Liber II Maccabaeorum, 13

1. Anno centesimo quadrage simo nono his, qui erant cir ca Iudam, notum factum est Antiochum Eupatorem venire cum multitudine adversus Iudaeam

1. In the one hundred and forty-ninth year word came to Judas and his men that Antiochus Eupator was coming with a great army against Judea,

2. et cum eo Lysiam procuratorem et praepositum negotiorum, unumquemque habentem exercitum Graecum peditum centum decem milia et equitum quinque milia trecentos et elephantos viginti duos, currus autem cum falcibus trecentos.

2. and with him Lysias, his guardian, who had charge of the government. Each of them had a Greek force of one hundred and ten thousand infantry, five thousand three hundred cavalry, twenty-two elephants, and three hundred chariots armed with scythes.

3. Commiscuit autem se illis et Menelaus et cum multa fallacia hortabatur Antiochum non pro patriae salute, sed sperans se constitui in principatum.

3. Menelaus also joined them and with utter hypocrisy urged Antiochus on, not for the sake of his country's welfare, but because he thought that he would be established in office.

4. Sed Rex regum suscitavit animos Antiochi in peccatorem; et, suggerente Lysia hunc esse causam omnium malorum, iussit, ut est consuetudo in loco, adductum in Beroeam necari.

4. But the King of kings aroused the anger of Antiochus against the scoundrel; and when Lysias informed him that this man was to blame for all the trouble, he ordered them to take him to Beroea and to put him to death by the method which is the custom in that place.

5. Erat autem in loco turris quinquaginta cubitorum, cineris plena, et machinam habebat volubilem undique praecipitem in cinerem.

5. For there is a tower in that place, fifty cubits high, full of ashes, and it has a rim running around it which on all sides inclines precipitously into the ashes.

6. Illic reum sacrilegii vel quorundam etiam aliorum malorum summitatem factum, omnes propellunt ad interitum.

6. There they all push to destruction any man guilty of sacrilege or notorious for other crimes.

7. Et tali lege praevaricatorem legis contigit mori, nec terram adeptum Menelaum.

7. By such a fate it came about that Menelaus the lawbreaker died, without even burial in the earth.

8. Valde iuste: nam, quia multa erga aram delicta commisit, cuius ignis et cinis erat sanctus, ipse in cinere mortem reportavit.

8. And this was eminently just; because he had committed many sins against the altar whose fire and ashes were holy, he met his death in ashes.

9. Sed rex mente efferatus veniebat, peiora quam quae sub patre suo facta erant, ostensurus Iudaeis.

9. The king with barbarous arrogance was coming to show the Jews things far worse than those that had been done in his father's time.

10. Quibus Iudas cognitis, praecepit populo, ut die ac nocte Dominum invocarent, si quando et alias etiam nunc adiuvaret eos,

10. But when Judas heard of this, he ordered the people to call upon the Lord day and night, now if ever to help those who were on the point of being deprived of the law and their country and the holy temple,

11. quippe qui lege et patria sanctoque templo in eo essent ut privarentur; ac populum, qui nuper paululum respirasset, ne sineret blasphemis nationibus subdi.

11. and not to let the people who had just begun to revive fall into the hands of the blasphemous Gentiles.

12. Omnibus itaque simul idem facientibus et rogantibus misericordem Dominum cum fletu et ieiuniis et prostratione per triduum sine intermissione, hortatus eos Iudas praecepit adesse.

12. When they had all joined in the same petition and had besought the merciful Lord with weeping and fasting and lying prostrate for three days without ceasing, Judas exhorted them and ordered them to stand ready.

13. Ipse vero seorsum cum senioribus cogitavit, prius quam regis exercitus invaderet Iudaeam et obtinerent civitatem, egressos res adiudicare auxilio Dei.

13. After consulting privately with the elders, he determined to march out and decide the matter by the help of God before the king's army could enter Judea and get possession of the city.

14. Dans itaque procurationem Creatori mundi, exhortatus suos, ut fortiter dimicarent usque ad mortem pro legibus, templo, civitate, patria, institutionibus, circa Modin exercitum constituit.

14. So, committing the decision to the Creator of the world and exhorting his men to fight nobly to the death for the laws, temple, city, country, and commonwealth, he pitched his camp near Modein.

15. Cumque suis dedisset signum: “Victoriam Dei”, cum iuvenibus fortissimis electis, nocte aggressus castra adversus aulam regiam, interfecit viros ad duo milia et primarium elephantorum una cum eo, qui intra habitaculum erat;

15. He gave his men the watchword, "God's victory," and with a picked force of the bravest young men, he attacked the king's pavilion at night and slew as many as two thousand men in the camp. He stabbed the leading elephant and its rider.

16. et postremo metu ac perturbatione castra repleverunt, rebusque prospere gestis, abierunt.

16. In the end they filled the camp with terror and confusion and withdrew in triumph.

17. Die autem iam illucescente hoc factum erat, adiuvante eum Domini protectione.

17. This happened, just as day was dawning, because the Lord's help protected him.

18. Sed rex, accepto gustu audaciae Iudaeorum, artibus loca tentavit.

18. The king, having had a taste of the daring of the Jews, tried strategy in attacking their positions.

19. Et Bethsuris, quae erat Iudaeorum praesidium munitum, castra admovebat; sed fugabatur, impingebat, minorabatur.

19. He advanced against Beth-zur, a strong fortress of the Jews, was turned back, attacked again, and was defeated.

20. His autem, qui intus erant, Iudas necessaria mittebat.

20. Judas sent in to the garrison whatever was necessary.

21. Enuntiavit autem mysteria hostibus Rhodocus quidam de Iudaico exercitu; qui requisitus, comprehensus est et conclusus.

21. But Rhodocus, a man from the ranks of the Jews, gave secret information to the enemy; he was sought for, caught, and put in prison.

22. Iterum rex sermonem habuit ad eos, qui erant in Bethsuris, dextram dedit, accepit, abiit;

22. The king negotiated a second time with the people in Beth-zur, gave pledges, received theirs, withdrew, attacked Judas and his men, was defeated;

23. commisit cum his, qui erant cum Iuda, superatus est; cognovit rebellasse Philippum Antiochiae, qui relictus erat super negotia, confusus est; Iudaeos deprecatus est, subditus est, iuravit de omnibus, quae iusta erant, reconciliatus est et obtulit sacrificium, honoravit templum et loco exhibuit humanitatem;

23. he got word that Philip, who had been left in charge of the government, had revolted in Antioch; he was dismayed, called in the Jews, yielded and swore to observe all their rights, settled with them and offered sacrifice, honored the sanctuary and showed generosity to the holy place.

24. Maccabaeum excepit, reliquit ducem a Ptolemaide usque ad Gerrenos Hegemonidem,

24. He received Maccabeus, left Hegemonides as governor from Ptolemais to Gerar,

25. venit Ptolemaidam: graviter ferebant Ptolemenses amicitiae conventiones — indignabantur enim supra modum — voluerunt irrita facere pacta.

25. and went to Ptolemais. The people of Ptolemais were indignant over the treaty; in fact they were so angry that they wanted to annul its terms.

26. Accessit Lysias ad tribunal, exposuit rationem congruenter, persuasit, sedavit, tranquillos fecit, regressus est Antiochiam. Hoc modo res gestae a rege, adventus et profectionis eius, processerunt.

26. Lysias took the public platform, made the best possible defense, convinced them, appeased them, gained their good will, and set out for Antioch. This is how the king's attack and withdrawal turned out.