The First Book of the Maccabees, chapter 1 - 4
1 ALEXANDER OF MACEDON, son of Philip, marched
from the land of Kittim, defeated Darius, king of Persia and
Media, and seized his throne, being already king of Greece. In
the course of many campaigns he captured fortified towns, slaughtered
kings, traversed the earth to its remotest bounds, and plundered in-
numerable nations. When at last the world lay quiet under his rule, his
pride knew no limits; he built up an extremely powerful army, and ruled
over countries, nations, and dominions; all paid him tribute.
The time came when he fell ill, and, knowing that he was dying, he
summoned his generals, nobles who had been brought up with him from
childhood, and divided his empire among them while he was still alive.
Alexander had reigned twelve years when he died. his generals took over
the government, each in his own province. On his death they were all
crowned as kings, and their descendants succeeded them for many years.
They brought untold miseries upon the world.
A scion of this stock was that wicked man, Antiochus Epiphanes, son of
King Antiochus. He had been a hostage in Rome before he succeeded to
the throne in the year 137 of the Greek era.
At that time there appeared in Israel a group of renegade Jews, who
incited the people. 'Let us enter into a covenant with the gentiles round
about,' they said, 'because disaster upon disaster has overtaken us since
we segregated ourselves from them.' The people thought this a good argu-
ment, and some of them in their enthusiasm went to the king and received
authority to introduce non-Jewish laws and customs. They built a sports-
stadium in the gentile style in Jerusalem. They removed their marks of
circumcision and repudiated the holy covenant. They intermarried with
Gentiles, and abandoned themselves to evil ways.
When he was firmly established on his throne, Antiochus made up his
mind to become king of Egypt and so to rule over both kingdoms. He
assembled a powerful force of chariots, elephants, and cavalry, and a great
fleet, and invaded Egypt. When battle was joined, Ptolemy king of Egypt
was seized with panic and took to flight, leaving many dead. The fortified
towns were captured and the land pillaged.
On his return from the conquest of Egypt, in the year 143, Antiochus
marched with a strong force against Israel and Jerusalem. In his arrogance
he entered the temple and carried off the golden altar, the lamp-stand with
all its equipment, the table for the Bread of he Presence, the sacred cups
and bowls, the golden censers, the curtain, and the crowns. He stripped off
all the gold plating from the temple front. He seized the silver, gold, and
precious vessels, and whatever secret treasure he found, and took them
all with him when he left for his own country. He caused much blood-
shed, and he gloated over all he had done.
Great was the lamentation throughout Israel;
rulers and elders groaned in bitter grief.
Girls and young men languished;
the beauty of women was disfigured.
Every bridegroom took up the lament,
and every bride sat grieving in her chamber.
The land trembled for its inhabitants,
and all the house of Jacob was wrapped in shame.
Two years later the king sent to the towns of Judaea a high revenue
official, who arrived at Jerusalem with a powerful force. His language was
friendly, but full of guile. For, once he had gained the city's confidence, he
suddenly attacked it. He dealt it a heavy blow, and killed many Israelites,
plundering the city and setting it ablaze. He pulled down houses and walls
on every side; women and children were made prisoners, and the cattle
seized.
The city of David was turned into a citadel, enclosed by a high, stout
wall with strong towers, and garrisoned by impious foreigners and rene-
gades. Having made themselves secure, they accumulated arms and pro-
visions, and deposited there the massed plunder of Jerusalem. There they
lay in ambush, a lurking threat to the temple and a perpetual menace to
Israel.
They shed he blood of he innocent round the temple;
they defiled the holy place.
The citizens of Jerusalem fled for fear of them;
she became the abode of aliens,
an alien herself to her offspring:
her children deserted her.
Her temple lay desolate in the wilderness;
her feasts were turned to mourning,
her sabbaths to a reproach,
her honour to contempt.
The shame of her fall matched the greatness of her renown,
and her pride was bowed low in grief.
The king then issued a decree throughout his empire: his subjects were
all to become one people an abandon their own laws and religion. The
nations everywhere complied wit the royal command, and many in Israel
accepted the foreign worship, sacrificing to idols and profaning the sabbath.
