History of the Maccabees

FIRST MACCABEES 5.9–46

...subdued them, and he also took the city of Azer Likely Jazer, a strategic city east of the Jordan and its daughter-towns, and then returned to the regions of Judea. ⁹ And all the Gentiles in Gilead gathered against the Israelites who were in their regions to destroy them; but they fled for safety to the fortress at Dathema. ¹⁰ They sent messengers to Judas and his brothers, saying, "Behold, all the Gentiles have gathered against us, surrounding us and pressing us hard to wipe us out from this place. ¹¹ They are prepared to take the fortress where we have taken refuge, and Timothy is the commander of their army. ¹² Now, if it is within your power, come and rescue us from their hands, for many of us have fallen. ¹³ And all our brothers who were in the land of Tob Original: "Tovba" have been slaughtered; their wives and children have been led into captivity, and all their goods and furniture have been lost—about one thousand men of a high rank." ¹⁴ While the letters were still in their hands, other messengers arrived from the regions of Galilee, with their garments torn and beating their foreheads A traditional sign of extreme grief or desperate news, bringing this report: ¹⁵ "They have gathered against us from Ptolemais, Tyre, and Sidon, and all the regions of Galilee of the Gentiles have risen up to destroy us from there." ¹⁶ When Judas and the people heard these words, they immediately gathered in council to decide what they should do for their brothers who were in such distress and were suffering under the hands of those warring against them. ¹⁷ Judas began to speak with Simon his brother and said, "Choose for yourself strong men and go to rescue the brothers who are in distress in the regions of Galilee; and I and my brother Jonathan will go to the regions of Gilead." ¹⁸ And he left Joseph, son of Zechariah, and Azariah as commanders with a chosen remnant of the army in the land of Judea to act as guards. ¹⁹ He gave them orders, saying, "Lead this people, but do not engage in battle against the Gentiles until we return from our mission." ²⁰ They held a muster and divided the forces into two: three thousand went with Simon to the regions of Galilee, and eight thousand to the land of Gilead. ²¹ And Simon went to the land of Galilee and engaged in battle against the Gentiles; and the Gentiles were crushed before his face, and he pursued them to the gates of Ptolemais. ²² On that day, three thousand of the Gentiles fell, and he took their armor and spoils. ²³ He took those from the regions of Galilee and Arbatta Original: "Arabatots", together with their wives and children and all their belongings and treasures, and brought them into the land of Judea with great joy and gladness. ²⁴ Meanwhile, Judas Maccabeus and Jonathan his brother crossed over the Jordan River and traveled for three days through the wilderness. ²⁵ They were met by the Nabateans An Arab people who controlled the trade routes in the desert in peace; they told them all that had happened to the brothers in the land of Gilead: ²⁶ "Many of them have been shut up in the cities of Bozrah, Bosor, Alema, Caspho, Maked, and Carnaim Original: "Bosoray, Bosoromay, Serimphimakeday, and Zarnapatay"; these are strong and great cities. ²⁷ They are also in the other cities of the regions of Gilead, and the enemies have gathered in one place to attack the fortresses tomorrow, to capture and destroy all of them in a single day." ²⁸ When Judas heard this, he immediately turned his battalion toward the road through the wilderness and fell suddenly upon Bozrah. In that sudden, startling hour, he took the whole city; he put every male to the sword, took all the spoils of the city of the Bozrahites, and set the entire city on fire. ²⁹ And he himself set out from there by night with his battalion toward the besieged fortress. ³⁰ Just as the morning was beginning to break from the night, they lifted their eyes and saw a vast army without number; they were carrying ladders and engines Ancient siege machinery used for scaling or battering walls against the fortress, having begun the assault and joining the battle. ³¹ When Judas looked upon this and saw that the battle had begun—with the shouting of the city on one side and the besieging army on the other—the sound of the battle, the shouting, and the sound of the trumpets rose up to heaven. ³² He began to speak to his troops, saying, "Now, be courageous and stand firm; today is the day to fight for your brothers." ³³ He divided all the troops into three battalions and brought them into the battle from the rear; they blew the trumpets and raised a shout. They cried out in prayer to God and then charged. ³⁴ Word reached Timothy and his army that Maccabeus had arrived with his forces. When they looked and saw him, they were terrified and their hearts failed; they threw down their siege engines and turned to flight. On that day, Judas struck them with a great blow; they fled before them, and he laid them low one by one. He put to the sword about eight hundred thousand The text reads 800,000, though marginal notes suggest 8,000 or 80,000 as variants armed men. ³⁵ And he turned toward Alema Original: "Mayapha"; he set the battle in array and captured it, killing every male within it. He took all their goods and possessions as spoils and burned the city with fire. ³⁶ From there he moved and surrounded Caspho, Maked, and Bosor, and the remaining cities of Gilead. ³⁷ After these times, Timothy gathered his army again and came to camp opposite Raphon, on the other side of the stream. ³⁸ Judas sent scouts to observe their camp. They came back and reported, saying, "All the nations and tribes around us have gathered in great numbers, and a massive army has been amassed. ³⁹ They have also hired many foreigners as mercenaries to help them, and they are camped across the stream, prepared to come and fall upon you." When Judas heard this, he immediately moved to confront them. ⁴⁰ When Timothy saw this, he spoke to his officers, saying, "Pay close attention to Judas and his battalion when they reach the bank of the river. If he manages to cross over to us, we will not be able to withstand him, for he will surely defeat us. ⁴¹ But if he is afraid and camps on the riverbank, it is a sign that he is intimidated; then we shall cross over, join the battle, and defeat him." ⁴² While these words were still in his mouth, Judas and his army reached the riverbank. There he stationed the military scribes Officers responsible for muster and organization and gave them orders, saying, "Do not allow any man to camp on the riverbank; let every fighting man follow me across." ⁴³ He was the first to cross and charge upon them, and he broke the vanguard of the warriors and put the whole army to flight. All the nations and tribes threw down their weapons and fled to the safety of the sanctuary of the idol-temple in Carnaim. ⁴⁴ Judas's men reached the city and surrounded it; they burned the fortress along with the temple. Thus Carnaim was subdued, and it could no longer stand against Judas. ⁴⁵ Then Judas gave the order to gather all the Israelites who were in the regions of Gilead, with their wives and children and all their belongings, to bring them to the land of Judea; they were a massive assembly. ⁴⁶ And they arrived at the gates of...