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he narrated the things done by him on his journey abroad, and he concluded his speech with an admonition for his children, and he announced to his sons that he would leave the kingdom, first to Antipater, and then to those born of Mariamne. Having said these things, he dismissed the assembly. He was in his disposition most ambitious and beneficent towards others, but towards his subjects both oppressive and most unjust, and towards his relatives and friends an inexorable punisher. The causes of these things were love of glory and love of power. For from love of glory, if he was about to obtain future remembrance or good repute in the present, he did not spare expenses, and being extravagant, he oppressed his subjects with heavy taxes and was harsh to them; but from love of power, if he had a suspicion against anyone of aspiring to the rule or of intriguing concerning it, he treated him as an enemy, and from this he punished both relatives and friends unsparingly, wishing to be honored alone. And a proof of his wishing to get money from every source on account of his extravagance, is that having heard that Hyrcanus who had reigned before him, having opened the tomb of David had taken three thousand talents of silver, opening the tomb by night he enters, having taken along the most trusted of his friends, so that what was done might be kept secret. And he found no money, that is, silver coins, but much adornment of golden treasures, all of which he took away. He therefore hastened to go even further inside towards the coffins, in which the bodies of the kings David and Solomon were laid up. But as he was forcing his way in, two of his bodyguards were destroyed by a flame that met them from within, as the story goes, and he himself, terrified, went out. and because of this attempt it seemed that things went worse for him in his household; for the affairs in the royal court were like a civil war. And Antipater was always plotting against his brothers, being clever, on the one hand involving them in accusations through others, but on the other hand often defending them, so that, seeming well-disposed to them, he might be unsuspected by his father for his undertakings and might seem to be the only one concerned for his father's safety. And he on the one hand was everything to his father, but those from Mariamne were always more harshly disposed, and did not bear the dishonor on account of their noble birth, being thrust aside and having a more dishonorable rank. And the women, on the one hand Glaphyra, the daughter of Archelaus, who was married to Alexander, had a hatred for Salome both on account of her disposition toward her husband and on account of Salome's daughter being married to Aristobulus, towards whom Glaphyra behaved arrogantly and was indignant at her equality of rank. And there was