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King Agrippa, having learned these things, gives the high priesthood to Joseph, who was called Decabi, the son of Simon who had served as high priest; then, having taken it away from Joseph, he assigned it to Annas, son of 2.49 Annas. This young Annas, therefore, having received the high priesthood, was bold and audacious. Festus, then, having died, and Albinus not yet having arrived in Judea, who had been sent by Nero as procurator of Judea in place of Festus, he convened a council, so that I might use Josephus' own words, and brought forward the brother of Jesus who is called Christ, James was his name, and some others, accusing them of having transgressed the law, and delivered them to be stoned. But as many as seemed to be the most moderate of those in the city and strict concerning the laws, were heavily displeased at this, and they spoke against him both to Albinus and to Agrippa. Wherefore the king, having taken the high priesthood away from him, after he had held office for three months, appointed Jesus the son of Mnaseas. And Albinus, having come to Jerusalem, made an effort to pacify the country, and he destroyed many of the sicarii. And Agrippa gives the high priesthood to Jesus the son of Gamaliel, having removed Jesus the son of Mnaseas. A sedition therefore arose among the high priests, who had taken the most audacious men as their companions, and the sedition proceeded from insults against one another even to stones. From which time especially it happened that the city of Jerusalem was in a bad state, and all things progressed for the worse. But Albinus, having learned that Gessius Florus was arriving as his successor, brought forward the prisoners, as many as were clearly worthy of death, these he 2.50 ordered to be executed, but those who were imprisoned for small reasons he released upon receiving money. And thus the prison was emptied of prisoners, but the country was filled with bandits. And Agrippa, having cast Jesus the son of Gamaliel out of the high priesthood, gave it to Matthias the son of Theophilus, in whose time the war against the Romans began. The high priesthood therefore began from Aaron, and when he died his sons succeeded to it, and from them the honor remained to their descendants. Wherefore it was a ancestral custom for the Jews for no one to receive the high priesthood, not even if he were a king desiring it, unless they were of the blood of Aaron; although this custom was not observed until the end. There were therefore in all, from Aaron until Phinehas who was appointed by the seditious during the war, eighty-three. And Gessius Florus, having arrived in Judea as Albinus’ successor, filled the Jews with many evils, and became so very wicked that because of the excess of his own wickedness Albinus was praised as a benefactor. For the one concealed his wickedness and, when doing wrong, was