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1In the one hundred seventy-second year of Greek rule, King Demetrius assembled his army and marched into Media. He was hoping to gain support for a war against Trypho.[#14:1 The 172nd year of Greek rule was 140 b.c.]
2When Arsaces, king of Persia and Media, heard that Demetrius had invaded his territory, he sent one of his commanders to capture him alive and bring him to him.
3The commander defeated the army of Demetrius, captured him, and brought him to Arsaces, who kept him prisoner.
4Judea was at rest as long as Simon ruled,
for he sought the good of his nation.
The people were pleased with his authority,
with the honor he received throughout his days.
5To crown his glory, he captured Joppa for a seaport
and opened a gateway to the Mediterranean islands.
6He extended the borders of his nation
and gained control of all the land.
7Simon captured many prisoners of war
and ruled over Gazara, Beth-zur, and the citadel.
He removed the impurities from the citadel;
no one could stand against him.
8The people farmed the land in peace.
The land yielded its produce,
and the trees of the plains bore fruit.
9Old men sat in the squares and talked of good times,
while the young men dressed in splendid military style.
10Simon provided food for the towns
and furnished them with fortresses for defense.
His name became famous, even to the ends of the earth.
11He established peace in the land,
and Israel experienced great joy.
12The people relaxed under their own vines and fig trees.
and no one gave them reason to fear.
13No enemy remained in the land to fight them;
their kings were crushed in those days.
14Simon strengthened the lowly
and was zealous for the law of Moses.
He did away with the ungodly and evildoers.
15He made the sanctuary glorious
and furnished it with new utensils.
16News of Jonathan’s death reached as far as Rome and Sparta, and they were deeply grieved.
17They heard that his brother Simon had become high priest in his place and was ruling over the nation and the cities there.
18So they wrote to Simon on bronze tablets to renew the friendship and alliance they had made with his brothers Judas and Jonathan.
19The letter from the Spartans was presented to the high council in Jerusalem. It read as follows:[#14:19 Greek the assembly.]
24After this, Simon confirmed the alliance with the Romans by sending Numenius to Rome with a large gold shield weighing 1,250 pounds.[#14:24 Greek 1,000 minas [570 kilograms].]
25When the people of Israel heard about all this, they said, “How can we thank Simon and his sons?[#14:25 Greek lacks of Israel.]
26For he and his brothers and his father’s family have stood firm; they have repelled the enemies of Israel and established freedom for the nation.”
27So they made an inscription on bronze tablets and mounted them on pillars on Mount Zion. This is a copy of what they wrote:
46All the people agreed to allow Simon to act in accordance with these decisions.
47Simon accepted this and agreed to be high priest, commander, and leader of the Jews and priests, and to exercise supreme authority over them all.
48The people ordered that this proclamation be engraved on bronze tablets and set up where people could see it in the Temple area.
49They also ordered that copies be deposited in the treasury so that Simon and his sons could access them.