a certain pretext bringing the king's brother Pheroras into suspicion and hatred with his brother. for the king's daughter was betrothed to him, but he, being overcome by a woman who was his slave and being madly in love with the little woman, paid no attention to his brother's daughter, but was devoted to the slave-girl. And Herod was vexed on account of this and married his daughter to the son of Phasael, and when time had passed he both blamed his brother concerning the former matters and thought it right for him to take the second one, thinking that his love for the slave-girl had now passed its prime for him. But he sends away the slave-girl and the child he had by her, and arranged to take the king's daughter after the thirtieth day. But when the appointed time had passed, he was so mad with love for the slave-girl as to disregard the agreement, and to cohabit with his former one. These things drove Herod mad; and always something new falling upon him did not allow him to be at peace. And Salome also, being hostile to the sons of Mariamne, persuaded her own daughter who was married to Aristobulus not to be well-disposed toward her husband, but to report to her, if he should say anything in private. And she said that the young men remembered their mother, and hated their father, and threatened that if they obtained the rule they would make Herod's children by his other wives village scribes, and they would imprison the women so that they would not even see the sun. These things were reported to the king through the most wicked Salome. And he listened with pain, but he tried to correct matters; and when his children defended themselves, he became more lenient. But Pheroras again stirred up trouble, saying

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ἀποδημίαν αὐτῷ πεπραγμένα διηγεῖτο, καὶ ἐπὶ νουθεσίᾳ τῶν παίδων τὸν λόγον κατέστρεψε, καὶ τοῖς υἱοῖς προεῖπε τὴν βασιλείαν καταλιμπάνειν, πρώτῳ μὲν ̓Αντιπάτρῳ, ειτα καὶ τοῖς ἐκ Μαριάμ. ταῦτα εἰπὼν τὸν σύλλογον διελύσατο. ̔Υπῆρχε δὲ τὴν γνώμην πρὸς μὲν τοὺς αλλους φιλοτιμότατός τε καὶ εὐεργετικώτατος, πρὸς δὲ τοὺς 1.382 ὑπηκόους ἐπαχθής τε καὶ ἀδικώτατος καὶ πρὸς τοὺς οἰκείους καὶ φίλους κολαστὴς ἀπαραίτητος. αἱ δὲ αἰτίαι τούτων φιλοδοξία καὶ φιλαρχία. ὑπὸ μὲν γὰρ φιλοδοξίας, εἰ μνήμης εμελλε τυγχάνειν εἰσαῦθις η εὐφημίας κατὰ τὸ ἐνεστός, οὐκ ἐφείδετο δαπανῶν, πολυδάπανος δ' ων βαρείαις εἰσπράξεσι τοὺς ὑποτεταγμένους ἐπίεζε καὶ χαλεπὸς ην αὐτοῖς· ὑπὸ δὲ φιλαρχίας, εἰ κατά τινος ὑπόνοιαν εσχεν ἐφίεσθαι τῆς ἀρχῆς η τι περὶ αὐτὴν παρακινεῖν, ισα πολεμίοις αὐτῷ προσεφέρετο, κἀντεῦθεν συγγενεῖς τε καὶ φίλους ἐτιμωρήσατο ἀφειδῶς, μόνος θέλων τετιμῆσθαι. τεκμήριον δὲ τοῦ πάντοθεν χρηματίζεσθαι θέλειν διὰ τὸ πολυδάπανον, οτι ἀκηκοὼς ὡς ̔Υρκανὸς ὁ πρὸ αὐτοῦ βασιλεύσας ἀνοίξας τὸν τάφον ∆αβὶδ ἀργυρίου λάβοι τρισχίλια τάλαντα, νυκτὸς ἀνοίξας τὸν τάφον εἰσέρχεται, τοὺς πιστοτάτους τῶν φίλων