Antiquities of the Jews — Book 18, Chapter 6

1. A Little before the death of Herod the king, Agrippa lived at Rome,
and was generally brought up and conversed with Drusus, the emperor
Tiberius's son, and contracted a friendship with Antonia, the wife of
Drusus the Great, who had his mother Bernice in great esteem, and was
very desirous of advancing her son. Now as Agrippa was by nature
magnanimous and generous in the presents he made, while his mother was
alive, this inclination of his mind did not appear, that he might be
able to avoid her anger for such his extravagance; but when Bernice was
dead, and he was left to his own conduct, he spent a great deal
extravagantly in his daily way of living, and a great deal in the
immoderate presents he made, and those chiefly among Cæsar's freed-men,
in order to gain their assistance, insomuch that he was, in a little
time, reduced to poverty, and could not live at Rome any longer.
Tiberius also forbade the friends of his deceased son to come into his
sight, because on seeing them he should be put in mind of his son, and
his grief would thereby be revived.

2. For these reasons he went away from Rome, and sailed to Judea, but in
evil circumstances, being dejected with the loss of that money which he
once had, and because he had not wherewithal to pay his creditors, who
were many in number, and such as gave him no room for escaping them.
Whereupon he knew not what to do; so, for shame of his present
condition, he retired to a certain tower, at Malatha, in Idumea, and had
thoughts of killing himself; but his wife Cypros perceived his
intentions, and tried all sorts of methods to divert him from his taking
such a course; so she sent a letter to his sister Herodias, who was now
the wife of Herod the tetrarch, and let her know Agrippa's present
design, and what necessity it was which drove him thereto, and desired
her, as a kinswoman of his, to give him her help, and to engage her
husband to do the same, since she saw how she alleviated these her
husband's troubles all she could, although she had not the like wealth
to do it withal. So they sent for him, and allotted him Tiberias for his
habitation, and appointed him some income of money for his maintenance,
and made him a magistrate of that city, by way of honor to him. Yet did
not Herod long continue in that resolution of supporting him, though
even that support was not sufficient for him; for as once they were at a
feast at Tyre, and in their cups, and reproaches were cast upon one
another, Agrippa thought that was not to be borne, while Herod hit him
in the teeth with his poverty, and with his owing his necessary food to
him. So he went to Flaccus, one that had been consul, and had been a
very great friend to him at Rome formerly, and was now president of
Syria.

3. Hereupon Flaccus received him kindly, and he lived with him. Flaccus
had also with him there Aristobulus, who was indeed Agrippa's brother,
but was at variance with him; yet did not their enmity to one another
hinder the friendship of Flaccus to them both, but still they were
honorably treated by him. However, Aristobulus did not abate of his ill-
will to Agrippa, till at length he brought him into ill terms with
Flaccus; the occasion of bringing on which estrangement was this: The
Damascens were at difference with the Sidonians about their limits, and
when Flaccus was about to hear the cause between them, they understood
that Agrippa had a mighty influence upon him; so they desired that he
would be of their side, and for that favor promised him a great deal of
money; so he was zealous in assisting the Damascens as far as he was
able. Now Aristobulus had gotten intelligence of this promise of money
to him, and accused him to Flaccus of the same; and when, upon a
thorough examination of the matter, it appeared plainly so to be, he
rejected Agrippa out of the number of his friends. So he was reduced to
the utmost necessity, and came to Ptolemais; and because he knew not
where else to get a livelihood, he thought to sail to Italy; but as he
was restrained from so doing by want of money, he desired Marsyas, who
was his freed-man, to find some method for procuring him so much as he
wanted for that purpose, by borrowing such a sum of some person or
other. So Marsyas desired of Peter, who was the freed-man of Bernice,
Agrippa's mother, and by the right of her testament was bequeathed to
Antonia, to lend so much upon Agrippa's own bond and security; but he
accused Agrippa of having defrauded him of certain sums of money, and so
obliged Marsyas, when he made the bond of twenty thousand Attic
drachmae, to accept of twenty-five hundred drachma as 18 less than what
he desired, which the other allowed of, because he could not help it.
