The Wars of the Jews; Or, The History of the Destruction of JerusalemJosephus, Flavius
Religion
The Wars of the Jews; Or, The History of the Destruction of Jerusalem
Josephus, Flavius
Jews -- History
3. Now after these were slain, the zealots and the multitude of the
Idumeans fell upon the people as upon a flock of profane animals, and
cut their throats; and for the ordinary sort, they were destroyed in
what place soever they caught them. But for the noblemen and the youth,
they first caught them and bound them, and shut them up in prison, and
put off their slaughter, in hopes that some of them would turn over to
their party; but not one of them would comply with their desires, but
all of them preferred death before being enrolled among such wicked
wretches as acted against their own country. But this refusal of theirs
brought upon them terrible torments; for they were so scourged and
tortured, that their bodies were not able to sustain their torments,
till at length, and with difficulty, they had the favor to be slain.
Those whom they caught in the day time were slain in the night, and then
their bodies were carried out and thrown away, that there might be room
for other prisoners; and the terror that was upon the people was so
great, that no one had courage enough either to weep openly for the dead
man that was related to him, or to bury him; but those that were shut up
in their own houses could only shed tears in secret, and durst not even
groan without great caution, lest any of their enemies should hear them;
for if they did, those that mourned for others soon underwent the same
death with those whom they mourned for. Only in the night time they
would take up a little dust, and throw it upon their bodies; and even
some that were the most ready to expose themselves to danger would do it
in the day time: and there were twelve thousand of the better sort who
perished in this manner.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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