I Maccabees 3

¹And Judas, that was clepid Machabeus, the sone of Matatias, roos for hym.

²And alle hise britheren helpiden hym, and alle that ioyneden hem to his fadir, and thei fouyten the batel `of Israel with gladnesse.

³And he alargide glorie to his puple, and clothide hym with an haburiowne as a giaunt, and girde hym with hise armeris of batel in batels, and defendide castels with his swerd.

⁴He was maad lijk a lioun in hise werkis, and as a whelp of lioun rorynge in his huntyng.

⁵And he pursuede wickid men, and souyte hem; and he brente hem in flawmes, that disturbliden his puple.

⁶And hise enemyes weren put abac for drede of hym, and alle worcheris of wickidnesse weren troblid to gidere; and heelthe was dressid in his hond.

⁷And he wraththide many kyngis, and gladide Jacob in hise werkis, and in to world his mynde is in blessyng.

⁸And he wente thorouy the citees of Juda, and loste vnpitouse men of hem, and turnede awei wraththe fro Israel.

⁹And he was named til to the vtmest of erthe, and he gaderide men perischynge.

¹⁰And Appollyne gaderide folkis, and fro Samarie myche vertu, and greet, for to fiyte ayens Israel.

¹¹And Judas knew, and wente out ayens hym, and smoot, and slow hym. And many woundid fellen doun, and the othere fledden; and he took preies of hem.

¹²And Judas took awei the swerd of Appollyne, and was fiytynge therwith in alle daies.

¹³And Seron, prince of the oost of Sirie, herde, that Judas gaderide a gaderyng, and the chirche of feithful men with hym.

¹⁴And he seide, Y schal make to me a name, and Y schal be glorified in the rewme, and Y schal ouercome Judas, and hem that ben with hym, whiche dispisiden the kyngis word.

¹⁵And he made redi hym; and the castels of vnpitouse men, stronge helperis, stieden vp with hym, for to do veniaunce on the sones of Israel.

¹⁶And thei neiyiden `til to Betheron; and Judas wente out ayens hem, with fewe men.

¹⁷Forsothe as thei siyen the oost comynge to hem in metinge, thei seiden to Judas, Hou moun we fewe fiyten ayens so greet multitude, so strong; and we ben maad weri bi fastyng this dai?

¹⁸And Judas seide, It is liyt, `ether esy, that many be closid togidere in hond of fewe; and difference is not in siyt of God `of heuene, for to delyuere in manye ether in fewe;

¹⁹for not in multitude of oost is the victorie of batel, but of heuene is strengthe.

²⁰Thei comen to vs in rebel multitude, and pride, for to distrie vs, and oure wyues, and oure sones, and for to robbe vs.

²¹Forsothe we schulen fiyte for oure lyues, and oure lawis;

²²and the Lord hym silf schal al to-breke hem bifore oure face; forsothe drede ye not hem.

²³Sotheli as he ceesside for to speke, he hurlide in `in to hem sudenli; and Seron was al to-brokun, and his oost, in the siyt of hym.

²⁴And he pursuede hym in the goynge doun of Betheron, til in to the feeld; and eiyte hundrid men of hem fellen doun, the othere forsothe fledden in to the lond of Filistiym.

²⁵And the drede of Judas, and of his britheren, and the inward ferdnesse, felle on alle hethene men in cumpas of hem;

²⁶and the name of hym cam to the kyng, and alle folkis telden of the bateils of Judas.

²⁷Sotheli as king Antiok herde these wordis, he was wrooth in soule; and he sente, and gaderide the oost of al his rewme, ful stronge castels.

²⁸And he openyde his treserie, and yaf sowdis to the oost, in to a yeer, and comaundide hem, that thei schulden be redi to alle thingis.

²⁹And he sai, that money failide of hise tresouris, and tributis of the cuntrei weren litil, for dissencioun and veniaunce that he dide in the lond, for to do awei the lawful thingis that weren of the firste daies.

