2 Maccabees 4:7-10:9

New American Bible (Revised Edition)

Jason as High Priest. ⁷ But Seleucus died,^[a] and when Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes succeeded him on the throne, Onias’ brother Jason obtained the high priesthood by corrupt means:^{(A) 8} in an interview, he promised the king three hundred and sixty talents of silver, as well as eighty talents from another source of income. ⁹ Besides this he would undertake to pay a hundred and fifty more, if he was given authority to establish a gymnasium and a youth center^[b] for it and to enroll Jerusalemites as citizens of Antioch.

¹⁰ When Jason received the king’s approval and came into office, he immediately initiated his compatriots into the Greek way of life. ¹¹ He set aside the royal concessions granted to the Jews through the mediation of John, father of Eupolemus^[c] (that Eupolemus who would later go on an embassy to the Romans to establish friendship and alliance with them); he set aside the lawful practices and introduced customs contrary to the law.^{(B) 12 (C)}With perverse delight he established a gymnasium^[d] at the very foot of the citadel, where he induced the noblest young men to wear the Greek hat. ¹³ The craze for Hellenism and the adoption of foreign customs reached such a pitch, through the outrageous wickedness of Jason, the renegade and would-be high priest, ¹⁴ that the priests no longer cared about the service of the altar. Disdaining the temple and neglecting the sacrifices, they hastened, at the signal for the games, to take part in the unlawful exercises at the arena. ¹⁵ What their ancestors had regarded as honors they despised; what the Greeks esteemed as glory they prized highly. ¹⁶ For this reason they found themselves in serious trouble: the very people whose manner of life they emulated, and whom they desired to imitate in everything, became their enemies and oppressors. ¹⁷ It is no light matter to flout the laws of God, as subsequent events will show.

¹⁸ When the quinquennial games were held at Tyre in the presence of the king, ¹⁹ the vile Jason sent representatives of the Antiochians of Jerusalem, to bring three hundred silver drachmas for the sacrifice to Hercules. But the bearers themselves decided that the money should not be spent on a sacrifice, as that was not right, but should be used for some other purpose. ²⁰ So the contribution meant for the sacrifice to Hercules by the sender, was in fact applied to the construction of triremes^[e] by those who brought it.

²¹ When Apollonius, son of Menestheus, was sent to Egypt for the coronation of King Philometor,^[f] Antiochus learned from him that the king was opposed to his policies. He took measures for his own security; so after going to Joppa, he proceeded to Jerusalem. ²² There he was received with great pomp by Jason and the people of the city, who escorted him with torchlights and acclamations; following this, he led his army into Phoenicia.

Menelaus as High Priest. ²³ Three years later Jason sent Menelaus,^[g] brother of the aforementioned Simon, to deliver the money to the king, and to complete negotiations on urgent matters. ²⁴ But after his introduction to the king, he flattered him with such an air of authority that he secured the high priesthood for himself, outbidding Jason by three hundred talents of silver. ²⁵ He returned with the royal commission, but with nothing that made him worthy of the high priesthood; he had the temper of a cruel tyrant and the rage of a wild beast. ²⁶ So Jason, who had cheated his own brother and now saw himself cheated by another man, was driven out as a fugitive to the country of the Ammonites. ²⁷ But Menelaus, who obtained the office, paid nothing of the money he had promised to the king, ²⁸ in spite of the demand of Sostratus, the commandant of the citadel, whose duty it was to collect the taxes. For this reason, both were summoned before the king. ²⁹ Menelaus left his brother Lysimachus as his deputy in the high priesthood, while Sostratus left Crates, commander of the Cypriots.^(D)

Murder of Onias. ³⁰ While these things were taking place, the people of Tarsus and Mallus^[h] rose in revolt, because their cities had been given as a gift to Antiochis, the king’s concubine. ³¹ So the king hastened off to settle the affair, leaving Andronicus, one of his nobles, as his deputy. ³² Menelaus, for his part, thinking this a good opportunity, stole some gold vessels from the temple and presented them to Andronicus; he had already sold other vessels in Tyre and in the neighboring cities. ³³ When Onias had clear evidence, he accused Menelaus publicly, after withdrawing to the inviolable sanctuary at Daphne, near Antioch. ³⁴ Thereupon Menelaus approached Andronicus privately and urged him to seize Onias. So Andronicus went to Onias, treacherously reassuring him by offering his right hand in oath, and persuaded him, in spite of his suspicions, to leave the sanctuary. Then, with no regard for justice, he immediately put him to death.

