d, either in the action or the
flight; and for the rest, who fled to the village of Cana, it happened
that they were all consumed by want of necessaries, a few only excepted.

8. About this time it was that the people of Damascus, out of their
hatred to Ptolemy, the son of Menhens, invited Aretas [to take the
government], and made him king of Celesyria. This man also made an
expedition against Judea, and beat Alexander in battle; but afterwards
retired by mutual agreement. But Alexander, when he had taken
Pella, marched to Gerasa again, out of the covetous desire he had of
Theodorus's possessions; and when he had built a triple wall about the
garrison, he took the place by force. He also demolished Golan, and
Seleucia, and what was called the Valley of Antiochus; besides which,
he took the strong fortress of Gamala, and stripped Demetrius, who was
governor therein, of what he had, on account of the many crimes laid to
his charge, and then returned into Judea, after he had been three whole
years in this expedition. And now he was kindly received of the nation,
because of the good success he had. So when he was at rest from war,
he fell into a distemper; for he was afflicted with a quartan ague, and
supposed that, by exercising himself again in martial affairs, he
should get rid of this distemper; but by making such expeditions at
unseasonable times, and forcing his body to undergo greater hardships
than it was able to bear, he brought himself to his end. He died,
therefore, in the midst of his troubles, after he had reigned seven and
twenty years.

CHAPTER 5.

Alexandra Reigns Nine Years, During Which Time The Pharisees
Were The Real Rulers Of The Nation.

1. Now Alexander left the kingdom to Alexandra his wife, and depended
upon it that the Jews would now very readily submit to her, because she
had been very averse to such cruelty as he had treated them with,
and had opposed his violation of their laws, and had thereby got the
good-will of the people. Nor was he mistaken as to his expectations; for
this woman kept the dominion, by the opinion that the people had of her
piety; for she chiefly studied the ancient customs of her country, and
cast those men out of the government that offended against their holy
laws. And as she had two sons by Alexander, she made Hyrcanus the elder
high priest, on account of his age, as also, besides that, on account of
his inactive temper, no way disposing him to disturb