Judith, 8

1. Judith was informed at the time of what had happened. She was the daughter of Merari son of Ox, son of Joseph, son of Oziel, son of Elkiah, son of Ananias, son of Gideon, son of Raphaim, son of Ahitub, son of Elijah, son of Hilkiah, son of Eliab, son of Nathanael, son of Salamiel, son of Sarasadai, son of Israel.

1. Now at that time Judith heard thereof, which was the daughter of Merari, the son of Ox, the son of Joseph, the son of Ozel, the son of Elcia, the son of Ananias, the son of Gedeon, the son of Raphaim, the son of Acitho, the son of Eliu, the son of Eliab, the son of Nathanael, the son of Samael, the son of Salasadal, the son of Israel.

2. Her husband Manasseh, of her own tribe and family, had died at the time of the barley harvest.

2. And Manasses was her husband, of her tribe and kindred, who died in the barley harvest.

3. He was supervising the men as they bound up the sheaves in the field when he caught sunstroke and had to take to his bed. He died in Bethulia, his home town, and was buried with his ancestors in the field that lies between Dothan and Balamon.

3. For as he stood overseeing them that bound sheaves in the field, the heat came upon his head, and he fell on his bed, and died in the city of Bethulia: and they buried him with his fathers in the field between Dothaim and Balamo.

4. As a widow, Judith stayed inside her home for three years and four months.

4. So Judith was a widow in her house three years and four months.

5. She had had an upper room built for herself on the roof. She wore sackcloth next to the skin and dressed in widow's weeds.

5. And she made her a tent upon the top of her house, and put on sackcloth upon her loins and ware her widow's apparel.

6. She fasted every day of her widowhood except for the Sabbath eve, the Sabbath itself, the eve of New Moon, the feast of New Moon and the joyful festivals of the House of Israel.

6. And she fasted all the days of her widowhood, save the eves of the sabbaths, and the sabbaths, and the eves of the new moons, and the new moons and the feasts and solemn days of the house of Israel.

7. Now she was very beautiful, charming to see. Her husband Manasseh had left her gold and silver, menservants and maidservants, herds and land; and she lived among all her possessions

7. She was also of a goodly countenance, and very beautiful to behold: and her husband Manasses had left her gold, and silver, and menservants and maidservants, and cattle, and lands; and she remained upon them.

8. without anyone finding a word to say against her, so devoutly did she fear God.

8. And there was none that gave her an ill word; ar she feared God greatly.

9. Hearing how the water shortage had demoralised the people and how they had complained bitterly to the headman of the town, and being also told what Uzziah had said to them and how he had given them his oath to surrender the town to the Assyrians in five days' time,

9. Now when she heard the evil words of the people against the governor, that they fainted for lack of water; for Judith had heard all the words that Ozias had spoken unto them, and that he had sworn to deliver the city unto the Assyrians after five days;

10. Judith immediately sent the serving-woman who ran her household to summon Chabris and Charmis, two elders of the town.

10. Then she sent her waitingwoman, that had the government of all things that she had, to call Ozias and Chabris and Charmis, the ancients of the city.

11. When these came in she said: 'Listen to me, leaders of the people of Bethulia. You were wrong to speak to the people as you did today and to bind yourself by oath, in defiance of God, to surrender the town to our enemies if the Lord did not come to your help within a set number of days.

11. And they came unto her, and she said unto them, Hear me now, O ye governors of the inhabitants of Bethulia: for your words that ye have spoken before the people this day are not right, touching this oath which ye made and pronounced between God and you, and have promised to deliver the city to our enemies, unless within these days the Lord turn to help you.

12. Who are you, to put God to the test today, you, of all people, to set yourselves above him?

12. And now who are ye that have tempted God this day, and stand instead of God among the children of men?

13. You put the Lord Almighty to the test! You do not understand anything, and never will.

13. And now try the Lord Almighty, but ye shall never know any thing.

14. If you cannot sound the depths of the human heart or unravel the arguments of the human mind, how can you fathom the God who made all things, or sound his mind or unravel his purposes? No, brothers, do not provoke the anger of the Lord our God.

14. For ye cannot find the depth of the heart of man, neither can ye perceive the things that he thinketh: then how can ye search out God, that hath made all these things, and know his mind, or comprehend his purpose? Nay, my brethren, provoke not the Lord our God to anger.

15. Although it may not be his will to help us within the next five days, he has the power to protect us for as many days as he pleases, just as he has the power to destroy us before our enemies.

15. For if he will not help us within these five days, he hath power to defend us when he will, even every day, or to destroy us before our enemies.

16. But you have no right to demand guarantees where the designs of the Lord our God are concerned. For God is not to be threatened as a human being is, nor is he, like a mere human, to be cajoled.

16. Do not bind the counsels of the Lord our God: for God is not as man, that he may be threatened; neither is he as the son of man, that he should be wavering.