Upon the receipt of this money, Agrippa came to Anthedon, and took
shipping, and was going to set sail; but Herennius Capito, who was the
procurator of Jamhis, sent a band of soldiers to demand of him three
hundred thousand drachmae of silver, which were by him owing to Cæsar's
treasury while he was at Rome, and so forced him to stay. He then
pretended that he would do as he bid him; but when night came on, he cut
his cables, and went off, and sailed to Alexandria, where he desired
Alexander the alabarch 19 to lend him two hundred thousand drachmae; but
he said he would not lend it to him, but would not refuse it to Cypros,
as greatly astonished at her affection to her husband, and at the other
instances of her virtue; so she undertook to repay it. Accordingly,
Alexander paid them five talents at Alexandria, and promised to pay them
the rest of that sum at Dicearchia [Puteoli]; and this he did out of the
fear he was in that Agrippa would soon spend it. So this Cypros set her
husband free, and dismissed him to go on with his navigation to Italy,
while she and her children departed for Judea.

4. And now Agrippa was come to Puteoli, whence he wrote a letter to
Tiberius Cæsar, who then lived at Capreae, and told him that he was come
so far in order to wait on him, and to pay him a visit; and desired that
he would give him leave to come over to Caprein: so Tiberius made no
difficulty, but wrote to him in an obliging way in other respects; and
withal told him he was glad of his safe return, and desired him to come
to Capreae; and when he was come, he did not fail to treat him as kindly
as he had promised him in his letter to do. But the next day came a
letter to Cæsar from Herennius Capito, to inform him that Agrippa had
borrowed three hundred thousand drachmae, and not pad it at the time
appointed; but when it was demanded of him, he ran away like a fugitive,
out of the places under his government, and put it out of his power to
get the money of him. When Cæsar had read this letter, he was much
troubled at it, and gave order that Agrippa should be excluded from his
presence until he had paid that debt: upon which he was no way daunted
at Cæsar's anger, but entreated Antonia, the mother of Germanicus, and
of Claudius, who was afterward Cæsar himself, to lend him those three
hundred thousand drachmae, that he might not be deprived of Tiberius's
friendship; so, out of regard to the memory of Bernice his mother, [for
those two women were very familiar with one another,] and out of regard
to his and Claudius's education together, she lent him the money; and,
upon the payment of this debt, there was nothing to hinder Tiberius's
friendship to him. After this, Tiberius Cæsar recommended to him his
grandson, 20 and ordered that he should always accompany him when he
went abroad. But upon Agrippa's kind reception by Antonia, he betook him
to pay his respects to Caius, who was her grandson, and in very high
reputation by reason of the good-will they bare his father. Now there
was one Thallus, a freed-man of Cæsar, of whom he borrowed a million of
drachmae, and thence repaid Antonia the debt he owed her; and by sending
the overplus in paying his court to Caius, became a person of great
authority with him.