³⁵ As a result, not only the Jews, but many people of other nations as well, were indignant and angry over the unjust murder of the man. ³⁶ When the king returned from the region of Cilicia, the Jews of the city,^[i] together with the Greeks who detested the crime, went to see him about the murder of Onias. ³⁷ Antiochus was deeply grieved and full of pity; he wept as he recalled the prudence and noble conduct of the deceased. ³⁸ Inflamed with anger, he immediately stripped Andronicus of his purple robe, tore off his garments, and had him led through the whole city to the very place where he had committed the outrage against Onias; and there he put the murderer to death. Thus the Lord rendered him the punishment he deserved.

More Outrages. ³⁹ Many acts of sacrilege had been committed by Lysimachus in the city^[j] with the connivance of Menelaus. When word spread, the people assembled in protest against Lysimachus, because a large number of gold vessels had been stolen. ⁴⁰ As the crowds, now thoroughly enraged, began to riot, Lysimachus launched an unjustified attack against them with about three thousand armed men under the leadership of a certain Auranus, a man as advanced in folly as he was in years. ⁴¹ Seeing Lysimachus’ attack, people picked up stones, pieces of wood or handfuls of the ashes lying there and threw them in wild confusion at Lysimachus and his men. ⁴² As a result, they wounded many of them and even killed a few, while they put all to flight. The temple robber himself they killed near the treasury.

⁴³ Charges about this affair were brought against Menelaus. ⁴⁴ When the king came to Tyre, three men sent by the senate pleaded the case before him. ⁴⁵ But Menelaus, seeing himself on the losing side, promised Ptolemy, son of Dorymenes, a substantial sum of money if he would win the king over.^{(E) 46} So Ptolemy took the king aside into a colonnade, as if to get some fresh air, and persuaded him to change his mind. ⁴⁷ Menelaus, who was the cause of all the trouble, the king acquitted of the charges, while he condemned to death those poor men who would have been declared innocent even if they had pleaded their case before Scythians. ⁴⁸ Thus, those who had prosecuted the case on behalf of the city, the people, and the sacred vessels, quickly suffered unjust punishment. ⁴⁹ For this reason, even Tyrians, detesting the crime, provided sumptuously for their burial. ⁵⁰ But Menelaus, thanks to the greed of those in power, remained in office, where he grew in wickedness, scheming greatly against his fellow citizens.

Chapter 5

Jason’s Revolt. ¹ About this time Antiochus sent his second expedition^[k] into Egypt.^{(F) 2 (G)}It then happened that all over the city, for nearly forty days, there appeared horsemen, clothed in garments of a golden weave, charging in midair—companies fully armed with lances and drawn swords; ³ squadrons of cavalry in battle array, charges and countercharges on this side and that, with brandished shields and bristling spears, flights of arrows and flashes of gold ornaments, together with armor of every sort. ⁴ Therefore all prayed that this vision might be a good omen.

⁵ But when a false rumor circulated that Antiochus was dead, Jason^[l] gathered at least a thousand men and suddenly attacked the city. As the defenders on the walls were forced back and the city was finally being taken, Menelaus took refuge in the citadel. ⁶ For his part, Jason continued the merciless slaughter of his fellow citizens, not realizing that triumph over one’s own kindred is the greatest calamity; he thought he was winning a victory over his enemies, not over his own people. ⁷ Even so, he did not gain control of the government, but in the end received only disgrace for his treachery, and once again took refuge in the country of the Ammonites. ⁸ At length he met a miserable end. Called to account before Aretas,^[m] ruler of the Arabians, he fled from city to city, hunted by all, hated as an apostate from the laws, abhorred as the executioner of his country and his compatriots. Driven into Egypt, ⁹ he set out by sea for the Lacedaemonians, among whom he hoped to find protection because of his relations with them. He who had exiled so many from their country perished in exile; ¹⁰ and he who had cast out so many to lie unburied went unmourned and without a funeral of any kind, nor any place in the tomb of his ancestors.