17. Rather, as we wait patiently for him to save, let us plead with him to help us. He will hear our voice if such is his good pleasure.

17. Therefore let us wait for salvation of him, and call upon him to help us, and he will hear our voice, if it please him.

18. 'And indeed of recent times and still today there is not one tribe of ours, or family, or village, or town that has worshipped gods made by human hand, as once was done,

18. For there arose none in our age, neither is there any now in these days neither tribe, nor family, nor people, nor city among us, which worship gods made with hands, as hath been aforetime.

19. which was the reason why our ancestors were delivered over to sword and sack, and perished in misery at the hands of our enemies.

19. For the which cause our fathers were given to the sword, and for a spoil, and had a great fall before our enemies.

20. We for our part acknowledge no other God but him; and so we may hope he will not look on us disdainfully or desert our nation.

20. But we know none other god, therefore we trust that he will not dispise us, nor any of our nation.

21. 'If indeed they capture us, as you expect, then all Judaea will be captured too, and our holy places plundered, and we shall answer with our blood for their profanation.

21. For if we be taken so, all Judea shall lie waste, and our sanctuary shall be spoiled; and he will require the profanation thereof at our mouth.

22. The slaughter of our brothers, the captivity of our country, the unpeopling of our heritage, will recoil on our own heads among the nations whose slaves we shall become, and our new masters will look down on us as an outrage and a disgrace;

22. And the slaughter of our brethren, and the captivity of the country, and the desolation of our inheritance, will he turn upon our heads among the Gentiles, wheresoever we shall be in bondage; and we shall be an offence and a reproach to all them that possess us.

23. for our surrender will not reinstate us in their favour; no, the Lord our God will make it a thing to be ashamed of.

23. For our servitude shall not be directed to favour: but the Lord our God shall turn it to dishonour.

24. So now, brothers, let us set an example to our brothers, since their lives depend on us, and the sanctuary -- Temple and altar -- rests on us.

24. Now therefore, O brethren, let us shew an example to our brethren, because their hearts depend upon us, and the sanctuary, and the house, and the altar, rest upon us.

25. 'All this being so, let us rather give thanks to the Lord our God who, as he tested our ancestors, is now testing us.

25. Moreover let us give thanks to the Lord our God, which trieth us, even as he did our fathers.

26. Remember how he treated Abraham, all the ordeals of Isaac, all that happened to Jacob in Syrian Mesopotamia while he kept the sheep of Laban, his mother's brother.

26. Remember what things he did to Abraham, and how he tried Isaac, and what happened to Jacob in Mesopotamia of Syria, when he kept the sheep of Laban his mother's brother.

27. For as these ordeals were intended by him to search their hearts, so now this is not vengeance that God is exacting on us, but a warning inflicted by the Lord on those who are near his heart.'

27. For he hath not tried us in the fire, as he did them, for the examination of their hearts, neither hath he taken vengeance on us: but the Lord doth scourge them that come near unto him, to admonish them.

28. Uzziah replied, 'Everything you have just said comes from an honest heart and no one will contradict a word of it.

28. Then said Ozias to her, All that thou hast spoken hast thou spoken with a good heart, and there is none that may gainsay thy words.

29. Not that today is the first time your wisdom has been displayed; from your earliest years all the people have known how shrewd you are and of how sound a heart.

29. For this is not the first day wherein thy wisdom is manifested; but from the beginning of thy days all the people have known thy understanding, because the disposition of thine heart is good.

30. But, parched with thirst, the people forced us to act as we had promised them and to bind ourselves by an inviolable oath.

30. But the people were very thirsty, and compelled us to do unto them as we have spoken, and to bring an oath upon ourselves, which we will not break.

31. You are a devout woman; pray to the Lord, then, to send us a downpour to fill our storage-wells, so that our faintness may pass.'

31. Therefore now pray thou for us, because thou art a godly woman, and the Lord will send us rain to fill our cisterns, and we shall faint no more.

32. Judith replied, 'Listen to me, I intend to do something, the memory of which will be handed down to the children of our race from age to age.

32. Then said Judith unto them, Hear me, and I will do a thing, which shall go throughout all generations to the children of our nation.

33. Tonight you must be at the gate of the town. I shall make my way out with my attendant. Before the time fixed by you for surrendering the town to our enemies, the Lord will make use of me to rescue Israel.

33. Ye shall stand this night in the gate, and I will go forth with my waitingwoman: and within the days that ye have promised to deliver the city to our enemies the Lord will visit Israel by mine hand.

34. You must not ask what I intend to do; I shall not tell you until I have done it.'

34. But enquire not ye of mine act: for I will not declare it unto you, till the things be finished that I do.

35. Uzziah and the chief men said, 'Go in peace. May the Lord show you a way to take revenge on our enemies.'

35. Then said Ozias and the princes unto her, Go in peace, and the Lord God be before thee, to take vengeance on our enemies.

36. And leaving the upper room they went back to their posts.

36. So they returned from the tent, and went to their wards.