοι τοὺς φιλτάτους ἐπανίστησιν ἀεί, κλαύσομαι μὲν ἐγὼ τὴν ἄδικον εἱμαρμένην καὶ κατʼ ἐμαυτὸν στενάξω τὴν ἐρημίαν, διαφεύξεται δʼ οὐδεὶς διψήσας τοὐμὸν αἷμα, κἂν διὰ πάντων μου τῶν τέκνων ὁ ἔλεγχος ἔλθῃ.
629. Upon Herod's saying this, he was interrupted by the confusion he was in; but ordered Nicolaus, one of his friends, to produce the evidence against Antipater. But in the mean time Antipater lifted up his head, (for he lay on the ground before his father's feet,) and cried out aloud, “Thou, O father, hast made my apology for me; for how can I be a parricide, whom thou thyself confessest to have always had for thy guardian? Thou callest my filial affection prodigious lies and hypocrisy! how then could it be that I, who was so subtle in other matters, should here be so mad as not to understand that it was not easy that he who committed so horrid a crime should be concealed from men, but impossible that he should be concealed from the Judge of heaven, who sees all things, and is present every where? or did not I know what end my brethren came to, on whom God inflicted so great a punishment for their evil designs against thee? And indeed what was there that could possibly provoke me against thee? Could the hope of being king do it? I was a king already. Could I suspect hatred from thee? No. Was not I beloved by thee? And what other fear could I have? Nay, by preserving thee safe, I was a terror to others. Did I want money? No; for who was able to expend so much as myself? Indeed, father, had I been the most execrable of all mankind, and had I had the soul of the most cruel wild beast, must I not have been overcome with the benefits thou hadst bestowed upon me? whom, as thou thyself sayest, thou broughtest [into the palace]; whom thou didst prefer before so many of thy sons; whom thou madest a king in thine own lifetime, and, by the vast magnitude of the other advantages thou bestowedst on me, thou madest me an object of envy. O miserable man! that thou shouldst undergo this bitter absence, and thereby afford a great opportunity for envy to arise against thee, and a long space for such as were laying designs against thee! Yet was I absent, father, on thy affairs, that Sylleus might not treat thee with contempt in thine old age. Rome is a witness to my filial affection, and so is Caesar, the ruler of the habitable earth, who oftentimes called me Philopater. Take here the letters he hath sent thee, they are more to be believed than the calumnies raised here; these letters are my only apology; these I use as the demonstration of that natural affection I have to thee. Remember that it was against my own choice that I sailed [to Rome], as knowing the latent hatred that was in the kingdom against me. It was thou, O father, however unwillingly, who hast been my ruin, by forcing me to allow time for calumnies against me, and envy at me. However, I am come hither, and am ready to hear the evidence there is against me. If I be a parricide, I have passed by land and by sea, without suffering any misfortune on either of them: but this method of trial is no advantage to me; for it seems, O father, that I am already condemned, both before God and before thee; and as I am already condemned, I beg that thou wilt not believe the others that have been tortured, but let fire be brought to torment me; let the racks march through my bowels; have no regard to any lamentations that this polluted body can make; for if I be a parricide, I ought not to die without torture.” Thus did Antipater cry out with lamentation and weeping, and moved all the rest, and Varus in particular, to commiserate his case. Herod was the only person whose passion was too strong to permit him to weep, as knowing that the testimonies against him were true.