Moreover, the king sent agents with written orders to Jerusalem and the
towns of Judaea. Ways and customs foreign to the country were to be
introduced. Burnt-offerings, sacrifices, and libations in the temple were
forbidden; sabbaths and feast-days were to be profaned; the temple and
its ministers to be defiled. Altars, idols, and sacred precincts were to be
established; swine and other unclean beasts to be offered in sacrifice. They
must leave their sons uncircumcised; they must make themselves in every
way abominable, unclean, profane, and so forget the law and change all
their statutes. The penalty for disobedience was death.
Such was the decree which the king issued to all his subjects. He ap-
pointed superintendents over all the people, and instructed the towns of
Judaea to offer sacrifice, town by town. People thronged to their side in
large numbers, every one of them a traitor to the law. Their wicked conduct
throughout the land drove Israel into hiding in every possible place of
refuge.
On the fifteenth day of he month of Kislev in the year 145, 'the abomina-
tion of desolation' was set up on the altar. Pagan altars were built through-
out the towns of Judaea; incense was offered at the doors of houses and in
the streets. All scrolls of the law which were found were ton up and burn.
Anyone discovered in possession of a Book of the Covenant, or conform-
ing to the law, was put to death by the king's sentence. Thus month after
month these wicked men used their power against the Israelites whom they
found in their towns.
On the twenty-fifth day of the month they offered sacrifice on the pagan
altar which was on top of the altar of the LORD. In accordance with the royal
decree, they put to death women who had had their children circumcised.
Their babies, their families, and those who had circumcised them, they
hanged by the neck. Yet many in Israel found strength to resist, taking a
determined stand against eating any unclean food. They welcomed death
rather than defile themselves and profane the holy covenant, and so they
died. The divine wrath raged against Israel.
2 AT THIS TIME a certain Mattathias, son of John, son of Symeon, appeared
on the scene. He was a priest of Joarib family from Jerusalem, who had
settled in Modin. Mattathias had five sons, John called Gaddis, Simon
called Thassis, Judas called Maccabaeus, Eleazar called Avaran, and
Jonathan called Apphus.
When Mattathias saw the sacrilegious acts committed in Judaea and
Jerusalem, he said:
'Oh! Why was I born to see this,
the crushing of my people, the ruin of the holy city?
They sat idly by when it was surrendered,
when the holy place was given up to the alien.
Her temple is like a man robbed of honour;
its glorious vessels are carried off as spoil.
Her infants are slain in the street,
her young men by the sword of the foe.
Is there a nation that has not usurped her sovereignty,
a people that has not plundered her?
She has been stripped of all her adornment,
no longer free, but a slave.
Now that we have seen our temple with all its beauty and splendour laid
waste and profaned by the Gentiles, why should we live any longer?' So
Mattathias and his sons tore their garments, put on sackcloth and mourned
bitterly.
The king's officers who were enforcing apostasy came to the town of
Modin to see that sacrifice was offered, and many Israelites went over to
them. Mattathias and his sons stood in a group. The king's officers spoke
to Mattathias: 'You are a leader here,' they said, 'a man of mark and
influence in this town, with your sons and brothers at your back. You be
the first now to come forward and carry out the king's order. All the nations
have done so, as well as the leading men in Judaea and the people left in
Jerusalem. Then you and your sons will be enrolled among the King's
Friends; you will all receive high honours, rich rewards of silver and gold,
and my further benefits.'
To this Mattathias replied in a ringing voice: 'Though all the nations
within the kings dominions obey him and forsake their ancestral worship,
though they have been chosen to submit to his commands, yet I and my sons
and brothers will follow the covenant of our fathers. Heaven forbid we
should ever abandon the law and its statutes. We will not obey the
command of the king, nor will we deviate one step from our forms of
worship.'