5. Now as the friendship which Agrippa had for Caius was come to a great
height, there happened some words to pass between them, as they once
were in a chariot together, concerning Tiberius; Agrippa praying [to
God] [for they two sat by themselves] that Tiberius might soon go off
the stage, and leave the government to Caius, who was in every respect
more worthy of it. Now Eutychus, who was Agrippa's freed-man, and drove
his chariot, heard these words, and at that time said nothing of them;
but when Agrippa accused him of stealing some garments of his, [which
was certainly true,] he ran away from him; but when he was caught, and
brought before Piso, who was governor of the city, and the man was asked
why he ran away, he replied, that he had somewhat to say to Cæsar, that
tended to his security and preservation: so Piso bound him, and sent him
to Capreae. But Tiberius, according to his usual custom, kept him still
in bonds, being a delayer of affairs, if ever there was any other king
or tyrant that was so; for he did not admit ambassadors quickly, and no
successors were despatched away to governors or procurators of the
provinces that had been formerly sent, unless they were dead; whence it
was that he was so negligent in hearing the causes of prisoners;
insomuch that when he was asked by his friends what was the reason of
his delay in such cases, he said that he delayed to hear ambassadors,
lest, upon their quick dismission, other ambassadors should be
appointed, and return upon him; and so he should bring trouble upon
himself in their public reception and dismission: that he permitted
those governors who had been sent once to their government [to stay
there a long while], out of regard to the subjects that were under them;
for that all governors are naturally disposed to get as much as they
can; and that those who are not to fix there, but to stay a short time,
and that at an uncertainty when they shall be turned out, do the more
severely hurry themselves on to fleece the people; but that if their
government be long continued to them; they are at last satiated with the
spoils, as having gotten a vast deal, and so become at length less sharp
in their pillaging; but that if successors are sent quickly, the poor
subjects, who are exposed to them as a prey, will not be able to bear
the new ones, while they shall not have the same time allowed them
wherein their predecessors had filled themselves, and so grew more
unconcerned about getting more; and this because they are removed before
they have had time [for their oppressions]. He gave them an example to
show his meaning: A great number of flies came about the sore places of
a man that had been wounded; upon which one of the standers-by pitied
the man's misfortune, and thinking he was not able to drive those flies
away himself, was going to drive them away for him; but he prayed him to
let them alone: the other, by way of reply, asked him the reason of such
a preposterous proceeding, in preventing relief from his present misery;
to which he answered, "If thou drivest these flies away, thou wilt hurt
me worse; for as these are already full of my blood, they do not crowd
about me, nor pain me so much as before, but are somewhat more remiss,
while the fresh ones that come almost famished, and find me quite tired
down already, will be my destruction. For this cause, therefore, it is
that I am myself careful not to send such new governors perpetually to
those my subjects, who are already sufficiently harassed by many
oppressions, as may, like these flies, further distress them; and so,
besides their natural desire of gain, may have this additional
incitement to it, that they expect to be suddenly deprived of that
pleasure which they take in it." And, as a further attestation to what I
say of the dilatory nature of Tiberius, I appeal to this his practice
itself; for although he was emperor twenty-two years, he sent in all but
two procurators to govern the nation of the Jews, Gratus, and his
successor in the government, Pilate. Nor was he in one way of acting
with respect to the Jews, and in another with respect to the rest of his
subjects. He further informed them, that even in the hearing of the
causes of prisoners, he made such delays, because immediate death to
those that must be condemned to die would be an alleviation of their
present miseries, while those wicked wretches have not deserved any such
favor; "but I do it, that, by being harassed with the present calamity,
they may undergo greater misery."

6. On this account it was that Eutychus could not obtain a bearing, but
was kept still in prison. However, some time afterward, Tiberius came
from Capreae to Tusculanum, which is about a hundred furlongs from Rome.
Agrippa then desired of Antonia that she would procure a hearing for
Eutychus, let the matter whereof he accused him prove what it would. Now
Antonia was greatly esteemed by Tiberius on all accounts, from the
dignity of her relation to him, who had been his brother Drusus's wife,
and from her eminent chastity; 21 for though she was still a young
