3923.

ALEXANDER II. fon of Alexander I. under Sylla's protection, is chofen king. He marries Cleopatra, called otherwife Berenice, and kills her feventeen days after. He reigned fifteen years.

The Alexandrians expel Alexan

der.

PTOLEMY AULETES, baftard fon of Lathyrus,

is placed upon the throne.

KINGS OF SYRIA'

SECT. II. ANTIOCHUS EUPATOR, aged nineteen, fucceeds his father ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES in the kingdom of Syria. DEMETRIUS, who had been long an hostage at Rome, demands in vain to return to Syria. Celebrated victories of JUDAS MACCABEUS against the generals of the king of Syria, and the king himfelf in perfon. Long differences between the two PTOLEMIES, brothers, and kings of Egypt, terminated at length by an happy peace.

W

TE have long loft fight of the * history of the kings of Syria, and that of the kings of Egypt, which have generally no fmall connection with each other. I am now going to refume the thread of them, which will not be interrupted any more.

Antiochus, furnamed Eupator (a),aged only nineteen, fucceeded his father Antiochus Fpiphanes, in the kingdom of Syria. The latter, at his death, fent for Philip his favourite, who had been brought up with him. He gave him the regency of the kingdom during his fon's minority, and put his crown, fignet, and all other marks of the royal dignity, into his hands; recommending to him, above all things, to employ his whole care in educating his fon in fuch a manner as was most proper to inftruct him in the art of reigning.

Philip, on his arrival at Antioch, found that another had ufurped the employment, which the late king had confided to him. Lyfias, upon the firft advice of the death of Epiphanes, had placed his fon Antiochus upon the throne, whose governor he was, and had taken upon himself, with the guardianfhip, the reins of the government, without any regard to the king's regulation at his death. Philip knew well that he was not at that time in a condition to difpute it with him, and retired into Egypt

in

(a) A. M. 3840. Ant. J. C. 164. Appian. in Syr. p. 117. 1 Maccab. vi. 17. 2 Maccab. ix. 29. & x. IC-13. Jofeph. Antiq. 1. xii. c. 14. * It is treated laft towards the end of book XVIII. article II. fet. II. and III.

in hopes of finding at that court the affiftance he wanted for the repoffeflion of his right, and the expulfion of the ufurper.

Much about the fame time, Ptolemy Macron, governor of Colofyria and Palestine, from the enemy he had been till then to the Jews, became on a sudden their friend; moved, as the scripture fays, with the crying injuftice which had been committed in regard to them. He put a stop to the rigour of the perfecution against them, and employed his whole credit to obtain a peace for them. By this conduct he gave his enemies occafion to hurt him. They prejudiced the king against him, by representing him perpetually as a traitor; because he had in reality betrayed the interests of his first master, Ptolemy Philometer, king of Egypt, who had intrufted him with the government of the island of Cyprus, and had given up that ifland to Antiochus Epiphanes, upon entering into his fervice. For, how advantageous foever the treason might be, the traitor, as is ufual, was hated. At length, they did so much by their clamours and cabals, that he was deprived of his government, which was given to Lyfias; no other poft or pension being conferred on him to fupport his dignity. He had not force of mind enough to bear his downfall, and poisoned himself; an end he had well deferved for his treafon, and share in the cruel perfecution of the Jews.

Judas Maccabæus (b) at this time fignalized his valour by feveral confiderable victories over the enemies of the people of God, who continually made an implacable war against him. The little time that Antiochus Epiphanes furvived the favourable inclinations he had expreffed for the Jews, would not admit him to revoke in form his decree for obliging them to change their religion. The court of Syria, which always confidered the Jews as rebels defirous of throwing off its yoke, and had great interest in making fo powerful a neighbouring people to submit to it, had no regard to fome tranfient demonftrations of the dying prince's favour to them. They always perfifted

(b) 1 Maccab. v. 16. 68. 2 Maccab. v. 14-38.

perfifted in the fame principles of policy, and continued to look upon that nation as an enemy, whofe fole view was to shake off their chains, and to support themselves in liberty of confcience with regard to religion. Such were the difpofitions of Syria in regard to the Jews.

Demetrius, (c) fon of Seleucus Philopator, who, from the year his father died, had remained an hoftage at Rome, was in his twenty-third year, when he was informed of the death of Antiochus Epiphanes, and the acceffion of his fon Eupator to the crown, which he pretended to be his right, as the fon of Epiphanes's eldest brother. He propofed to the fenate his re-establishment upon his father's throne; and to engage them in it, he represented, that having been bred up at Rome, he should always regard it as his native country, the fenators as his fathers, and their fons as his brothers. The fenate had more regard for the interefts of the republic than the right of Demetrius, and thought it more advantageous for the Romans, that there fhould be a king in his minority upon the throne of Syria, than a prince like Demetrius, who might at length become formidale to them. They therefore made a decree to confirm Eupator, and fent Cn. Octavius, Sp. Lucretius, and L. Aurelius, with the character of ambaffadors, into Syria, to regulate all things conformably to the treaty made with Antiochus the Great. The fame ambaffadors had inftructions to accommodate, if poffible, the differences of the two kings of Egypt.

Lyfius (d), terrified by the victories of Judas Maccabæus, formed an army of fourfcore thousand foot, and took with him all the cavalry of his kingdom, with fourfcore elephants: at the head of all thefe forces he marched into Judea, with the refolution to fettle strange inhabitants that worshipped idols in Jerufalem. He opened the campaign with the fiege of Bethfura, a fortrefs between Idumæa and Jerufalem. Judas Maccabeus, and the whole people, befeeched the Lord, with tears in their eyes, to

(c) A. M. 3841. Ant. J. C. 163. . 3. Appian. in Syr. p. 117. xiii. 124. Maccab. v. 65-68.

fend

Polyb. Legat. cvii. Justin. 1. xxxiv• (d) 2 Maccab. ix. I-38. x. I—7. vi 19-63. Jofeph. Antiq. c. xii.