and tendencies to idolatry among the hesion to the temple of Jerusalem, it is Samaritans. Receiving the account of these difficult to see what other course was left matters through Josephus, and other preju- them than to build a temple for themselves. diced writers, it behooves us to be cautious of Besides, the obligation of adhesion to one receiving all the impressions they intend to temple was imposed only on the seed of convey. The temple of Gerizim was un- Abraham; and the law made no provision doubtedly a schismatical establishment. But for the case of a people who desired to worseeing that, on the one hand, the Samaritans ship Jehovah, but were repelled by the Jews. were anxious to worship Jehovah according And this very fact may suggest that this to the regulations of Moses, while, on the repulsion was in itself not legal, whatever other, the Jews, whether right or wrong, good effects may ultimately have resulted pertinaciously refused to receive their ad- from it. CHAPTER XXIV. END OF INSPIRED HISTORY, 420 B. C. JEWISH HISTORY TO B. C. 163. AFTER Nehemiah, no more separate governors of Judæa were sent from Persia. The territory was annexed to the province of Cole-Syria, and the administration of Jewish affairs was left to the high-priests, subject to the control of the provincial governors. This raised the high-priesthood to a degree of temporal dignity and power, which very soon made it such an object of worldly ambition, as occasioned many violent and disgraceful contests among persons who had had the least possible regard for the religious character and obligations of the sacerdotal office. The history of this period is obscure and intricate.* Facts are few, and some of those which we possess are hard to reconcile. But there is enough to acquaint us with the unholy violence and unprincipled conduct of the competitors for the priesthood, and the sufferings arising from this, as well as from the arbitrary proceedings of those who succeeded in obtaining that high office. Jeshua, the high-priest who returned with *The narrative of inspired history closes soon after the administration of Nehemiah, about 420 years, B. C. The history of the intervening period to the coming of Christ is intricate and fragmentary. The principal sources are the historic writings of Josephus, Diodorus Siculus, Polybius, Livy, Plutarch, Maccabees, and other ancient writers. This intermediate history has He Zerubbabel, was succeeded by his son Joachim, and he by his son Eliashib, who obtains unfavorable notice in the history of Nehemiah's second administration. was then old, and died in B. C. 413. He was succeeded by his son Joiada or Judas, who held the office for forty years, B. C. 413-373. Artaxerxes, who died in 423 B. C., left one son by his queen, and seventeen sons by his concubines. The first was named Xerxes, and, among the latter, history only knows. Sogdianus, Ochus, and Arsites. Xerxes, the only legitimate son, succeeded; but, after forty-five days, he was slain by Sogdianus, who mounted the throne. On this, Ochus, who was governor of Hyrcania, marched thence with a powerful army to avenge the deed. Sogdianus submitted, and was put to death. Ochus, in ascending the vacant throne,. took the name of Darius, and was surnamed Nothus, or "bastard," to distinguish him from others. of the name. Of the events of this troubled reign, it is The been written with much care and labor. writer seems to have availed himself of the learned works of Prof. Jahn, particularly his History of the Hebrew Commonwealth, to which the critical reader is referred for the several authorities whence the facts of this intermediate portion of the history of the Bible are de- A. B. rived. perhaps only necessary to notice that the being constantly impeded in his movemente Egyptians again shook off the Persian yoke, by the various channels of the rising Nile, and made Amyrtæus of Sais their king, he was obliged to retreat and relinquish the 413 B. C. With the aid of the Arabians, hope of subjecting Egypt to the Persian they drove the Persians out of Egypt, pur-yoke. sued them as far as Phoenicia, and main- The Egyptian king, by whom the Persians tained their independence sixty-four years. were thus repelled, was succeeded in 369 Ochus sent an army against them without B. C. by Teos or Tachos, who formed large success. The Persian forces marched to designs, and made extensive preparations for Egypt along the coast, through Judæa. acting offensively against the Persian power. This event could not fail to act to the serious He made an alliance with the Lacedæmonians, detriment and disquiet of the Jews; but and received from them 