1st Maccabees 7

CHAPTER 7

¹In the hundred year and one and fifty, Demetrius, son of Seleucus, went out from the city of Rome, and went up with a few men into a city nigh the sea, and reigned there.

²And it was done, as he entered into the house of the realm of his fathers, the host caught Antiochus, and Lysias, for to bring them to him.

³And the thing was known to him, and he said, Do not ye show to me the faces of them.

⁴And the host slew them. And Demetrius sat on the seat of his realm;

⁵and wicked men and unfaithful of Israel came to him, and Alcimus, duke of them, that would be made priest;

⁶and accused the people with the king, and said, Judas and his brethren lost thy friends, and diversely lost [or scattered] us from our land.

⁷Now therefore send thou a man, to whom thou believest, that he go, and see all the destroying that he hath done to us, and to countries of the king; and he punish all friends of him, and helpers of them.

⁸And the king chose of his friends Bacchides, that was lord over the great flood in the realm, and true to the king,

⁹and [he] sent him, for to see the destroying that Judas did; and he ordained unfaithful [or unpious] Alcimus into priesthood, and bade him do vengeance on the sons of Israel.

¹⁰And they rose, and came with great host into the land of Judea; and they sent messengers, and spake to Judas and his brethren, with peace-able words in guile.

¹¹And they gave not attention to their words; for they saw, that they came with great host.

¹²And the congregation of scribes came together to Alcimus and Bacchides, for to ask those things that be just;

¹³and the first, Hasideans, that were among the sons of Israel, and they asked of them peace.

¹⁴For they said, A man, priest of the seed of Aaron, cometh, he shall not deceive us.

¹⁵And he spake with them peace-able words, and swore to them, and said, We shall not bring into you evils, neither to your friends.

¹⁶And they believed to him. And he caught of them sixty men, and slew them in one day, by [or after] the word that is written,

¹⁷They shed out the fleshes of thy saints, and blood of them in compass of Jerusalem, and there was not that buried.

¹⁸And dread and trembling fell into all the people, for they said, There is not truth and doom in them; for they have broken the statute, or ordinance , and the oath that they swore.

¹⁹And Bacchides moved tents from Jerusalem, and applied into or pitched at Bethzaith; and sent, and caught many of them that fled from him; and he killed some of the people, and casted into a great pit.

²⁰And he betook the country to Alcimus, and left with him help, into helping of him. And Bacchides went to the king,

²¹and Alcimus did enough, for the princehood of his priesthood.

²²And all came together to him, which disturbed or troubled their people, and wielded the land of Judea; and [they] did great vengeance in Israel.

²³And Judas saw all the evils, that Alcimus did, and they that were with him, to the sons of Israel, much more than heathen men.

²⁴And he went out into all the coasts of Judea in compass, and did vengeance on men forsakers, and they ceased for to go out further into the country.

²⁵Forsooth Alcimus saw, that Judas had victory, and they that were with him; and he knew that he may not abide them, and he went again to the king, and accused them in many sins.

²⁶And the king sent Nicanor, one of his nobler princes, that was haunting enmities against Israel, and commanded him for to destroy the people.

²⁷And Nicanor came into Jerusalem, with great host, and he sent to Judas and his brethren with guile, by peace-able words, saying,

²⁸Fight be not betwixt me and you; I shall come with few men, for to see your faces with peace.

²⁹And he came to Judas, and they greeted them together peaceably; and enemies were ready for to ravish Judas.

³⁰And the word was known to Judas, that with guile he came to him; and he was afeared of him, and he would no more see his face.

³¹And Nicanor knew, that his counsel was known, and he went out against Judas into fight, beside Caphar-salama.

³²And there fell down of Nicanor’s host almost five thousand men, and they fled into the city of David.

³³And after these words Nicanor went up into the hill of Zion, and there went out of priests of the people, for to greet him in peace, and for to show to him burnt sacrifices, that were offered for the king.

³⁴And he scorned and despised them, and defouled, and spake proudly,

³⁵and swore with wrath, saying, If Judas shall not be taken, and his host, into mine hands, anon when I shall turn again in peace, I shall burn this house. And he went out with great wrath.

³⁶And priests entered, and stood before the face of the altar and temple, and weeping, they said,

³⁷Thou, Lord, hast chosen this house, for to call to help [or to in-call] thy name in it, that it should be an house of prayer and beseeching to thy people;

³⁸do thou vengeance in this man, and his host, and fall they by sword; have mind on their blasphemies, and give not to them that they abide.

³⁹And Nicanor went out from Jerusalem, and applied tents to or pitched at Bethhoron; and the host of Syria came to him.

⁴⁰And Judas applied in or pitched at Adasa, with three thousand men. And Judas prayed, and said,

⁴¹Lord, an angel went out, and smote an hundred thousand fourscore and five thousands of them [or smote an hundred and fourscore and five thousands of them] , that were sent from king Sennacherib, for they blasphemed thee;

⁴²so all-break this host in our sight today, and other men know, that he spake evil on thine holy things; and deem thou him by [or after] the malice of him.

⁴³And the hosts joined battle in the thirteenth day of the month Adar, that is, February-March ; and the tents or host of Nicanor were all-broken, and he fell down first in battle.

⁴⁴Soothly as his host saw, that Nicanor fell down, they casted away their arms, and fled.

⁴⁵And they pursued them the way of one day, from Adasa till men come into Gazara; and they sung in trumps after them with signifyings.

⁴⁶And they went out of all [the] castles of Judea in compass, and winnowed them with horns, and again they were converted or turned back to them; and all falled [or fell] by sword, and there was left of them not one.

⁴⁷And they took the spoils of them [in] to prey; and they girded [or cutted] off the head of Nicanor, and his right hand which he stretched forth proudly, and they brought, and hanged against Jerusalem.

⁴⁸And the people was glad greatly, and they did that day in great gladness;

⁴⁹and ordained this day for to be done in all years, in the thirteenth day of the month Adar.

⁵⁰And the land of Judea was still a few days.