1 Maccabees, 9

1. Demetrius, hearing that Nicanor and his army had fallen in battle, sent Bacchides and Alcimus a second time into Judaea, and with them the right wing of his army.

1. When Demetrius heard that Nicanor and his army had fallen in battle, he sent Bacchides and Alcimus into the land of Judah a second time, and with them the right wing of the army.

2. They took the road to Galilee and besieged Mesaloth in Arbela, and captured it, putting many people to death.

2. They went by the road which leads to Gilgal and encamped against Mesaloth in Arbela, and they took it and killed many people.

3. In the first month of the year 152, they encamped outside Jerusalem;

3. In the first month of the one hundred and fifty-second year they encamped against Jerusalem;

4. they then moved on, making their way to Beer-Zaith with twenty thousand foot and two thousand horse.

4. then they marched off and went to Berea with twenty thousand foot soldiers and two thousand cavalry.

5. Judas lay in camp at Elasa, with three thousand picked men.

5. Now Judas was encamped in Elasa, and with him were three thousand picked men.

6. When they saw the huge size of the enemy forces they were terrified, and many slipped out of the camp, until no more than eight hundred of the force were left.

6. When they saw the huge number of the enemy forces, they were greatly frightened, and many slipped away from the camp, until no more than eight hundred of them were left.

7. With battle now inevitable, Judas realised that his army had melted away; he was aghast, for he had no time to rally them.

7. When Judas saw that his army had slipped away and the battle was imminent, he was crushed in spirit, for he had no time to assemble them.

8. Yet, dismayed as he was, he said to those who were left, 'Up! Let us face the enemy; we may yet have the strength to fight them.'

8. He became faint, but he said to those who were left, "Let us rise and go up against our enemies. We may be able to fight them."

9. His men tried to dissuade him, declaring, 'We have no strength for anything but to escape with our lives this time; then we can come back with our brothers to fight them; by ourselves we are too few.'

9. But they tried to dissuade him, saying, "We are not able. Let us rather save our own lives now, and let us come back with our brethren and fight them; we are too few."

10. Judas retorted, 'That I should do such a thing as run away from them! If our time has come, at least let us die like men for our countrymen, and leave nothing to tarnish our reputation.'

10. But Judas said, "Far be it from us to do such a thing as to flee from them. If our time has come, let us die bravely for our brethren, and leave no cause to question our honor."

11. The army marched out of camp and drew up, facing the enemy. The cavalry was drawn up in two squadrons; the slingers and archers marched in the van of the army, and all the best fighters were put in the front rank;

11. Then the army of Bacchides marched out from the camp and took its stand for the encounter. The cavalry was divided into two companies, and the slingers and the archers went ahead of the army, as did all the chief warriors.

12. Bacchides was on the right wing. The phalanx advanced from between the two squadrons, sounding the trumpets; the men on Judas' side also blew their trumpets,

12. Bacchides was on the right wing. Flanked by the two companies, the phalanx advanced to the sound of the trumpets; and the men with Judas also blew their trumpets.

13. and the earth shook with the noise of the armies. The engagement lasted from morning until evening.

13. The earth was shaken by the noise of the armies, and the battle raged from morning till evening.

14. Judas saw that Bacchides and the main strength of his army lay on the right; all the stout-hearted rallied to him,

14. Judas saw that Bacchides and the strength of his army were on the right; then all the stouthearted men went with him,

15. and they crushed the right wing, pursuing them as far as the Azara Hills.

15. and they crushed the right wing, and he pursued them as far as Mount Azotus.

16. But when the Syrians on the left wing saw that the right had been broken, they turned and followed hot on the heels of Judas and his men to take them in the rear.

16. When those on the left wing saw that the right wing was crushed, they turned and followed close behind Judas and his men.