Revenge by Antiochus. ^11 (H)When these happenings were reported to the king, he thought that Judea was in revolt. Raging like a wild animal, he set out from Egypt and took Jerusalem by storm. ¹² He ordered his soldiers to cut down without mercy those whom they met and to slay those who took refuge in their houses. ¹³ There was a massacre of young and old, a killing of women and children, a slaughter of young women and infants. ¹⁴ In the space of three days, eighty thousand were lost, forty thousand meeting a violent death, and the same number being sold into slavery.

¹⁵ Not satisfied with this, the king dared to enter the holiest temple in the world; Menelaus, that traitor both to the laws and to his country, served as guide. ¹⁶ He laid his impure hands on the sacred vessels and swept up with profane hands the votive offerings made by other kings for the advancement, the glory, and the honor of the place. ¹⁷ Antiochus became puffed up in spirit, not realizing that it was because of the sins of the city’s inhabitants that the Sovereign Lord was angry for a little while: hence the disregard of the place.^{(I) 18} If they had not become entangled in so many sins, this man, like that Heliodorus sent by King Seleucus to inspect the treasury, would have been flogged and turned back from his presumptuous act as soon as he approached. ¹⁹ The Lord, however, had not chosen the nation for the sake of the place, but the place for the sake of the nation. ²⁰ Therefore, the place itself, having shared in the nation’s misfortunes, afterward participated in their good fortune; and what the Almighty had forsaken in wrath was restored in all its glory, once the great Sovereign Lord became reconciled.

^21 (J)Antiochus carried off eighteen hundred talents from the temple and hurried back to Antioch, thinking in his arrogance that he could make the land navigable and the sea passable on foot, so carried away was he with pride. ²² He left governors to harass the nation: at Jerusalem, Philip, a Phrygian by birth,^[n] and in character more barbarous than the man who appointed him;^{(K) 23} at Mount Gerizim,^[o] Andronicus; and besides these, Menelaus, who lorded it over his fellow citizens more than the others. Out of hatred for the Jewish citizens, ^24 (L)the king sent Apollonius,^[p] commander of the Mysians, at the head of an army of twenty-two thousand, with orders to kill all the grown men and sell the women and children into slavery. ²⁵ When this man arrived in Jerusalem, he pretended to be peacefully disposed and waited until the holy day of the sabbath; then, finding the Jews refraining from work, he ordered his men to parade fully armed. ²⁶ All those who came out to watch, he massacred, and running through the city with armed men, he cut down a large number of people.

²⁷ But Judas Maccabeus and about nine others withdrew to the wilderness to avoid sharing in defilement; there he and his companions lived like the animals in the hills, eating what grew wild.^(M)

Chapter 6

Abolition of Judaism. ^1 (N)Not long after this the king sent an Athenian senator^[q] to force the Jews to abandon the laws of their ancestors and live no longer by the laws of God, ² also to profane the temple in Jerusalem and dedicate it to Olympian Zeus,^[r] and the one on Mount Gerizim to Zeus the Host to Strangers, as the local inhabitants were wont to be.^{(O) 3} This was a harsh and utterly intolerable evil. ⁴ The Gentiles filled the temple with debauchery and revelry; they amused themselves with prostitutes and had intercourse with women even in the sacred courts. They also brought forbidden things into the temple,^{(P) 5} so that the altar was covered with abominable offerings prohibited by the laws.

