Chapter 128: Agent of Divine Punishment
Marcus, who had returned to Antioch, led two more legions south to Jerusalem.
He joined forces with the two legions that were waiting in Damascus, and started a march with a total of four legions.
The travelers who moved along the Gadara were terrified by the majesty of the Roman army that exceeded 20,000.
The soldiers did not pay attention to their surroundings, but only sang marching songs.
The Roman army traditionally sang songs that matched the pace of marching for each cohort.
The veterans who were skilled in making lyrics made choruses and raised their voices incessantly.
“One two, one two, Jerusalem, wait for the punishment!”
“Three four, three four, let’s destroy the city and sweep away the bandits!”
“Five six, five six, foolish Judea, the time of judgment has come!”
The flag in the large lantern fluttered in the hand of the rider who wore a lion skin, and the surrounding area vibrated as if it would fly away by the soldiers’ roaring marching songs.
The minorities who lived near Jerusalem were busy avoiding the path of the Roman army.
Finally, Marcus saw the view of Jerusalem in front of him.
When he came with Pompey’s army before, it was an impressive fortress with high and steep walls that he admired inwardly.
But now it was nothing but an open city without even walls, let alone gates.
“There is no resistance. They said there were more than tens of thousands of bandits, but it’s unexpected.”
Antonius expressed his doubt.
The Jews did not actively resist even though such a large army had come.
If they stayed like this, they would be suppressed and sold as slaves, but it was strange.
Publius, who was driving a horse next to Marcus, asked in a low voice.
“Did you do something, brother?”
“Yes. If the Jews all rise up and resist, our army might suffer damage. The precious blood of our soldiers should not be wasted in such a place.”
The legionnaires and officers were touched by Marcus’s explanation.
There were not many commanders who cared more about the lives of their subordinates than achieving visible results.
Most commanders would easily accept some sacrifices if they could secure a sure spot to earn merit.
But Marcus always consistently prioritized the lives of his subordinates, and the legionnaires knew well about their commander’s tendency.
And he also paid wages and bonuses generously, so it would be more strange if they did not have loyalty.
Marcus pointed to the open gate of Jerusalem with his baton and shouted.
“Army, we are entering Jerusalem now. The situation is not over yet, so keep your formation and don’t relax your tension.”
“Wow!”
The Roman army marched with a loud cheer.
Marcus did not allow looting in this city during this suppression operation.
Jerusalem was strictly a subordinate territory of Rome, and the legion came here to suppress the bandits that occurred here.
It would have been different if the whole city had rebelled, but it was not at that level yet.
Besides, strangely enough, there were hardly any signs of Jerusalem citizens on the outskirts of the city.
It was as if the city was completely empty.
A legionnaire who did not know why frowned and tilted his head.
“What is this? Did all those Jewish bastards run away?”
Marcus did not bother to answer.
It was something they would naturally find out soon anyway.
As expected, when the Roman army entered the center of the city, they could see why there were no Jews around.
An enormous crowd that could not even fit in their sight gathered in the square.
It was a spectacle that could be believed even if they exaggerated that the entire population of the city had gathered here.
Those who could not enter the square climbed onto nearby roofs or stuck their faces out of windows of houses.
Their faces were filled with various complex emotions such as anxiety, nervousness, fear, anger, and hatred.
“That’s strange? They said there was a riot, but why are they all gathered in one place?”
Antonius’s question was also everyone’s curiosity.
Marcus raised his finger and pointed to the high platform above.
The person who had gathered them was there.
‘Is that Antigonus?’
It was his first time seeing his face directly, but he could recognize him at a glance from his resemblance to Arsinoe’s description and portrait.
He mobilized all his supporters and looked down at the Jews from above like a king.
The number of Sadducees and Hasmonean royalists who supported him was surprisingly quite large.
He roughly estimated by eye that it would be at least more than 10,000.
‘Very good. I can secure more labor than expected.’
Marcus suppressed the smile that was about to flow out and drove his horse expressionlessly.
The legionnaires who protected his front shouted in unison so loudly that the square echoed.
“Bandits of Jerusalem, bow your heads in front of Marcus Mesopotamius and pay for your sins obediently!”
The crowd murmured and did not know what to do.
The Roman army looked too strong in their eyes.
They did not have any thoughts of fighting against them now.
There were many people who had participated in the riot in this place, but there were also many who had not.
The eyes of the Jews gathered in the square focused on the last bloodline of the royal family who had called them.
Antigonus, who felt the eyes of the people who hoped for salvation, secretly rejoiced and stepped forward.
Everything was going according to plan.
He made his way through his supporters and approached from the other side of the platform.
Marcus watched him quietly.
Antigonus approached right in front of the Roman army and bowed his head politely and spoke in a dramatic tone.
“I greet the great governor of Rome! I am Antigonus, a member of the Hasmonean royal family.”
Marcus just nodded his head, but did not answer.
His expression did not even twitch, so he could not guess what he was thinking.
Antigonus took a deep breath and raised his voice.
