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having routed the generals of Antiochus; after whom Jonathan his brother takes up both the high priesthood and the leadership of the people; and again his brother Simon is high priest, after whom Hyrcanus, after whom Judas, also called Aristobulus, succeeds; and he was the first to put on a diadem in addition to the high priesthood and kingship; after whom Alexander, having received both the high priesthood and the kingship, dies, with his wife as successor; 157 at which time, of the weeks completed in Daniel, the rulers from the priests, who were called anointed ones, cease; so as to make clear the oracle which says, "until an anointed leader," that there would be so many weeks; as if it had said more clearly, that nine and sixty weeks of years would pass, that is, a period of 483 years, in which a certain anointed one and high priest, leading in succession, will preside over the affairs of the people. And indeed it is clear to everyone from what has been set forth by us, that such a number of years is established from Cyrus until the death of Alexander, the last high priest to lead them; after whom a woman, alone of all at that time, takes up the kingdom of the nation, from whose time both the rule of the Jews and the high priesthood, which had proceeded securely from their ancestors, are thrown into confusion. So the aforementioned woman, having taken power, gives the high priesthood to her son Hyrcanus, but she herself, having held the kingdom for nine years, dies; after whom Aristobulus, her other son, having stirred up much strife against his brother, takes away the high priesthood from him, and he himself falls from this and the kingdom after the third year; For immediately the Roman general Pompey arrived, besieged Jerusalem by force, defiled the holy places by proceeding as far as the inner sanctuary of the temple, and sends Aristobulus as a prisoner to Rome along with his children; after him, when Hyrcanus had also been taken captive by the Parthians, the kingship over the Jews is entrusted to Herod, the first from the gentiles, 158 by the Roman senate; as Josephus reports, being an Idumean by race on his father's side, but an Arabian on his mother's; but as Africanus, whom we mentioned a little before, says, those who have carefully investigated the matters concerning him say that Antipater, who was his father, was the son of a certain Herod of Ascalon, one of the temple-servants of the temple of Apollo. So then, when the rule of the Jews had devolved upon such a man, at the (sic) same time, along with the other prophets, the prophecy of Jacob transmitted by Moses is also fulfilled, which said, "a ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a leader from his loins, until he comes for whom it is reserved; and he is the expectation of the nations"; and it is indeed very clear both from the histories and from what has been set