As soon as he had finished, a Jew stepped forward in full view of all to
offer sacrifice on the pagan altar at Modin, in obedience to the royal com-
mand. The sight stirred Mattathias to indignation; he shook with passion,
and in a fury of righteous anger rushed forward and slaughtered the traitor
on the very altar. At the same time he killed the officer sent by the king to
enforce sacrifice, and pulled the pagan altar down. Thus Mattathias showed
his fervent zeal for the law, just as Phinehas had done by killing Zimri son
of Salu. 'Follow me,' he shouted through the town, 'every one of you who is
zealous for the law and strives to maintain the covenant.' He and his sons
took to the hills, leaving all their belongings behind in the town.
At that time many who wanted to maintain their religion and law went
down to the wilds to live there. They took their sons, their wives, and their
cattle with them, for their miseries were more than they could bear. Word
soon reached the king's officers and the forces in Jerusalem, the city of
David, that men who had defied the king's order had gone down into
hiding-places in the wilds. A large body of men went quickly after them,
came up with them, and occupied positions opposite. They prepared to
attack them on the sabbath. 'There is still time,' they shouted; 'come out,
obey the king's command, and your lives will be spared.' 'We will not come
out,' the Jews replied; 'we will not obey the king's command or profane the
sabbath.' Without more ado the attack was launched; but the Isrealites did
nothing in reply; they neither hurled stones, nor barricaded their caves.
'Let us all meet death with a clear conscience,' they said; 'we call heaven
and earth to testify that there is no justice in this slaughter.' So they were
attacked and massacred on the sabbath, men women, and children, up
to a thousand in all, and their cattle with them.
Great was the grief of Mattathias and his friends when they heard the
news. They said to one another, 'If we all so as our brothers have done, if
we refuse to fight the Gentiles for our lives as well as for our laws and
customs, then they will soon wipe us off the face of the earth.' That day
they decided that, if anyone came to fight against them on the sabbath,
they would fight back, rather than all die as their brothers in the caves
had done.
It was then that they were joined by a company of Hasidaeans, stalwarts
of Israel, every one of them a volunteer in the cause of the law; and all who
were refugees from the troubles came to swell their numbers, and so add
to their strength. Now that they had an organized force, they turned their
wrath on the guilty men and renegades. Those who escaped their fierce
attacks took refuge with the Gentiles.
Mattathias and his friends then swept through the country, pulling down
the pagan altars, and forcibly circumcising all the uncircumcised boys
found within the frontiers of Israel. They hunted down their arrogant
enemies and the cause prospered in their hands. Thus they saved the law
from the Gentiles and their kings, and broke the power of the tyrant.
The time came for Mattathias to die, and he said to his sons: 'Arrogance
now stands secure and gives judgement against us; it is a time of calamity
and raging fury. But now, my sons, be zealous for the law, and give your
lives for the covenant of your fathers. Remember the deeds they did in
their generations, and great glory and eternal fame shall be yours. Did not
Abraham prove steadfast under trial, and so gain credit as a righteous man?
Joseph kept the commandments, hard-pressed though he was, and became
lord of Egypt. Phinehas, our father, never flagged in his zeal, and his was the
covenant of an everlasting priesthood. Joshua kept the law, and he became
a judge in Israel. Caleb bore witness before the congregation, and a share
in the land was his reward. David was a man of loyalty, and he was granted
the throne of an everlasting kingdom. Elijah never flagged in his zeal for
the law, and he was taken up to heaven. Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael
had faith, and they were saved from the blazing furnace. Daniel was a man
of integrity, and he was rescued from the lion's jaws. As generation succeeds
generation, follow their example; for no one who trusts in Heaven shall
ever lack strength. Do not fear a wicked man's words; all his success will
end in filth and worms. Today he may begin in high honour, but tomorrow
there will be no trace of him, because he will have returned to the dust and
all his schemes come to nothing. But you, my sons, draw up your courage and
strength from the law, for by it you will win great glory.
'Now here is Symeon, your brother; I know him to be wise in counsel:
always listen to him, for he shall be a father to you. Judas Maccabaeus has
been strong and brave from boyhood; he shall be your commander in the
field, and fight his people's battles. Gather to your side all who observe the
law, and avenge your people's wrongs. Repay the Gentiles in their own
coin, and always heed the law's commands.'
Then Mattathias blessed them, and was gathered to his fathers. He died
in the year 146, and was buried by his sons in the family tomb at Modin.