⁶ No one could keep the sabbath or celebrate the traditional feasts, nor even admit to being a Jew. ⁷ Moreover, at the monthly celebration of the king’s birthday the Jews, from bitter necessity, had to partake of the sacrifices, and when the festival of Dionysus^[s] was celebrated, they were compelled to march in his procession, wearing wreaths of ivy.^(Q)

⁸ Following upon a vote of the citizens of Ptolemais, a decree was issued ordering the neighboring Greek cities to adopt the same measures, obliging the Jews to partake of the sacrifices ⁹ and putting to death those who would not consent to adopt the customs of the Greeks. It was obvious, therefore, that disaster had come upon them. ¹⁰ Thus, two women who were arrested for having circumcised their children were publicly paraded about the city with their babies hanging at their breasts and then thrown down from the top of the city wall.^{(R) 11} Others, who had assembled in nearby caves to observe the seventh day in secret, were betrayed to Philip and all burned to death. In their respect for the holiness of that day, they refrained from defending themselves.^(S)

God’s Purpose. ^12 (T)Now I urge those who read this book not to be disheartened by these misfortunes, but to consider that these punishments were meant not for the ruin but for the correction of our nation. ¹³ It is, in fact, a sign of great kindness to punish the impious promptly instead of letting them go for long. ^14 (U)Thus, in dealing with other nations, the Sovereign Lord patiently waits until they reach the full measure of their sins before punishing them; but with us he has decided to deal differently, ¹⁵ in order that he may not have to punish us later, when our sins have reached their fullness. ¹⁶ Therefore he never withdraws his mercy from us. Although he disciplines us with misfortunes, he does not abandon his own people. ¹⁷ Let these words suffice for recalling this truth. Without further ado we must go on with our story.

Martyrdom of Eleazar. ^18 [t]Eleazar, one of the foremost scribes, a man advanced in age and of noble appearance, was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork.^{(V) 19} But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture, ²⁰ spitting out the meat as they should do who have the courage to reject food unlawful to taste even for love of life.

²¹ Those in charge of that unlawful sacrifice took the man aside, because of their long acquaintance with him, and privately urged him to bring his own provisions that he could legitimately eat, and only to pretend to eat the sacrificial meat prescribed by the king. ²² Thus he would escape death, and be treated kindly because of his old friendship with them. ²³ But he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood. Above all loyal to the holy laws given by God, he swiftly declared, “Send me to Hades!”

²⁴ “At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many of the young would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. ²⁵ If I dissemble to gain a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring defilement and dishonor on my old age. ²⁶ Even if, for the time being, I avoid human punishment, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hand of the Almighty. ²⁷ Therefore, by bravely giving up life now, I will prove myself worthy of my old age, ²⁸ and I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and nobly for the revered and holy laws.”

He spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture. ²⁹ Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness.^{(W) 30} When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned, saying: “The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul because of my devotion to him.” ³¹ This is how he died, leaving in his death a model of nobility and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole nation.

Chapter 7

Martyrdom of a Mother and Her Seven Sons. ¹ It also happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested and tortured with whips and scourges by the king to force them to eat pork in violation of God’s law.^{(X) 2} One of the brothers, speaking for the others, said: “What do you expect to learn by questioning us? We are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors.”

³ At that the king, in a fury, gave orders to have pans and caldrons heated. ⁴ These were quickly heated, and he gave the order to cut out the tongue of the one who had spoken for the others, to scalp him and cut off his hands and feet, while the rest of his brothers and his mother looked on. ⁵ When he was completely maimed but still breathing, the king ordered them to carry him to the fire and fry him. As a cloud of smoke spread from the pan, the brothers and their mother encouraged one another to die nobly, with these words: ⁶ “The Lord God is looking on and truly has compassion on us, as Moses declared in his song, when he openly bore witness, saying, ‘And God will have compassion on his servants.’”^(Y)

