§42καὶ τοῦτ’ εἰδότες — ὀξύτατοι γὰρ τὴν μοχθηρίαν εἰσί — κατασοφίζονται τὸ Καίσαρος ὄνομα προκάλυμμα ποιησάμενοι, ᾧ προσάπτειν τι τῶν ἐπαιτίων οὐ θεμιτόν.
And though they knew this—for they are extremely sharp in their wickedness—they used craft, making the name of Caesar a cover, to which it is not permitted to attach anything blameworthy.
§43τί οὖν ὁ τῆς χώρας ἐπίτροπος;
What then did the governor of the country do?
ἐπιστάμενος, ὅτι καὶ ἡ πόλις οἰκήτορας ἔχει διττούς, ἡμᾶς τε καὶ τούτους, καὶ πᾶσα Αἴγυπτος, καὶ ὅτι οὐκ ἀποδέουσι μυριάδων ἑκατὸν οἱ τὴν Ἀλεξάνδρειαν καὶ τὴν χώραν Ἰουδαῖοι κατοικοῦντες ἀπὸ τοῦ πρὸς Λιβύην καταβαθμοῦ μέχρι τῶν ὁρίων Αἰθιοπίας, καὶ ὡς ἡ πεῖρα κατὰ πάντων ἐστὶ καὶ ὡς οὐ λυσιτελὲς ἔθη πάτρια κινεῖν, ἀμελήσας ἁπάντων ἐπιτρέπει ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἀνάθεσιν, μυρία καὶ πάντα προνοητικὰ δυνάμενος ἢ ὡς ἄρχων κελεύειν ἢ συμβουλεύειν ὡς φίλος.
Though he knew that both the city has double inhabitants, namely us and them, and so too all Egypt, and that the Jews inhabiting Alexandria and the country do not fall short of a million from the descent toward Libya to the borders of Ethiopia, and that the attack is against all, and that it is not beneficial to move ancestral customs, he, neglecting everything, permitted the dedication to be made, though he was able in ten thousand ways, all provident, either to command as ruler or to advise as a friend.
§44ὁ δὲ — συνεχειρούργει γὰρ ἕκαστα τῶν ἁμαρτανομένων — καὶ ἀπὸ μείζονος ἐξουσίας ἀναρριπίζειν καινοτέραις ἀεὶ κακῶν προσθήκαις τὴν στάσιν ἠξίου καὶ τό γ’ ἐφ’ αὑτὸν ἧκον μέρος ἅπασαν ὀλίγου δεῖν φάναι τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐμφυλίων πολέμων ἐπλήρωσεν.
But he—for he was helping with his own hands in each of the wrongdoings—deemed it right from his greater authority to fan the flames of discord with always newer additions of evils, and, as far as lay in his own power, filled almost the entire inhabited world, so to speak, with civil wars.
§45οὐ γὰρ ἦν ἄδηλον, ὅτι ἡ περὶ τὴν κατάλυσιν τῶν προσευχῶν φήμη λαβοῦσα τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας διαδοθήσεται μὲν εὐθὺς εἰς τοὺς ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ νομούς, δραμεῖται δ’ ἀπὸ μὲν Αἰγύπτου πρὸς ἀνατολὰς καὶ ἔθνη τὰ ἑῷα, ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς ὑποταινίου καὶ Μαρείας, αἳ Λιβύης εἰσὶν ἀρχαί, πρὸς δυσμὰς καὶ ἔθνη τὰ ἑσπέρια· Ἰουδαίους γὰρ χώρα μία διὰ πολυανθρωπίαν οὐ χωρεῖ.
For it was not unclear that the rumor concerning the destruction of the houses of prayer, taking its rise from Alexandria, would be immediately spread into the nomes in Egypt, and would run from Egypt toward the east and the eastern nations, and from the Strip and Mareia, which are the beginnings of Libya, toward the west and the western nations; for a single country does not contain the Jews because of their great numbers.
§46ἧς αἰτίας ἕνεκα τὰς πλείστας καὶ εὐδαιμονεστάτας τῶν ἐν Εὐρώπῃ καὶ Ἀσίᾳ κατά τε νήσους καὶ ἠπείρους ἐκνέμονται μητρόπολιν μὲν τὴν ἱερόπολιν ἡγούμενοι, καθ’ ἣν ἵδρυται ὁ τοῦ ὑψίστου θεοῦ νεὼς ἅγιος, ἃς δ’ ἔλαχον ἐκ πατέρων καὶ πάππων καὶ προπάππων καὶ τῶν ἔτι ἄνω προγόνων οἰκεῖν ἕκαστοι πατρίδας νομίζοντες, ἐν αἷς ἐγεννήθησαν καὶ ἐτράφησαν· εἰς ἐνίας δὲ καὶ κτιζομένας εὐθὺς ἦλθον ἀποικίαν στειλάμενοι, τοῖς κτίσταις χαριζόμενοι.
For which reason they occupy most and the most prosperous of the cities in Europe and Asia, both on islands and continents, regarding the holy city as their mother city, in which the holy temple of the most high God is established, but thinking that the homelands in which they were born and brought up are those which they received from their fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, and ancestors even further back to inhabit; and into some they came immediately upon their foundation, having sent out a colony, doing a favor to the founders.