woman, she continued in her widowhood, and refused all other matches,
although Augustus had enjoined her to be married to somebody else; yet
did she all along preserve her reputation free from reproach. She had
also been the greatest benefactress to Tiberius, when there was a very
dangerous plot laid against him by Sejanus, a man who had been her
husband's friend, and who had the greatest authority, because he was
general of the army, and when many members of the senate and many of the
freed-men joined with him, and the soldiery was corrupted, and the plot
was come to a great height. Now Sejanus had certainly gained his point,
had not Antonia's boldness been more wisely conducted than Sejanus's
malice; for when she had discovered his designs against Tiberius, she
wrote him an exact account of the whole, and gave the letter to Pallas,
the most faithful of her servants, and sent him to Caprere to Tiberius,
who, when he understood it, slew Sejanus and his confederates; so that
Tiberius, who had her in great esteem before, now looked upon her with
still greater respect, and depended upon her in all things. So when
Tiberius was desired by this Antonia to examine Eutychus, he answered,
"If indeed Eutychus hath falsely accused Agrippa in what he hath said of
him, he hath had sufficient punishment by what I have done to him
already; but if, upon examination, the accusation appears to be true,
let Agrippa have a care, lest, out of desire of punishing his freed-man,
he do not rather bring a punishment upon himself." Now when Antonia told
Agrippa of this, he was still much more pressing that the matter might
be examined into; so Antonia, upon Agrippa's lying hard at her
continually to beg this favor, took the following opportunity: As
Tiberius lay once at his ease upon his sedan, and was carried about, and
Caius, her grandson, and Agrippa, were before him after dinner she
walked by the sedan, and desired him to call Eutychus, and have him
examined; to which he replied, "O Antonia! the gods are my witnesses
that I am induced to do what I am going to do, not by my own
inclination, but because I am forced to it by thy prayers." When he had
said this, he ordered Macro, who succeeded Sejanus, to bring Eutychus to
him; accordingly, without any delay, he was brought. Then Tiberius asked
him what he had to say against a man who had given him his liberty. Upon
which he said, "O my lord! this Caius, and Agrippa with him, were once
riding in a chariot, when I sat at their feet, and, among other
discourses that passed, Agrippa said to Caius, Oh that the day would
once come when this old fellow will die and name thee for the governor
of the habitable earth! for then this Tiberius, his grandson, would be
no hinderance, but would be taken off by thee, and that earth would be
happy, and I happy also." Now Tiberius took these to be truly Agrippa's
words, and bearing a grudge withal at Agrippa, because, when he had
commanded him to pay his respects to Tiberius, his grandson, and the son
of Drusus, Agrippa had not paid him that respect, but had disobeyed his
commands, and transferred all his regard to Caius; he said to Macro,
"Bind this man." But Macro, not distinctly knowing which of them it was
whom he bid him bind, and not expecting that he would have any such
thing done to Agrippa, he forbore, and came to ask more distinctly what
it was that he said. But when Cæsar had gone round the hippodrome, he
found Agrippa standing: "For certain," said he, "Macro, this is the man
I meant to have bound;" and when he still asked, "Which of these is to
be bound?" he said "Agrippa." Upon which Agrippa betook himself to make
supplication for himself, putting him in mind of his son, with whom he
was brought up, and of Tiberius [his grandson] whom he had educated; but
all to no purpose; for they led him about bound even in his purple
garments. It was also very hot weather, and they had but little wine to
their meal, so that he was very thirsty; he was also in a sort of agony,
and took this treatment of him heinously: as he therefore saw one of
Caius's slaves, whose name was Thaumastus, carrying some water in a
vessel, he desired that he would let him drink; so the servant gave him
some water to drink, and he drank heartily, and said, "O thou boy! this
service of thine to me will be for thy advantage; for if I once get
clear of these my bonds, I will soon procure thee thy freedom of Caius
who has not been wanting to minister to me now I am in bonds, in the
same manner as when I was in my former state and dignity." Nor did he
deceive him in what he promised him, but made him amends for what he had
now done; for when afterward Agrippa was come to the kingdom, he took
particular care of Thaumastus, and got him his liberty from Caius, and
made him the steward over his own estate; and when he died, he left him
to Agrippa his son, and to Bernice his daughter, to minister to them in
the same capacity. The man also grew old in that honorable post, and
therein died. But all this happened a good while later.

