382

he called him and asked, "What do I seem to you to be?" and that one said, "a great absurdity." And he suffered nothing terrible; for he was disregarded as being a shoemaker. He would greet a few, but to the others, even the senators, he would offer either his hand or his foot to be kissed. And all of them flattered him. And once he asked Lucius Vitellius, a man of noble birth and sound judgment, saying that he had intercourse with the Moon, if he saw the goddess consorting with him. And he, bowing his head as if amazed, and speaking in a low and trembling voice, said, "To you gods alone, master, is it permitted to see one another." Gaius went so mad that he ordered a precinct to be erected for himself among those in Asia, at Miletus. And in Rome two temples were established for him; for he himself built one for himself in the palace, and the other was voted for him and built by the senate. And he reproached Jupiter for having preoccupied the Capitol. And he sent statues of himself everywhere 3.22 in the inhabited world, ordering them to be worshipped. And he was converting the temple in Jerusalem into his own shrine, so that it might be called the temple of the New Jupiter Epiphanes Gaius, even if Josephus passed this over in silence when writing his *Antiquities*. From this also the revolt of the Jews had its beginning. And he appointed many priests for himself, and he himself acted as his own priest. And he thundered back at the thunderclaps with a machine, and flashed lightning back at the lightning. And whenever a thunderbolt was hurled down, he would hurl stones back, saying at each one the verse of Homer, "Either lift me up, or I you." During his reign, as Eusebius relates, saying that he took these things from those who wrote the chronicles of the Olympiads, Pilate fell into so many misfortunes that he was forced to become his own slayer, divine justice having pursued him. Since, therefore, he was mad in every way—for to recount each particular would be a matter of much idle talk and unpleasantness—Cassius Chaerea and Cornelius Sabinus conspired against him. For many more conspired and those around him were aware of what was being done; and as many as did not conspire, upon learning of it, neither revealed it and gladly saw him being plotted against. And he was plotted against while putting on a show. For Chaerea and Sabinus, though pained by the shameful things that were happening, nevertheless held out for five days. But when Gaius himself wished both to dance and to act in a tragedy, and for this reason announced another three days 3.23, they watched for him as he was coming out of the theater, surrounded him in a narrow passage, and killed him, and when he had fallen, none of those present held back, but they continued to wound him even when he was a corpse. And they immediately slaughtered his wife and his daughter. Gaius, then, having