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[59]
NOW the auxiliaries which were sent to assist the people of Sepphoris,
being a thousand horsemen, and six thousand footmen, under Placidus the
tribune, pitched their camp in two bodies in the great plain. The foot
were put into the city to be a guard to it, but the horse lodged abroad
in the camp. These last, by marching continually one way or other, and
overrunning the parts of the adjoining country, were very troublesome to
Josephus and his men; they also plundered all the places that were out
of the city's liberty, and intercepted such as durst go abroad. On this
account it was that Josephus marched against the city, as hoping to take
what he had lately encompassed with so strong a wall, before they revolted
from the rest of the Galileans, that the Romans would have much ado to
take it; by which means he proved too weak, and failed of his hopes, both
as to the forcing the place, and as to his prevailing with the people of
Sepphoris to deliver it up to him. By this means he provoked the Romans
to treat the country according to the law of war; nor did the Romans, out
of the anger they bore at this attempt, leave off, either by night or by
day, burning the places in the plain, and stealing away the cattle that
were in the country, and killing whatsoever appeared capable of fighting
perpetually, and leading the weaker people as slaves into captivity; so
that Galilee was all over filled with fire and blood; nor was it exempted
from any kind of misery or calamity, for the only refuge they had was this,
that when they were pursued, they could retire to the cities which had
walls built them by Josephus.
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