⁷ After the first brother had died in this manner, they brought the second to be made sport of. After tearing off the skin and hair of his head, they asked him, “Will you eat the pork rather than have your body tortured limb by limb?” ⁸ Answering in the language of his ancestors, he said, “Never!” So he in turn suffered the same tortures as the first. ⁹ With his last breath he said: “You accursed fiend, you are depriving us of this present life, but the King of the universe will raise us up^[u] to live again forever, because we are dying for his laws.”^(Z)

¹⁰ After him the third suffered their cruel sport. He put forth his tongue at once when told to do so, and bravely stretched out his hands, ¹¹ as he spoke these noble words: “It was from Heaven that I received these; for the sake of his laws I disregard them; from him I hope to receive them again.” ¹² Even the king and his attendants marveled at the young man’s spirit, because he regarded his sufferings as nothing.

¹³ After he had died, they tortured and maltreated the fourth brother in the same way. ¹⁴ When he was near death, he said, “It is my choice to die at the hands of mortals with the hope that God will restore me to life; but for you, there will be no resurrection to life.”

¹⁵ They next brought forward the fifth brother and maltreated him. ¹⁶ Looking at the king, he said:^(AA) “Mortal though you are, you have power over human beings, so you do what you please. But do not think that our nation is forsaken by God. ¹⁷ Only wait, and you will see how his great power will torment you and your descendants.”

¹⁸ After him they brought the sixth brother. When he was about to die, he said: “Have no vain illusions. We suffer these things on our own account, because we have sinned against our God; that is why such shocking things have happened. ¹⁹ Do not think, then, that you will go unpunished for having dared to fight against God.”

²⁰ Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother who, seeing her seven sons perish in a single day, bore it courageously because of her hope in the Lord. ²¹ Filled with a noble spirit that stirred her womanly reason with manly emotion, she exhorted each of them in the language of their ancestors with these words: ^22 (AB)“I do not know how you came to be in my womb; it was not I who gave you breath and life, nor was it I who arranged the elements you are made of. ²³ Therefore, since it is the Creator of the universe who shaped the beginning of humankind and brought about the origin of everything, he, in his mercy, will give you back both breath and life, because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of his law.”

²⁴ Antiochus, suspecting insult in her words, thought he was being ridiculed. As the youngest brother was still alive, the king appealed to him, not with mere words, but with promises on oath, to make him rich and happy if he would abandon his ancestral customs: he would make him his Friend and entrust him with high office. ²⁵ When the youth paid no attention to him at all, the king appealed to the mother, urging her to advise her boy to save his life. ²⁶ After he had urged her for a long time, she agreed to persuade her son. ²⁷ She leaned over close to him and, in derision of the cruel tyrant, said in their native language: “Son, have pity on me, who carried you in my womb for nine months, nursed you for three years, brought you up, educated and supported you to your present age. ²⁸ I beg you, child, to look at the heavens and the earth and see all that is in them; then you will know that God did not make them out of existing things.^[v] In the same way humankind came into existence. ²⁹ Do not be afraid of this executioner, but be worthy of your brothers and accept death, so that in the time of mercy I may receive you again with your brothers.”

³⁰ She had scarcely finished speaking when the youth said: “What is the delay? I will not obey the king’s command. I obey the command of the law given to our ancestors through Moses. ³¹ But you, who have contrived every kind of evil for the Hebrews, will not escape the hands of God. ³² We, indeed, are suffering because of our sins.^{(AC) 33} Though for a little while our living Lord has been angry, correcting and chastising us, he will again be reconciled with his servants. ³⁴ But you, wretch, most vile of mortals, do not, in your insolence, buoy yourself up with unfounded hopes, as you raise your hand against the children of heaven. ³⁵ You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty and all-seeing God. ³⁶ Our brothers, after enduring brief pain, have drunk of never-failing life, under God’s covenant. But you, by the judgment of God, shall receive just punishments for your arrogance. ³⁷ Like my brothers, I offer up my body and my life for our ancestral laws, imploring God to show mercy soon to our nation, and by afflictions and blows to make you confess that he alone is God. ³⁸ Through me and my brothers, may there be an end to the wrath of the Almighty that has justly fallen on our whole nation.”

