[Sidenote: I Macc. 16:18-22] Then Ptolemy wrote what had happened, and asked the king to send forces to aid him, and promised to hand over to him their country and the cities. And he sent others to Gazara to make away with John. And to the officers commanding thousands he sent letters to come to him, that he might give them silver and gold and gifts. And others he sent to take possession of Jerusalem and the temple-mount. But some ran before to Gazara and told John that his father and brothers had perished, and they said, He has sent to slay you too. And when he heard, he was dumb with amazement, but he seized the men who came to destroy him, and slew them, for he saw that they were seeking to destroy him. [Sidenote: Jos. Jew. War, I, 2:3c-4b] Now when Hyrcanus had received the high priesthood which his father had held before him and had offered sacrifice to God, he made haste to attack Ptolemy, that he might relieve his mother and brothers. So he laid siege to the fortress and was superior to Ptolemy in other respects; but he was defeated through his natural affection. For when Ptolemy was distressed, he brought Hyrcanus's mother and his brothers and set them upon the wall and beat them with rods in the sight of all and threatened that unless Hyrcanus went away immediately, he would throw them down headlong. At this sight Hyrcanus's pity and concern overcame his anger. [Sidenote: Jos. Jew. War, I, 2:4d] And since the siege was delayed in this way, the year of rest came on, during which the Jews rest every seventh year as they do on every seventh day. In this year, therefore, Ptolemy was freed from being besieged. He also slew the brothers of Hyrcanus with their mother, and fled to Zeno, who was the tyrant of Philadelphia. [Sidenote: Jos. Jew. War, I, 2:5] And now Antiochus [Sidetes] was so angry at what he had suffered from Simon that he made an expedition into Judea and laid siege to Jerusalem and shut up Hyrcanus. But Hyrcanus opened the tomb of David, who was the richest of all kings, took from there more than three thousand talents of money and induced Antiochus upon the promise of three thousand talents to raise the siege. Moreover he was the first of the Jews who had plenty of money, and so began to hire foreign mercenaries. [Sidenote: Jos. Jew. War, I, 2:6] At another time, when Antiochus had gone upon an expedition against the Medes and thus given Hyrcanus an opportunity to be revenged upon him, Hyrcanus made an attack upon the cities of Syria, thinking, as proved to be the case, that he would find them empty of good troops. So he took Medeba and Samaga with their surrounding towns; likewise Shechem and Mount Gerizim.