7. Now Agrippa stood in his bonds before the royal palace, and leaned on
a certain tree for grief, with many others, who were in bonds also; and
as a certain bird sat upon the tree on which Agrippa leaned, [the Romans
call this bird bubo,] [an owl,] one of those that were bound, a German
by nation, saw him, and asked a soldier who that man in purple was; and
when he was informed that his name was Agrippa, and that he was by
nation a Jew, and one of the principal men of that nation, he asked
leave of the soldier to whom he was bound, 22 to let him come nearer to
him, to speak with him; for that he had a mind to inquire of him about
some things relating to his country; which liberty, when he had
obtained, and as he stood near him, he said thus to him by an
interpreter: "This sudden change of thy condition, O young man! is
grievous to thee, as bringing on thee a manifold and very great
adversity; nor wilt thou believe me, when I foretell how thou wilt get
clear of this misery which thou art now under, and how Divine Providence
will provide for thee. Know therefore [and I appeal to my own country
gods, as well as to the gods of this place, who have awarded these bonds
to us] that all I am going to say about thy concerns shall neither be
said for favor nor bribery, nor out of an endeavor to make thee cheerful
without cause; for such predictions, when they come to fail, make the
grief at last, and in earnest, more bitter than if the party had never
heard of any such thing. However, though I run the hazard of my own
self, I think it fit to declare to thee the prediction of the gods. It
cannot be that thou shouldst long continue in these bonds; but thou wilt
soon be delivered from them, and wilt be promoted to the highest dignity
and power, and thou wilt be envied by all those who now pity thy hard
fortune; and thou wilt be happy till thy death, and wilt leave thine
happiness to the children whom thou shalt have. But do thou remember,
when thou seest this bird again, that thou wilt then live but five days
longer. This event will be brought to pass by that God who hath sent
this bird hither to be a sign unto thee. And I cannot but think it
unjust to conceal from thee what I foreknow concerning thee, that, by
thy knowing beforehand what happiness is coming upon thee, thou mayst
not regard thy present misfortunes. But when this happiness shall
actually befall thee, do not forget what misery I am in myself, but
endeavor to deliver me." So when the German had said this, he made
Agrippa laugh at him as much as he afterwards appeared worthy of
admiration. But now Antonia took Agrippa's misfortune to heart: however,
to speak to Tiberius on his behalf, she took to be a very difficult
thing, and indeed quite impracticable, as to any hope of success; yet
did she procure of Macro, that the soldiers that kept him should be of a
gentle nature, and that the centurion who was over them and was to diet
with him, should be of the same disposition, and that he might have
leave to bathe himself every day, and that his freed-men and friends
might come to him, and that other things that tended to ease him might
be indulged him. So his friend Silas came in to him, and two of his
freed-men, Marsyas and Stechus, brought him such sorts of food as he was
fond of, and indeed took great care of him; they also brought him
garments, under pretense of selling them; and when night came on, they
laid them under him; and the soldiers assisted them, as Macro had given
them order to do beforehand. And this was Agrippa's condition for six
months' time, and in this case were his affairs.

8. But for Tiberius, upon his return to Caprein, he fell sick. At first
his distemper was but gentle; but as that distemper increased upon him,
he had small or no hopes of recovery. Hereupon he bid Euodus, who was
that freed-man whom he most of all respected, to bring the children 23
to him, for that he wanted to talk to them before he died. Now he had at
present no sons of his own alive for Drusus, who was his only son, was
dead; but Drusus's son Tiberius was still living, whose additional name
was Gemellus: there was also living Caius, the son of Germanicus, who
was the son 24 of his brother [Drusus]. He was now grown up, and had a
liberal education, and was well improved by it, and was in esteem and
favor with the people, on account of the excellent character of his
father Germanicus, who had attained the highest honor among the
multitude, by the firmness of his virtuous behavior, by the easiness and
agreeableness of his conversing with the multitude, and because the
dignity he was in did not hinder his familiarity with them all, as if
they were his equals; by which behavior he was not only greatly esteemed
by the people and the senate, but by every one of those nations that
were subject to the Romans; some of which were affected when they came
to him with the gracefulness of their reception by him, and others were
affected in the same manner by the report of the others that had been
with him; and, upon his death, there was a lamentation made by all men;
not such a one as was to be made in way of flattery to their rulers,
while they did but counterfeit sorrow, but such as was real; while every
body grieved at his death, as if they had lost one that was near to
them. And truly such had been his easy conversation with men, that it
turned greatly to the advantage of his son among all; and, among others,
the soldiery were so peculiarly affected to him, that they reckoned it
an eligible thing, if need were, to die themselves, if he might but
attain to the government.