17. The fight became desperate, and there were many casualties on both sides.

17. The battle became desperate, and many on both sides were wounded and fell.

18. Judas himself fell, and the remnant fled.

18. Judas also fell, and the rest fled.

19. Jonathan and Simon took up their brother Judas and buried him in his ancestral tomb at Modein.

19. Then Jonathan and Simon took Judas their brother and buried him in the tomb of their fathers at Modein,

20. All Israel wept and mourned him deeply and for many days they repeated this dirge.

20. and wept for him. And all Israel made great lamentation for him; they mourned many days and said,

21. 'What a downfall for the strong man, the man who kept Israel safe!'

21. "How is the mighty fallen, the savior of Israel!"

22. The other deeds of Judas, the battles he fought, the exploits he performed, and all his titles to greatness have not been recorded; but they were very many.

22. Now the rest of the acts of Judas, and his wars and the brave deeds that he did, and his greatness, have not been recorded, for they were very many.

23. After the death of Judas, the renegades came out of hiding throughout Israel and all the evil-doers reappeared.

23. After the death of Judas, the lawless emerged in all parts of Israel; all the doers of injustice appeared.

24. At that time there was a severe famine, and the country went over to their side.

24. In those days a very great famine occurred, and the country deserted with them to the enemy.

25. Bacchides deliberately chose the enemies of religion to administer the country.

25. And Bacchides chose the ungodly and put them in charge of the country.

26. These traced and searched out the friends of Judas and brought them before Bacchides, who ill-treated and mocked them.

26. They sought and searched for the friends of Judas, and brought them to Bacchides, and he took vengeance on them and made sport of them.

27. A terrible oppression began in Israel; there had been nothing like it since the disappearance of prophecy among them.

27. Thus there was great distress in Israel, such as had not been since the time that prophets ceased to appear among them.

28. The friends of Judas then all united in saying to Jonathan,

28. Then all the friends of Judas assembled and said to Jonathan,

29. 'Since your brother Judas died, there has been no one like him to head the resistance against our enemies, people like Bacchides and others who hate our nation.

29. "Since the death of your brother Judas there has been no one like him to go against our enemies and Bacchides, and to deal with those of our nation who hate us.

30. Accordingly, we have today chosen you to take his place as our ruler and leader and to fight our campaigns.'

30. So now we have chosen you today to take his place as our ruler and leader, to fight our battle."

31. Whereupon, Jonathan took command, in succession to his brother Judas.

31. And Jonathan at that time accepted the leadership and took the place of Judas his brother.

32. Bacchides, when he heard the news, made plans to kill Jonathan.

32. When Bacchides learned of this, he tried to kill him.

33. But this became known to Jonathan, his brother Simon and all his supporters, and they took refuge in the desert of Tekoa, camping by the water-supply at Asphar storage-well.

33. But Jonathan and Simon his brother and all who were with him heard of it, and they fled into the wilderness of Tekoa and camped by the water of the pool of Asphar.

34. (Bacchides came to know of this on the Sabbath day, and he too crossed the Jordan with his entire army.)

34. Bacchides found this out on the sabbath day, and he with all his army crossed the Jordan.

35. Jonathan sent his brother, who was one of his commanders, to ask his friends the Nabataeans to store their considerable baggage for them.

35. And Jonathan sent his brother as leader of the multitude and begged the Nabateans, who were his friends, for permission to store with them the great amount of baggage which they had.

36. The sons of Amrai, however, those of Medeba, intercepted them, captured John and everything he had and made off with their prize.

36. But the sons of Jambri from Medeba came out and seized John and all that he had, and departed with it.

37. Later, Jonathan and his brother Simon were told that the sons of Amrai were celebrating an important wedding, and were escorting the bride, a daughter of one of the great notables of Canaan, from Nabata with a large retinue.

37. After these things it was reported to Jonathan and Simon his brother, "The sons of Jambri are celebrating a great wedding, and are conducting the bride, a daughter of one of the great nobles of Canaan, from Nadabath with a large escort."

38. Remembering the bloody end of their brother John, they went up and hid under cover of the mountain.

38. And they remembered the blood of John their brother, and went up and hid under cover of the mountain.

39. As they were keeping watch, a noisy procession came into sight with a great deal of baggage, and the bridegroom, with his groomsmen and his family, came out to meet it with tambourines and a band, and rich, warlike display.

