as called Cotylas, who was then the
tyrant of the city Philadelphia.

2. But Antiochus, being very uneasy at the miseries that Simon had
brought upon him, he invaded Judea in the fourth years' of his reign,
and the first year of the principality of Hyrcanus, in the hundred and
sixty-second olympiad. [20] And when he had burnt the country, he
shut up Hyrcanus in the city, which he encompassed round with seven
encampments; but did just nothing at the first, because of the strength
of the walls, and because of the valor of the besieged, although they
were once in want of water, which yet they were delivered from by a
large shower of rain, which fell at the setting of the Pleiades [21]
However, about the north part of the wall, where it happened the city
was upon a level with the outward ground, the king raised a hundred
towers of three stories high, and placed bodies of soldiers upon them;
and as he made his attacks every day, he cut a double ditch, deep and
broad, and confined the inhabitants within it as within a wall; but the
besieged contrived to make frequent sallies out; and if the enemy were
not any where upon their guard, they fell upon them, and did them a
great deal of mischief; and if they perceived them, they then
retired into the city with ease. But because Hyrcanus discerned the
inconvenience of so great a number of men in the city, while the
provisions were the sooner spent by them, and yet, as is natural to
suppose, those great numbers did nothing, he separated the useless part,
and excluded them out of the city, and retained that part only which
were in the flower of their age, and fit for war. However, Antiochus
would not let those that were excluded go away, who therefore wandering
about between the wails, and consuming away by famine, died miserably;
but when the feast of tabernacles was at hand, those that were within
commiserated their condition, and received them in again. And when
Hyrcanus sent to Antiochus, and desired there might be a truce for seven
days, because of the festival, he gave way to this piety towards
God, and made that truce accordingly. And besides that, he sent in a
magnificent sacrifice, bulls with their horns gilded, with all sorts of
sweet spices, and with cups of gold and silver. So those that were at
the gates received the sacrifices from those that brought them, and led
them to the temple, Antiochus the mean while feasting his army, which
was a quite different conduct from An