1st Maccabees 3

CHAPTER 3

¹And Judas, that was called Maccabeus, the son of Mattathias, rose for him.

²And all his brethren helped him, and all that joined them to his father, and they fought the battle of Israel with gladness.

³And he alarged glory to his people, and clothed him with an habergeon as a giant, and girt him with his armours of battle in battles, and defended castles with his sword.

⁴He was made like a lion in his works, and as a whelp of a lion roaring in his hunting.

⁵And he pursued wicked men, and sought them; and he burnt them in flames, that disturbed or troubled his people.

⁶And his enemies were put aback for dread of him, and all workers of wickedness were troubled altogether; and health was addressed in his hand.

⁷And he wrathed many kings, and gladded Jacob, that is, the people of Israel , in his works, and into world his mind is in blessing.

⁸And he went through the cities of Judea, and lost unpious men of them, and turned away wrath from Israel.

⁹And he was named till to the utmost of earth, and he gathered men perishing.

¹⁰And Apollonius gathered folks, and from Samaria much virtue, and great, for to fight against Israel.

¹¹And Judas knew, and went out against him, and smote, and slew him. And many wounded fell down, and the others fled;

¹²and he took preys of them. And Judas took away the sword of Apollonius, and was fighting there-with in all days.

¹³And Seron, prince of the host of Syria, heard, that Judas gathered a gathering, and the church of faithful men with him.

¹⁴And he said, I shall make to me a name, and I shall be glorified in the realm, and I shall overcome Judas, and them that be with him, which despised the king’s word.

¹⁵And he made ready him; and the castles or hosts of unpious men, strong helpers, went up with him, for to do vengeance on the sons of Israel.

¹⁶And they nighed unto Bethhoron; and Judas went out against them, with few men.

¹⁷Forsooth as they saw the host coming to them in meeting, they said to Judas, How may we few fight against so great multitude, so strong; and we be made weary by fasting this day?

¹⁸And Judas said, It is light, either easy , that many be enclosed altogether in hands of few; and difference is not in sight of God of heaven, for to deliver in many either in few;

¹⁹for not in multitude of host is the victory of battle, but of heaven is strength.

²⁰They come to us in rebel multitude, and pride, for to destroy us, and our wives, and our sons, and for to rob us.

²¹Forsooth we shall fight for our lives, and our laws;

²²and the Lord himself shall all-break them before our face; forsooth dread ye not them.

²³Soothly as he ceased for to speak, he hurled into them suddenly; and Seron was all-broken, and his host, in the sight of him.

²⁴And he pursued him in the going down of Bethhoron, till into the field; and eight hundred men of them fell down, the others forsooth fled into the land of Philistines.

²⁵And the dread of Judas, and of his brethren, and the inward fearedness, fell on all heathen men in compass of them;

²⁶and the name of him came to the king, and all folks told of the battles of Judas.

²⁷Soothly as king Antiochus heard these words, he was wroth in soul; and he sent, and gathered the host of all his realm, full strong castles or hosts .

²⁸And he opened his treasury, and gave wages to his host, into a year, and commanded them, that they should be ready to all things.

²⁹And he saw, that money failed of his treasures, and tributes of the country were little, for dissention and vengeance that he did in the land, for to do away the lawful things that were of the first days.

³⁰And he dreaded, that he should not have as once and twice into costs and gifts, which he had given before with large hand; and he was rich [or abounded] over kings that were before him.

³¹And he was astonied in soul greatly, and thought for to go into Persia, and for to take tributes of countries, and for to gather much silver.

³²And he left Lysias, a noble man of the king’s kin, on the king’s needs, from the flood Euphrates, till to the flood of Egypt;

³³and that he should nourish Antiochus, his son, till he came again.

³⁴And he betook to him the half of his host, and elephants, and commanded to him of all these things that he would, and of men inhabiting Judea and Jerusalem;

³⁵and that he should send to them a host, for to all-break, and to destroy utterly the virtue of Israel, and the remnants [or relics] of Jerusalem, and for to do away the mind of them from place;

³⁶and for to ordain dwellers sons aliens [or aliens’ sons dwellers] in all the coasts of them, and by lot for to part the land of them.

³⁷And the king took a part of the residue host, and went out of Antioch, city of his realm, in the hundred and seven and fortieth year; and passed over the flood Euphrates, and went through the higher countries.

³⁸And Lysias chose Ptolemy, the son of Dorymenes, and Nicanor, and Gorgias, mighty men of the king’s friends.

³⁹And he sent with them forty thousand of men, and seven thousand of horsemen, either knights , that they should come into the land of Judea, and destroy it, by [or after] the word of the king.

⁴⁰And they went forth, for to go with all their power; and they came, and landed at Emmaus, in the field land.

⁴¹And merchants of countries heard the name of them, and took silver and gold full much, and children, and came into castles, for to take the sons of Israel into servants; and the hosts of Syria, and the lands of aliens, were added to them.

⁴²And Judas saw, and his brethren, that evils were multiplied, and the host applied, or landed , at the coasts of them; and they knew the words of the king, which he commanded the people for to do, into perishing and ending.

⁴³And they said, each man to his neighbour, Raise we the casting down of our people, and fight we for our people, and our holy things.

⁴⁴And coming together of host was gathered, for to be ready into battle, and for to pray, and ask mercy, and merciful doings [or mercy doings] .

⁴⁵And Jerusalem was not inhabited, but was as desert; there was not that entered and went out, of children thereof; and the holy things was defouled, and sons of aliens were in the high tower, there was the dwelling of heathen men; and the liking was done away from Jacob, and pipe and harp failed there.

⁴⁶And they were gathered, and came into Mizpeh against Jerusalem; for place of prayer was in Mizpeh, sooner [or before] then in Jerusalem.

⁴⁷And they fasted in that day, and clothed them with hair-shirts, and putted ashes in their heads, and rent their clothes.

⁴⁸And they spreaded abroad books of the law, of the which heathen men sought likeness of their simulacra;

⁴⁹and they brought ornaments of priests, and first fruits, and tithes; and they raised Nazirites, that had [ful] filled days.

⁵⁰And they cried with great voice to heaven, and said, What shall we do to these, and whither shall we lead them?

⁵¹And thine holy things be trodden, and defouled, and thy priests be made into mourning, and into casting down, either despising .

⁵²And lo! nations came together against us, for to destroy us; thou knowest what things they think against us.

⁵³How shall we be able to with-stand before the face of them, no but thou, God, help us?

⁵⁴And they cried in trumps, with great voice.

⁵⁵And after these things Judas ordained dukes of the people, tribunes, that is , [one] leading a thousand , and centurions, leading an hundred , and pentacontrarks, leading fifty , and decurions, leading ten .

⁵⁶And he said to these that builded houses, and wedded wives, and planted vineyards, and to dreadful men, that they should turn again, each man into his house, by [or after] the law.

⁵⁷And they moved castles, either hosts of armed men , and they setted together at the south of Emmaus.

⁵⁸And Judas said, Be ye gird, and be ye mighty sons, and be ye ready in the morrowing, and that ye fight against these nations, that came together for to destroy us, and our holy things.

⁵⁹For better it is, that we die in battle, than for to see evils of our folk, and holy things.

⁶⁰Soothly as will shall be in heaven, so be it done.