LXX Interpretibus; Simon's Critical History of the Old Testament; Du Pin's History of the Canon of the Old Testament; Grabe's Prolegomena before those two parts of the Septuagint which were published by him; and especially Dr. Hoddy's learned book above cited, where he hath written the fullest and the best of all that have handled this argument. And here having concluded this long historical account of it, I shall with it conclude this book. THE Old and New Testaments An. 276. Ptolemy a CONNECTED, &c. BOOK II. SOSTHENES (who, on his defeating the Gauls, had for some time reigned in Macedon) being dead, Antiochus, the son of Seleucus Nicator, Philadel. 9. and Antigonus Gonatus, the son of Demetrius Poliorcetes, each claimed to succeed there as in their father's kingdom, Demetrius first, and afterwards Seleucus, having been kings of that country. But Antigonus, who had now, from the time of his father's last expedition into Asia, reigned in Greece ten years, being nearest, first took possession; whereon Antiochus resolving to march against him, and the other to keep what he had gotten, each raised great armies, and made strong alliances for the war. On this occasion, Nicomedes, king of Bithynia, having confederated with Antigonus, Antiochus, in his march towards Macedonia, not thinking it fit to leave such an enemy behind him in Asia, instead of passing over the Hellespont to attack Antigonus, led his army against Nicomedes, and carried the war into Bithynia. But there both armies having for some time lain against each other, and neither of them having courage enough to assault the other, it at length came to a treaty, and terms of agreement between them; by virtue of which, Antigonus having married Phila, the daughter of Stratonice by Seleucus, Antiochus quitted to him his claim to Macedonia, and Antigonus became quietly settled in that kingdom, where his posterity reigned for several descents, till at length Perseus, the last of that race, being conquered by Paulus Æmilius, that kingdom became a province of the Roman empire. An. 275. Ptolemy Philadel. 10, e Antiochus, being thus freed from this war, marched against the Gauls (who having gotten a settlement in Asia, by the favour of Nicomedes, in the manner as hath been above related, over-ran and harassed all that country,) and having, after a sharp conflict overthrown them in battle, he thereby delivered those provinces from their oppressions, from whence he had the name of Soter, or the Saviour, given unto him. Ptolemy The Romans having f forced Pyrrhus, after a six years' war, to leave Italy, and return again An. 274. into Epirus, with baffle and disappointment, their name began to grow of great note and Philadel. 11. fame among foreign nations; whereon Ptolemy Philadelphuss sent ambassadors to them, to desire their friendship; with which the Romans were well pleased, thinking it no small reputation to them, that their friendship was sought for by so great a king. h ⚫ An. 273. Ptolemy And therefore, to make a return of the like respects, the next year after, they sent a solemn embassy into Egypt unto that king. The ambassadors were Q. Fabius Gurges, Cn. Fabius Philadel. 12. Pictor, and Q. Ogulinus, whose conduct in this employment was very remarkable: for, with a mind as great as self-denying, they put off every thing from themselves that might tend to their own proper interest: for when king Ptolemy, having invited them to supper with him, presented them, in the conclusion of the entertainment, with crowns of gold, they accepted of the crowns for the sake of the honour that was done them thereby, but the next morning after, crowned with them the statues of the king, which stood in the public places of the city; and being presented, on their taking their d Plutarchus in Demetrio. e Appian. in Syriacis f Plutarchus in Pyrrho. g Livius, lib. 14. Eutrop. lib. 2. h Livius, lib. 14. Eutrop. lib. 2. Valerius Maximus, lib. 4, c. 3. Dio in Excerptis ab Ursino editis." leave, with very valuable gifts from the king, they accepted of them, that they might not disgust him by the refusal; but as soon as they were returned to Rome, they delivered them all into the public treasury, before they appeared in the senate to give an account of their embassy, declaring thereby that they desired no other advantage from the service of the public, than the honour of discharging it well. And this was the general temper and inclination of the Romans in those times; which made them prosper in all their undertakings. But afterwards, when the service of the public was only desired in order to plunder it, and men entered on the employments of the state with no other view or intent than to enrich themselves, and advance their own private fortunes, no wonder then that every thing began to go backward with them. And so it must happen with all other states and kingdoms, when the public interest is sacrificed to that of private men, and the offices and employments of the state are desired only to gratify the ambition, and glut the avarice of them that can get into them. But the Romans, although they received into their treasury what their ambassadors thus generously delivered into it, yet were not wanting in what was proper for them to do for the encouraging so good an example, and the rewarding of them that gave it: for they ordered to be given to them, for their service done the state in this embassy, such sums out of their treasury, as equalled the value of what they thus delivered into it. So that the liberality of Ptolemy, the abstinence and self-denial of the ambassadors, and the justice of the Romans, were all signally made appear in the transactions of this matter. After the death of Pyrrhus, who was slain at Argus, in an attempt made upon that city, Antigonus Gonatus king of Macedon having much Philadel. 17. enlarged his power, and made himself thereby very formidable to the Grecian states, the Lacedemonians and the Athenians entered into a confederacy against him, and gained Ptolemy Philadelphus to join with him herein. Whereon Antigonus besieged Athens: An. 268. i Plutarchus in Pyrrho. k Justin. lib. 26, c. 2. Pausanias in Laconicis. for the relief of which Ptolemy1 sent a fleet under the command of Patroclus, one of his chief officers; and Areus king of the Lacedemonians led thither an army by land for the same purpose. Patroclus, on his arrival with his fleet sent to Areus to persuade him forthwith to engage the enemy, promising him at the same time, to land the forces which he had on board the fleet, and fall on them in the rear. But the provisions of the Lacedemonians being all spent, Areus thought it better to retreat and march home; whereon Patroclus was forced to do the same, and sail back with his fleet again into Egypt, without accomplishing any thing of the design for which he was sent; and Athens being thus deserted by its allies, fell into the hands of Antigonus, and he placed a garrison in it. An. 267. Ptolemy Philadel. 18. Patroclus, in his return into Egypt, having found Sotades at Caunus, a maritime city of Caria, therem seized on him, and wrapping him in a sheet of lead, cast him into the sea. He was a lewd poet, who having written some satirical verses against king Ptolemy, and in them bitterly reflected on him for his marriage with Arsinoe his sister, was fled from Alexandria, to avoid the indignation of that prince. But Patroclus, having thus met him in his flight, thought he could not better recommend himself to the favour of his prince, than by taking this vengeance on the person who had thus abused him. And it was a punishment which he well deserved; for he was a very vile and flagitious wretch, and was commonly called Sotades Cinadus, that is, Sotades the Sodomite; which name was given him by way of eminence, not only for his notorious guilt in that monstrous and abominable vice, but especially for that he had written in Iambic verses, a very remarkable poem in commendation of it, which was in great repute among those who were given to that unnatural and vile lust. Hence Sodomites were called from him, Sotadici Cinadi, that is, Sotadic Sodomites, as in Juvenal, Inter Sotadicos notissima fossa Cinados; 1 Pausanias, ibid. m Athenæus, lib. 14, p. 620. n Strabo, lib. 14, p. 648. Athenæus, ibid. Suidas in voce Earudns. ⚫ Satyra, ii, 10. |