2.10.1
X. Τὰ δέ γε τῆς κατὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐγχειρήσεως τοῦ βασιλέως οὐκέτ’ ἀναβολῆς εἴχετο, ἅμα γέ τοι αὐτὸν ὁ τῆς θείας δίκης τιμωρὸς διάκονος μετῄει, παραυτίκα μετὰ τὴν τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐπιβουλήν, ὡς ἡ τῶν Πραξέων ἱστορεῖ γραφή, ὁρμήσαντα μὲν ἐπὶ τὴν Καισάρεινα, ἐν δ’ ἐνταῦθα ἑορτῆς ἡμέρᾳ λαμπρᾷ καὶ βασιλικῇ κοσμησάμενον ἐσθῆτι ὑφηλόν τε πρὸ βήματος κοσμησάμενον τοῦ γάρ τοι δήμου παντὸς ἐπευφημήσαντος ἐπὶ τῆ δημηγορίᾳ ὡς ἐπὶ θεοῦ φωνῇ καὶ οὐκ ἀνθρώπου, παραχρῆμα τὸ λόγιον πατάξαι αὐτὸν ἄγγελον κυρίου ἱστορεῖ, γενόμενόν τε ακωληκόβρωτον ἐκφῦξαι. θαυμάσαι δ’ ἄξιον τῆς περὶ τὴν θείαν γραφὴν καὶ ἐν τῷδε τῷ παραδόξῳ συμφωνίας τὴν τοῦ ’Iωαήπου ἱατορίαν, καθ’ ἢν ἐπιμαρτυρῶν τῆ ἀληθείᾳ δῆλός ἐατιν, ἐν τόμῳ τῆς Ἀρχαιολογίας ἐννεακαιδεκάτῳ, ἔνθα αὐτοῖς γράμμασιν ὧδέ πως τὸ θαῦμα διηγεῖται.
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X. As the king's attempt on the Apostles there was no more delay, but the avenging minister of the sentence of God overtook him at once, immediately after his plot against the Apostles, as the Scripture relates in the Acts. He had gone to Caesarea, and there on the set day of the feast, adorned with splendid and royal robes, he addressed the people, standing on high before his judgment-seat. The whole people applauded his address, as though at the voice of a god and not of a man, and the story relates that an angel of the Lord smote him at once, and he was eaten of worms and expired. It is worthy of wonder how in this marvel also the narrative of Josephus agrees with the divine Scripture. He clearly testifies to the truth in the nineteenth book of the Antiquities, where the wonder is related in the following words: “Now the third year of his reign over all Judaea had been finished when he came to the city of Caesarea, which was formerly called the tower of Strato. There he was celebrating games in honour of Caesar, because he knew that this was a kind of feast for his safety, and at it was assembled a multitude of those in office and of high rank in the province. On the second day of the games he put on a robe made entirely of silver, so that it was a wonderful fabric, and proceeded to the theatre at the beginning of the day. Then when the silver was refulgent with the first glint of the rays of the sun it gleamed marvellously with a peculiar sheen, fearful and terrifying to those who gazed at it. At once the flatterers raised their voices from various quarters — but no good did it do him — and addressed him as a god, saying, Be thou propitious! even if until now we feared thee as man, yet from henceforth we confess thee as of more than mortal.” The king was not dismayed at these words, nor did he reject the impious flattery.
2.10.2
“τρίτον δ’ ἔτος αὐτῷ βασιλεύοντι τῆς ὅΛης Ἰουδαίας πεπλήρωτο, καὶ πάρην εἰς πόλιν Καισάρεινα, ἢ τὸ πρότερον Στράτωνος πύργος ἐκα- λεῖτο. αυνετέλει δ’ ἐνταῦθα θεωρίας εἰς τὴν Καίσαρος τιμήν, ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐκείνου σωτηρίας ἑορτήν τινα ταύτην ἐπιστάμενος, καὶ παρ’ αὐτὴν ἤθροιστο τῶν κατὰ τὴν ἐπαρχίαν ἐν τέλει καὶ προβεβηκότων εἰς ἀξίαν πλῆθος. δευτέρᾳ δὲ τῶν θεωριῶν ἡμέρᾳ στολὴν ἐνδυσάμενος ἐξ πεποιημένην πᾶσαν, ὡς θαυμάσιον ὑφὴν εἶναι, παρῆλθεν εἰς τὸ θέατρον ἀρχομένης ἡμέρας. ἔνθα ταῖς πρώταις τῶν ἡλιακῶν ἀκτίνων ἐπιβολαῖς ὁ ἄργυρος καταυγασθείς, θαυμασίως ἀπέστιλβεν, μαρμαίρων τι φοβερὸν καὶ τοῖς εἰς αὐτὸν ἀτενίζουσι φρικῶδες. εὐθὺς δὲ οἱ κόλακες τὰς οὐδὲν ἐκείνῳ πρὸς ἀγαθοῦ ἄλλος ἄλλοθεν φωνὰς ἀνεβόων, θεὸν προσαγορεύοντες ‘ εὐμενής ’ τε ‘εἴης ’ ἐπιλέγοντες, ‘εἰ καὶ μέχρι νῦν ὡς ἄνθρωπον ἐφοβήθημεν, ἀλλὰ τοὐντεῦθεν κρείττονά σε θνητῆς φύσεως ὁμολογοῦμεν.’ οὐκ ἐπέπληξεν τούτοις ὁ βασιλεὺς οὐδὲ τὴν κολακείαν ἀσεβοῦσαν ἀπετρίψατο. ἀνακύψας δὲ μετ’ ὀλίγον, τῆς ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλῆς ὑπερκαθεζόμενον εἶδεν ἄγγελον. τοῦτον εὐθὺς ἐνόησεν κακῶν εἶναι αἴτιον, τὸν καί ποτε ὢ θ’ ὢ ἴ’ δ’ δ’ ἑ τῶν ἀγάθων γενόμενον, καὶ διακάρδιον ἐσχεν ὀδύνην, ἄθρουν δ’ αὐτῷ τῆς κοιλίας προσέφυσεν ἄλγημα, μετὰ σφοδρότητος ἀρξάμενον. ἀναθεωρῶν οὖν πρὸς τοὺς φίλους, ἴ’ ὁ θεὸς ὑμῖν ἐγώ,’ φησίν, ἤδη καταστρέφειν ἐπιτάττομαι τὸν βίον, παραχρῆμα τῆς εἱμαρμένης τὰς ἄρτι μου κατεψευσμένας φωνὰς ἐΛεγχούσης. ὁ κληθεὶς ἀθά ὑφ’ ὑμῶν, ἤδη θανεῖν ἀπάγομαι. δεκτέον δὲ τὴν πεπρωμένην, ἦ θεὸς βεβούληται. καὶ γὰρ βεβιώκαμεν οὐδαμῇ φαύλως, ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ τῆς μακαριζομένης μακρότητος.’ ταῦτα δὲ λέγων ἐπι- τάσει τῆς ὀδύνης κατεπονεῖτο· μετὰ σπουδῆς οὖν εἰς τὸ βασίλειον ἐκομίσθη, καὶ διῇξε λόγος εἰς πάντας ὡς ἔχοι τοῦ τεθνάναι παντάπασι μετ’ ὀλίγον. ἡ πληθὺς δ’ αὐτίκα σὺν γυναιξὶ καὶ παισὶν ἐπὶ σάκκον καθεσθεῖσα τῷ πατρίῳ νόμῳ τὸν θεὸν ἱκέτευον ὑπὲρ τοῦ βασιλέως, οἰμωγῆς τε πάντ’ ἢν ἀνάπλεα καὶ θρήνων. ἐν ὑψηλῷ δ’ ὁ βασιλεὺς δωματίῳ κατακείμενος καὶ κάτω βλέπων αὐτοὺς πρηνεῖς προπίπτοντας, ἄδακρυς οὐδ’ αὐτὸς ἔμενεν. συνεχεῖς δ’ ἐφ’ ἡμέρας πέντε τῷ τῆς γαστρὸς ἀλγήματι διεργασθείς, τὸν βίον κατέστρεφεν, ἀπὸ γενέσεως ἄγων πεντηκοστὸν ἔτος καὶ τέταρτον, τῆς δὲ βασιλείας ἕβδομον. τέσσαρας μὲν οὖν ἐπὶ Γαΐου Καίσαρος ἐβασί- λευσεν ἐνιαυτούς, τῆς Φιλίππου μὲν τετραρχίας εἰς τριετίαν ἄρξας, τῷ τετάρτῳ δὲ καὶ τὴν Ἡρῴδου προσειληφώς, τρεῖς δ’ ἐπιλαβὼν τῆς Κλαυδίου Καίσαρος αὐτοκρατορίας’’ ταῦτα τὸν Ἰώσηπον ὒ μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ταῖς θείαις συναληθεύοντα γραφαῖς ἀποθαυμάζω· εἰ δὲ περὶ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως πρόα· ηγορίαν δόξειέν τισιν διαφωνεῖν, ἀλλ’ ὅ γε χρόνος καὶ ἡ πρᾶξις τὸν αὐτὸν ὄντα δείκνυσιν, ἤτοι κατά τι σφάλμα γραφικὸν ἐνηλλαγμένου τοῦ ὀνόματος ἢ καὶ διωνυμίας περὶ τὸν αὐτόν, οἷα καὶ περὶ πολλούς, γεγενημένης.
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But after a little looking up he saw an angel seated above his head. This he at once perceived to be the harbinger of evil, as it had formerly been of good; and he had in his heart agony, and pain rapidly began spreading increasingly through his stomach. So he looked up to his friends and said, “I, who am your god, am now commanded to give up my life, for fate has immediately reproved the lying words just uttered about me. I, whom you called immortal, am now being taken off to die. Fate must be accepted, as God has willed, yet I have lived no mean life, but in the spaciousness which men deem blessed.” While he was saying this, he began to be overwhelmed by the intensity of his pain; he was therefore carried hastily into the palace, and the report was spread among all that he would certainly die shortly. But the multitude, seated on sackcloth with their wives and children, according to the law of their fathers, at once began to beseech God for the king, and the whole place was filled with wailing and lamentations. The king, lying in a room on high and looking down on them as they fell prostrate, did not remain without tears himself. After being racked by pain in the stomach for five successive days, he passed from life in the fifty-fourth year of his age and the seventh of his reign. He had reigned four years in the time of Caius Caesar. For three years he possessed the tetrarchy of Philip, but in the fourth received also that of Herod, and he continued for three more years in the reign of Claudius Caesar. I am surprised how in this and other points Josephus confirms the truth of the divine Scriptures. Even if he seem to some to differ as to the name of the king, nevertheless the date and the events show that he is the same, and either that the name has been changed by some clerical error or that there were two names for the same man, as has happened with many.