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bold and active in hand, called Eleazar, who, urging the many to go out and hinder the earthworks, became most distinguished in the battles, inflicting many terrible things on the Romans. And once, when the battle had been decided, he himself, remaining outside the gates, was speaking to those on the wall. But a certain Rufus of the Roman camp, an Egyptian by birth, suddenly running upon him, seizing Eleazar with his very weapons, managed to carry him over into the Roman camp. And when the general ordered him to be stripped and scourged in the sight of those from the city, the whole city cried out at once. Bassus made this a stratagem against the enemy, and he ordered a cross to be set up, as if he were about to crucify Eleazar immediately. But those from the fortress, seeing this, were greatly pained and cried out with a loud wail. And Eleazar begged them not to look on while he died in this way, but to provide for their own safety by yielding to the Roman strength and fortune. And they, broken by his words, and with many inside pleading for him (for he was from a great and very numerous family), gave in to pity. And sending word, they offered the surrender of the fortress, so that they might depart unharmed, taking Eleazar. 2.80 When the general accepted these terms, those in the lower city, learning of the agreement being made privately for the Jews, decided to escape by night themselves. And when they opened their gates, word came to Bassus from those who had made the agreement. Now, the strongest of those going out managed to escape, but of those caught inside, seventeen hundred men were killed, and the women and children were enslaved. But Bassus, keeping his agreements with those who surrendered the fortress, both let them go and gave back Eleazar. Having accomplished these things, he hurried to the so-called forest of Jardes; for many of those who had previously escaped during the sieges were there. So coming to the place, he surrounded it all with his cavalry, and ordered the infantry to cut down the woods. But the Jews who had fled there, rushing out all at once with a shout, fell upon those who had surrounded them. And as the others received them stoutly, not a short time was spent in the battle, but the end of it did not turn out similarly for the opposing sides. For of the Romans, twelve fell, and a few were wounded; but of the Jews, not one escaped from this battle, but being captured, no fewer than three thousand all died. However, Bassus and Liberius Maximus, who was the procurator, were ordered by Caesar to sell all the land of the Jews. And to eight hundred only who were discharged from the army he gave a place for a settlement, which is called Ammaus, and is thirty stades distant from Jerusalem. And he imposed a tax on the 2.81 Jews, wherever they might be, ordering each one to contribute two drachmas annually to the Capitol, just as they formerly used to contribute to the temple in Jerusalem. And when Bassus died, Flavius Silva succeeded to the command. He marched against the fortress of Masada, the only one of the revolted places still remaining. Now, Sicarii held this, whose leader was a powerful man, Eleazar, a descendant of Judas who had persuaded many of the Jews not to obey the census under Quirinius. And he immediately took control of the country, and surrounded the fortress with a wall, blocking the exit for escape for those within. Then he turned to the siege, and having raised a ramp where it was possible (for the fortress was built on a high rock, crowned with ravines of infinite depth), he brought up the siege engine and broke through a part of the wall. But another was seen inside, built in opposition by the Sicarii, of such a kind as would not yield even to the blows of the siege engines. For it was of timbers having two parallel rows, the middle of which they filled with earth. So the blows of the machines not only did not break this, but even made it stronger as it settled with the shaking; therefore Silva to his soldiers