10,000 auxiliaries we possess no precise information on the under the command of Agesilaus their king. subject. The Persian army while on its Both the person and counsels of this consummarch might have laid waste Idumæa, be- mate general were treated with considerable cause the Idumæans had perhaps taken part disrespect; and the king persisted in leadwith those Arabs, who in conjunction with ing his army in person into Phoenicia against the Egyptians, had pursued the Persians the Persians. into Phoenicia, while the Jews continued faithful to the Persian government, with which they certainly had no reason to be dissatisfied. The prophet Malachi appears to allude to these circumstances. (Mal. i. 2-5.) Darius Nothus died in 404 B. C., and was succeeded by his eldest son Arsaces, who, on his accession, took the name of Artaxerxes, and was surnamed Memnon, on account of his astonishing "memory. The long reign of this monarch was full of striking and important events; but our notice must be confined to the circumstances connected with Egypt and Phoenicia, with which the Jews could not but be in some way involved. But his absence was immediately followed by a powerful conspiracy in favor of his relative Nectanebo, for whom the army also declared, so that the infatuated Tacho had no resource but to flee from his own people and throw himself under the protection of the great and generous king of Persia, whose dominions he had invaded. The Idumæans again suffered much from being mixed up in the contest between the Persians and Egyptians. Nor can it be supposed that the Jews escaped without much moral if not physical injury. It will be considered that they were exposed to the burdens of a military rendezvous from 377 to 374 B. C.; for at that time there were assembled in their vicinity 200,000 barbarian soldiers, besides 20,000 Greeks; and 300 ships of war, 200 galleys of thirty rowers, and a great number of store-ships were col Artaxerxes determined to make a vigorous effort to restore the Persian power in Egypt, and to this end made most exten-lected at Acco (Acre). The invading army sive preparation, continued for three years. of Persia, both in going and returning, took its At last, in 373 B. C., he had equipped route along their coasts, as did afterward the a most formidable expedition by land and sea, Egyptian army in its invasion of Phoenicia. which, he confidently expected, would These circumstances could not but he atspeedily reduce the strongholds, and firmly tended with very injurious effects; but upon establish his authority throughout the coun- the whole the Jews may be considered to try. But the jealousy between the com- have enjoyed peace and comfort during most manders of the land and sea forces pre- of the reign of Artaxerxes Memnon, who vented that union of purpose and action was a prince of mild and humane character, which was essential to success. Pelusium and governed with much moderation and was found to be impregnable, and all the fortified towns were placed in a state of defence. The Persian general, Pharnabazus, therefore, despaired of making any impression upon them, and advanced into the interior; but being opposed by the Egyptian king (Nectanebo) with a considerable force, and in consequence of the want of boats, prudence, and with considerable political Cyrus, by which the early part of his reign was much troubled. The retreat of the 10,000 Greeks who had fought for Cyrus and survived his overthrow and death under the conduct of the historian himself, has been more admired and celebrated than most ancient or modern victories. submission of Cyprus, the king marched into Egypt 350 B. C., and completely reduced it, chiefly by the assistance of Mentor the Rhodian, and 10,000 mercenary Greeks whom he had drawn into his service. The Egyptians were treated with a severity more congenial to the savage disposition of Ochus than was the moderation to which policy had constrained him in Phoenicia :- he dismantled the towns; he plundered the temples of their treasures and public records; and the ox-god Apis he sacrificed to an ass a severe practical satire upon the animal-worship revenge upon the Egyptians for their having nicknamed himself The Ass, on account of his apparent inactivity and sluggishness. Ochus returned in triumph to Babylon, laden with spoil of gold and silver, and other precious things from the kingdoms and provinces he had conquered. From this decisive war the humiliation of Egypt may be dated. It was between the periods of disturbance which have been indicated, namely, in 373 B. C., that the high-priest Joiada died, and was succeeded by his son Jonathan or Jochanan (John). About the time of the Egyptian invasion, this person occasioned much trouble to his nation. His brother of Egypt, and not less significant as an act of Jesus had become so great a favorite with the Persian governor Bagoses, that he nominated him to the priesthood. When Jesus came to Jerusalem in that capacity, he was slain by Jonathan in the very temple. Bagoses no sooner heard of this outrage than he hastened to Jerusalem; and when an attempt was made to exclude him from the temple as a Gentile, and consequently unclean, he replied with vehemence, “What! am not I as clean as the dead carcass that lies in your temple?" The punishment which Bagoses imposed for the murder of Jesus was a heavy tax upon the lambs offered in sacrifice. This onerous impost was not remitted until the succeeding reign ; and it must have been the more sensibly felt, as the priests had for many years been accustomed to receive large contributions from the Persian kings toward defraying the expense of the sacrifices. Artaxerxes Memnon was succeeded on the throne of Persia by his son Ochus. In his reign, among many other disturbances which we need not mention, the Sidonians, Phoenicians, and Cyprians revolted, and made common common cause cause with the Egyptians, who still maintained their independence. After repeated failures of his generals to reduce them, Ochus himself took the command of the expedition against them. He besieged Sidon, which was betrayed to him by the king Tennes; on which the Sidonians in despair set fire to the city, and burned themselves with all their treasures. Terrified by this catastrophe of Sidon, the other Phoenicians submitted on the best terms they could obtain ; and among them we may include the Jews, who seem to have joined the common cause. Being anxious to invade Egypt, Ochus was not unreasonable in his demands. After having also received the of the Phoenicians has been already intimated. This appears from the fact that Ochus went from Phoenicia to Jericho, subdued that city, took some of the inhabitants with him into Egypt, and sent others into Hyrcania to people that province. But that the disaffection of the Jews was not general, or that, at least, it was not shared by the Egyptian captives or allies. (Rosellini.) inhabitants of Jerusalem, may be inferred from the fact that this city was not disturbed. Indeed, the Jews owed some gratitude to Ochus for remitting at his accession the heavy tax* which Bagoses had in the preceding reign imposed. It was in the eighteenth year of Ochus (B. C. 341) that the high-priest Jonathan, whose murder of his brother Jesus had given occasion for the imposition of this tax, died, and was succeeded by Jaddua or Jaddus. Ochus, after having re-established his dominion over all the provinces which had newly or in former times revolted, abandoned himself to luxurious repose, leaving the government in the hands of Bagoas, an Egyptian eunuch, and of his general Memnon, from both of whom he had received important services during the Egyptian war. But Bagoas could not forgive the ruin of his country, although that had been the basis of his own fortunes. He poisoned Ochus and destroyed all his sons, except Arses the youngest. This horrid act was followed by his sending back to Egypt such of the plundered archives as he could collect. Arses, * Jahn estimates that it must have produced 50,000l., perhaps rather too high an estimate. + His grandfather was the brother of Darius Nothus, and his father was the only one of the family who escaped the massacre with which Ochus commenced his reign. He afterward married and had a son, who was this Codomanus. The young man lived in obscurity during most whom he had spared, he placed on the throne, expecting to reign in his name. But finding that the young king contemplated the punishment of the murderer of his father and his brothers, Bagoas anticipated his intention, and in the third year of his reign destroyed him and all the remaining members of his family. The eunuch, whose soul was now hardened to iron by the concurrent and repeated action of grief and crime, tendered the sceptre to Codomanus, the governor of Armenia, a descendant of Darius Nothus, † and who on his accession assumed the name of Darius, and is known in history as Darius Codomanus, B. C. 335. Bagoas soon repented of his choice, and plotted the death of this king also; but Darius, having discovered his design, returned to his own lips the poisoned chalice which he had prepared for the king. Few kings ever enjoyed greater advantages than Darius at their accession. He had no competitors or opponents; his treasures, increased under Ochus by the