³⁰And he dredde, that he schulde not haue as onys and twies in to costis and yiftis, whiche he hadde youun bifore with large hond; and he was riche ouer kingis that weren bifore hym.

³¹And he was astonyed in soule greetli, and thouyte for to go in to Persis, and for to take tributis of cuntreis, and for to gadre myche siluer.

³²And he lefte Lisias, a noble man of the kyngis kyn, on the kingis nedis, fro the flood Eufrates til to the flood of Egipt;

³³and that he schulde nursche Antiok, his sone, til he cam ayen.

³⁴And he bitook to hym the half of the oost, and olifauntis, and comaundide to hym of alle these thingis that he wolde, and of men enhabitynge Judee and Jerusalem;

³⁵and that he schulde sende to hem an oost, for to al to-breke, and to distrie vttirly the vertu of Israel, and relifs of Jerusalem, and for to do awey the mynde of hem fro place;

³⁶and for to ordeyne dwelleris sones aliens in alle the coostis of hem, and bi lot for to departe the lond of hem.

³⁷And the kyng took a part of the residue oost, and wente out of Antiochie, citee of his rewme, in the hundrid and seuene and fourti yeer; and passide ouer the flood Eufrates, and wente thorou the hiyere cuntreis.

³⁸And Lisias chees Tholome, the sone of Dorym, and Nycanore, and Gorgie, miyti men of the kyngis frendis.

³⁹And he sente with hem fourti thousynde of men, and seuene thousynde of hors men, `ether knyytis, that thei schulden come in to the lond of Juda, and distrie it, bi the word of the kyng.

⁴⁰And thei wenten forth, for to go with al her pouer; and thei camen, and londiden at Ammaum, in the feeldi lond.

⁴¹And marchauntis of cuntreis herden the name of hem, and token siluer and gold ful miche, and children, and camen in to castels, for to take the sones of Israel in to seruauntis; and the oostes of Sirie and the londis of aliens weren addid to hem.

⁴²And Judas siy, and his britheren, that yuelis weren multiplied, and the oost appliede, `ether londide, at the coostis of hem; and thei knewen the wordis of the kyng, whiche he comaundide the puple for to do, in to perischyng and endyng.

⁴³And thei seiden, ech man to his neiybore, Reise we the castyng doun of oure puple, and fiyte we for oure puple, and oure hooli thingis.

⁴⁴And comyng togidere of oost was gaderid, for to be redi in to batel, and for to preie, and axe merci, and merciful doyngis.

⁴⁵And Jerusalem was not enhabitid, but was as desert; ther was not that entride and wente out, of children therof; and the hooli thing was defoulid, and sones of aliens weren in the hiy tour, ther was the dwellyng of hethene men; and the likyng was don awei fro Jacob, and pipe and harpe failide there.

⁴⁶And thei weren gaderid, and camen in to Masphat ayens Jerusalem; for place of preier was in Masphat, sunnere than in Jerusalem.

⁴⁷And thei fastiden in that dai, and clothiden hem with hairis, and puttiden aisch in her heed, and renten her clothis.

⁴⁸And thei spredden abrood bookis of lawe, of the whiche hethene men souyten licnesse of her symylacris;

⁴⁹and thei brouyten ournementis of prestis, and `firste fruytis, and tithis; and thei reisiden Nazareis that hadden fillid daies.

⁵⁰And thei crieden with greet vois to heuene, and seiden, What schulen we do to these, and whidur schulen we lede hem?

⁵¹And thin hooli thingis ben to-trodun, and defoulid, and thi prestis ben maad in to mourenyng,

⁵²and in to dispisyng. And lo! naciouns camen togidere ayens vs, for to distrie vs; thou wost what thingis thei thenken ayens vs.

⁵³Hou schulen we mow withstonde bifore the face of hem, no but thou, God, helpe vs?

⁵⁴And thei crieden in trumpis, with greet vois.

⁵⁵And aftir these thingis Judas ordeynede duykis of the puple, tribunes, and centuriouns, and pentacontrarkis, and decuriouns.