eager not to be found out, but Florus openly and shamelessly committed transgressions against the nation, as if making a display. And what need is there to enumerate his evils one by one? But by saying this much I will declare the whole matter, that it was Florus who compelled the Jews to take up the war against the Romans. And the war began in the second year of Florus' procuratorship, and in the twelfth of the reign of Nero. From this point therefore the revolt of the Jews broke 2.51 out into the open and the war began. But to narrate each of these things would be a greater undertaking than the present enterprise. But it has been decided by me to omit the other things, and only to summarize the events concerning the capture of Jerusalem itself. For Vespasian, having been entrusted by Nero with the management of the war, after he learned of the revolt of the Jews, did not attack Jerusalem first, but hurried to first take the cities under the metropolis, and thus to subdue the metropolis itself. Therefore, having seized Ptolemais, and having been united there with his son Titus, who had arrived from Alexandria and was bringing the fifteenth legion, having been sent by him from Achaia, where he had been appointed general of the war by Nero, for he happened to be in Achaia when the revolt of the Jews was reported to him, he first moved against Galilee, and first against the city of Jotapata

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βασιλεὺς ̓Αγρίππας ταῦτα πυθόμενος δίδωσι τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην ̓Ιωσὴφ τῷ καλουμένῳ ∆εκαβί, υἱῷ τοῦ ἀρχιερατεύσαντος Σίμωνος· ειτα τῷ Αννᾳ υἱῷ τοῦ 2.49 Αννα ταύτην ἐξ ̓Ιωσὴφ ἀφελόμενος προσεκλήρωσεν. Ουτος ουν ὁ νέος Αννας τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην παρειληφὼς τολμητίας ην καὶ θρασύς. Φήστου τοίνυν θανόντος, καὶ ̓Αλβίνου μήπω καταλαβόντος τὴν ̓Ιουδαίαν, ος ἀντὶ Φήστου παρὰ Νέρωνος ἐστάλη τῆς ̓Ιουδαίας ἐπίτροπος, καθίσας συνέδριον, ιν' αὐτοῖς τοῖς ̓Ιωσήπου χρήσωμαι ῥήμασι, παράγει τὸν ἀδελφὸν ̓Ιησοῦ τοῦ λεγομένου Χριστοῦ, ̓Ιάκωβος ονομα αὐτῷ, καί τινας ἑτέρους, ὡς παρανομησάντων κατηγορῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ παρέδωκε λευσθησομένους. οσοι δὲ τῶν κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἐδόκουν ἐπιεικέστατοι καὶ περὶ τοὺς νόμους ἀκριβεῖς, βαρέως ηνεγκαν ἐπὶ τούτῳ, καὶ κατεῖπον αὐτοῦ καὶ πρὸς ̓Αλβῖνον καὶ πρὸς ̓Αγρίππαν. διὸ τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην ἀφελόμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐξ αὐτοῦ, μῆνας αρξαντος τρεῖς, ̓Ιησοῦν τὸν τοῦ Μνασέα κατέστησεν. ̓Αλβῖνος δ' ἐλθὼν εἰς ̔Ιεροσόλυμα σπουδὴν εἰσήνεγκεν εἰρηνεύειν τὴν χώραν, καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν σικαρίων διέφθειρεν. ̓Αγρίππας δὲ τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην δίδωσι ̓Ιησοῦ τῷ τοῦ Γαμαλιήλ, παύσας τὸν τοῦ Μνασέα ̓Ιησοῦν. στάσις ουν τῶν ἀρχιερέων ἐγένετο, προσεταιρισαμένων