39. They raised their eyes and looked, and saw a tumultuous procession with much baggage; and the bridegroom came out with his friends and his brothers to meet them with tambourines and musicians and many weapons.

40. The Jews rushed down on them from their ambush and killed them, inflicting heavy casualties; the survivors escaped to the mountain, leaving their entire baggage train to be captured.

40. Then they rushed upon them from the ambush and began killing them. Many were wounded and fell, and the rest fled to the mountain; and they took all their goods.

41. Thus, the wedding was turned into mourning and the music of their band into lamentation.

41. Thus the wedding was turned into mourning and the voice of their musicians into a funeral dirge.

42. Having in this way avenged in full the blood of their brother, they returned to the marshes of the Jordan.

42. And when they had fully avenged the blood of their brother, they returned to the marshes of the Jordan.

43. As soon as Bacchides heard this, he came on the Sabbath day with a considerable force to the steep banks of the Jordan.

43. When Bacchides heard of this, he came with a large force on the sabbath day to the banks of the Jordan.

44. Jonathan said to his men, 'Up! Let us fight for our lives, for today it is not as in the old days.

44. And Jonathan said to those with him, "Let us rise up now and fight for our lives, for today things are not as they were before.

45. You can see, we shall have to fight on our front and to our rear; we have the waters of the Jordan on one side, the marsh and scrub on the other, and we have no line of withdrawal.

45. For look! the battle is in front of us and behind us; the water of the Jordan is on this side and on that, with marsh and thicket; there is no place to turn.

46. This is the moment to call on Heaven, to deliver you from the clutches of your enemies.'

46. Cry out now to Heaven that you may be delivered from the hands of our enemies."

47. The engagement was begun by Jonathan, who aimed a blow at Bacchides, but the Syrian disengaged himself and withdrew,

47. So the battle began, and Jonathan stretched out his hand to strike Bacchides, but he eluded him and went to the rear.

48. whereupon Jonathan and his men leapt into the Jordan and swam to the other bank; the enemy did not, however, cross the Jordan in pursuit.

48. Then Jonathan and the men with him leaped into the Jordan and swam across to the other side, and the enemy did not cross the Jordan to attack them.

49. That day, Bacchides lost about a thousand men.

49. And about one thousand of Bacchides' men fell that day.

50. Bacchides went back to Jerusalem and began fortifying some of the Judaean towns: the fortresses of Jericho, Emmaus, Beth-Horon, Bethel, Timnath, Pharathon and Tephon, with high walls and barred gates,

50. Bacchides then returned to Jerusalem and built strong cities in Judea: the fortress in Jericho, and Emmaus, and Beth-horon, and Bethel, and Timnath, and Pharathon, and Tephon, with high walls and gates and bars.

51. and stationed a garrison in each of them to harass Israel.

51. And he placed garrisons in them to harass Israel.

52. He also fortified the town of Beth-Zur, Gezer and the Citadel, and placed troops in them with supplies of provisions.

52. He also fortified the city of Beth-zur, and Gazara, and the citadel, and in them he put troops and stores of food.

53. He took the sons of the leading men of the country as hostages, and had them placed under guard in the Citadel of Jerusalem.

53. And he took the sons of the leading men of the land as hostages and put them under guard in the citadel at Jerusalem.

54. In the year 153, in the second month, Alcimus ordered the demolition of the wall of the inner court of the sanctuary, destroying the work of the prophets. Alcimus had just begun the demolition

54. In the one hundred and fifty-third year, in the second month, Alcimus gave orders to tear down the wall of the inner court of the sanctuary. He tore down the work of the prophets!

55. when he suffered a stroke, and his work was interrupted. His mouth became obstructed, and his paralysis made him incapable of speaking at all or giving directions to his household;

55. But he only began to tear it down, for at that time Alcimus was stricken and his work was hindered; his mouth was stopped and he was paralyzed, so that he could no longer say a word or give commands concerning his house.