⁵⁶And he seide to these that bildiden housis, and wediden wyues, and plauntiden vyne yerdis, and to dredeful men, that thei schulden turne ayen, eche man in to his hous, bi the lawe.

⁵⁷And thei mouyden castels, and thei settiden togidere at the south of Ammaum.

⁵⁸And Judas seide, Be ye gird, and be ye miyti sones, and be ye redi `in the morewnyng, and that ye fiyte ayens these naciouns, that camen togidere for to distrie vs, and oure hooli thingis.

⁵⁹For betere is, that we die in batel, than for to se yuels of oure folc and holi thingis.

⁶⁰Sotheli as wille schal be in heuene, so be it don.

I Maccabees 3

¹Then his son Judas, called Maccabeus, rose up in his stead.

²And all his brethren helped him, and so did all they that held with his father, and they fought with cheerfulness the battle of Israel.

³So he gat his people great honour, and put on a breastplate as a giant, and girt his warlike harness about him, and he made battles, protecting the host with his sword.

⁴In his acts he was like a lion, and like a lion’s whelp roaring for his prey.

⁵For He pursued the wicked, and sought them out, and burnt up those that vexed his people.

⁶Wherefore the wicked shrunk for fear of him, and all the workers of iniquity were troubled, because salvation prospered in his hand.

⁷He grieved also many kings, and made Jacob glad with his acts, and his memorial is blessed for ever.

⁸Moreover he went through the cities of Juda, destroying the ungodly out of them, and turning away wrath from Israel:

⁹So that he was renowned unto the utmost part of the earth, and he received unto him such as were ready to perish.

¹⁰Then Apollonius gathered the Gentiles together, and a great host out of Samaria, to fight against Israel.

¹¹Which thing when Judas perceived, he went forth to meet him, and so he smote him, and slew him: many also fell down slain, but the rest fled.

¹²Wherefore Judas took their spoils, and Apollonius’ sword also, and therewith he fought all his life long.

¹³Now when Seron, a prince of the army of Syria, heard say that Judas had gathered unto him a multitude and company of the faithful to go out with him to war;

¹⁴He said, I will get me a name and honour in the kingdom; for I will go fight with Judas and them that are with him, who despise the king’s commandment.

¹⁵So he made him ready to go up, and there went with him a mighty host of the ungodly to help him, and to be avenged of the children of Israel.

¹⁶And when he came near to the going up of Bethhoron, Judas went forth to meet him with a small company:

¹⁷Who, when they saw the host coming to meet them, said unto Judas, How shall we be able, being so few, to fight against so great a multitude and so strong, seeing we are ready to faint with fasting all this day?

¹⁸Unto whom Judas answered, It is no hard matter for many to be shut up in the hands of a few; and with the God of heaven it is all one, to deliver with a great multitude, or a small company:

¹⁹For the victory of battle standeth not in the multitude of an host; but strength cometh from heaven.

²⁰They come against us in much pride and iniquity to destroy us, and our wives and children, and to spoil us:

²¹But we fight for our lives and our laws.

²²Wherefore the Lord himself will overthrow them before our face: and as for you, be ye not afraid of them.

²³Now as soon as he had left off speaking, he leapt suddenly upon them, and so Seron and his host was overthrown before him.

²⁴And they pursued them from the going down of Bethhoron unto the plain, where were slain about eight hundred men of them; and the residue fled into the land of the Philistines.

²⁵Then began the fear of Judas and his brethren, and an exceeding great dread, to fall upon the nations round about them:

²⁶Insomuch as his fame came unto the king, and all nations talked of the battles of Judas.

²⁷Now when king Antiochus heard these things, he was full of indignation: wherefore he sent and gathered together all the forces of his realm, even a very strong army.

²⁸He opened also his treasure, and gave his soldiers pay for a year, commanding them to be ready whensoever he should need them.