629. Τοιαῦτα λέγων αὐτὸς μὲν ὑπὸ συγχύσεως ἐνεκόπη, Νικολάῳ δʼ ἑνὶ τῶν φίλων λέγειν τὰς ἀποδείξεις ἔνευσεν. μεταξὺ δʼ ὁ Ἀντίπατρος ἐπάρας τὴν κεφαλήν, ἔμενεν γὰρ δὴ βεβλημένος πρὸ τῶν ποδῶν τοῦ πατρός, ἐκβοᾷ· σύ, πάτερ, ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ πεποίηκας τὴν ἀπολογίαν· πῶς γὰρ ἐγὼ πατροκτόνος, ὃν ὁμολογεῖς φύλακα διὰ παντὸς ἐσχηκέναι; τερατείαν δέ μου καὶ ὑπόκρισιν λέγεις τὴν εὐσέβειαν. πῶς ὁ πανοῦργος ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις οὕτως ἄφρων ἐγενόμην, ὡς μὴ νοεῖν, ὅτι λαθεῖν οὐδʼ ἀνθρώπους ῥᾴδιον τηλικοῦτον μύσος ἐνσκευαζόμενον, τὸν δʼ ἀπʼ οὐρανοῦ δικαστὴν ἀμήχανον, ὃς ἐφορᾷ πάντα καὶ πανταχοῦ πάρεστιν; ἢ τὸ τῶν ἀδελφῶν τέλος ἠγνόουν, οὓς ὁ θεὸς οὕτως μετῆλθε τῆς εἰς σὲ κακοβουλίας; τί δέ με καὶ παρώξυνεν κατὰ σοῦ; βασιλείας ἐλπίς; ἀλλʼ ἐβασίλευον. ὑπόνοια μίσους; οὐ γὰρ ἐστεργόμην; φόβος ἐκ σοῦ τις ἄλλος· ἀλλὰ μὴν σὲ τηρῶν ἑτέροις φοβερὸς ἤμην. ἔνδεια χρημάτων; καὶ τίνι μᾶλλον ἐξῆν ἀναλίσκειν; εἰ γὰρ ἐξωλέστατος πάντων ἀνθρώπων ἐγενόμην καὶ θηρίου ψυχὴν εἶχον ἀνημέρου, πάτερ, οὐκ ἂν ταῖς σαῖς εὐεργεσίαις ἐνικήθην, ὃν κατήγαγες μέν, ὡς ἔφης αὐτός, προέκρινας δὲ τοσούτων τέκνων, ἀπέδειξας δὲ ζῶν βασιλέα, διʼ ὑπερβολὴν δὲ τῶν ἄλλων ἀγαθῶν ἐποίησας ἐπίφθονον; ὢ τάλας ἐγὼ τῆς πικρᾶς ἀποδημίας, ὡς πολὺν ἔδωκα καιρὸν τῷ φθόνῳ καὶ μακρὰν τοῖς ἐπιβουλεύουσι διωρίαν. σοὶ δέ, πάτερ, καὶ τοῖς σοῖς ἀγῶσιν ἀπεδήμουν, ἵνα μὴ Συλλαῖος τοῦ σοῦ γήρως καταφρονήσῃ. Ῥώμη μοι μάρτυς τῆς εὐσεβείας καὶ ὁ τῆς οἰκουμένης προστάτης Καῖσαρ, ὁ φιλοπάτορα πολλάκις με εἰπών. λάβε, πάτερ, τὰ παρʼ αὐτοῦ γράμματα. ταῦτα τῶν ἐνθάδε διαβολῶν πιστότερα, ταῦτα ἀπολογία μοι μόνη, τούτοις τῆς εἰς σὲ φιλοστοργίας τεκμηρίοις χρῶμαι. μέμνησο δὲ ὡς οὐχ ἑκὼν ἔπλεον ἐπιστάμενος τὴν ἐμφωλεύουσαν τῇ βασιλείᾳ κατʼ ἐμοῦ δυσμένειαν. σὺ δέ με, πάτερ, ἄκων ἀπώλεσας, ἀναγκάσας καιρὸν διαβολῆς δοῦναι τῷ φθόνῳ. πάρειμι δὲ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐλέγχους, πάρειμι διὰ γῆς καὶ θαλάσσης οὐδὲν οὐδαμοῦ παθὼν ὁ πατροκτόνος. ἀλλὰ μήπω με τούτῳ φίλει τῷ τεκμηρίῳ· κατέγνωσμαι γὰρ καὶ παρὰ θεῷ καὶ παρὰ σοί, πάτερ. κατεγνωσμένος δὲ δέομαι μὴ ταῖς ἄλλων βασάνοις πιστεύειν, ἀλλὰ κατʼ ἐμοῦ φερέσθω τὸ πῦρ, ὁδευέτω διὰ τῶν ἐμῶν σπλάγχνων τὰ ὄργανα, μὴ φειδέσθω ὀλοφυρμὸς τοῦ μιαροῦ σώματος· εἰ γὰρ εἰμὶ πατροκτόνος, οὐκ ὀφείλω θνήσκειν ἀβασάνιστος. τοιαῦτα μετʼ ὀλοφυρμοῦ καὶ δακρύων ἐκβοῶν τούς τε ἄλλους ἅπαντας καὶ τὸν Οὔαρον εἰς οἶκτον προυκαλέσατο, μόνον δὲ ὁ θυμὸς Ἡρώδην ἄδακρυν διεκράτει τοὺς ἐλέγχους ἀληθεῖς ἐπιστάμενον.
637. And now it was that, at the king's command, Nicolaus, when he had premised a great deal about the craftiness of Antipater, and had prevented the effects of their commiseration to him, afterwards brought in a bitter and large accusation against him, ascribing all the wickedness that had been in the kingdom to him, and especially the murder of his brethren; and demonstrated that they had perished by the calumnies he had raised against them. He also said that he had laid designs against them that were still alive, as if they were laying plots for the succession; and (said he) how can it be supposed that he who prepared poison for his father should abstain from mischief as to his brethren? He then proceeded to convict him of the attempt to poison Herod, and gave an account in order of the several discoveries that had been made; and had great indignation as to the affair of Pheroras, because Antipater had been for making him murder his brother, and had corrupted those that were dearest to the king, and filled the whole palace with wickedness; and when he had insisted on many other accusations, and the proofs for them, he left off.
637. Ἐν τούτῳ Νικόλαος τοῦ βασιλέως κελεύσαντος πολλὰ πρὸς τὸ πανοῦργον τὸ Ἀντιπάτρου προειπὼν καὶ τὸν ἐπʼ αὐτῷ διαχέας ἔλεον, ἔπειτα πικρὰν κατηγορίαν κατετείνατο, πάντα μὲν τὰ κατὰ τὴν βασιλείαν κακουργήματα περιτιθεὶς αὐτῷ, μάλιστα δὲ τὴν ἀναίρεσιν τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ἀποδεικνὺς ταῖς ἐκείνου διαβολαῖς ἀπολωλότας. ἐπιβουλεύειν δὲ αὐτὸν ἔλεγεν καὶ τοῖς περιοῦσιν ὡς ἐφέδροις τῆς διαδοχῆς· τὸν γὰρ παρασκευάσαντα πατρὶ φάρμακον ἦ πού γʼ ἂν ἀδελφῶν ἀποσχέσθαι. προελθὼν δʼ ἐπὶ τὸν ἔλεγχον τῆς φαρμακείας τάς τε μηνύσεις [ἑξῆς] ἐπεδείκνυεν καὶ περὶ Φερώρα κατεσχετλίαζεν, ὅτι κἀκεῖνον Ἀντίπατρος ποιήσειεν ἀδελφοκτόνον καὶ τοὺς φιλτάτους τῷ βασιλεῖ διαφθείρας ὅλον τοῦ μύσους ἀναπλήσειεν τὸν οἶκον, ἄλλα τε πολλὰ πρὸς τούτοις εἰπὼν καὶ ἀποδείξας καταπαύει τὸν λόγον.