³⁹ At that, the king became enraged and treated him even worse than the others, since he bitterly resented the boy’s contempt. ⁴⁰ Thus he too died undefiled, putting all his trust in the Lord. ⁴¹ Last of all, after her sons, the mother was put to death. ⁴² Enough has been said about the sacrificial meals and the excessive cruelties.

V. Victories of Judas and Purification of the Temple

Chapter 8

Resistance from Judas Maccabeus. ^1 (AD)Judas Maccabeus and his companions entered the villages secretly, summoned their kindred, and enlisted others who had remained faithful to Judaism. Thus they assembled about six thousand men. ² They implored the Lord to look kindly upon this people, who were being oppressed by all; to have pity on the sanctuary, which was profaned by renegades; ³ to have mercy on the city, which was being destroyed and was about to be leveled to the ground; to listen to the blood that cried out to him; ⁴ to remember the criminal slaughter of innocent children and the blasphemies uttered against his name; and to manifest his hatred of evil.

^5 (AE)Once Maccabeus got his men organized, the Gentiles could not withstand him, for the Lord’s wrath had now changed to mercy. ⁶ Coming by surprise upon towns and villages, he set them on fire. He captured strategic positions, and put to flight not a few of the enemy. ⁷ He preferred the nights as being especially favorable for such attacks. Soon talk of his valor spread everywhere.

First Victory over Nicanor.^{[w] 8} When Philip saw that Judas was gaining ground little by little and that his successful advances were becoming more frequent, he wrote to Ptolemy, governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, to come to the aid of the king’s interests.^{(AF) 9 (AG)}Ptolemy promptly selected Nicanor, son of Patroclus, one of the Chief Friends, and sent him at the head of at least twenty thousand armed men of various nations to wipe out the entire Jewish nation. With him he associated Gorgias, a general, experienced in the art of war.^{(AH) 10} Nicanor planned to raise the two thousand talents of tribute owed by the king to the Romans^[x] by selling captured Jews into slavery. ¹¹ So he immediately sent word to the coastal cities, inviting them to buy Jewish slaves and promising to deliver ninety slaves for a talent^[y]—little anticipating the punishment that was to fall upon him from the Almighty.

¹² When Judas learned of Nicanor’s advance and informed his companions about the approach of the army, ¹³ those who were fearful and those who lacked faith in God’s justice deserted and got away. ¹⁴ But the others sold everything they had left, and at the same time entreated the Lord to deliver those whom the ungodly Nicanor had sold before even capturing them. ¹⁵ They entreated the Lord to do this, if not for their sake, at least for the sake of the covenants made with their ancestors, and because they themselves invoked his holy and glorious name. ¹⁶ Maccabeus assembled his forces, six thousand strong, and exhorted them not to be panic-stricken before the enemy, nor to fear the very large number of Gentiles unjustly attacking them, but to fight nobly. ¹⁷ They were to keep before their eyes the lawless outrage perpetrated by the Gentiles against the holy place and the affliction of the humiliated city, as well as the subversion of their ancestral way of life. ¹⁸ He said, “They trust in weapons and acts of daring, but we trust in almighty God, who can by a mere nod destroy not only those who attack us but even the whole world.” ¹⁹ He went on to tell them of the times when help had been given their ancestors: both the time of Sennacherib, when a hundred and eighty-five thousand of his men perished,^{(AI) 20} and the time of the battle in Babylonia against the Galatians,^[z] when only eight thousand Jews fought along with four thousand Macedonians; yet when the Macedonians were hard pressed, the eight thousand, by the help they received from Heaven, destroyed one hundred and twenty thousand and took a great quantity of spoils. ^21 (AJ)With these words he encouraged them and made them ready to die for their laws and their country.