plunder of many lands, seemed exhaustless; his dominion appeared well established over all the nations which abode from the Indus to the isles of Greece, and from the cataracts of the Nile to the Caucasian mountains; and with all this, the personal bravery of Darius and his acknowledged merits made him universally respected and admired throughout his empire. But bright as appeared his star, another had risen before which his own grew pale and became extinct. Head of Alexander the Great. (On a coin of Lysimachus, King of Thrace.) Alexander, the son of Philip king of Macedon, ascended the throne when he was only twenty years of age, in B. C. 335, of the reign of Ochus, supporting himself as an astanda, or courier, by carrying the royal despatches. He at last had an opportunity of distinguishing his valor by slaying a Cadusian champion, who like another Goliah, defied the whole Persian army. For this gallant exploit he was rewarded by Ochus with the important government of Armenia. being the very same year that Darius Codomanus became king of Persia. It is not necessary in a work of this nature to record the exploits of this celebrated hero, unless as far as necessary to carry on the history of Palestine and the Jews. In the spring of B. C. 334, Alexander arrived at Sestos on the Hellespont, at the head of little more than thirty thousand foot and five thousand horse, and had them conveyed to Asia by his fleet of one hundred and sixty galleys, besides transports, without any opposition from the enemy on their landing. He had with him only seventy talents, or a month's pay for his army, and before he left home he disposed of almost all the revenues of the crown among his friends. When asked "what he left for himself?" he answered, Hope." Such was the spirit with which Alexander invaded Asia. On the fifth day after the passage of the Hellespont, Alexander met the Persians at the river Granicus in the Lesser Phrygia, Assyrian standards. (From Nineveh marbles.) the summer others were subjugated. In the campaign of the following year (B. C. 333) Alexander subdued Phrygia, Paphlagonia, Pisidia, Cappadocia, and Cilicia. Darius Darius, meanwhile, was not remiss in making preparations for a vigorous resistance to the most formidable enemy the empire had ever seen. His admiral, whom he had sent with a fleet to make a diversion by a descent upon Macedonia, died in the midst of the enterprise; and, in an age where so much depended upon individuals, his death spoiled the undertaking. then assembled a vast army, which some accounts make four hundred thousand, others six hundred thousand men, in Babylonia, and led them in person toward Cilicia to meet Alexander. That hero, on hearing of this movement, hastened forward to seize the passes of Cilicia. In this he succeeded, and stationed himself at Issus, where not more than thirty thousand men could march up to the attack. In this position his flanks were protected, and he could bring his whole army into action, while the Persians could only bring a number of men equal to his own into conflict. Darius saw too late how much wiser it had been for him to await the Greeks in the plains of Damascus. He lost the battle. The vast number of his soldiers was worse than useless; for the retreat was thus so obstructed, that more were crushed to death in the eagerness of flight than had been slain by the weapons of the Greeks. Darius himself escaped with difficulty, leaving his whole camp, with his own rich baggage, and his mother, wife, and sons, in the hands of the victor. These last were treated with tenderness and respect by the generous conqueror. To him this victory opened Syria, Phoenicia, and Egypt. Immediately after the battle he sent to Damascus, and took all the heavy baggage, equipage, and treasures of the Persian army, with their wives and children, which had been left behind in the disastrous expedition to the Syrian straits. where the governor of the western provinces For the present, Alexander did not folhad assembled an army of one hundred low Darius, who withdrew beyond the thousand foot and twenty thousand horse to Euphrates; but, according to his original oppose his passage. By defeating this great plan of reducing first all the maritime army, Alexander gained possession of the provinces of the empire, he marched in the Persian treasury at Sardis, the capital of the spring of B. C. 332 into Phoenicia. western division of the Persian empire; the states of that country tendered their several provinces of Asia Minor then volun- submission to him, except Tyre, which, tarily submitted to him, and in the course of however, was willing to render him barren All |