639. Then Varus bid Antipater make his defense; but he lay along in silence, and said no more but this, “God is my witness that I am entirely innocent.” So Varus asked for the potion, and gave it to be drunk by a condemned malefactor, who was then in prison, who died upon the spot. So Varus, when he had had a very private discourse with Herod, and had written an account of this assembly to Caesar, went away, after a day's stay. The king also bound Antipater, and sent away to inform Caesar of his misfortunes.
639. Οὔαρος δὲ ἀπολογεῖσθαι κελεύσας τὸν Ἀντίπατρον, ὡς οὐδὲν πλέον εἰπὼν ἢ θεός ἐστίν μοι τοῦ μηδὲν ἀδικεῖν μάρτυς ἔκειτο σιγῶν, αἰτήσας τὸ φάρμακον δίδωσί τινι τῶν ἐπὶ θανάτῳ κατακρίτων δεσμώτῃ πιεῖν. τοῦ δὲ παραχρῆμα τελευτήσαντος ὁ μὲν ἀπορρήτους ποιήσας τὰς πρὸς Ἡρώδην ὁμιλίας καὶ τὰ περὶ τὸ συνέδριον Καίσαρι γράψας μετὰ μίαν ἡμέραν χωρίζεται. δεσμεῖ δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἀντίπατρον καὶ πρὸς Καίσαρα τοὺς δηλώσοντας τὴν συμφορὰν ἐξέπεμψεν.
641. Now after this it was discovered that Antipater had laid a plot against Salome also; for one of Antiphilus's domestic servants came, and brought letters from Rome, from a maid-servant of Julia, [Caesar's wife,] whose name was Acme. By her a message was sent to the king, that she had found a letter written by Salome, among Julia's papers, and had sent it to him privately, out of her good-will to him. This letter of Salome contained the most bitter reproaches of the king, and the highest accusations against him. Antipater had forged this letter, and had corrupted Acme, and persuaded her to send it to Herod. This was proved by her letter to Antipater, for thus did this woman write to him: “As thou desirest, I have written a letter to thy father, and have sent that letter, and am persuaded that the king will not spare his sister when he reads it. Thou wilt do well to remember what thou hast promised when all is accomplished.”
641. Μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα καὶ κατὰ Σαλώμης ἐπίβουλος Ἀντίπατρος εὑρίσκεται· τῶν γὰρ Ἀντιφίλου τις οἰκετῶν ἧκεν ἐπιστολὰς κομίζων ἀπὸ Ῥώμης παρὰ Λιουίας θεραπαινίδος Ἀκμῆς τοὔνομα. καὶ παρὰ μὲν ταύτης ἐπέσταλτο βασιλεῖ τὰς παρὰ Σαλώμης ἐπιστολὰς ἐν τοῖς Λιουίας εὑρηκέναι γράμμασιν, πεπομφέναι δὲ αὐτῷ λάθρα διʼ εὔνοιαν. αἱ δὲ τῆς Σαλώμης λοιδορίας τε τοῦ βασιλέως περιεῖχον πικροτάτας καὶ κατηγορίαν μεγίστην. ταύτας δὲ πλάσας Ἀντίπατρος καὶ τὴν Ἀκμὴν διαφθείρας ἔπεισεν Ἡρώδῃ πέμψαι. διηλέγχθη δὲ ἐκ τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπιστολῆς· καὶ γὰρ ἐκείνῳ τὸ γύναιον ἔγραψεν· ὡς ἐβουλήθης, ἔγραψά σου τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τὰς ἐπιστολὰς ἐκείνας ἔπεμψα πεπεισμένη τὸν βασιλέα μὴ φείσεσθαι τῆς ἀδελφῆς, ὅταν ἀναγνῷ. καλῶς δὲ ποιήσεις, ἐπειδὰν ἀπαρτισθῇ πάντα, μνημονεύσας ὧν ὑπέσχου.
644. When this epistle was discovered, and what the epistle forged against Salome contained, a suspicion came into the king's mind, that perhaps the letters against Alexander were also forged: he was moreover greatly disturbed, and in a passion, because he had almost slain his sister on Antipater's account. He did no longer delay therefore to bring him to punishment for all his crimes; yet when he was eagerly pursuing Antipater, he was restrained by a severe distemper he fell into. However, he sent all account to Caesar about Acme, and the contrivances against Salome; he sent also for his testament, and altered it, and therein made Antipas king, as taking no care of Archclaus and Philip, because Antipater had blasted their reputations with him; but he bequeathed to Caesar, besides other presents that he gave him, a thousand talents; as also to his wife, and children, and friends, and freed-men about five hundred: he also bequeathed to all others a great quantity of land, and of money, and showed his respects to Salome his sister, by giving her most splendid gifts. And this was what was contained in his testament, as it was now altered.