§47καὶ δέος ἦν, μὴ οἱ πανταχοῦ τὴν ἀφορμὴν ἐκεῖθεν λαβόντες ἐπηρεάζωσι τοῖς πολίταις αὐτῶν Ἰουδαίοις εἰς τὰς προσευχὰς καὶ τὰ πάτρια νεωτερίζοντες.
And there was fear lest people everywhere, taking the opportunity from there, might harass their Jewish fellow-citizens with regard to their houses of prayer, making innovations against their ancestral customs.
§48οἱ δέ — οὐ γὰρ ἔμελλον ἄχρι παντὸς ἡσυχάζειν καίτοι πεφυκότες εὖ πρὸς εἰρήνην, οὐ μόνον ὅτι παρὰ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις οἱ περὶ τῶν ἐθῶν ἀγῶνες καὶ τοὺς περὶ ψυχῆς κινδύνους ὑπερβάλλουσιν, ἀλλ’ ὅτι καὶ μόνοι τῶν ὑφ’ ἥλιον ἅμα ταῖς προσευχαῖς ἀπεστεροῦντο τὴν εἰς τοὺς εὐεργέτας εὐσέβειαν, ὃ μυρίων θανάτων ἐτετίμηντο ἄν — οὐκ ἔχοντες ἱεροὺς περιβόλους, οἷς ἐνδιαθήσονται τὸ εὐχάριστον, καὶ τοῖς ἐναντιουμένοις εἶπον ἄν· §49„λελήθατε ἑαυτοὺς οὐ προστιθέντες τοῖς κυρίοις τιμήν, ἀλλ’ ἀφαιρούμενοι, οὐκ εἰδότες ὡς τοῖς πανταχόθι τῆς οἰκουμένης Ἰουδαίοις ὁρμητήρια τῆς εἰς τὸν Σεβαστὸν οἶκον ὁσιότητός εἰσιν αἱ προσευχαὶ ἐπιδήλως, ὧν ἡμῖν ἀναιρεθεισῶν τίς ἕτερος ἀπολείπεται τόπος ἢ τρόπος τιμῆς;
But they—for they were not going to remain quiet to the end, even though they were well-disposed toward peace, not only because among all men the struggles for customs surpass even the dangers for life, but also because they alone of those under the sun, along with their houses of prayer, were being deprived of their piety toward their benefactors, which they would have valued at ten thousand deaths —not having holy precincts in which they could deposit their gratitude, would have said to their opponents: "You are unaware of yourselves that you are not adding honor to your masters, but taking it away, not knowing that for the Jews everywhere in the inhabited world, the houses of prayer are clearly the starting points of their devotion toward the Augustan house, and if these are destroyed for us, what other place or manner of honor is left?
§50εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἐφιέντων τῶν ἐθῶν ὀλιγωροῦμεν, τῆς ἀνωτάτω τιμωρίας δίκαιοι τυγχάνειν ἐσμὲν μὴ παρέχοντες ἀρτίους καὶ πλήρεις τὰς ἀμοιβάς.
For if, while our customs permit, we are negligent, we deserve to meet with the highest punishment for not rendering our returns full and complete.
εἰ δ’ οὐκ ἐξὸν τοῖς ἰδίοις ὑποστέλλομεν νομίμοις, ἃ καὶ τῷ Σεβαστῷ φίλον βεβαιοῦν, τί μικρὸν ἢ μέγα πλημμελοῦμεν οὐκ οἶδα· πλὴν εἰ μὴ ψέγειν τις ἐθελήσειε τὸ μὴ γνώμῃ ἑκουσίῳ παρανομεῖν τὰς ἐκδιαιτήσεις τῶν ἐθῶν οὐ φυλαξαμένους, αἵ, κἂν ἀφ’ ἑτέρων ἄρξωνται, τελευτῶσι πολλάκις εἰς τοὺς αἰτίους. “ §51ἀλλ’ ὁ μὲν Φλάκκος τά τε λεκτέα ἡσυχάζων καὶ τὰ ἡσυχαστέα λέγων οὕτως εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐξημάρτανεν.
But if we draw back because it is not permitted by our own laws—which it is pleasing also to the Emperor to confirm—I do not know what small or great offense we commit; unless someone should wish to blame those who, not having guarded against the deviations of customs, break the law not by voluntary choice, which deviations, even if they begin from others, often end up upon the authors." But Flaccus, keeping silent on what should be said and saying what should be kept silent, sinned in this way against us.
ἐκεῖνοι δ’, οἷς ἐχαρίζετο, τίνα γνώμην εἶχον;
But those to whom he was granting favors, what intention did they have?
ἆρά γε τὴν τῶν τιμᾶν ἐθελόντων;
Was it indeed that of those wishing to honor?
εἶτα σπάνις ἦν ἱερῶν κατὰ τὴν πόλιν, ἧς τὰ πλεῖστα καὶ ἀναγκαιότατα μέρη τετεμένισται, πρὸς ἀνάθεσιν ὧν ἐβούλοντο;
Furthermore, was there a scarcity of sacred places in the city, of which the greatest and most essential parts have been consecrated, for the dedication of what they wished?"