²⁹Nevertheless, when he saw that the money of his treasures failed and that the tributes in the country were small, because of the dissension and plague, which he had brought upon the land in taking away the laws which had been of old time;

³⁰He feared that he should not be able to bear the charges any longer, nor to have such gifts to give so liberally as he did before: for he had abounded above the kings that were before him.

³¹Wherefore, being greatly perplexed in his mind, he determined to go into Persia, there to take the tributes of the countries, and to gather much money.

³²So he left Lysias, a nobleman, and one of the blood royal, to oversee the affairs of the king from the river Euphrates unto the borders of Egypt:

³³And to bring up his son Antiochus, until he came again.

³⁴Moreover he delivered unto him the half of his forces, and the elephants, and gave him charge of all things that he would have done, as also concerning them that dwelt in Juda and Jerusalem:

³⁵To wit, that he should send an army against them, to destroy and root out the strength of Israel, and the remnant of Jerusalem, and to take away their memorial from that place;

³⁶And that he should place strangers in all their quarters, and divide their land by lot.

³⁷So the king took the half of the forces that remained, and departed from Antioch, his royal city, the hundred forty and seventh year; and having passed the river Euphrates, he went through the high countries.

³⁸Then Lysias chose Ptolemee the son of Dorymenes, Nicanor, and Gorgias, mighty men of the king’s friends:

³⁹And with them he sent forty thousand footmen, and seven thousand horsemen, to go into the land of Juda, and to destroy it, as the king commanded.

⁴⁰So they went forth with all their power, and came and pitched by Emmaus in the plain country.

⁴¹And the merchants of the country, hearing the fame of them, took silver and gold very much, with servants, and came into the camp to buy the children of Israel for slaves: a power also of Syria and of the land of the Philistines joined themselves unto them.

⁴²Now when Judas and his brethren saw that miseries were multiplied, and that the forces did encamp themselves in their borders: for they knew how the king had given commandment to destroy the people, and utterly abolish them;

⁴³They said one to another, Let us restore the decayed fortune of our people, and let us fight for our people and the sanctuary.

⁴⁴Then was the congregation gathered together, that they might be ready for battle, and that they might pray, and ask mercy and compassion.

⁴⁵Now Jerusalem lay void as a wilderness, there was none of her children that went in or out: the sanctuary also was trodden down, and aliens kept the strong hold; the heathen had their habitation in that place; and joy was taken from Jacob, and the pipe with the harp ceased.

⁴⁶Wherefore the Israelites assembled themselves together, and came to Maspha, over against Jerusalem; for in Maspha was the place where they prayed aforetime in Israel.

⁴⁷Then they fasted that day, and put on sackcloth, and cast ashes upon their heads, and rent their clothes,

⁴⁸And laid open the book of the law, wherein the heathen had sought to paint the likeness of their images.

⁴⁹They brought also the priests’ garments, and the firstfruits, and the tithes: and the Nazarites they stirred up, who had accomplished their days.

⁵⁰Then cried they with a loud voice toward heaven, saying, What shall we do with these, and whither shall we carry them away?

⁵¹For thy sanctuary is trodden down and profaned, and thy priests are in heaviness, and brought low.

⁵²And lo, the heathen are assembled together against us to destroy us: what things they imagine against us, thou knowest.

⁵³How shall we be able to stand against them, except thou, O God, be our help?

⁵⁴Then sounded they with trumpets, and cried with a loud voice.

⁵⁵And after this Judas ordained captains over the people, even captains over thousands, and over hundreds, and over fifties, and over tens.

⁵⁶But as for such as were building houses, or had betrothed wives, or were planting vineyards, or were fearful, those he commanded that they should return, every man to his own house, according to the law.

⁵⁷So the camp removed, and pitched upon the south side of Emmaus.

⁵⁸And Judas said, arm yourselves, and be valiant men, and see that ye be in readiness against the morning, that ye may fight with these nations, that are assembled together against us to destroy us and our sanctuary:

⁵⁹For it is better for us to die in battle, than to behold the calamities of our people and our sanctuary.

⁶⁰Nevertheless, as the will of God is in heaven, so let him do.