56. it was not long before he died in great agony.

56. And Alcimus died at that time in great agony.

57. On the death of Alcimus, Bacchides went back to the king, and Judaea was left in peace for two years.

57. When Bacchides saw that Alcimus was dead, he returned to the king, and the land of Judah had rest for two years.

58. The renegades then all agreed on a plan. 'Now is the time,' they said, 'while Jonathan and his supporters are living in peace and are full of confidence, for us to bring back Bacchides, and he will arrest the lot of them in one night.'

58. Then all the lawless plotted and said, "See! Jonathan and his men are living in quiet and confidence. So now let us bring Bacchides back, and he will capture them all in one night."

59. So they went to him and reached an understanding.

59. And they went and consulted with him.

60. Bacchides at once set out with a large force, and sent secret instructions to all his allies in Judaea to seize Jonathan and his supporters. But they were unable to do this because their plan became known,

60. He started to come with a large force, and secretly sent letters to all his allies in Judea, telling them to seize Jonathan and his men; but they were unable to do it, because their plan became known.

61. and Jonathan and his men arrested some fifty of the men of the country who were ringleaders in the plot, and put them to death.

61. And Jonathan's men seized about fifty of the men of the country who were leaders in this treachery, and killed them.

62. Jonathan and Simon then retired with their partisans to Beth-Bassi in the desert; they rebuilt the ruinous parts of the place and fortified it.

62. Then Jonathan with his men, and Simon, withdrew to Bethbasi in the wilderness; he rebuilt the parts of it that had been demolished, and they fortified it.

63. When Bacchides heard this, he mustered his whole force and notified his adherents in Judaea.

63. When Bacchides learned of this, he assembled all his forces, and sent orders to the men of Judea.

64. He then proceeded to lay siege to Beth-Bassi, the fighting was protracted, and he constructed siege-engines.

64. Then he came and encamped against Bethbasi; he fought against it for many days and made machines of war.

65. Jonathan, however, leaving his brother Simon in the town, broke out into the countryside with a handful of men.

65. But Jonathan left Simon his brother in the city, while he went out into the country; and he went with only a few men.

66. He launched a blow at Odomera and his brothers, and at the sons of Phasiron in their encampment; whereupon, these too came into the struggle, joining forces with him.

66. He struck down Odomera and his brothers and the sons of Phasiron in their tents.

67. Simon and his people, meanwhile, made a sortie from the town and set fire to the siege-engines.

67. Then he began to attack and went into battle with his forces; and Simon and his men sallied out from the city and set fire to the machines of war.

68. Taking the offensive against Bacchides, they defeated him. He was greatly disconcerted to find that his plan and his assault had come to nothing,

68. They fought with Bacchides, and he was crushed by them. They distressed him greatly, for his plan and his expedition had been in vain.

69. and vented his anger on those renegades who had induced him to enter the country, putting many of them to death; he then decided to take his own troops home.

69. So he was greatly enraged at the lawless men who had counseled him to come into the country, and he killed many of them. Then he decided to depart to his own land.

70. Discovering this, Jonathan sent envoys to negotiate peace terms and the release of prisoners with him.

70. When Jonathan learned of this, he sent ambassadors to him to make peace with him and obtain release of the captives.

71. Bacchides agreed to this, accepting his proposals and swearing never to seek occasion to harm him for the rest of his life.

71. He agreed, and did as he said; and he swore to Jonathan that he would not try to harm him as long as he lived.

72. Having surrendered to Jonathan those prisoners he had earlier taken in Judaea, he turned about and withdrew to his own country, and never again came near their frontiers.

72. He restored to him the captives whom he had formerly taken from the land of Judah; then he turned and departed to his own land, and came no more into their territory.

73. The sword no longer hung over Israel, and Jonathan settled in Michmash, where he began to judge the people and to rid Israel of the godless.

73. Thus the sword ceased from Israel. And Jonathan dwelt in Michmash. And Jonathan began to judge the people, and he destroyed the ungodly out of Israel.