of the Jews, and
brought them into so wicked a state, that the vengeance of God came upon
them to their utter excision. Just thus did Caiaphas politically advise
the Jewish sanhedrim, John 11:50, "That it was expedient for them that
one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish
not;" and this in consequence of their own political supposal, ver.
48, that, "If they let Jesus alone," with his miracles, "all men would
believe on him, and the Romans would come and take away both their place
and nation." Which political crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth brought
down the vengeance of God upon them, and occasioned those very Romans,
of whom they seemed so much afraid, that to prevent it they put him
to death, actually to "come and take away both their place and nation"
within thirty-eight years afterwards. I heartily wish the politicians
of Christendom would consider these and the like examples, and no
longer sacrifice all virtue and religion to their pernicious schemes of
government, to the bringing down the judgments of God upon themselves,
and the several nations intrusted to their care. But this is a
digression. I wish it were an unseasonable one also. Josephus himself
several times makes such digressions, and I here venture to follow him.
See one of them at the conclusion of the very next chapter.

[45] The number of five hundred thousand or even three hundred thousand,
as one Greek copy, with the Latin copies, have it, for Tigranes's army,
that came out of Armenia into Syria and Judea, seems much too large. We
have had already several such extravagant numbers in Josephus's present
copies, which are not to be at all ascribed to him. Accordingly, I
incline to Dr. Hudson's emendation here, which supposes them but forty
thousand.

[46] This fortress, castle, citadel, or tower, whither the wife and
children of Aristobulus were new sent, and which overlooked the temple,
could be no other than what Hyrcanus I. built, [Antiq. B. XVIII ch.
4. sect. 3,] and Herod the Great rebuilt, and called the "Tower of
Antonia," Aatiq. B. XV. ch. 11. sect. 5.

BOOK 14 FOOTNOTES

[1] Reland takes notice here, very justly, how Josephus's declaration,
that it was his great concern not only to write "an agreeable, an
accurate," and "a true" history, but also distinctly not to omit any
thing [of consequence], either through "ignorance or laziness," implies
that he could not, consistently with that resolution, omit the m