done these things in three years, nine months, and twenty-eight days, learned by the deeds themselves that he was not a god. And when his death was announced, all rejoiced except for the few who had shared in his debauchery, remembering what had once been said by him, when, angered at the people, he said, "If only you had one neck," and adding that, "You have one neck, but we have many hands." And while a few were running about and making a disturbance, shouting, "Who slaughtered Gaius?" Valerius Asiaticus, a man who had been consul, went up to a conspicuous place and shouted out, saying, "If only I had killed him." And so the rioters were struck with terror and became quiet. Gaius, then, was destroyed in this way; and when the senate had assembled in the Capitol, it seemed best to some to be governed as a democracy, but others judged that they should be ruled by a monarchy again; and of these, some chose this man, and others that one. And meanwhile some soldiers, rushing into the palace to plunder something, found Claudius hiding somewhere in a dark corner—for he had been with Gaius as he was leaving the theater, and being afraid of the disturbance had hidden himself—and they dragged him out, not knowing who he was. But when they recognized him, they hailed him emperor 3.24 and led him to the camp, and since no one hesitated, all gave him the power, as he was of the royal family and was considered to be a reasonable man. For even if he tried to decline and spoke against it, the more he drew back and resisted, the more the soldiers insisted, lest from

382

τοῦτο ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὸν καὶ ηρετο "τί σοι δοκῶ ειναι;" κἀκεῖνος "μέγα παραλήρημα" εφη. καὶ οὐδὲν επαθε δεινόν· παρελογίσθη γὰρ σκυτοτόμος ων. ἠσπάζετό τε βραχεῖς, τοῖς δ' αλλοις καὶ τῶν βουλευτῶν η τὴν χεῖρα η τὸν πόδα προσκυνεῖν ωρεγε. πάντες δὲ αὐτὸν ἐκολάκευον. καί ποτε τὸν Λούκιον τὸν Οὐιτέλλιον ανδρα εὐγενῆ καὶ φρονήσεως ευ εχοντα ηρετο, τῇ Σελήνῃ μίγνυσθαι λέγων, εἰ ὁρῴη τὴν θεὸν συνοῦσαν αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ κάτω νεύων, οια δὴ τεθηπώς, καὶ μικρόν τι φθεγξάμενος καὶ ὑπότρομον "ὑμῖν" εφη "τοῖς θεοῖς, δέσποτα, μόνοις ἀλλήλους ὁρᾶν εξεστιν." Ουτω δ' ἐξεμάνη ὁ Γάιος ὡς καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῇ ̓Ασίᾳ τέμενος ἑαυτῷ ἀνεγεῖραι κελεῦσαι κατὰ τὴν Μίλητον. καὶ ἐν τῇ ̔Ρώμῃ δύο ναοὶ αὐτῷ ἱδρύθησαν· τὸν μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ ἐτεκτήνατο, ὁ δ' ὑπὸ τῆς βουλῆς αὐτῷ ἐψηφίσθη καὶ ἐδομήθη. ἐπενεκάλει δὲ καὶ τῷ ∆ιὶ οτι τὸ Καπιτώλιον προκατέλαβε. καὶ ἀγάλματα δ' ἑαυτοῦ πανταχοῦ 3.22 τῆς οἰκουμένης ἀπέστειλε, προσκυνεῖσθαι ταῦτα κελεύσας. τὸν δ' ἐν ̔Ιεροσολύμοις ναὸν εἰς οἰκεῖον ἱερὸν μεθηρμόζετο, ινα ∆ιὸς ἐπιφανοῦς νέον χρηματίζῃ Γαΐου, εἰ καὶ ὁ ̓Ιώσηπος τοῦτο παρεσιώπησεν ἀρχαιολογῶν. οθεν καὶ ἡ τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων ἀποστασία εσχηκε τὴν ἀρχήν. ἱερέας