forth by us, that up to Herod, in whose time Christ was born, the rule of those from the Hebrews themselves who led the whole nation in succession did not cease; but when Herod, the first of a foreign race, reigned over them, immediately the presence of Christ is fulfilled, and the prophesied expectation of the nations began to be accomplished in deed through the teaching of our Savior which spread to every nation; then also the prophecy in Daniel after the weeks which we have discussed was sealed, saying, "and after the sixty-two weeks, anointing shall be destroyed, and there is no judgment in it"; "and he will destroy the city and the sanctuary with the coming leader; and they shall be cut off in a flood, and until the end of a war determined, desolations." 159 In what way, then, the prophecy of the foretold weeks, both the former fifty-seven, and the sixty-two after them, —in which it is fitting to consider the high priesthood according to the succession of the family, and the history up to the times of Herod showing the high priests in succession throughout their whole life, when a certain anointed one and high priest was leading the people, so that on this account it was said in the oracle, "until an anointed leader,"—has reached its end in the times of Herod, has been shown, as far as we were able; but how after these things, after the completion of the aforementioned of the

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Ἀντιόχου τροπωσάμενος στρατηγούς· μεθ' ὃν Ἰωνάθης ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ ὁμοῦ τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην καὶ τὴν τοῦ λαοῦ διαλαμβάνει προστασίαν· καὶ αὖθις τούτου ἀδελφὸς Σίμων ἀρχιερεὺς, μεθ' ὃν Ὑρκανὸς, μεθ' ὃν Ἰούδας, ὁ καὶ Ἀριστόβουλος, διαδέχεται· καὶ πρῶτος ἐπὶ τῇ ἀρχιερωσύνῃ καὶ βασιλείᾳ περιέθετο διάδημα· μεθ' ὃν τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην ὁμοῦ καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν παραλαβὼν Ἀλέξανδρος ἐπὶ διαδόχῳ γυναικὶ τελευτᾷ· 157 ἐν ᾧ τῶν ἐν τῷ ∆ανιὴλ συμπερασθεισῶν ἑβδομάδων οἱ ἐξ ἱερέων ἄρχοντες χριστοὶ προσαγορευόμενοι διαλείπουσιν· ὥστε δηλοῦν τὸ φάσκον λόγιον, ἕως χριστοῦ ἡγουμένου, τόσασδε ἔσεσθαι ἑβδομάδας· ὡσεὶ σαφέστερον εἰρήκει, θʹ καὶ ξʹ διελεύσεσθαι ἐτῶν ἑβδομάδας, τοῦτ' ἔστι χρόνων ον γʹ καὶ πʹ καὶ υʹ ἐτῶν, ἐν ᾧ χριστός τις καὶ ἀρχιερεὺς κατὰ διαδοχὴν ἡγούμενος τῶν τοῦ λαοῦ προστήσεται πραγμάτων. Καὶ δὴ παντί τῳ σαφὲς ἐκ τῶν προπαρατεθέντων ἡμῖν, ὡς τοσοῦτος ἐτῶν ἀριθμὸς τῶν ἀπὸ Κύρου καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν τελευτὴν Ἀλεξάνδρου τοῦ ὑστάτου αὐτῶν ἡγησαμένου ἀρχιερέως παρίσταται· μεθ' ὃν μόνη τῶν πώποτε τὸ τηνικαῦτα γυνὴ τὴν τοῦ ἔθνους βασιλείαν διαλαμβάνει, ἐξ ἧς ὁμοῦ τά τε τῆς Ἰουδαίων ἡγεμονίας, καὶ τὰ τῆς ἐκ προγόνων εὐσταθῶς προϊούσης ἀρχιερωσύνης συγχεῖται. ∆ιαλαβοῦσα γοῦν ἡ προδεδηλωμένη τὴν ἀρχὴν, τὴν μὲν ἀρχιερωσύνην Ὑρκανῷ τῷ παιδὶ δίδωσιν, αὐτὴ δὲ τὴν βασιλείαν ἔτη θʹ κατασχοῦσα τελευτᾷ· μεθ' ἣν