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[208]
But when those that were in the citadel had sent to Trypho, and besought
him to make haste and come to them, and to send them provisions, he prepared
his cavalry as though he would be at Jerusalem that very night; but so
great a quantity of snow fell in the night, that it covered the roads,
and made them so deep, that there was no passing, especially for the cavalry.
This hindered him from coming to Jerusalem; whereupon Trypho removed thence,
and came into Celesyria, and falling vehemently upon the land of Gilead,
he slew Jonathan there; and when he had given order for his burial, he
returned himself to Antioch. However, Simon sent some to the city Basca
to bring away his brother's bones, and buried them in their own city Modin;
and all the people made great lamentation over him. Simon also erected
a very large monument for his father and his brethren, of white and polished
stone, and raised it a great height, and so as to be seen a long way off,
and made cloisters about it, and set up pillars, which were of one stone
apiece; a work it was wonderful to see. Moreover, he built seven pyramids
also for his parents and his brethren, one for each of them, which were
made very surprising, both for their largeness and beauty, and which have
been preserved to this day; and we know that it was Simon who bestowed
so much zeal about the burial of Jonathan, and the building of these monuments
for his relations. Now Jonathan died when he had been high priest four
years 1
and had been also the governor of his nation. And these were the circumstances
that concerned his death.
1 There is some error in the copies here, when no more than four years are ascribed to the high priesthood of Jonathan. We know by Josephus's last Jewish chronology, Antiq. B. XX. ch. 10., that there was an interval of seven years between the death of Alcimus, or Jacimus, the last high priest, and the real high priesthood of Jonathan, to whom yet those seven years seem here to be ascribed, as a part of them were to Judas before, Antiq. B. XII. ch. 10. sect. 6. Now since, besides these seven years interregnum in the pontificate, we are told, Antiq. B. XX. ch. 10., that Jonathan's real high priesthood lasted seven years more, these two seven years will make up fourteen years, which I suppose was Josephus's own number in this place, instead of the four in our present copies.
Flavius Josephus. The Works of Flavius Josephus. Translated by. William Whiston, A.M. Auburn and Buffalo. John E. Beardsley. 1895.
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