παρειληφώς, ιν' ἀνέκφορον ειη τὸ δρώμενον. καὶ χρήματα μὲν οὐχ ευρεν ἀργύρια δηλαδή, κόσμον δὲ πολὺν κειμηλίων χρυσῶν, ον ἀνείλετο πάντα. εσπευδεν ουν καὶ ἐνδοτέρω χωρεῖν κατὰ τὰς θήκας, ἐν αις τῶν βασιλέων ∆αβὶδ καὶ Σαλομῶντος τὰ σώματα τεθησαύριστο. ὡς δ' ἐβιάζετο εἰσιέναι, δύο μὲν αὐτῷ τῶν δορυφόρων ἐφθάρησαν φλογὸς ενδοθεν ἀπαντησάσης, ὡς λόγος, αὐτοῖς, αὐτὸς δὲ περιδεὴς ἐξῄει. καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐπιχείρησιν χεῖρον εχειν ἐδόκει τὰ κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτῷ· ἐμφυλίῳ γὰρ ἐῴκει πολέμῳ τὰ κατὰ τὴν αὐλὴν τὴν βασιλικήν. ἐστρατήγει δὲ ἀεὶ κατὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὁ ̓Αντίπατρος, δεινὸς ων, δι' αλλων μὲν αὐτοὺς περιβάλλων αἰτίαις, αὐτὸς δὲ πολλάκις ὑπεραπολογούμενος, ινα δοκῶν ευνους ἐκείνοις ἀνύποπτος ειη τῷ πατρὶ πρὸς τὰς ἐγχειρήσεις καὶ μόνος τῆς ἐκείνου σωτηρίας φροντίζειν δοκῇ. καὶ ὁ μὲν τὰ 1.383 πάντα ην τῷ πατρί, οἱ δ' ἐκ τῆς Μαριὰμ χαλεπώτερον ἀεὶ διετίθεντο, καὶ τὴν ἀτιμίαν οὐκ εφερον ὑπ' εὐγενείας, παρεωσμένοι καὶ τάξιν ἀτιμοτέραν εχοντες. αι τε γυναῖκες, ἡ μὲν ̓Αλεξάνδρῳ συνοικοῦσα Γλαφύρα ἡ ̓Αρχελάου μῖσος ειχεν εἰς τὴν Σαλώμην διά τε τὴν πρὸς τὸν ανδρα διάθεσιν καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐκείνης θυγατέρα συνοικοῦσαν ̓Αριστοβούλῳ, ῃπερ ὑπερηφάνως προσεφέρετο ἡ Γλαφύρα καὶ τὴν ἰσοτιμίαν αὐτῆς ἀνηξιοπάθει. γέγονε δέ τις ὑπόθεσις καὶ τὸν τοῦ βασιλέως ἀδελφὸν Φερώραν εἰς ὑποψίαν καὶ μῖσος τῷ ἀδελφῷ φέρουσα. κατηγγυήθη μὲν γὰρ αὐτῷ ἡ τοῦ βασιλέως θυγάτηρ, ὁ δὲ δουλευούσης αὐτῷ γυναικὸς ἡττώμενος καὶ περιμανῶς τοῦ γυναίου ἐρῶν τῇ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ θυγατρὶ οὐ προσεῖχε, τῇ δὲ δούλῃ προσέκειτο. ηχθετο δὲ διὰ τοῦτο ̔Ηρώδης καὶ τὴν μὲν κόρην υἱῷ Φασαήλου συζεύγνυσι, χρόνου δὲ διελθόντος περί τε τῶν πρώτων ᾐτιᾶτο τὸν ἀδελφὸν καὶ τὴν δευτέραν ἠξίου λαμβάνειν, παρηκμακέναι ηδη αὐτῷ οἰόμενος τῆς δούλης τὸν ερωτα. ὁ δὲ τὴν μὲν δούλην καὶ παῖδα ἐξ αὐτῆς σχὼν ἀποπέμπεται, τὴν δὲ τοῦ βασιλέως θυγατέρα μετὰ τριακοστὴν ἡμέραν κατέθετο λήψεσθαι. διελθούσης δὲ τῆς προθεσμίας τοσοῦτον πρὸς τὸν τῆς δούλης ερωτα ἐμεμήνει ὡς ἀθετῆσαι τὰ ὡμολογημένα, τῇ δὲ προτέρᾳ συμφθείρεσθαι. ταῦτα τὸν ̔Ηρώδην ἐξέμαινε· καὶ ἀεὶ δέ τι καινὸν προσπῖπτον ἀτρεμεῖν αὐτὸν οὐκ εια. καὶ ἡ Σαλώμη δὲ χαλεπὴ τοῖς ἐκ Μαριὰμ ουσα καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῆς θυγατέρα ̓Αριστοβούλῳ συνοικοῦσαν ἀνέπειθε μὴ εὐνοϊκῶς πρὸς τὸν ανδρα διακεῖσθαι, ἀπαγγέλλειν δὲ αὐτῇ, ει τι κατ' ἰδίαν λαλήσειεν. ἡ δὲ μεμνῆσθαι τοὺς νεανίσκους ελεγε τῆς μητρός, τὸν δὲ πατέρα στυγεῖν, ἀπειλεῖν δὲ τῆς ἀρχῆς τυχόντες τοὺς 1.384 μὲν ἐκ τῶν αλλων γυναικῶν παῖδας ̔Ηρώδου κωμογραμματεῖς καταστήσειν, τὰς δὲ γυναῖκας καθείρξειν ὡς μηδὲ τὸν ηλιον βλέπειν. ταῦτα διὰ τῆς κακίστης Σαλώμης τῷ βασιλεῖ ἀπηγγέλλετο. κἀκεῖνος ηκουεν ἀλγεινῶς, ἐπειρᾶτο δὲ διορθοῦν· τῶν δὲ παίδων ἀπολογησαμένων ῥᾴων ἐγίνετο. Φερώρας δ' αυθις τὰ πράγματα συνετάραξεν, εἰπὼν