A compendious and most marueilous history of the latter tymes of the Iewes commune weale beginnynge where the Bible or Scriptures leaue, and continuing to the vtter subuersion and laste destruction of that countrey and people: written in Hebrew by Ioseph Ben Gorion, a noble man of the same countrey, who sawe the most thinges him selfe, and was auctour and doer of a great part of the same. Translated into Englishe by Peter Morvvyng of Magdalen Colledge in Oxford.

IN those dayes dwelt the Iewes & A∣ramites together in all the Cities of Siria, amongst whom also warre was moued, for the Cesarians brought the Romaines into the towne againste the Iewes, & slue thē as mani as thei could finde in the towne. The Damascians also conspired together to distroy al the Iewes that dwelt amongst thē, which thing thei kept secrete frō their wiues, bicause for the most part thei fauoured the Iewes religion. Therfore the A∣ramites vppon a certaine night armed for the purpose, beset all the waies and

entrances into the towne, & the houses also, and slue about .x. M. of the Iewes commynge vppon them at vnwares when they were in their beddes, no∣thinge mistrustynge any such matter. Whē the Iewes of Hierusalem heard howe the Aramites had dealt with the Iewes in their countrey: sodainly they put them selues in armes, and in a fury and rage like as it hadde bene Lions & beares that had lost their whelps, they ranne to Damasco, burnt their holdes, slew the Damascians with the sword, man, woman, & childe, euē the very suc∣king babes: yea, their oxē, shepe, camels, & asses, with all other cattell, leauinge none aliue. And thus they dealt wyth many cities of the Sirians, sleing and killynge them, not sparyng either olde or yonge: male, or female: but distrey∣inge all in most cruell wyse, euen the the verye infantes and sucklyngs they haled from their mothers breastes and murthered them, in so muche that all the whole Lande was full of stenche of the deade bodyes that were slayne,

for there was no man left to burye the carcases. So the Iewes wasted all the lād of y^e Aramits, & had destroied it had not Castius a captaine of the Romains deliuered Siria & the countrey of Zofa. The people therfore departed wholly frō Aram to return into Iudea, & in the waie thei came bi Scithopolis a citie of Siria, entending to besiege it, for it was yet left vntouched, & was verie strong. At that time also Iewes and Aramites dwelt together in it. The Iewes ther∣fore that were without, offred peace to the Iews y^e dwelt in the town: but thei refused it, and defied them, railinge at them, and for their frendly offer acqui∣ted them with opprobrious wordes, & with in••uries also. For those Iewes that dwelt in the foresaid citie with the Aramits, loued together like brethren, and for the more parte thei were of the Leuitical tribe, stoute men and hardy. The hoste of the Iewes without the ci∣tie, saide vnto them: Wee come frend∣ly vnto you, and would aide you. The other Iewes within annswered: Wee

will neither your frendship nor aide. The armie of the Iewes hearing that, cōsented and agreed to raise their siege, to goe to Hierusalem, and there to re∣maine. For thei had a huge bootie of goulde and siluer that they had gotten together of the spoiles of Siria. After this, the Sirians that dwelt in Scitho∣polis saide one to another: Putcase the Iewes returne agayne & make warre vpon vs: surelye if they shoulde so do, these Iewes that dwell amongest vs would ioine with them, and deliuer vp the Citye into their handes, and then woulde they be reuenged vpon vs, and distroy vs as they haue done the other cities of Siria. Therfore they agreed to saye vnto the Iewes that inhabited the citye with them: Wee vnderstand your countrey men will inuade vs a∣gain, and make warre vpon vs: wher∣fore departe ye forthe of the citie wyth your wiues and children, and lodge in the woode nie vnto the citye, till their armye be gone againe, and then you shal return vnto vs. The Iewes were