9. But when Tiberius had given order to Euodus to bring the children to
him the next day in the morning, he prayed to his country gods to show
him a manifest signal which of those children should come to the
government; being very desirous to leave it to his son's son, but still
depending upon what God should foreshow concerning them more than upon
his own opinion and inclination; so he made this to be the omen, that
the government should be left to him who should come to him first the
next day. When he had thus resolved within himself, he sent to his
grandson's tutor, and ordered him to bring the child to him early in the
morning, as supposing that God would permit him to be made emperor. But
God proved opposite to his designation; for while Tiberius was thus
contriving matters, and as soon as it was at all day, he bid Euodus to
call in that child which should be there ready. So he went out, and
found Caius before the door, for Tiberius was not yet come, but staid
waiting for his breakfast; for Euodus knew nothing of what his lord
intended; so he said to Caius, "Thy father calls thee," and then brought
him in. As soon as Tiberius saw Caius, and not before, he reflected on
the power of God, and how the ability of bestowing the government on
whom he would was entirely taken from him; and thence he was not able to
establish what he had intended. So he greatly lamented that his power of
establishing what he had before contrived was taken from him, and that
his grandson Tiberius was not only to lose the Roman empire by his
fatality, but his own safety also, because his preservation would now
depend upon such as would be more potent than himself, who would think
it a thing not to be borne, that a kinsman should live with them, and so
his relation would not be able to protect him; but he would be feared
and hated by him who had the supreme authority, partly on account of his
being next to the empire, and partly on account of his perpetually
contriving to get the government, both in order to preserve himself, and
to be at the head of affairs also. Now Tiberius had been very much given
to astrology, 25 and the calculation of nativities, and had spent his
life in the esteem of what predictions had proved true, more than those
whose profession it was. Accordingly, when he once saw Galba coming in
to him, he said to his most intimate friends, that there came in a man
that would one day have the dignity of the Roman empire. So that this
Tiberius was more addicted to all such sorts of diviners than any other
of the Roman emperors, because he had found them to have told him truth
in his own affairs. And indeed he was now in great distress upon this
accident that had befallen him, and was very much grieved at the
destruction of his son's son, which he foresaw, and complained of
himself, that he should have made use of such a method of divination
beforehand, while it was in his power to have died without grief by this
knowledge of futurity; whereas he was now tormented by his foreknowledge
of the misfortune of such as were dearest to him, and must die under
that torment. Now although he was disordered at this unexpected
revolution of the government to those for whom he did not intend it, he
spake thus to Caius, though unwillingly, and against his own
inclination: "O child! although Tiberius be nearer related to me than
thou art, I, by my own determination, and the conspiring suffrage of the
gods, do give and put into thy hand the Roman empire; and I desire thee
never to be unmindful when thou comest to it, either of my kindness to
thee, who set thee in so high a dignity, or of thy relation to Tiberius.
But as thou knowest that I am, together with and after the gods, the
procurer of so great happiness to thee; so I desire that thou wilt make
me a return for my readiness to assist thee, and wilt take care of
Tiberius because of his near relation to thee. Besides which, thou art
to know, that while Tiberius is alive, he will be a security to thee,
both as to empire and as to thy own preservation; but if he die, that
will be but a prelude to thy own misfortunes; for to be alone under the
weight of such vast affairs is very dangerous; nor will the gods suffer
those actions which are unjustly done, contrary to that law which
directs men to act otherwise, to go off unpunished." This was the speech
which Tiberius made, which did not persuade Caius to act accordingly,
although he promised so to do; but when he was settled in the
government, he took off this Tiberius, as was predicted by the other
Tiberius; as he was also himself, in no long time afterward, slain by a
secret plot laid against him.