644. Ταύτης φωραθείσης τῆς ἐπιστολῆς καὶ τῶν κατὰ Σαλώμης ἐνσκευασθεισῶν ἔννοια μὲν ἐμπίπτει τῷ βασιλεῖ τάχα καὶ κατʼ Ἀλεξάνδρου πλασθῆναι γράμματα, περιαλγὴς δʼ ἦν ὑπὸ τοῦ πάθους ὡς παρʼ ὀλίγον καὶ τὴν ἀδελφὴν ἀποκτείνας διʼ Ἀντίπατρον· οὐκέτι οὖν ἀνεβάλλετο λαβεῖν τιμωρίαν ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων. ὡρμημένος δʼ ἐπὶ τὸν Ἀντίπατρον ἐπεσχέθη νόσῳ χαλεπῇ· περὶ μέντοι τῆς Ἀκμῆς καὶ τῶν κατὰ Σαλώμης ἐσκευωρημένων ἐπέστειλεν Καίσαρι. τήν τε διαθήκην αἰτήσας μετέγραφεν, καὶ βασιλέα μὲν ἀπεδείκνυεν Ἀντίπαν ἀμελῶν τῶν πρεσβυτάτων Ἀρχελάου καὶ Φιλίππου· διαβεβλήκει γὰρ καὶ τούτους Ἀντίπατρος· Καίσαρι δὲ σὺν τοῖς διὰ χρημάτων δώροις χίλια τάλαντα, τῇ δὲ γυναικὶ καὶ τέκνοις αὐτοῦ καὶ φίλοις καὶ ἀπελευθέροις περὶ πεντακόσια, ἀπένειμεν δὲ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἅπασιν τῆς τε χώρας οὐκ ὀλίγα καὶ τῶν χρημάτων· λαμπροτάταις δὲ δωρεαῖς ἐτίμα Σαλώμην τὴν ἀδελφήν. ἐν μὲν οὖν ταῖς διαθήκαις ταῦτα διωρθώσατο.
647. NOW Herod's distemper became more and more severe to him, and this because these his disorders fell upon him in his old age, and when he was in a melancholy condition; for he was already seventy years of age, and had been brought by the calamities that happened to him about his children, whereby he had no pleasure in life, even when he was in health; the grief also that Antipater was still alive aggravated his disease, whom he resolved to put to death now not at random, but as soon as he should be well again, and resolved to have him slain [in a public manner].
647. Προῄει δʼ αὐτῷ πρὸς τὸ χαλεπώτερον ἡ νόσος ἅτε δὴ τῶν ἀρρωστημάτων ἐν γήρᾳ καὶ ἀθυμίᾳ ἐπιπεσόντων· ἦν μὲν γὰρ ἤδη σχεδὸν ἐτῶν ἑβδομήκοντα, τεταπείνωτο δὲ τὴν ψυχὴν ταῖς περὶ τῶν τέκνων συμφοραῖς, ὡς μηδʼ ἐν ὑγιείᾳ τι τῶν ἡδέων προσίεσθαι. τῆς νόσου δʼ ἦν ἐπίτασις ζῶν Ἀντίπατρος, ὃν οὐκ ἐν παρέργῳ, ῥαΐσας δὲ προῄρητο ἀνελεῖν.
648. There also now happened to him, among his other calamities, a certain popular sedition. There were two men of learning in the city [Jerusalem,] who were thought the most skillful in the laws of their country, and were on that account had in very great esteem all over the nation; they were, the one Judas, the son of Sepphoris, and the other Mattbias, the son of Margalus. There was a great concourse of the young men to these men when they expounded the laws, and there got together every day a kind of an army of such as were growing up to be men. Now when these men were informed that the king was wearing away with melancholy, and with a distemper, they dropped words to their acquaintance, how it was now a very proper time to defend the cause of God, and to pull down what had been erected contrary to the laws of their country; for it was unlawful there should be any such thing in the temple as images, or faces, or the like representation of any animal whatsoever. Now the king had put up a golden eagle over the great gate of the temple, which these learned men exhorted them to cut down; and told them, that if there should any danger arise, it was a glorious thing to die for the laws of their country; because that the soul was immortal, and that an eternal enjoyment of happiness did await such as died on that account; while the mean-spirited, and those that were not wise enough to show a right love of their souls, preferred a death by a disease, before that which is the result of a virtuous behavior.
648. Γίνεται δʼ ἐν ταῖς συμφοραῖς αὐτῷ καὶ δημοτική τις ἐπανάστασις. δύο ἦσαν σοφισταὶ κατὰ τὴν πόλιν μάλιστα δοκοῦντες ἀκριβοῦν τὰ πάτρια καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐν παντὶ τῷ ἔθνει μεγίστης ἠξιωμένοι δόξης, Ἰούδας τε υἱὸς Σεπφεραίου καὶ Ματθίας ἕτερος Μαργάλου. τούτοις οὐκ ὀλίγοι προσῄεσαν τῶν νέων ἐξηγουμένοις τοὺς νόμους, καὶ συνεῖχον ὁσημέραι τῶν ἡβώντων στρατόπεδον. οἳ τότε τὸν βασιλέα πυνθανόμενοι ταῖς ἀθυμίαις ὑπορρέοντα καὶ τῇ νόσῳ λόγον καθίεσαν εἰς τοὺς γνωρίμους, ὡς ἄρα καιρὸς ἐπιτηδειότατος εἴη τιμωρεῖν ἤδη τῷ θεῷ καὶ τὰ κατασκευασθέντα παρὰ τοὺς πατρίους νόμους ἔργα κατασπᾶν. ἀθέμιτον γὰρ εἶναι κατὰ τὸν ναὸν ἢ εἰκόνας ἢ προτομὰς ἢ ζῴου τινὸς ἐπώνυμον ἔργον εἶναι· κατεσκευάκει δʼ ὁ βασιλεὺς ὑπὲρ τὴν μεγάλην πύλην ἀετὸν χρυσοῦν· ὃν δὴ τότε παρῄνουν ἐκκόπτειν οἱ σοφισταί, καλὸν εἶναι λέγοντες, εἰ καί τις γένοιτο κίνδυνος, ὑπὲρ τοῦ πατρίου νόμου θνήσκειν· τοῖς γὰρ οὕτω τελευτῶσιν ἀθάνατόν τε τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ τὴν ἐν ἀγαθοῖς αἴσθησιν αἰώνιον παραμένειν, τοὺς δὲ ἀγενεῖς καὶ τῆς ἑαυτῶν σοφίας ἀπείρους ἀγνοοῦντας φιλοψυχεῖν καὶ πρὸ τοῦ διʼ ἀρετῆς τὸν ἐκ νόσου θάνατον αἱρεῖσθαι.