Then Judas divided his army into four, ²² placing his brothers, Simon, Joseph,^[aa] and Jonathan, each over a division, assigning them fifteen hundred men apiece.^{(AK) 23} There was also Eleazar.^[ab] After reading to them from the holy book and giving them the watchword, “The help of God,” Judas himself took charge of the first division and joined in battle with Nicanor.^{(AL) 24} With the Almighty as their ally, they killed more than nine thousand of the enemy, wounded and disabled the greater part of Nicanor’s army, and put all of them to flight. ²⁵ They also seized the money of those who had come to buy them as slaves. When they had pursued the enemy for some time, they were obliged to return by reason of the late hour. ²⁶ It was the day before the sabbath, and for that reason they could not continue the pursuit. ²⁷ They collected the enemy’s weapons and stripped them of their spoils, and then observed the sabbath with fervent praise and thanks to the Lord who kept them safe for that day on which he allotted them the beginning of his mercy. ²⁸ After the sabbath, they gave a share of the spoils to those who were tortured and to widows and orphans; the rest they divided among themselves and their children.^{(AM) 29} When this was done, they made supplication in common, imploring the merciful Lord to be completely reconciled with his servants.

Other Victories. ³⁰ They also challenged the forces of Timothy and Bacchides, killed more than twenty thousand of them, and captured some very high fortresses. They divided the considerable plunder, allotting half to themselves and the rest to victims of torture, orphans, widows, and the aged. ³¹ They collected the enemies’ weapons and carefully stored them in strategic places; the rest of the spoils they carried to Jerusalem. ³² They also killed the commander of Timothy’s forces, a most wicked man, who had done great harm to the Jews. ³³ While celebrating the victory in their ancestral city, they burned both those who had set fire to the sacred gates and Callisthenes, who had taken refuge in a little house; so he received the reward his wicked deeds deserved.

^34 (AN)The thrice-accursed Nicanor, who had brought the thousand slave dealers to buy the Jews, ³⁵ after being humbled through the Lord’s help by those whom he had thought of no account, laid aside his fine clothes and fled alone across country like a runaway slave, until he reached Antioch. He was eminently successful in destroying his own army. ³⁶ So he who had promised to provide tribute for the Romans by the capture of the people of Jerusalem proclaimed that the Jews had a champion, and that because they followed the laws laid down by him, they were unharmed.

Chapter 9

Punishment and Death of Antiochus IV.^{[ac] 1 (AO)}About that time Antiochus retreated in disgrace from the region of Persia. ² He had entered the city called Persepolis and attempted to rob the temples and gain control of the city. Thereupon the people had swift recourse to arms, and Antiochus’ forces were routed, so that in the end Antiochus was put to flight by the people of that region and forced to beat a shameful retreat. ³ On his arrival in Ecbatana, he learned what had happened to Nicanor and to Timothy’s forces. ⁴ Overcome with anger, he planned to make the Jews suffer for the injury done by those who had put him to flight. Therefore he ordered his charioteer to drive without stopping until he finished the journey. Yet the condemnation of Heaven rode with him, because he said in his arrogance, “I will make Jerusalem the common graveyard of Jews as soon as I arrive there.”

⁵ So the all-seeing Lord, the God of Israel, struck him down with an incurable and invisible blow; for scarcely had he uttered those words when he was seized with excruciating pains in his bowels and sharp internal torment,^{(AP) 6} a fit punishment for him who had tortured the bowels of others with many barbarous torments. ⁷ Far from giving up his insolence, he was all the more filled with arrogance. Breathing fire in his rage against the Jews, he gave orders to drive even faster. As a result he hurtled from the speeding chariot, and every part of his body was racked by the violent fall. ⁸ Thus he who previously, in his superhuman presumption, thought he could command the waves of the sea, and imagined he could weigh the mountaintops in his scales, was now thrown to the ground and had to be carried on a litter, clearly manifesting to all the power of God.^{(AQ) 9} The body of this impious man swarmed with worms, and while he was still alive in hideous torments, his flesh rotted off, so that the entire army was sickened by the stench of his corruption.^{(AR) 10} Shortly before, he had thought that he could reach the stars of heaven, and now, no one could endure to transport the man because of this intolerable stench.