“You must be wondering why people are gathered like this. The high priest and the administrative officer who were responsible for the Judean region failed to lead the crowd. The citizens of Jerusalem here were not simply dissatisfied with Rome. It was their dissatisfaction with the incompetent high priest and administrative bureaucrats that exploded in an incorrect form.”
“···So you’re saying that Jerusalem should not be held accountable for this?”
Marcus asked in a flat voice.
Antigonus did not panic and nodded his head repeatedly and shouted.
“Of course not. Among the people who caused the riot, there were those who used their dissatisfaction as an excuse to loot and commit violence. These people must pay the price they deserve. We have already sorted out such people.”
Antigonus turned his body and pointed to a corner with his hand.
There were men who were tied up and gagged, kneeling in a row.
It was not hard to guess what had happened.
When the crowd panicked at the fact that the Roman army was approaching, they were in chaos.
Antigonus incited them to hand over those who took the lead in the riot and they would be forgiven.
And he gathered the crowd in one place to emphasize that he had calmed down the riot and that he could exert a lot of influence on the Jews.
Of course, he also calculated that if everyone was united like this, even the Roman army would not be able to respond too harshly.
“Those who are captured are those who dared to commit violence against Roman citizens. This is an unforgivable crime. I have secured these prisoners for this reason.”
“Yes. Whatever the reason, harming the body of a Roman citizen is a serious crime. They will receive punishment that corresponds to their sins.”
If a subordinate citizen beat a Roman citizen, it would be at least confiscation of all property, or death penalty.
Marcus signaled and the legionnaires rushed over and dragged away the bandits roughly.
Those who resisted received merciless kicks.
Some of the Roman citizens who had been harmed by them had lost their ability to walk.
The soldiers who had been waiting for an opportunity mercilessly broke the legs of those who tried not to be dragged away.
They could not even scream properly because they were gagged.
The crowd turned their eyes away from their compatriots who groaned in pain from broken bones.
They were swept away by the crowd psychology and shouted “Down with Rome” together, but now they were sober.
Most of them rationalized that they were innocent and had been instigated by extremists.
So they thought it was natural for those who committed serious crimes on their behalf to be judged.
Antigonus barely held back the laughter that was about to leak out as he looked around.
Everything was going exactly as expected.
The new administrative officer of Judea would be Antigonus himself.
And from now on, he would cooperate closely with Arsinoe or other Parthian nobles to drive out Rome.
If Egypt, Judea, Mesopotamia, Armenia, and Pontus all rise up together, Rome would have no choice but to give up.
He pretended to be loyal and waited for Marcus to reward his merit quickly.
When all the hundreds of bandits were taken away, Marcus turned his eyes to Antigonus.
Antigonus also looked at Marcus with hopeful eyes.
But the word that came out of Marcus’s mouth was completely different from Antigonus’s expectation.
“Now that we have captured the bandits, we have to arrest those who instigated them from behind. Soldiers, listen up, arrest Antigonus, the mastermind of the riot, and all those who supported him, and send them to Antioch!”
“······?”
Antigonus did not fully understand the situation for a moment.
It took him a little more time to fully understand what Marcus had said.
The crowd that filled the square was also the same.
Before Antigonus could open his mouth to say something, Marcus took out a scroll from his chest and unfolded it.
“Here is evidence that Antigonus tried to cause a riot in Jerusalem! He cunningly incited the people to ruin the security and then plotted to overthrow the high priest and administrative officer by blaming them.
Even if the Roman army brutally suppressed the bandits, he said it was an inevitable sacrifice for his accession. Here is his seal, so anyone who doubts can come and see for themselves!”
The interpreters who had been placed in front by Marcus beforehand translated Marcus’s words into fluent Hebrew.
The Jews were shocked.
They could not believe that their trustworthy leader who had been working hard to solve the situation was actually a villain who plotted this.
Some impatient ones shouted that they could not believe it and bravely stepped forward.
Marcus kindly showed them the scroll with Antigonus’s signature and seal.
The high priest Hilkiah swore by God’s name that Antigonus’s seal was genuine.
The public opinion changed drastically in an instant.
The Jews who felt betrayed spat insults at Antigonus and his followers.
Some people even spat at the Sadducees.
Since the crowd was gathered in one place, it only took a few minutes for the story to spread, and the crowd psychology also flared up at once.
For Antigonus, it was a backfire to unite everyone to show his influence.
‘Could he have known that I would do this and deliberately staged the situation? But how did he get that signature…’
He looked around frantically, but Arsinoe was nowhere to be seen.
Then the answer was one of two.
She had betrayed him, or she had been exposed and imprisoned.
‘This damn bitch…I shouldn’t have signed it so hastily.’
Antigonus, who was being dragged by the soldiers, looked back and forth at Marcus and the angry crowd.
No matter how hard he thought, he could not think of a way to get out of this situation safely.
He desperately tried to stand his ground by putting strength into his legs.
