CHAPTER XVII.

THE ADVICE OF THE CHALDEES REJECTED.

But he had a suspicion that the Chaldaeans were trying to prevent his

entrance into Babylon at that time with reference rather to their own

advantage than to the declaration of the oracle. For in the middle of

the city of the Babylonians was the temple of Belus,[925] an edifice

very great in size, constructed of baked bricks which were cemented

together with bitumen. This temple had been razed to the ground by

Xerxes, when he returned from Greece; as were also all the other sacred

buildings of the Babylonians. Some say that Alexander had formed the

resolution to rebuild it upon the former foundations; and for this

reason he ordered the Babylonians to carry away the mound. Others say

that he intended to build a still larger one than that which formerly

existed.[926] But after his departure, the men who had been entrusted

with the work prosecuted it without any vigour, so that he determined

to employ the whole of his army in completing it. A great quantity

of land as well as gold had been dedicated to the god Belus by the

Assyrian kings; and in olden times the temple was kept in repair and

sacrifices were offered to the god. But at that time the Chaldaeans

were appropriating the property of the god, since nothing existed upon

which the revenues could be expended. Alexander suspected that they did

not wish him to enter Babylon for this reason, for fear that in a short

time the temple would be finished, and they should be deprived of the

gains accruing from the money. And yet, according to Aristobulus, he

was willing to yield to their persuasions so far at least as to change

the direction of his entry into the city. For this purpose, on the

first day he encamped near the river Euphrates; and on the next day he

marched along the bank, keeping the river on his right hand, with the

intention of passing beyond the part of the city turned towards the

west, and there wheeling round to lead his army towards the east. But

on account of the difficulty of the ground he could not march with his

army in this direction; because if a man who is entering the city from

the west, here changes his direction eastward, he comes upon ground

covered with marshes and shoals. Thus, partly by his own will and

partly against his will, he disobeyed the god.