10. So when Tiberius had at this time appointed Caius to be his
successor, he outlived but a few days, and then died, after he had held
the government twenty-two years five months and three days. Now Caius
was the fourth emperor. But when the Romans understood that Tiberius was
dead, they rejoiced at the good news, but had not courage to believe it;
not because they were unwilling it should be true, for they would have
given huge sums of money that it might be so, but because they were
afraid, that if they had showed their joy when the news proved false,
their joy should be openly known, and they should be accused for it, and
be thereby undone. For this Tiberius had brought a vast number of
miseries on the best families of the Romans, since he was easily
inflamed with passion in all cases, and was of such a temper as rendered
his anger irrevocable, till he had executed the same, although he had
taken a hatred against men without reason; for he was by nature fierce
in all the sentences he gave, and made death the penalty for the
lightest offenses; insomuch that when the Romans heard the rumor about
his death gladly, they were restrained from the enjoyment of that
pleasure by the dread of such miseries as they foresaw would follow, if
their hopes proved ill-grounded. Now Marsyas, Agrippa's freed-man, as
soon as he heard of Tiberius's death, came running to tell Agrippa the
news; and finding him going out to the bath, he gave him a nod, and
said, in the Hebrew tongue, "The lion 26 is dead;" who, understanding
his meaning, and being overjoyed at the news, "Nay," said he, "but all
sorts of thanks and happiness attend thee for this news of thine; only I
wish that what thou sayest may prove true." Now the centurion who was
set to keep Agrippa, when he saw with what haste Marsyas came, and what
joy Agrippa had from what he said, he had a suspicion that his words
implied some great innovation of affairs, and he asked them about what
was said. They at first diverted the discourse; but upon his further
pressing, Agrippa, without more ado, told him, for he was already become
his friend; so he joined with him in that pleasure which this news
occasioned, because it would be fortunate to Agrippa, and made him a
supper. But as they were feasting, and the cups went about, there came
one who said that Tiberius was still alive, and would return to the city
in a few days. At which news the centurion was exceedingly troubled,
because he had done what might cost him his life, to have treated so
joyfully a prisoner, and this upon the news of the death of Cæsar; so he
thrust Agrippa from the couch whereon he lay, and said, "Dost thou think
to cheat me by a lie about the emperor without punishment? and shalt not
thou pay for this thy malicious report at the price of thine head?" When
he had so said, he ordered Agrippa to be bound again, [for he had loosed
him before,] and kept a severer guard over him than formerly, and in
that evil condition was Agrippa that night; but the next day the rumor
increased in the city, and confirmed the news that Tiberius was
certainly dead; insomuch that men durst now openly and freely talk about
it; nay, some offered sacrifices on that account. Several letters also
came from Caius; one of them to the senate, which informed them of the
death of Tiberius, and of his own entrance on the government; another to
Piso, the governor of the city, which told him the same thing. He also
gave order that Agrippa should be removed out of the camp, and go to
that house where he lived before he was put in prison; so that he was
now out of fear as to his own affairs; for although he was still in
custody, yet it was now with ease to his own affairs. Now, as soon as
Caius was come to Rome, and had brought Tiberius's dead body with him,
and had made a sumptuous funeral for him, according to the laws of his
country, he was much disposed to set Agrippa at liberty that very day;
but Antonia hindered him, not out of any ill-will to the prisoner, but
out of regard to decency in Caius, lest that should make men believe
that he received the death of Tiberius with pleasure, when he loosed one
whom he had bound immediately. However, there did not many days pass ere
he sent for him to his house, and had him shaved, and made him change
his raiment; after which he put a diadem upon his head, and appointed
him to be king of the tetrarchy of Philip. He also gave him the
tetrarchy of Lysanias, 27 and changed his iron chain for a golden one of
equal weight. He also sent Marullus to be procurator of Judea.

11. Now, in the second year of the reign of Caius Cæsar, Agrippa desired
leave to be given him to sail home, and settle the affairs of his
government; and he promised to return again, when he had put the rest in
order, as it ought to be put. So, upon the emperor's permission, he came
into his own country, and appeared to them all unexpectedly as asking,
and thereby demonstrated to the men that saw him the power of fortune,
when they compared his former poverty with his present happy affluence;
so some called him a happy man, and others could not well believe that
things were so much changed with him for the better.