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θρασὺς καὶ κατὰ χεῖρα δραστήριος ̓Ελεάζαρ καλούμενος, ος ἐξιέναι καὶ κωλύειν τὴν χῶσιν παρακαλῶν τοὺς πολλούς, ἐν ταῖς μάχαις ἐπιφανέστατος γέγονε, πολλὰ δεινὰ τοὺς ̔Ρωμαίους διατιθείς. καί ποτε τῆς μάχης διακριθείσης αὐτὸς μείνας εξω τῶν πυλῶν τοῖς ἐπὶ τοῦ τείχους ὡμίλει. ̔Ροῦφος δέ τις τοῦ ̔Ρωμαϊκοῦ στρατοπέδου, τὸ γένος Αἰγύπτιος, ἐξαίφνης ἐπιδραμών, σὺν οπλοις αὐτοῖς τὸν ̓Ελεάζαρ ἀράμενος φθάνει μεταθεὶς εἰς τὸ ̔Ρωμαίων στρατόπεδον. τοῦ δὲ στρατηγοῦ γυμνωθῆναι κελεύσαντος αὐτὸν καὶ μαστίζεσθαι βλεπόντων τῶν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως, ἀθρόα ἡ πόλις ἀνῴμωξε. τοῦτο κατὰ τῶν πολεμίων ὁ Βάσσος στρατήγημα ἐποιήσατο, καὶ σταυρὸν προσέταξε καταπήγνυσθαι, ὡς αὐτίκα κρεμάσων τὸν Ἐλεάζαρον. οἱ δ' ἀπὸ τοῦ φρουρίου ὁρῶντες ὠδυνῶντο μᾶλλον καὶ ἀνῴμωζον διωλύγιον. καὶ ὁ ̓Ελεάζαρ ἱκέτευε σφᾶς μήτ' αὐτὸν περιιδεῖν ουτω θνήσκοντα καὶ ἑαυτοῖς τὴν σωτηρίαν προμηθεύσασθαι, ειξασι τῇ ̔Ρωμαίων ἰσχύϊ καὶ τύχῃ. οἱ δὲ καὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἐκείνου κατακλώμενοι λόγους, καὶ πολλῶν ενδον ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ δεομένων, ην γὰρ ἐκ μεγάλης καὶ σφόδρα πολυανθρώπου συγγενείας, εἰς οικτον ἐνέδωκαν. καὶ στείλαντες τὴν τοῦ φρουρίου παράδοσιν ἐπηγγέλλοντο, ινα ἀδεεῖς ἀπαλλάττωνται, τὸν ̓Ελεάζαρ λαβόντες. 2.80 ∆εξαμένου δὲ τοῦ στρατηγοῦ ταῦτα, οἱ ἐν τῇ κάτω πόλει τὴν γινομένην ἰδίᾳ τοῖς ̓Ιουδαίοις πυθόμενοι σύμβασιν, ἀποδρᾶναι νυκτὸς αὐτοὶ ἐβουλεύσαντο. καὶ τὰς πύλας αὐτῶν ἀνοιξάντων, παρὰ τῶν τὴν ὁμολογίαν πεποιημένων πρὸς τὸν Βάσσον ηκε μήνυσις. οἱ μὲν ουν τῶν ἐξιόντων ἐρρωμενέστατοι εφθασαν διεκπεσεῖν, τῶν δ' ενδον καταληφθέντων ανδρες μὲν ἀνῃρέθησαν ἐπὶ χιλίοις ἑπτακόσιοι, γύναια δὲ καὶ παῖδες ἠνδραποδίσθησαν. τὰς δὲ πρὸς τοὺς παραδόντας τὸ φρούριον ὁμολογίας φυλάσσων ὁ Βάσσος αὐτούς τε ἀφῆκε καὶ τὸν ̓Ελεάζαρ ἀπέδωκε. Ταῦτα διαπραξάμενος ἠπείγετο ἐπὶ τὸν λεγόμενον ̓Ιάρδην δρυμόν· πολλοὶ γὰρ πρὸς αὐτὸν ησαν τῶν κατὰ τὰς πολιορκίας πρότερον ἀποδράντων. ἐλθὼν ουν ἐπὶ τὸν τόπον, κυκλοῦται αὐτὸν τοῖς ἱππεῦσιν απαντα, τοὺς δὲ πεζοὺς δενδροτομεῖν τὴν υλην ἐκέλευσεν. οἱ δ' ἐκεῖ προσπεφευγότες ̓Ιουδαῖοι ἀθρόοι μετὰ βοῆς ᾳξαντες ἐνέπιπτον τοῖς κυκλωσαμένοις αὐτούς. ὡς δὲ καρτερῶς αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖνοι ἐδέχοντο, χρόνος μὲν οὐ βραχὺς τῇ μάχῃ ἐτρίβη, τέλος δὲ αὐτῇ οὐχ ομοιον τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἀπέβη μέρεσι. ̔Ρωμαίων μὲν γὰρ επεσον δώδεκα, ὀλίγοι δ' ἐτρώθησαν, τῶν δὲ ̓Ιουδαίων ἐκ τῆς μάχης ταύτης οὐδεὶς διέφυγεν, ἁλόντες δὲ καὶ τρισχιλίων οὐχ ηττους πάντες ἀπέθανον. Βάσσος μέντοι καὶ Λεβέριος Μάξιμος, ος ην ἐπίτροπος, πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἀποδόσθαι τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων παρὰ Καίσαρος ἐκελεύσθησαν. ὀκτακοσίοις δὲ μόνοις ἀπὸ τῆς στρατείας διαφειμένοις χωρίον εδωκεν εἰς κατοίκησιν, ο καλεῖται μὲν ̓Αμαοῦς, ἀπέχει δὲ τῶν ̔Ιεροσολύμων σταδίους τριάκοντα. φόρον δὲ τοῖς 2.81 ὁπουδήποτε ουσιν ̓Ιουδαίοις ἐπέταξε δύο δραχμὰς εκαστον ἐτησίως εἰσφέρειν εἰς τὸ Καπιτώλιον, ωσπερ πρότερον εἰς τὸν ἐν ̔Ιεροσολύμοις ναὸν συνετέλουν. Βάσσου δὲ τελευτήσαντος Φλάβιος Σίλβας διαδέχεται τὴν ἡγεμονίαν. ος ἐπὶ Μασάδαν τὸ φρούριον ἐστράτευσε, μόνον ετι τῶν ἀφεστηκότων περιλειφθέν. κατεῖχον δὲ τοῦτο σικάριοι, ων προειστήκει δυνατὸς ἀνὴρ ̓Ελεάζαρ, ἀπόγονος ̓Ιούδα τοῦ πείσαντος πολλοὺς ̓Ιουδαίων μὴ πείθεσθαι ταῖς ἀπογραφαῖς ἐπὶ Κυρηνίου. καὶ τῆς μὲν χώρας εὐθὺς ἐκράτει, τὸ δὲ φρούριον τείχει περιεκύκλωσε, τὴν εἰς φυγὴν εξοδον τοῖς ενδον ἀποφραγνύς. ειτα πρὸς πολιορκίαν ἐτράπετο, καὶ χῶμα χώσας ενθα δυνατὸν ην, ἐπὶ πέτρας γὰρ ὑψηλῆς τὸ φρούριον ᾠκοδόμητο, φάραγξι βάθος ἐχούσαις απειρον ἐστεφανωμένης, ἐπήγαγε τὴν ἑλέπολιν καὶ διέρρηξε μέρος τοῦ τείχους. ωφθη δ' ετερον ἐντὸς ὑπὸ τῶν σικαρίων ἀντοικοδομηθὲν τοιοῦτον οιον μηδὲ ταῖς ἐμβολαῖς ειξειν μέλλον τῶν ἑλεπόλεων. ἐκ ξύλων γὰρ ην δύο στίχους παραλλήλους ἐχόντων, ων μέσον συνεφόρουν τὸν χοῦν. αἱ γοῦν τῶν μηχανημάτων ἐμβολαὶ οὐ μόνον οὐ διερρήγνυον τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ καὶ στερρότερον τῷ σάλῳ συνιζάνον εἰργάζοντο· διὸ τοῖς στρατιώταις ὁ Σίλβας