All Israel raised a loud lament for him.
3 THEN JUDAS MACCABAEUS came forward in his father's place. He
had the support of all his brothers and his father's followers, and they
carried on the fight for Israel with zest.
He enhanced his people's glory.
He put on his breastplate like a giant,
and girt himself with weapons of war.
He fought battle on battle;
he guarded his army with his sword.
He was like a lion in his exploits,
like a lion's whelp roaring for prey.
He hunted and tracked down the lawless;
he blasted the troublers of his people.
The lawless cowered in fear of him;
all evil-doers were confounded.
The cause of freedom prospered in his hands;
he provoked many kings to anger.
He made Jacob glad by his deeds;
he is remembered for ever in blessing.
He passed through the towns of Judaea;
he destroyed the godless there.
He turned away from Israel;
his fame spread to the ends of the earth,
and he rallied a people near to destruction.
Apollonius now collected a gentile force and a large contingent from
Samaria, to fight against Israel. When Judas heard of it, he marched out to
meet him, and defeated and killed him. Many of the Gentiles fell, and the
rest took to flight. From the arms they captured, Judas took the sword of
Apollonius, and used it in his campaigns for the rest of his life.
When Seron, who commanded the army in Syria, heard that Judas had
mustered a large force, consisting of all his loyal followers of military age,
he said to himself, 'I will win a glorious reputation in the empire by making
war on Judas and his followers, who defy the royal edict.' Seron was re-
inforced by a strong contingent of renegade Jews, who marched up to help
him take vengeance on Israel. When he reached the pass of Beth-horon,
Judas advanced to meet him with a handful of men. When his followers
saw the host coming against them, they said to Judas, 'How can so few of
us fight against so many? Besides, we have had nothing to eat all day, and
we are exhausted.'
Judas replied: 'Many can easily be overpowered by a few; it makes no
difference to Heaven to save by many or by few. Victory does not depend
on numbers; strength comes from Heaven alone. Our enemies come filled
with insolence and lawlessness to plunder and to kill us and our wives and
children. But we are fighting for our lives and our religion. Heaven will
crush them before our eyes. You need not be afraid of them.'
When he had finished speaking, he launched a sudden attack, and Seron
and his army broke before him. They pursued them down the pass of Beth-
horon as far as the plain; some eight hundred of the enemy fell, and the rest
fled to Philistia.
Thus Judas and his brothers began to be feared, and alarm spread to the
Gentiles all round. His fame reached the ears of the king, and the story of
his battles was told in every nation. When King Antiochus heard the news,
he flew into a rage and ordered all the forces of his empire to be assembled,
an immensely powerful army. He opened his treasury and gave a year's pay
to his troops, ordering them to be prepared for any duty. But he found that
his resources were running low; his tribute, too, had dwindled as a result
of the disaffection and violence he had brought upon the world by abolish-
ing traditional laws and customs. He now saw with alarm that he might be
short of money, as had happened once or twice before, both for his normal
expenses and for the gifts he had been accustomed to distribute with an
even more lavish hand than any of his predecessors on the throne.
For a time he was much perplexed; then he decided to go to Persia,
collect the tribute due from the provinces, and raise a large sum of ready
money. He left Lysias, a distinguished member of the royal family, as
viceroy of the territories between the Euphrates and the Egyptian frontier.
He also appointed him guardian of his son Antiochus until his return. He
transferred to Lysias half the armed forces, together with the elephants,
and told him all that he wanted done, especially to the population of Judaea
and Jerusalem. Against these Lysias was to send a force, and break and
destroy the strength of Israel and those who were left in Jerusalem, to blot
out all memory of them from the place. He was to settle foreigners in all
their territory, and allot the land to the settlers. The other half of the
forces the king took with him, and set out from Antioch, his capital, in
the year 147. He crossed the Euphrates and marched through the upper
provinces.
