The dreadful persecution which the Jews of Alexandria underwent in A. D. 39, shows that, not withstanding their long establishment there, no tnendly relations had arisen between them and the other inhabitants, by whom in fact they were in tensely hated. This feeling was so well known, that at the date indicated, the Roman governor Avillius Flaccus, who was anxious to ingratiate himself with the citizens, was persuaded that the surest way of winning their affections was to with draw his protection from the Jews, against whom the emperor was already exasperated by their re fusal to acknowledge his right to divine honours, which he insanely claimed, or to admit his images into their synagogues. The Alexandrians soon found out that they would not be called to account for any proceedings they might have recourse to against the Jews. The insult and bitter mockery with which they treated Herod Agrippa when he came to Alexandria, before proceeding to take pos session of the kingdom he had received from Cali gula, gave the first intimation of their dispositions. Finding that the governor connived at their con duct, they proceeded to insist that the emperor's images should be introduced into the Jewish syna gogues ; and on resistance being offered, they de stroyed most of them, and polluted the others by introducing the imperial images by force. The example thus set by the Alexandrians was followed in other cities of Egypt, which contained at this time about a million of Jews; and a vast number of oratories—of which the largest and most beauti ful were called synagogues—were all either levelled with the ground, consumed by fire, or profaned by the emperor's statues (Philo, In Flare. p. 968 moo, ed. 1640; De Leg. ix.; Euseb. Cliron. 27, 2S).
Flaccus soon after declared himself openly, by publishing an edict depriving the Jews of the rights of citizenship, which they had so long enjoyed, and declaring them aliens. The Jews then occu pied two out of the five quarters (which took their names from the five first letters of the alphabet) into which the city was divided ; and as they were in those times, before centuries of oppression had broken their spirit, by no means remarkable for their submission to wrongous treatment, it is likely that they made some efforts towards the mainte nance of their rights, which Philo neglects to re cord, but which gave some kind of pretence for the excesses which followed. At all events, the Alexandrians, regarding them as abandoned by the authorities to their mercy, openly proceeded to the most violent extremities. The Jews were forcibly driven out of all the other parts of the city, and con fined to one quarter ; and the houses from which they had been driven, as well as their shops and warehouses, were plundered of all their effects. Impoverished, and pent up in a narrow corner oi the city, where the greater part were obliged to lie in the open air, and where the supplies of food were cut off; many of them died of hardship and hunger ; and whoever was found beyond the boun dary, whether he had escaped from the assigned limits, or had come in from the country, was seizes and put to death with horrid tortures. So like
wise, when a vessel belonging to the Jews arrived in port, it was boarded by the mob, pillaged, and then burnt, •together with the owners.
At length king Herod Agrippa, who stayed long enough in Alexandria to see the beginning of these atrocities, transmitted to the emperor such a re port of the real state of affairs as induced him to send a centurion to arrest Flaccus, and bring hint a prisoner to Rome. This put the rioters in a false position, and brought some relief to the Jews; but the tumult still continued, and as the magistrates refused to acknowledge the citizenship of the Jews, it was at length agreed that both parties should send delegates, five on each side, to Rome, and refer the decision of the controversy to the emperor. At the head of the Jewish delegation was the cele brated Philo, to whom we owe the account of these transactions ; and at the head of the Alexandrians was the noted Apion. The latter chiefly rested their case upon the fact that the Jews were the only people who refused to consecrate images to the emperor, or to swear by his name. But on this point the Jewish delegates defended themselves so well, that Caligula himself said, These men are not so wicked as ignorant and unhappy, in not believing me to be a god ' The ultimate result of this appeal is not known, but the Jews of Alex andria continued to be harassed during the re mainder of Caligula's reign ; and their alabarch, Alexander Lysimachus (brother of Philo), was thrown into prison, where he remained till he was discharged by Claudius, upon whose accession to the empire the Alexandrian Jews betook them selves to arms. This occasioned such disturbances that they attracted the attention of the emperor, who, at the joint entreaty of Herod and Agrippa, issued an edict conferring on the Jews of Egypt all their ancient privileges (Philo, In Flacc. Op. p. 1019-1o43 ; Joseph. Antiq. xviii. 10 (9); xix. 5). The state of feeling in Alexandria which these facts indicate, was very far from being allayed when the revolt of the Jews in Palestine caused even those of the nation who dwelt in foreign parts to be re garded as enemies, both by the populace and the government. In Alexandria, on a public occasion, they were attacked, and those who could not save themselves by flight were put to the sword. Only three were taken alive, and they were dragged through the city to be consigned to the flames. At this spectacle the indignation of the Jews rose beyond all bounds. They first assailed the Greek citizens with stones, and then rushed with lighted torches to the amphitheatre, to set it on fire and burn all the people who were there assembled. The Roman prefect Tiberius Alexander, finding that milder measures were of no avail, sent against them a body of 17,000 soldiers, who slew about 5o,000 of them, and plundered and burned their dwellings (Joseph. Bell. 5'hd. ii. 18, 7 ; comp. Matt. xxiv. 6).