651. At the same time that these men made this speech to their disciples, a rumor was spread abroad that the king was dying, which made the young men set about the work with greater boldness; they therefore let themselves down from the top of the temple with thick cords, and this at midday, and while a great number of people were in the temple, and cut down that golden eagle with axes. This was presently told to the king's captain of the temple, who came running with a great body of soldiers, and caught about forty of the young men, and brought them to the king. And when he asked them, first of all, whether they had been so hardy as to cut down the golden eagle, they confessed they had done so; and when he asked them by whose command they had done it, they replied, at the command of the law of their country; and when he further asked them how they could be so joyful when they were to be put to death, they replied, because they should enjoy greater happiness after they were dead.
651. Ἅμα δὲ τοῖς ἐκείνων λόγοις διεφημίσθη καὶ θνήσκειν ὁ βασιλεύς, ὥστε θαρραλεώτερον ἥπτοντο τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως οἱ νέοι. μέσης γοῦν ἡμέρας καὶ πολλῶν κατὰ τὸ ἱερὸν ἀναστρεφομένων σχοίνοις παχείαις καθιμήσαντες σφᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ τέγους τὸν χρυσοῦν ἀετὸν ἐξέκοπτον πελέκεσιν. ἠγγέλθη δʼ εὐθέως τῷ βασιλέως στρατηγῷ, κἀκεῖνος μετὰ χειρὸς οὐκ ὀλίγης ἀναδραμὼν περὶ τεσσαράκοντα νεανίας συλλαμβάνει καὶ κατήγαγεν πρὸς βασιλέα. πυνθανομένῳ δʼ αὐτῷ πρῶτον, εἰ τολμήσειαν τὸν χρυσοῦν ἀετὸν ἐκκόπτειν, ὡμολόγουν. ἔπειτα, τίνος κελεύσαντος, ἀπεκρίναντο τοῦ πατρίου νόμου. τί δʼ οὕτως γεγήθασιν διερωτήσαντος, ἀναιρεῖσθαι μέλλοντες ἔλεγον, ὅτι πλειόνων ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύσουσιν μετὰ τὴν τελευτήν.
654. At this the king was in such an extravagant passion, that he overcame his disease [for the time,] and went out, and spake to the people; wherein he made a terrible accusation against those men, as being guilty of sacrilege, and as making greater attempts under pretense of their law, and he thought they deserved to be punished as impious persons. Whereupon the people were afraid lest a great number should be found guilty and desired that when he had first punished those that put them upon this work, and then those that were caught in it, he would leave off his anger as to the rest. With this the king complied, though not without difficulty, and ordered those that had let themselves down, together with their Rabbins, to be burnt alive, but delivered the rest that were caught to the proper officers, to be put to death by them.
654. Ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ βασιλεὺς διʼ ὑπερβολὴν ὀργῆς κρείττων τῆς νόσου γενόμενος πρόεισιν εἰς ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πολλὰ τῶν ἀνδρῶν κατηγορήσας ὡς ἱεροσύλων καὶ προφάσει τοῦ νόμου πειραζόντων τι μεῖζον ἠξίου κολάζειν ὡς ἀσεβεῖς. ὁ δὲ δῆμος δείσας μὴ διὰ πολλῶν ὁ ἔλεγχος ἔλθῃ, παρεκάλει πρῶτον μὲν τοὺς ὑποθεμένους τὴν πρᾶξιν, ἔπειτα τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ συλληφθέντας κολάσαντα τοῖς λοιποῖς τὴν ὀργὴν ἀφιέναι. πείθεται μόλις ὁ βασιλεύς, καὶ τοὺς μὲν καθιμήσαντας ἑαυτοὺς ἅμα τοῖς σοφισταῖς κατέκαυσε ζῶντας, τοὺς λοιποὺς δὲ τῶν συλληφθέντων παρέδωκεν τοῖς ὑπηρέταις ἀνελεῖν.
656. After this, the distemper seized upon his whole body, and greatly disordered all its parts with various symptoms; for there was a gentle fever upon him, and an intolerable itching over all the surface of his body, and continual pains in his colon, and dropsical turnouts about his feet, and an inflammation of the abdomen, and a putrefaction of his privy member, that produced worms. Besides which he had a difficulty of breathing upon him, and could not breathe but when he sat upright, and had a convulsion of all his members, insomuch that the diviners said those diseases were a punishment upon him for what he had done to the Rabbins. Yet did he struggle with his numerous disorders, and still had a desire to live, and hoped for recovery, and considered of several methods of cure. Accordingly, he went over Jordan, and made use of those hot baths at Callirrhoe, which ran into the lake Asphaltitis, but are themselves sweet enough to be drunk. And here the physicians thought proper to bathe his whole body in warm oil, by letting it down into a large vessel full of oil; whereupon his eyes failed him, and he came and went as if he was dying; and as a tumult was then made by his servants, at their voice he revived again. Yet did he after this despair of recovery, and gave orders that each soldier should have fifty drachmae a-piece, and that his commanders and friends should have great sums of money given them.
