them laid aside their arms, together with their courage, and
betook themselves to lamentations. But some few of the
younger sort covered themselves with their armor, and
valiantly received the Idumeans, and for a while protected the
multitude of old men. Others, indeed, gave a signal to those that
were in the city of the calamities they were in; but when these
were also made sensible that the Idumeans were come in, none of
them durst come to their assistance, only they returned the
terrible echo of wailing, and lamented their misfortunes. A great
howling of the women was excited also, and every one of the
guards were in danger of being killed. The zealots also joined in
the shouts raised by the Idumeans; and the storm itself rendered
the cry more terrible; nor did the Idumeans spare any body; for
as they are naturally a most barbarous and bloody nation, and had
been distressed by the tempest, they made use of their weapons
against those that had shut the gates against them, and acted in
the same
manner as to those that supplicated for their lives, and to
those that fought them, insomuch that they ran through those with
their swords who desired them to remember the relation there was
between them, and begged of them to have regard to their common
temple. Now there was at present neither any place for flight,
nor any hope of preservation; but as they were driven one upon
another in heaps, so were they slain. Thus the greater part were
driven together by force, as there was now no place of
retirement, and the murderers were
upon them; and, having no other way, threw themselves down
headlong into the city; whereby, in my opinion, they
underwent a more miserable destruction than that which they
avoided, because that was a voluntary one. And now the