Ἀριστόβουλος, ἕτερος αὐτὸς πλεῖστα στασιάσας πρὸς τὸν ἀδελφὸν, ἐκεῖνον μὲν τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην ἀφαιρεῖται, αὐτὸς δὲ πρὸς ταύτῃ καὶ τῆς βασιλείας μετὰ τρίτον ἔτος ἀποπίπτει· Ῥωμαίων γὰρ αὐτίκα στρατηγὸς Πομπήϊος ἐπιστὰς, τὴν μὲν Ἱερουσαλὴμ κατὰ κράτος πολιορκεῖ, μιαίνει τε τὰ ἅγια μέχρι τῶν ἀδύτων τοῦ ἱεροῦ προελθὼν, τὸν δὲ Ἀριστόβουλον δέσμιον ἐπὶ Ῥώμης ἅμα τέκνοις ἀναπέμπει· μεθ' ὃν καὶ τοῦ Ὑρκανοῦ ὑπὸ Πάρθων αἰχμαλώτου ἀχθέντος, τὴν κατὰ Ἰουδαίων βασιλείαν πρῶτος ἐξ ἐθνῶν. Ἡρώδης 158 παρὰ τῆς συγκλήτου Ῥωμαίων ἐγχειρίζεται· ὡς μὲν ὁ Ἰώσηπος παραδίδωσιν, Ἰδουμαῖος κατὰ πατέρα τὸ γένος ὢν, Ἀράβιος δὲ κατὰ μήτερα· ὡς δ' ὁ Ἀφρικανὸς, οὗ μικρῷ πρόσθεν ἐμνήσθημεν, φασὶν οἱ τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν ἀκριβοῦντες Ἀντίπατρον, τοῦτον δ' εἶναι αὐτῷ πατέρα, Ἡρώδου τινὸς Ἀσκαλωνίτου τῶν περὶ τὸν νεῶ τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος ἱεροδούλων γεγονέναι. Εἰς δὴ οὖν τὸν τοιοῦτον τῆς Ἰουδαίων περιελθούσης ἀρχῆς, ἐν τα (sic) αὐτῷ μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων προφητῶν καὶ ἡ παρὰ Μωσεῖ φερομένη τοῦ Ἰακὼβ πληροῦται πρόρρησις, οὐκ ἐκλείψει ἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα φήσασα, καὶ ἡγούμενος ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ, ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ ᾧ ἀπόκειται· καὶ αὐτὸς προσδοκία ἐθνῶν· καὶ πρόδηλόν γε ἔκ τε τῶν ἱστοριῶν, καὶ τῶν ἡμῖν παρατεθέντων, ὅτι δὴ μέχρις Ἡρώδου, καθ' ὃν ὁ Χριστὸς γεγέννηται, οὐ διέλειπεν ἡ ἐξ αὐτῶν Ἑβραίων κατὰ διαδοχὴν τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους ἡγησαμένων ἀρχή· πρώτου δὲ τὸ γένος ἀλλοφύλου βασιλεύσαντος αὐτῶν Ἡρώδου, αὐτίκα μὲν καὶ ἡ τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσία πληροῦται, καὶ ἡ τῶν ἐθνῶν προθεσπισθεῖσα προσδοκία διὰ τῆς εἰς πᾶν ἔθνος διαδραμούσης τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν διδασκαλίας ἔργῳ συντελεῖσθαι ἤρξατο· τότε καὶ ἡ ἐν τῷ ∆ανιὴλ μετὰ τὰς διαληφθείσας ἡμῖν ἑβδομάδας πρόρρησις ἐπεσφραγίζετο, φάσκουσα, καὶ μετὰ τὰς ἑβδομάδας τὰς ξβʹ ἐξολοθρευθήσεται χρίσμα, καὶ κρίμα οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν αὐτῷ· καὶ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὸ ἅγιον διαφθερεῖ σὺν τῷ ἡγουμένῳ τῷ ἐρχομένῳ· καὶ κοπήσονται ἐν κατακλυσμῷ, καὶ ἕως τέλους πολέμου συντετμημένου ἀφανισμοῖς. 159 Τίνα μὲν οὖν τρόπον ἡ τῶν προρρηθεισῶν ἑβδομάδων τῶν τε προτέρων νζʹ, καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ ταύταις ξβʹ, προφητεία, -ἐν αἷς τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην κατὰ τὴν τοῦ γένους διαδοχὴν προσήκει διαλαμβάνειν, καὶ τῆς μέχρι τῶν Ἡρώδου χρόνων ἱστορίας δηλούσης τοὺς κατὰ διαδοχὴν ἀρχιερεῖς διὰ πάσης τῆς αὐτῶν ζωῆς, ὅτε χριστός τις καὶ ἀρχιερεὺς ἡγεῖτο τοῦ λαοῦ, ὡς διὰ τουτὶ εἰρῆσθαι τῷ χρησμῷ τὸ, ἕως χριστοῦ ἡγουμένου, -πέρας εἴληφεν εἰς τοὺς κατὰ Ἡρώδην χρόνους, ὡς δύναμις ἡμῖν, δεδήλωται· πῶς δ' ἐπὶ τούτοις μετὰ τὴν συμπλήρωσιν τοῦ προδηλωθέντος τῶν