Lysias chose Ptolemaeus son of Dorymenes, with Nicanor and Gorgias,
all three powerful members of the order of King's Friends, and sent with
them forty thousand infantry and seven thousand cavalry to invade Judaea
and devastate the country as the king had commanded. They set out with
all their forces and encamped near Emmaus in the lowlands. The mer-
chants of the region, impressed by what they heard of the army, took a large
quantity of silver and gold, with a supply of fetters, and came into the camp
to buy the Israelites for slaves. The army was also reinforced by troops
from Syria and Philistia.
Judas and his brothers saw that their plight had become grave, with the
enemy encamped inside their frontiers. They learnt, too, of the commands
which the king had given for the complete destruction of the nation. So
they said to one another, 'Let us restore the shattered fortunes of our nation;
let us fight for our nation and for the holy place.' They gathered in fill
assembly to prepare for battle, and to pray and seek divine mercy and
compassion.
Jerusalem lay deserted like a wilderness;
none of her children went in or out.
Her holy place was trampled down;
aliens and heathen lodged in her citadel.
Joy had been banished from Jacob;
and flute and harp were dumb.
They assembled at Mizpah, opposite Jerusalem, for in former times
Israel had a place of worship at Mizpah. That day they fasted, put on sack-
cloth, sprinkled ashes on their heads, and tore their garments. They un-
rolled the scroll of the law, seeking the guidance which Gentiles seek from
the images of their god. They brought the priestly vestments, the first-
fruits, and the tithes; they presented Nazirites who had completed their
vows and they cried to Heaven: 'What shall we do with these Nazarites,
and where shall we take them? Their holy place is trodden down and defiled,
and sorrow and humiliation have come upon the priests. And see, the
Gentiles have gathered against us to destroy us. Thou knowest the fate
they plan for us; how can we withstand them unless thou help us?' Then
the trumpets sounded, and a great shout went up.
Judas then appointed leaders of the people, officers over thousands,
hundreds, fifties, and tens. As the law commands, he ordered back to their
homes those who were building their houses or were newly wed or who were
planting vineyards, or who were faint-hearted. Thereupon the army moved
and took up their positions to the south of Emmaus, where Judas thus
addressed them: 'Prepare for action and show yourselves men. Be ready
at dawn to fight these Gentiles who are massed against us to destroy us and
our holy place. Better die fighting than look on while calamity overwhelms
our people and the ho;ly place. But it will be as Heaven wills.'
4 Gorgias, taking a detachment of five thousand men and a thousand
picked cavalry, set out by night to attack the Jewish army and fall upon
them unawares; his guides were men from the citadel. But Judas had word
of this, and he and his soldiers moved out to attack the king's army in
Emmaus, while is forces were still divided. Gorgias reached the camp of
Judas during the night, but found no one there. He set out to search for
them in the hills, thinking, 'These Jews are running away from us.'
At daybreak, there was Judas in the plain with three thousand men,
though they had not all the armour and swords they wanted. They saw
the Gentiles' camp strongly fortified with breastwork, while mounted
guards, seasoned troops, patrolled round it.
Judas said to his men: 'Do not be afraid of their great numbers or panic
when they charge. Remember how our fathers were saved at the Red Sea,
when Pharaoh hand his army were pursuing them. Let us cry now to Heaven
to favour our cause, to remember the covenant made with our fathers, and
to crush this army before us today. Then all the Gentiles will know that
there is One who saves and liberates Israel.'
When the foreigners looked up and saw them advancing to the attack,
they marched out of their camp to give battle. Judas and his men sounded
their trumpets and closed with them. The Gentiles broke, and fled to the
plain. All the rearmost fell by the sword. The pursuit was pressed as far as
Gazara and the lowlands of Idumaea, Azotus and Jamnia; about three
thousand of the enemy were killed.
Judas and his force then broke off the pursuit and returned. He said to
the people: 'Curb your greed for spoil; there is more fighting before us;
Gorgias and his force are in the hills near by. Stand firm now against our
enemies and fight; after that, plunder as you please.'
Before Judas had finished speaking, an enemy patrol appeared, recon-
noitring from the hills. They saw that their army was in flight, and that
their camp was being set on fire; the smoke that met their gaze showed
what had happened. They were filled with panic as they took in the scene,
and when they saw the army of Judas in the plain, ready for battle, they all
fled to Philistia.
