ith him, as she might
otherwise have done; for while she was most indulgently used by the
king, out of his fondness for her, and did not expect that he could do
any hard thing to her, she took too unbounded a liberty. Moreover, that
which most afflicted her was, what he had done to her relations, and she
ventured to speak of all they had suffered by him, and at last greatly
provoked both the king's mother and sister, till they became enemies to
her; and even he himself also did the same, on whom alone she depended
for her expectations of escaping the last of punishments.

7. But when she was once dead, the king's affections for her were
kindled in a more outrageous manner than before, whose old passion for
her we have already described; for his love to her was not of a calm
nature, nor such as we usually meet with among other husbands; for at
its commencement it was of an enthusiastic kind, nor was it by their
long cohabitation and free conversation together brought under his power
to manage; but at this time his love to Mariamne seemed to seize him in
such a peculiar manner, as looked like Divine vengeance upon him for
the taking away her life; for he would frequently call for her, and
frequently lament for her in a most indecent manner. Moreover, he
bethought him of every thing he could make use of to divert his mind
from thinking of her, and contrived feasts and assemblies for that
purpose, but nothing would suffice; he therefore laid aside the
administration of public affairs, and was so far conquered by his
passion, that he would order his servants to call for Mariamne, as if
she were still alive, and could still hear them. And when he was in this
way, there arose a pestilential disease, and carried off the greatest
part of the multitude, and of his best and most esteemed friends, and
made all men suspect that this was brought upon them by the anger of
God, for the injustice that had been done to Mariamne. This circumstance
affected the king still more, till at length he forced himself to
go into desert places, and there, under pretense of going a hunting,
bitterly afflicted himself; yet had he not borne his grief there many
days before he fell into a most dangerous distemper himself: he had an
inflammation upon him, and a pain in the hinder part of his head, joined
with madness; and for the remedies that were used, they did him no good
at all, but proved contrary to his case, and so at length brought him to
despai