“Wait! That evidence is fabricated! I am, I am innocent! It must be someone’s conspiracy. I demand to prove my innocence through a formal trial!”
“A trial?”
For the first time, something resembling an expression appeared on Marcus’s face.
But it was closer to a sneer than interest or compassion.
“Antigonus, are you a Roman citizen in front of my eyes?”
“···No, but······.”
“Then why should I guarantee you the right to a trial when you are not even a Roman citizen? The governor has the authority to execute those who threaten the stability of the province on the spot. You are caught red-handed. You have no right to a trial.”
Marcus took his eyes off Antigonus and looked around at the soldiers and raised his voice.
“I, Marcus Mesopotamicus, who oversees the province of Syria, will impose a corresponding punishment on Antigonus and his faction who led the riot here.
The criminal Antigonus incited the good citizens to inflame their hostility against Rome and tried to satisfy his own greed by using them.
Because of this, many provincials and Romans were harmed and a lot of property was lost. It was also confirmed that he conspired with foreign nobles to overthrow Rome’s rule. His crime is especially bad. Therefore, Antigonus and all his followers must repent their sins by doing forced labor until they die.”
As Marcus’s harsh sentence fell, Antigonus and his followers’ faces turned black.
Doing forced labor until death was more cruel than becoming a slave.
In some ways, death penalty was much more humane.
But the Jews did not complain.
Rather, they agreed that it was a deserved punishment.
From Rome’s perspective, it was almost like securing more than 10,000 healthy adult men as slaves without any legal problems or complaints.
Marcus planned to send them all to the mines in the Caucasus Mountains.
He had been short of workers since he annexed Armenia as a province and developed the mines without any hesitation.
But this would solve his problem at once.
He suppressed the rebellion and also boosted the mine development. It was a win-win situation.
But the Sadducees, who had high social positions, could not accept this treatment easily.
“Rather than being executed, being tortured like slaves until death!”
“How dare he ignore our God and our entire Judea even if he is Rome’s governor!”
As the soldiers approached with their weapons to deal with those who resisted, Marcus stopped them with his hand.
He had a much more effective way than silencing them with force.
A soft but cold voice came out of his mouth.
“Among you, there is no one who does not know the commandments given by your God. It clearly says this:
Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not covet your neighbor’s property. But sadly, you have broken all these commandments. How dare you mention God’s name when you can’t even keep your promise with your God? You are selling God’s name with your cunning. It is because of you that God sent me to punish you on his behalf. Remember the prophecies you received from your prophets in the past.”
The Sadducees trembled and could not say a word back.
Marcus pointed out a few more religious doctrines that they had violated.
The crowd was silent and could not even open their mouths.
They just stared blankly at Marcus with an expression of horror.
It was too shocking that Rome’s governor was well-versed in not only the Ten Commandments but also the contents of the scriptures.
Some Jews who could not bear the shame knelt on the ground and wept and begged for God’s forgiveness.
The Jews thought that they were conquered by Babylon in the past because of their disobedience.
It was not much different now.
The crowd gradually accepted Marcus’s army as not a simple invader of immigrants, but an agent of punishment sent by God to whip them.
Otherwise, how could an immigrant leader be so proficient in the contents of the Pentateuch and the Prophets?
They trembled and shed tears at Marcus’s words.
After that, no one complained about the prisoners being taken away.
The Roman army was rather surprised by the obedient reaction of the Jews.
Publius approached with an impressed expression and asked.
“Wow, when did you study the doctrines of Judaism? It must have been hard to find their scriptures.”
“I just memorized them in case they came in handy.”
“You are amazing, sir. Thanks to you, the Jerusalem riot, which could have escalated seriously, was suppressed so easily. And you captured more than 10,000 prisoners as a bonus, and the Jews will also be obedient from now on. There is no better result than this.”
“Well…I can’t be sure that this will last.”
Marcus tapped his chest and glanced at the Jews who were repenting.
They may be quiet now, but history has proven one thing.
They will always cause trouble again.
The extreme nationalism that the Jews had was inevitable for conflict.
Marcus had no intention of repeating such mistakes.
He did not have the authority to expel all the Jews or destroy Jerusalem with extreme policies.
And such methods would also provoke too much resistance from the Jews and even strengthen their unity.
Historically, the Jews were able to form such a strong network because they had a sense of persecution.
Everyone around them was an enemy, so they stuck together and reinforced their Jewishness.
Marcus did not want to do that.
The public opinion had to be reversed quickly.
He had to appoint rulers who were not pure-blooded Jews like Herod, and divide the tribes so that they could not unite as one.
And after suppressing the expression of extreme nationalism by assimilating the divided tribes with other peoples, he would start his real action.
By then, Jerusalem would no longer be a city of Jews alone.
The day when Jerusalem would be called the holy city of the three religions might never come.
The hot wind blew over Marcus’s head as he left Jerusalem behind.
He planned to make sure that this wind would not be mixed with the smell of blood unlike the original history.
< The End of 128. Agent of Divine Punishment >
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