¹¹ At last, broken in spirit, he began to give up his excessive arrogance, and to gain some understanding, under the scourge of God, for he was racked with pain unceasingly. ¹² When he could no longer bear his own stench, he said, “It is right to be subject to God, and not to think one’s mortal self equal to God.”^{(AS) 13} Then this vile man vowed to him who would never again show him mercy, the Sovereign Lord, ¹⁴ that the holy city, toward which he had been hurrying with the intention of leveling it to the ground and making it a common graveyard, he would now set free; ¹⁵ that the Jews, whom he had judged not even worthy of burial, but fit only to be thrown out with their children to be eaten by vultures and wild animals—all of them he would make equal to the Athenians; ¹⁶ that he would adorn with the finest offerings the holy temple which he had previously despoiled, restore all the sacred vessels many times over, and provide from his own revenues the expenses required for the sacrifices. ¹⁷ Besides all this, he would become a Jew himself and visit every inhabited place to proclaim there the power of God. ¹⁸ But since his sufferings were not lessened, for God’s just judgment had come upon him, he lost hope for himself and wrote the following letter to the Jews in the form of a supplication. It read thus:

^19 [ad]“To the worthy Jewish citizens, Antiochus, king and general, sends hearty greetings and best wishes for their health and prosperity. ²⁰ If you and your children are well and your affairs are going as you wish, I thank God very much, for my hopes are in heaven. ²¹ Now that I am ill, I recall with affection your esteem and goodwill. On returning from the regions of Persia, I fell victim to a troublesome illness; so I thought it necessary to form plans for the general security of all. ²² I do not despair about my health, since I have much hope of recovering from my illness. ²³ Nevertheless, I know that my father, whenever he went on campaigns in the hinterland, would name his successor, ²⁴ so that, if anything unexpected happened or any unwelcome news came, the people throughout the realm would know to whom the government had been entrusted, and so not be disturbed. ²⁵ I am also bearing in mind that the neighboring rulers, especially those on the borders of our kingdom, are on the watch for opportunities and waiting to see what will happen. I have therefore appointed as king my son Antiochus, whom I have often before entrusted and commended to most of you, when I made hurried visits to the outlying provinces. I have written to him what is written here. ²⁶ Therefore I beg and entreat each of you to remember the general and individual benefits you have received, and to continue to show goodwill toward me and my son. ²⁷ I am confident that, following my policy, he will treat you with equity and kindness in his relations with you.”

²⁸ So this murderer and blasphemer, after extreme sufferings, such as he had inflicted on others, died a miserable death in the mountains of a foreign land. ²⁹ His foster brother^[ae] Philip brought the body home; but fearing Antiochus’ son, he later withdrew into Egypt, to Ptolemy Philometor.^(AT)

Chapter 10

Purification of the Temple. ^1 (AU)When Maccabeus and his companions, under the Lord’s leadership, had recovered the temple and the city, ² they destroyed the altars erected by the foreigners in the marketplace and the sacred shrines. ³ After purifying the temple, they made another altar. Then, with fire struck from flint, they offered sacrifice for the first time in two years,^[af] burned incense, and lighted lamps. They also set out the showbread. ⁴ When they had done this, they prostrated themselves and begged the Lord that they might never again fall into such misfortunes, and that if they should sin at any time, he might chastise them with moderation and not hand them over to blasphemous and barbarous Gentiles. ⁵ On the anniversary of the day on which the temple had been profaned by the foreigners, that is, the twenty-fifth of the same month Kislev, the purification of the temple took place. ⁶ The Jews celebrated joyfully for eight days as on the feast of Booths, remembering how, a little while before, they had spent the feast of Booths living like wild animals in the mountains and in caves. ⁷ Carrying rods entwined with leaves,^[ag] beautiful branches and palms, they sang hymns of grateful praise to him who had successfully brought about the purification of his own place. ⁸ By public decree and vote they prescribed that the whole Jewish nation should celebrate these days every year. ⁹ Such was the end of Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes.