From the Taking of Jerusalem by Antiochus Epiphanes to the Death of Herod the Great - Flavius Josephus

aristocracy. He also parted the whole nation into five conventions, assigning
one portion to Jerusalem, another to Gadara, that another should belong to
Amathus, a fourth to Jericho, and to the fifth division was allotted Sepphoris,
a city of Galilee. So the people were glad to be thus freed from monarchical
government, and were governed for the future by all aristocracy.
6. Yet did Aristobulus afford another foundation for new disturbances.
He fled away from Rome, and got together again many of the Jews that were
desirous of a change, such as had borne an affection to him of old; and when
he had taken Alexandrium in the first place, he attempted to build a wall
about it; but as soon as Gabinius had sent an army against him under
Siscuria, and Antonius, and Servilius, he was aware of it, and retreated to
Macherus. And as for the unprofitable multitude, he dismissed them, and
only marched on with those that were armed, being to the number of eight
thousand, among whom was Pitholaus, who had been the lieutenant at
Jerusalem, but deserted to Aristobulus with a thousand of his men; so the
Romans followed him, and when it came to a battle, Aristobulus's party for a
long time fought courageously; but at length they were overborne by the
Romans, and of them five thousand fell down dead, and about two thousand
fled to a certain little hill, but the thousand that remained with Aristobulus
brake through the Roman army, and marched together to Macherus; and
when the king had lodged the first night upon its ruins, he was in hopes of
raising another army, if the war would but cease a while; accordingly, he
fortified that strong hold, though it was done after a poor manner. But the
Romans falling upon him, he resisted, even beyond his abilities, for two
days, and then was taken, and brought a prisoner to Gabinius, with
Antigonus his son, who had fled away together with him from Rome; and
from Gabinius he was carried to Rome again. Wherefore the senate put him
under confinement, but returned his children back to Judea, because
Gabinius informed them by letters that he had promised Aristobulus's mother
to do so, for her delivering the fortresses up to him.
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