Judite, 15

1. Quando todo o exército soube que Holofernes tinha sido decapitado, perdeu a razão e o conselho. Agitados pelo espanto e pelo terror, buscaram a salvação na fuga.

1. When the men in the tents heard it, they were amazed at what had happened.

2. Sem trocar uma palavra se­quer com o seu vizinho, com a cabeça baixa, deixando tudo, fugiram pelas planícies e pelos montes, procurando escapar aos he­breus, pois ouviam que vinham armados so­bre eles.

2. Fear and trembling came over them, so that they did not wait for one another, but with one impulse all rushed out and fled by every path across the plain and through the hill country.

3. Os israelitas, vendo-os fugir, perseguiram-nos. Desceram as encostas atrás deles tocando a trombeta e sol­tando grandes gritos.

3. Those who had camped in the hills around Bethulia also took to flight. Then the men of Israel, every one that was a soldier, rushed out upon them.

4. E como os assírios iam fugindo desordenadamente, os israelitas que os perseguiam juntos, formados em batalhão, destroçavam todos os que podiam atingir.

4. And Uzziah sent men to Betomasthaim and Bebai and Choba and Kola, and to all the frontiers of Israel, to tell what had taken place and to urge all to rush out upon their enemies to destroy them.

5. Ozias mandou mensageiros a todas as cidades e províncias de Israel.

5. And when the Israelites heard it, with one accord they fell upon the enemy, and cut them down as far as Choba. Those in Jerusalem and all the hill country also came, for they were told what had happened in the camp of the enemy; and those in Gilead and in Galilee outflanked them with great slaughter, even beyond Damascus and its borders.

6. Assim, cada localidade e cada cidade armou o melhor de sua juventude e a enviou contra os assírios e perseguiram-nos à ponta de espada até a sua fronteira mais afastada.

6. The rest of the people of Bethulia fell upon the Assyrian camp and plundered it, and were greatly enriched.

7. Entretanto, os que tinham ficado em Betú­lia, entraram no acampamento dos assírios e levaram um enorme despojo deixado pelo inimigo em sua fuga.

7. And the Israelites, when they returned from the slaughter, took possession of what remained, and the villages and towns in the hill country and in the plain got a great amount of booty, for there was a vast quantity of it.

8. Enfim, aqueles que voltaram vitoriosos para Betúlia, trouxeram consigo tudo o que pertencera aos as­sírios, um numeroso rebanho, grande quan­tidade de material e de animais de carga; e assim todos, desde o maior até o menor, se enriqueceram com seus despojos.

8. Then Joakim the high priest, and the senate of the people of Israel who lived at Jerusalem, came to witness the good things which the Lord had done for Israel, and to see Judith and to greet her.

9. Veio então de Jerusalém a Betúlia o sumo sacerdote Joaquim com todos os an­ciãos para ver Judite.

9. And when they met her they all blessed her with one accord and said to her, "You are the exaltation of Jerusalem, you are the great glory of Israel, you are the great pride of our nation!

10. Quando ela lhes veio ao encontro, abençoaram-na todos a uma só voz, dizendo: “Tu és a glória de Jerusalém, tu és a alegria de Israel, tu és a honra de nosso povo.

10. You have done all this singlehanded; you have done great good to Israel, and God is well pleased with it. May the Almighty Lord bless you for ever!" And all the people said, "So be it!"

11. Deste prova de alma viril e coração valente. Amaste a castidade e não quiseste, depois da morte do teu marido, conhecer outro homem. Então, o Senhor te fortaleceu e por isso serás eternamente bendita”.

11. So all the people plundered the camp for thirty days. They gave Judith the tent of Holofernes and all his silver dishes and his beds and his bowls and all his furniture; and she took them and loaded her mule and hitched up her carts and piled the things on them.

12. Ao que todo o povo respondeu: “Assim seja! Assim seja!”.

12. Then all the women of Israel gathered to see her, and blessed her, and some of them performed a dance for her; and she took branches in her hands and gave them to the women who were with her;

13. Trinta dias mal bastaram ao povo de Israel para recolher os despojos dos assírios.

13. and they crowned themselves with olive wreaths, she and those who were with her; and she went before all the people in the dance, leading all the women, while all the men of Israel followed, bearing their arms and wearing garlands and with songs on their lips.

14. Tudo o que se soube ter pertencido a Holofernes, o povo deu-o a Ju­dite: ouro, prata, vestes, pedras preciosas e outros objetos.

14.

15. Todo o povo entregou-se a grandes festas, com as mulheres, com as jovens e com os jovens, ao som de harpas e cítaras.

15.