siege. Moreover, he was the first of the Jews that had money
enough, and began to hire foreign auxiliaries also.

6. However, at another time, when Antiochus was gone upon an
expedition against the Medes, and so gave Hyrcanus an opportunity
of being revenged upon him, he immediately made an attack upon
the cities of Syria, as thinking, what proved to be the case with
them, that he should find them empty of god troops. So he took
Medaba and Samea, with the towns in their neighborhood, as also
Shechem, and Gerizzim; and besides these, [he subdued] the nation
of the Cutheans, who dwelt round about that temple which was
built in imitation of the temple at Jerusalem; he also took a
great many other cities of Idumea, with Adoreon and Marissa.
7. He also proceeded as far as Samaria, where is now the city
Sebaste, which was built by Herod the king, and encompassed it
all round with a wall, and set his sons, Aristobulus and
Antigonus, over the siege; who pushed it on so hard, that a
famine so far prevailed within the city, that they were forced to
eat what never was esteemed food. They also invited Antiochus,
who was called Cyzicenus, to come to their assistance; whereupon
he got ready, and complied with their invitation, but was beaten
by Aristobulus and Antigonus; and indeed he was pursued as far as
Scythopolis by these brethren, and fled away from them. So they
returned back to Samaria, and shut the multitude again within the
wall; and when they had taken the city, they demolished it, and
made slaves of its inhabitants. And as they had still great
success in their undertakings, they did not suffer their zeal to
cool, but marched with an army as far as Scythopolis, and made an
incursion upon it, and laid waste all the country that lay within
Mount Carmel.