656. Ἔνθεν αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα πᾶν ἡ νόσος διαλαβοῦσα ποικίλοις πάθεσιν ἐμερίζετο· πυρετὸς μὲν γὰρ ἦν οὐ λάβρος, κνησμὸς δὲ ἀφόρητος τῆς ἐπιφανείας ὅλης καὶ κόλου συνεχεῖς ἀλγηδόνες περί τε τοὺς πόδας ὥσπερ ὑδρωπιῶντος οἰδήματα τοῦ τε ἤτρου φλεγμονὴ καὶ δὴ αἰδοίου σηπεδὼν σκώληκας γεννῶσα, πρὸς τούτοις ὀρθόπνοια καὶ δύσπνοια καὶ σπασμοὶ πάντων τῶν μελῶν, ὥστε τοὺς ἐπιθειάζοντας ποινὴν εἶναι τῶν σοφιστῶν τὰ νοσήματα λέγειν. ὁ δὲ παλαίων τοσούτοις πάθεσιν ὅμως τοῦ ζῆν ἀντείχετο σωτηρίαν τε ἤλπιζεν καὶ θεραπείας ἐπενόει· διαβὰς γοῦν τὸν Ἰορδάνην τοῖς κατὰ Καλλιρρόην ἐχρῆτο θερμοῖς· ταῦτα δʼ ἔξεισι μὲν εἰς τὴν Ἀσφαλτῖτιν λίμνην, ὑπὸ γλυκύτητος δʼ ἐστὶ καὶ πότιμα. δόξαν δὲ ἐνταῦθα τοῖς ἰατροῖς ἐλαίῳ θερμῷ πᾶν ἀναθάλψαι τὸ σῶμα χαλασθὲν εἰς πλήρη πύελον ἐκλύει καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὡς τεθνεὼς ἀνέστρεψεν. θορύβου δὲ τῶν θεραπευόντων γενομένου πρὸς μὲν τὴν φωνὴν ἀνήνεγκεν, εἰς δὲ τὸ λοιπὸν ἀπογνοὺς τὴν σωτηρίαν τοῖς τε στρατιώταις ἀνὰ πεντήκοντα δραχμὰς ἐκέλευσεν διανεῖμαι καὶ πολλὰ χρήματα τοῖς ἡγεμόσι καὶ τοῖς φίλοις.
659. He then returned back and came to Jericho, in such a melancholy state of body as almost threatened him with present death, when he proceeded to attempt a horrid wickedness; for he got together the most illustrious men of the whole Jewish nation, out of every village, into a place called the Hippodrome, and there shut them in. He then called for his sister Salome, and her husband Alexas, and made this speech to them: “I know well enough that the Jews will keep a festival upon my death however, it is in my power to be mourned for on other accounts, and to have a splendid funeral, if you will but be subservient to my commands. Do you but take care to send soldiers to encompass these men that are now in custody, and slay them immediately upon my death, and then all Judea, and every family of them, will weep at it, whether they will or no.”
659. Αὐτὸς δὲ ὑποστρέφων εἰς Ἱεριχοῦντα παραγίνεται μελαγχολῶν ἤδη, καὶ μόνον οὐκ ἀπειλῶν αὐτῷ τῷ θανάτῳ προέκοπτεν εἰς ἐπιβολὴν ἀθεμίτου πράξεως· τοὺς γὰρ ἀφʼ ἑκάστης κώμης ἐπισήμους ἄνδρας ἐξ ὅλης Ἰουδαίας συναγαγὼν εἰς τὸν καλούμενον ἱππόδρομον ἐκέλευσεν συγκλεῖσαι. προσκαλεσάμενος δὲ Σαλώμην τὴν ἀδελφὴν καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα ταύτης Ἀλεξᾶν οἶδα, ἔφη, Ἰουδαίους τὸν ἐμὸν ἑορτάσοντας θάνατον, δύναμαι δὲ πενθεῖσθαι διʼ ἑτέρων καὶ λαμπρὸν ἐπιτάφιον ἔχειν, ἂν ὑμεῖς θελήσητε ταῖς ἐμαῖς ἐντολαῖς ὑπουργῆσαι. τούσδε τοὺς φρουρουμένους ἄνδρας ἐπειδὰν ἐκπνεύσω τάχιστα κτείνατε περιστήσαντες τοὺς στρατιώτας, ἵνα πᾶσα Ἰουδαία καὶ πᾶς οἶκος ἄκων ἐπʼ ἐμοὶ δακρύσῃ.
661. These were the commands he gave them; when there came letters from his ambassadors at Rome, whereby information was given that Acme was put to death at Caesar's command, and that Antipater was condemned to die; however, they wrote withal, that if Herod had a mind rather to banish him, Caesar permitted him so to do. So he for a little while revived, and had a desire to live; but presently after he was overborne by his pains, and was disordered by want of food, and by a convulsive cough, and endeavored to prevent a natural, death; so he took an apple, and asked for a knife for he used to pare apples and eat them; he then looked round about to see that there was nobody to hinder him, and lift up his right hand as if he would stab himself; but Achiabus, his first cousin, came running to him, and held his hand, and hindered him from so doing; on which occasion a very great lamentation was made in the palace, as if the king were expiring. As soon as ever Antipater heard that, he took courage, and with joy in his looks, besought his keepers, for a sum of money, to loose him and let him go; but the principal keeper of the prison did not only obstruct him in that his intention, but ran and told the king what his design was; hereupon the king cried out louder than his distemper would well bear, and immediately sent some of his guards and slew Antipater; he also gave order to have him buried at Hyrcanium, and altered his testament again, and therein made Archclaus, his eldest son, and the brother of Antipas, his successor, and made Antipas tetrarch.
661. Ταῦτα ἐνετέλλετο, καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἐν Ῥώμῃ πρέσβεων ἧκον ἐπιστολαί, διʼ ὧν Ἀκμὴ μὲν ἀνῃρημένη κελεύσαντος Καίσαρος ἐδηλοῦτο, θανάτῳ δʼ Ἀντίπατρος κατάκριτος· ἔγραφόν γε μὴν ὡς, εἰ καὶ φυγαδεύειν αὐτὸν ἐθελήσειεν ὁ πατήρ, ἐπιτρέποι Καῖσαρ. ὁ δὲ βραχὺ μὲν πρὸς τὴν εὐθυμίαν ἀνήνεγκεν, αὖθις δέ, καὶ γὰρ ἐνδείᾳ τροφῆς καὶ βηχὶ σπασμώδει διετείνετο, τῶν ἀλγηδόνων ἡσσηθεὶς φθάσαι τὴν εἱμαρμένην ἐπεβάλλετο. λαβὼν δὲ μῆλον ᾔτησεν καὶ μαχαίριον, εἰώθει γὰρ ἀποτέμνων ἐσθίειν, ἔπειτα περιαθρήσας μή τις ὁ κωλύων εἴη, ἐπῆρεν τὴν δεξιὰν ὡς πλήξων ἑαυτόν. προσδραμὼν δὲ ἐκώλυσεν Ἀχίαβος ὁ ἀνεψιὸς αὐτοῦ τὴν χεῖρα κατασχών. οἰμωγὴ δʼ εὐθέως ἤρθη μεγίστη κατὰ τὸ βασίλειον ὡς οἰχομένου βασιλέως, καὶ ταχέως ἀκούσας Ἀντίπατρος ἀναθαρρεῖ τε καὶ γεγηθὼς τοὺς φύλακας ἱκέτευεν ἐπὶ χρήμασιν ἐξαφεῖναι λύσαντας αὐτόν. ὁ δὲ ἡγεμὼν οὐ μόνον ἐκώλυσεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ βασιλεῖ δραμὼν ἀνήγγειλεν τὴν ἐπιβουλήν. ἀνέκραγεν δʼ ἐκεῖνος ἰσχυρότερον τῆς νόσου καὶ παραχρῆμα πέμψας τοὺς δορυφόρους ἀποκτείνει τὸν Ἀντίπατρον. θάψαι δὲ τὸν νεκρὸν αὐτοῦ προστάξας ἐν Ὑρκανίᾳ πάλιν τὰς διαθήκας ἐπανορθοῦται, καὶ διάδοχον μὲν Ἀρχέλαον τὸν πρεσβύτατον υἱὸν ἀδελφὸν δὲ Ἀντιπάτρου γράφει, τετράρχην δὲ Ἀντίπαν.
665. So Herod, having survived the slaughter of his son five days, died, having reigned thirty-four years since he had caused Antigonus to be slain, and obtained his kingdom; but thirty-seven years since he had been made king by the Romans. Now as for his fortune, it was prosperous in all other respects, if ever any other man could be so, since, from a private man, he obtained the kingdom, and kept it so long, and left it to his own sons; but still in his domestic affairs he was a most unfortunate man. Now, before the soldiers knew of his death, Salome and her husband came out and dismissed those that were in bonds, whom the king had commanded to be slain, and told them that he had altered his mind, and would have every one of them sent to their own homes. When these men were gone, Salome, told the soldiers [the king was dead], and got them and the rest of the multitude together to an assembly, in the amphitheater at Jericho, where Ptolemy, who was intrusted by the king with his signet ring, came before them, and spake of the happiness the king had attained, and comforted the multitude, and read the epistle which had been left for the soldiers, wherein he earnestly exhorted them to bear good-will to his successor; and after he had read the epistle, he opened and read his testament, wherein Philip was to inherit Trachonitis, and the neighboring countries, and Antipas was to be tetrarch, as we said before, and Archelaus was made king. He had also been commanded to carry Herod's ring to Caesar, and the settlements he had made, sealed up, because Caesar was to be lord of all the settlements he had made, and was to confirm his testament; and he ordered that the dispositions he had made were to be kept as they were in his former testament.
665. Μετὰ δὲ τὴν ἀναίρεσιν τοῦ παιδὸς ἐπιβιοὺς πέντε ἡμέρας τελευτᾷ, βασιλεύσας ἀφʼ οὗ μὲν ἀποκτείνας Ἀντίγονον ἐκράτησεν τῶν πραγμάτων ἔτη τέσσαρα καὶ τριάκοντα, ἀφʼ οὗ δὲ ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων ἀπεδείχθη βασιλεὺς ἑπτὰ καὶ τριάκοντα, καὶ κατὰ μὲν τὰ ἄλλα πάντα τύχῃ δεξιᾷ χρησάμενος, εἰ καί τις ἄλλος, ὅστις κατεκτήσατο βασιλείαν ἰδιώτης ὢν καὶ τοσούτῳ χρόνῳ φυλάξας ἰδίοις τέκνοις κατέλιπεν, ἐν δὲ τοῖς κατʼ οἶκον ἀτυχέστατος. πρὶν δὲ γνῶναι τὴν τελευτὴν αὐτοῦ τὸ στρατιωτικὸν προελθοῦσα μετὰ τἀνδρὸς ἡ Σαλώμη διαφῆκεν τοὺς δεσμώτας, οὓς κτείνειν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐνετείλατο, μεταπεισθῆναι τὸν βασιλέα λέγουσα καὶ πάλιν ἀναπέμπειν ἕκαστον εἰς τὰ ἴδια. τούτων δʼ οἰχομένων ἐδήλουν ἤδη τοῖς στρατιώταις καὶ συνῆγον αὐτοὺς εἰς ἐκκλησίαν μετὰ τοῦ λοιποῦ πλήθους ἐν τῷ κατὰ Ἱεριχοῦντα ἀμφιθεάτρῳ. ἔνθα παρελθὼν Πτολεμαῖος ὁ καὶ τὸν σημαντῆρα δακτύλιον παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως πεπιστευμένος τόν τε βασιλέα κατευδαιμονίζει καὶ τὸ πλῆθος παρακαλεῖ καὶ τὴν ἀπολειφθεῖσαν τοῖς στρατιώταις ἀνεγίνωσκεν ἐπιστολήν, ἐν ᾗ πολλὰ περὶ τῆς εἰς τὸν διάδοχον εὐνοίας παρεκάλει. μετὰ δὲ τὴν ἐπιστολὴν λύσας τὰς ἐπιδιαθήκας ἀνεγίνωσκεν, ἐν αἷς Φίλιππος μὲν τοῦ Τράχωνος καὶ τῶν γειτνιώντων χωρίων κληρονόμος, τετράρχης δʼ, ὡς προείπαμεν, Ἀντίπας, βασιλεὺς δʼ Ἀρχέλαος ἀπεδείκνυτο. τούτῳ δὲ τόν τε δακτύλιον τὸν ἑαυτοῦ Καίσαρι φέρειν ἐνετέλλετο καὶ τὰς διοικήσεις τῆς βασιλείας σεσημασμένας· κύριον γὰρ ἁπάντων ὧν διατάξειεν καὶ βεβαιωτὴν τῶν διαθηκῶν εἶναι Καίσαρα· τά γε μὴν λοιπὰ κατὰ τὰς προτέρας διαθήκας φυλάττειν.
670. So there was an acclamation made to Archelaus, to congratulate him upon his advancement; and the soldiers, with the multitude, went round about in troops, and promised him their good-will, and besides, prayed God to bless his government. After this, they betook themselves to prepare for the king's funeral; and Archelaus omitted nothing of magnificence therein, but brought out all the royal ornaments to augment the pomp of the deceased. There was a bier all of gold, embroidered with precious stones, and a purple bed of various contexture, with the dead body upon it, covered with purple; and a diadem was put upon his head, and a crown of gold above it, and a secptre in his right hand; and near to the bier were Herod's sons, and a multitude of his kindred; next to which came his guards, and the regiment of Thracians, the Germans. also and Gauls, all accounted as if they were going to war; but the rest of the army went foremost, armed, and following their captains and officers in a regular manner; after whom five hundred of his domestic servants and freed-men followed, with sweet spices in their hands: and the body was carried two hundred furlongs, to Herodium, where he had given order to be buried. And this shall suffice for the conclusion of the life of Herod.
670. Βοὴ δʼ εὐθὺς ἐγένετο τῶν Ἀρχελάῳ συνηδομένων, καὶ κατὰ στῖφος οἱ στρατιῶται μετὰ τοῦ πλήθους προσιόντες ὑπισχνοῦντο μὲν τὴν ἑαυτῶν εὔνοιαν, συνηύχοντο δὲ καὶ τὴν παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πρὸς ταφὴν ἐτρέποντο τοῦ βασιλέως. παρέλιπεν δʼ οὐδὲν Ἀρχέλαος εἰς πολυτέλειαν, ἀλλὰ πάντα τὸν βασιλικὸν κόσμον προήνεγκεν συμπομπεύσοντα τῷ νεκρῷ· κλίνη μὲν γὰρ ὁλόχρυσος ἦν διάλιθος, στρωμνὴ δὲ ἁλουργὶς ποικίλη, τὸ σῶμα δʼ ἐπʼ αὐτῆς πορφύρᾳ κεκαλυμμένον, καὶ διάδημα μὲν ἐπέκειτο τῇ κεφαλῇ, στέφανος δʼ ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ χρυσοῦς, τὸ δὲ σκῆπτρον παρὰ τὴν δεξιάν. καὶ περὶ τὴν κλίνην οἵ τε υἱεῖς καὶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν συγγενῶν, ἐφʼ οἷς οἱ δορυφόροι καὶ τὸ Θρᾴκιον στῖφος Γερμανοί τε καὶ Γαλάται διεσκευασμένοι πάντες ὡς εἰς πόλεμον. προῆγεν δʼ ἡ λοιπὴ δύναμις ὡπλισμένη τοῖς ἡγεμόσιν καὶ ταξιάρχοις ἀκολουθοῦντες ἐν κόσμῳ, πεντακόσιοι δὲ ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς τῶν οἰκετῶν καὶ ἀπελευθέρων ἀρωματοφόροι. σταδίους δʼ ἐκομίσθη τὸ σῶμα ἑβδομήκοντα εἰς Ἡρώδειον, ὅπου κατὰ τὰς ἐντολὰς ἐτάφη. καὶ τὰ μὲν περὶ Ἡρώδην τοιοῦτον ἔσχεν πέρας.