τε πολλοὺς ἑαυτῷ κατεστήσατο, καὶ αὐτὸς δ' ἑαυτῷ ἱερᾶτο. ταῖς τε βρονταῖς ἐκ μηχανῆς ἀντεβρόντα, ἀντήστραπτέ τε ταῖς ἀστραπαῖς. καὶ ὁπότε κατήνεκτο κεραυνός, λίθους ἀντηκόντιζεν, ἐπιλέγων ἐφ' ἑκάστῳ τὸ τοῦ ̔Ομήρου "η μ' ἀνάειρ' η ἐγὼ σέ." ̓Επὶ τούτου, ὡς Εὐσέβιος ἱστορεῖ, ἐκ τῶν τὰς ̓Ολυμπιάδας ἀναγραψάντων ἀναλέξασθαι ταῦτα λέγων, τοσαύταις περιέπεσε συμφοραῖς ὁ Πιλάτος ωστε ἀναγκασθῆναι ἑαυτοῦ γενέσθαι αὐτόχειρ, τῆς θείας δίκης μετελθούσης αὐτόν. ̔Ως ουν πάντα τρόπον ἐξεμαίνετο, ἀπαριθμεῖν γὰρ τὸ καθ' εκαστον πολλῆς αν ειη λέσχης καὶ ἀηδίας, ἐπεβούλευσαν αὐτῷ Κάσσιός τε Χαιρέας καὶ Κορνήλιος Σαβῖνος. συνώμοσαν μὲν γὰρ πλείονες καὶ συνῄδεισαν τὸ πραττόμενον καὶ οἱ περὶ αὐτὸν οντες· καὶ οσοι δὲ οὐ συνώμοσαν, γνόντες ουτ' ἐξέφηναν καὶ ασμενοι ειδον αὐτὸν ἐπιβουλευόμενον. ἐπεβουλεύθη δὲ θέαν ἐπιτελῶν. ὁ γὰρ Χαιρέας καὶ ὁ Σαβῖνος ἐπὶ τοῖς γινομένοις αἰσχροῖς ἀλγοῦντες, ομως ἐκαρτέρουν ἐπὶ πέντε ἡμέρας. ὡς δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Γάιος καὶ ὀρχήσασθαι καὶ τραγῳδίαν ἠθέλησεν ὑποκρίνασθαι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἑτέρας τρεῖς ἡμέρας προήγ3.23 γειλε, τηρήσαντες αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ θεάτρου ἐξερχόμενον ἐν στενωπῷ τινι περιστάντες ἀπέκτειναν, καὶ πεσόντος οὐδεὶς τῶν παρόντων ἀπέσχετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ νεκρὸν αὐτὸν κατετίτρωσκον. καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν θυγατέρα αὐτίκα ἀπέσφαξαν. Γάιος μὲν δὴ ταῦτα εν τε τρισὶν ετεσι καὶ μησὶν ἐννέα καὶ ἡμέραις ὀκτὼ καὶ εικοσι πράξας εργοις αὐτοῖς ὡς οὐκ ην θεὸς εγνωκεν. ὡς δὲ ὁ θάνατος αὐτοῦ διηγγέλθη, πλὴν ὀλίγων τῶν συνησελγηκότων αὐτῷ πάντες εχαιρον, μεμνημένοι καὶ τοῦ λεχθέντος ποτὲ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ, οτε ὀργισθεὶς τῷ δήμῳ εφη "ειθε ενα αὐχένα ειχετε," καὶ ἐπιλέγοντες οτι "σὺ μὲν ενα εχεις αὐχένα, ἡμεῖς δὲ χεῖρας πολλάς." διαθεόντων δέ τινων ὀλίγων καὶ θορυβούντων βοώντων τε "τίς Γάιον ἀπέσφαξεν;" Οὐαλέριος ̓Ασιατικός, ἀνὴρ ὑπατευκώς, ἀνῆλθεν εἰς αποπτόν τι χωρίον, καὶ ἐκβοήσας εφη "ειθε ἐγὼ αὐτὸν ημην ἀπεκτονώς." καὶ ουτω καταπλαγέντες οἱ θορυβοῦντες ἡσύχασαν. Γάιος μὲν ουτως ἐφθάρη· τῆς δὲ βουλῆς ἐν τῷ Καπιτωλίῳ συναθροισθείσης τοῖς μὲν δημοκρατεῖσθαι ἐδόκει, οἱ δὲ μοναρχεῖσθαι καὶ αυθις εκρινον· καὶ τούτων οἱ μὲν τόνδε, οἱ δὲ τόνδε ᾑροῦντο. κἀν τούτῳ στρατιῶταί τινες εἰς τὸ παλάτιον, ινα τι διαρπάσωσιν, εἰσπηδήσαντες ευρον ἐν σκοτεινῇ γωνίᾳ κατακρυπτόμενόν που τὸν Κλαύδιον, συνῆν γὰρ τῷ Γαΐῳ τοῦ θεάτρου ἐξερχομένῳ, καὶ τὴν ταραχὴν φοβηθεὶς κατεκρύβη, καὶ ἐξεῖλκον αὐτὸν μὴ εἰδότες οστις ην· γνόντες δὲ αὐτοκράτορά τε προσηγόρευσαν 3.24 καὶ ἐς τὸ στρατόπεδον ηγαγον, καὶ μή τινος ἐνδοιάσαντος απαντες αὐτῷ τὸ κράτος δεδώκασιν, ὡς ἐκ γένους οντι βασιλικοῦ καὶ νομιζομένῳ ἐπιεικεῖ. εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἀνεδύετο καὶ ἀντέλεγεν, ἀλλ' οσον ἐξίστατο καὶ ἀντέκειτο, τοσοῦτον μᾶλλον ἀντεφιλονείκουν οἱ στρατιῶται μὴ παρ'