Then Judas turned back to plunder the camp, and there they got much
gold and silver, violet and purple stuffs, and great riches. On their return they
sang songs of thanksgiving and praised Heaven, 'for it is right, because
his mercy endures for ever'. That day saw a great deliverance for Israel.
Those of the Gentiles who escaped with their lives went and reported
to Lysias all that had happened. On hearing the news he was overwhelmed
with disappointment, because Israel had not suffered the disaster he had
hoped for, and the issue was not what the king had ordered.
In the following year he gathered sixty thousand picked infantry and
five thousand cavalry to make war on the Jews. They marched into
Idumaea, and encamped at Bethsura, where Judas met them with ten
thousand men. When he saw the strength of the enemy's army, he prayed:
'All praise to thee, the Saviour of Israel, who didst break the attack of the
giant by thy servant David. Thou didst deliver the army of the Philistines
into the power of Saul's son, Jonathan, and of his armour-bearer. In like
maner put this army into the power of thy people Israel. Humble their
pride in their forces and their mounted men. Strike them with panic, turn
their insolent strength to water, make them reel under a crushing defeat.
Overthrow them by the sword of those who love thee, and let all who know
thy name praise thee with songs of thanksgiving.'
So they joined battle, and Lysias lost about five thousand men in the
close fighting. When he saw his own army routed and Judas's army full of
daring, ready to live or die nobly, he departed for Antioch, and there
collected a force of mercenaries, in order to return to Judaea with a
much larger army than before.
But Judas and his brothers said: 'Now that our enemies have been
crushed, let us go to Jerusalem to cleanse the temple and rededicate it.'
So the whole army was assembled and went up to Mount Zion. There they
found the temple laid waste, the altar profaned, the gates burned down, the
courts overgrown like a thicket or wooded hill-side, and the priests' rooms
in ruin. They tore their garments, wailed loudly, put ashes on their heads,
and fell on their faces to the ground. They sounded the ceremonial
trumpets, and cried aloud to Heaven.
Then Judas detailed troops to engage the garrison of the citadel while
he cleansed the temple. He selected priests without blemish, devoted to
the law, and they purified he temple, removing to an unclean place the
stones which defiled it. They discussed what to do with the altar of
burnt-offering, which was profaned, and rightly decided to demolish it, for fear
it might become as standing reproach to them because it had been defiled
by the Gentiles. They therefore pulled down the altar, and stored away the
stones in a fitting place on the temple hill, until a prophet should arise who
could be consulted about them. They took unhewn stones, as the law com-
mands, and built a new altar on the model of the previous one. They
rebuilt the temple and restored its interior, and consecrated the temple
courts. They renewed the sacred vessels and the lamp-stand, and brought
the altar of incense and the table into the temple. They burnt incense on the
altar and lit lamps on the lamp-stand to shine within the temple. When
they had put the Bread of the Presence on the table and hung the curtains,
all their work was completed.
Then, early on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, the month
Kislev, in the year 148, sacrifice was offered as the law commands on the
newly made altar of burnt-offering. On the anniversary of the day when the
Gentiles had profaned it, on that very day, it was rededicated, with hymns
of thanksgiving, to the music of harps and lutes and cymbals. All the people
prostrated themselves, worshipping and praising Heaven that their cause
had prospered.
They celebrated the rededication of the altar for eight days; there was
great rejoicing as they brought burnt-offerings and sacrificed peace-
offerings and thank-offerings. They decorated the front of the temple with
golden wreaths and ornamental shields. They renewed the gates and the
priests' rooms, and fitted them with doors. There was great merry-making
among the people, and the disgrace brought on them by the Gentiles was
removed.
Then Judas, his brothers, and the whole congregation of Israel decreed
that the rededication of the altar should be observed wit joy and gladness
at the same season each year, for eight days, beginning on the twenty-fifth
of Kislev.
At that time they encircled Mount Zion with high walls and strong
towers to prevent Gentiles from coming and trampling it down as they
had done before. Judas set a garrison there; he also fortified Bethsura, so
that the people should have a fortress facing Idumaea.
The New English Bible (with Apocrypha)
Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, 1970
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