τοὺς θρασυτάτους, καὶ μέχρι λίθων ἡ στάσις ἐξ υβρεων τῶν πρὸς ἀλλήλους προυχώρησεν. οθεν ἐξ ἐκείνου τοῦ χρόνου μάλιστα κακῶς εχειν τὴν τῶν ̔Ιεροσολύμων πόλιν συμβέβηκε, καὶ πάντα ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον προέκοπτον. ̓Αλβῖνος δὲ Γέσσιον Φλῶρον μαθὼν ἀφικνεῖσθαί οἱ διάδοχον, προαγαγὼν τοὺς δεσμώτας, οσοι ησαν αὐτῷ προδήλως θανεῖν αξιοι, τούτους μὲν ἀναιρεθῆναι προσ2.50 έταξε, τοὺς δ' ἐκ μικρῶν αἰτιῶν καθειργμένους χρήματα λαμβάνων ἀπέλυε. καὶ ουτως ἡ μὲν εἱρκτὴ τῶν δεσμωτῶν ἐκενώθη, ἡ χώρα δὲ λῃστῶν ἐπληρώθη. ὁ δ' ̓Αγρίππας τὸν τοῦ Γαμαλιὴλ ̓Ιησοῦν τῆς ἀρχιερωσύνης ἐκβαλὼν Ματθίᾳ τῷ Θεοφίλου προσένειμεν, ἐφ' ου ὁ πρὸς ̔Ρωμαίους ηρξατο πόλεμος. Ηρξατο μὲν ουν ἡ ἀρχιερωσύνη ἐξ ̓Ααρών, τελευτήσαντος δὲ ἐκείνου οἱ παῖδες αὐτοῦ αὐτὴν διεδέξαντο, καὶ ἐξ ἐκείνων τοῖς ἀπ' αὐτῶν διέμεινεν ἡ τιμή. οθεν πάτριον ην ̓Ιουδαίοις μηδένα τὴν ἀρχιερωσύνην λαμβάνειν, καν βασιλεὺς ην αὐτῆς ἐφιέμενος, εἰ μὴ τοὺς ἐξ αιματος ̓Ααρών· εἰ καὶ οὐ μέχρι παντὸς τὸ εθος τοῦτο τετήρητο. ἐγένοντο ουν πάντες ἀπὸ ̓Ααρὼν μέχρι Φινεὲς τοῦ κατὰ τὸν πόλεμον ὑπὸ τῶν στασιασάντων ἀναδειχθέντος ὀγδοήκοντα καὶ τρεῖς. Γέσσιος δὲ Φλῶρος εἰς ̓Ιουδαίαν ̓Αλβίνου διάδοχος ἀφικόμενος πολλῶν ἐνέπλησεν ̓Ιουδαίους κακῶν, τοσοῦτον δὲ γέγονε κάκιστος ωστε διὰ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς αὐτοῦ κακίας ἐπαινεῖσθαι τὸν ̓Αλβῖνον ὡς εὐεργέτην. ὁ μὲν γὰρ τὴν πονηρίαν ἐπέκρυπτε καὶ ἀδικῶν μὴ γίνεσθαι κατάφωρος εσπευδε, Φλῶρος δὲ ἀπαρακαλύπτως καὶ ἀναιδῶς τὰς εἰς τὸ εθνος παρανομίας ἐποίει, ωσπερ ἐπιδεικνύμενος. καὶ τί δεῖ τῶν ἐκείνου κακῶν ἀπαριθμεῖν τὸ καθ' εκαστον; τοσοῦτον δ' εἰπὼν δηλώσω τὸ πᾶν, οτι ὁ τοὺς ̓Ιουδαίους τὸν πρὸς ̔Ρωμαίους αρασθαι πόλεμον βιασάμενος Φλῶρος ην. ελαβε δὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν ὁ πόλεμος δευτέρῳ μὲν ετει τῆς Φλώρου ἐπιτροπῆς, δωδεκάτῳ δὲ τῆς μοναρχίας τοῦ Νέρωνος. ̓Εντεῦθεν ουν ἡ τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων ἀποστασία εἰς 2.51 προῦπτον ἀνερράγη καὶ ὁ πόλεμος ηρξατο. διηγήσασθαι δὲ τούτου εκαστα πλείονος αν γένοιτο πραγματείας η κατὰ τὴν παροῦσαν ἐγχείρησιν. ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν αλλα ἐᾶσαί μοι κέκριται, μόνα δ' ἐπιτεμεῖν τὰ περὶ τῆς ἁλώσεως τῶν ̔Ιεροσολύμων αὐτῶν. Οὐεσπασιανὸς γὰρ παρὰ Νέρωνος, μαθόντος τὴν ̓Ιουδαίων ἀποστασίαν, τὴν τοῦ πολέμου διοίκησιν πιστευθείς, οὐ πρώτοις τοῖς ̔Ιεροσολύμοις προσέβαλεν, ἀλλὰ τὰς ὑπὸ τὴν μητρόπολιν εσπευσε πρότερον ἑλεῖν πόλεις, καὶ ουτως αὐτὴν χειρώσασθαι τὴν μητρόπολιν. καταλαβὼν ουν τὴν Πτολεμαΐδα, καὶ ἑνωθεὶς ἐν αὐτῇ τῷ υἱῷ Τίτῳ ἐξ ̓Αλεξανδρείας ἀφικομένῳ καὶ τὸ πεντεκαιδέκατον τάγμα κομίζοντι, σταλέντι παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐξ ̓Αχαΐας, οπου τοῦ πολέμου στρατηγὸς κεχειροτόνητο παρὰ Νέρωνος, ἐν ̓Αχαΐᾳ γὰρ ἐτύγχανεν ων ἐκεῖνος οτε ἡ τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων ἀποστασία κατηγγέλθη αὐτῷ, κατὰ τῆς Γαλιλαίας πρότερον ωρμησε, καὶ τῇ πόλει τῶν ̓Ιωταπάτων πρώτῃ