shonorable thing for
them to erect statues in honor of him, as well as to swear by his name.
Many of these severe things were said by Apion, by which he hoped to
provoke Caius to anger at the Jews, as he was likely to be. But Philo,
the principal of the Jewish embassage, a man eminent on all accounts,
brother to Alexander the alabarch, [30] and one not unskillful in
philosophy, was ready to betake himself to make his defense against
those accusations; but Caius prohibited him, and bid him begone; he was
also in such a rage, that it openly appeared he was about to do them
some very great mischief. So Philo being thus affronted, went out,
and said to those Jews who were about him, that they should be of good
courage, since Caius's words indeed showed anger at them, but in reality
had already set God against himself.

2. Hereupon Caius, taking it very heinously that he should be thus
despised by the Jews alone, sent Petronius to be president of Syria, and
successor in the government to Vitellius, and gave him order to make
an invasion into Judea, with a great body of troops; and if they would
admit of his statue willingly, to erect it in the temple of God; but
if they were obstinate, to conquer them by war, and then to do it.
Accordingly, Petronius took the government of Syria, and made haste to
obey Caesar's epistle. He got together as great a number of auxiliaries
as he possibly could, and took with him two legions of the Roman army,
and came to Ptolemais, and there wintered, as intending to set about the
war in the spring. He also wrote word to Caius what he had resolved to
do, who commended him for his alacrity, and ordered him to go on, and to
make war with them, in case they would not obey his commands. But there
came many ten thousands of the Jews to Petronius, to Ptolemais, to offer
their petitions to him, that he would not compel them to transgress and
violate the law of their forefathers; "but if," said they, "thou art
entirely resolved to bring this statue, and erect it, do thou first kill
us, and then do what thou hast resolved on; for while we are alive
we cannot permit such things as are forbidden us to be done by the
authority of our legislator, and by our forefathers' determination that
such prohibitions are instances of virtue." But Petronius was angry at
them, and said, "If indeed I were myself emperor, and were at liberty to
follow my own inclination, and then had designed to act thus, these your
words w