content to fulfil their mindes, wēt out of the citye, and placed them selues in the woode. There was amongst them a certaine yonge man named Schime∣on, a good man of watre, fearce, bigge made, and verye stronge withall: he in fauoure of the gentiles had slaine ma∣nye of the Iewes, and solde muche of the people of God. For duringe the time that the Iewes besieged Sitho∣polis: he issued oute continuallye, and skirmished with the host of the Iewes, many times puttinge them to flighte, and neuer would suffer them to waste the towne or to do anye harme to the inhabitauntes thereof. Nowe as this Schimeon with his father Saule an ho∣nest old man, and the reast of the peo∣ple of the Iewes that dwelte in Sci∣thopolis, remained all together boldly in the woode, withoute mistrustinge anye harme: the Romaines ioyned with the Sirians in greate nomber, en∣tred the woode and slew the Iewes all that euer they could finde, to the nom∣ber of .xiii. thousande. Schimeon him

selfe with his father and their fami∣lies had pitched their tentes nie vnto a faire fountain y^t was in the woode, to whome when their ennemies came to slea them and to destroye their hole families: Schimeon ranne vpon them with his drawne sweard, made a great slaughter of theim, and constreyned them to retire. But when as a huge multitude inuironed him, and he per∣ceiued that all the reaste of the Iewes were slaine, and he with his housholde onlye remained, nether sawe he anye waye to escape: he stepte vppon a little hyll wyth hys naked swearde, sayinge: Harken vnto me ye Sirians and Romaines and ye that dwell in Scithopoles, I will speake vnto you a fewe woordes full of lamentacion and sorowe. Nowe I perceiue that iustli and not without a cause ye make warre against me, withoute any fauor or cōsideracion y^t I haue deliuered you from the hostes of the Iewes, & neuer suffred thē to do any displesure to you,

your wiues and children, nor to your city as they had done to other cities of Siria. For I am he that for your sakes haue warred against my country men to please you withall: yea, bothe their bloud and mine owne haue I pledged vnto you: and haue kept immolated the loue of straungers, hatinge mine owne people, of whome, for your pleasures I haue slain oft both the fathers and the children: and nowe you render euill for the good that I haue done vnto you. But in dede God of his iust iudgmente hathe stirred you vp to rewarde me in this sorte, to murther me that haue so oft receiued you. Now therfore ye shall beare me witnesse that I shal sufficiēt∣ly and sharpli inough take vengeaunce of my self, not withoute rage and furye most seuerly, because I haue slaine my felowes & frendes. I will therfore like∣wise slea my selfe to be auenged of my self for my brothers bloude that I haue shed: and so shal I be a reuēger of their blud. And ye shal wel perceiue me to be of that hardinesse & courage that rather

then ye shuld slea me, and after boast & bragge how ye haue killed Schimeon: I wil bereue my selfe of my life and punishe the sheadinge of my brothers bloud none otherwise then the law pu∣nisheth a murtherer and a māqueller. When he had spokē this, his eies were filled with bloud & his face with rage, and so inflamed with furie, latynge a∣parte all pity: ran and caught holde of his father, haled him oute of the woode and slue him, Then slue he his mother least she should intreat him for the chil∣dren, and be sory for their sakes. That done, his wife came runninge of hir owne accord, and held her necke downe to the sword: leaste she shoulde be con∣strained to see her children die. Yea, Schimeons children came and offered them selues to be slain: least they should see the deathe of their father, or remain after him to be deliuered to the enne∣mies. After this he slue all his hole fa∣mily, that not one of his shoulde come into the hādes of their enemies. Final∣lye, he gathered their bodies together

into one place like a valiaunte stoute warrioure, and then boldlye goarded him selfe vpon his owne sworde, least any mā else should impare his strēgth, or boast that he had killed him. Al this Schimeon did with a greate courage to take punishment of him self, because he had bestowed his loue rather vpon straungers then vpon his owne peo∣ple, and to declare his force and man∣hode. So he died an abhominable and detestable death, saue onlye it was an argument of his hauty minde & great courage, as it is said before.