1   And Joon styede fro Gazara, and tolde to Symont, his fadir, what thingus Cendebeus dide in the peple of hem. 2   And Symont clepide his two eldre sonnys, Judas and Joon, and saith to hem, Y, and my bretheren, and the hous of my fadre, han ouercummen the enmyes of Yrael, fro &yogh;ongthe til in to this day; and it hadde prosperite in oure hondis, for to delyuere Yrael sumtymes. 3   Forsothe nowe I haue oldid, bot be &yogh;e in my stede, and of my brother, and &yogh;e gon out, fi&yogh;te for oure folc; forsothe help of heuen be with &yogh;ou. 4   And he cheese of the cuntree twenti thousand of fi&yogh;tynge men, and horsmen; and thei wenten out to Cendebeus, and slepten in Modyn. 5   And thei rysen erly, and wenten in to the feeld, and loo! a copyous oost in to metyng to hem, of fotemen and horsmen; and the flood of reyn water was bitwix the myddis of hem. 6   And he mouede to the tentis a&yogh;einus the face of hem, he and his peple, and he see&yogh; the peple tremblynge to passe ouer the streme of reyn, and he passide ouer the first; and men see&yogh;en hym, and passiden after hym. 7   And he lefte the peple and horsmen in mydil of fotemen; forsothe the rydyng of aduersaries was ful plenteuouse. 8   And thei cryeden an hee&yogh; with holy trumpis; and Cendebeus is conuertid in to fli&yogh;t, and his oost, and many of hem felle woundid; sothely the residues fledden in to the strengthe. 9   Thanne Judas, the brother of Joon, is woundid; forsothe Joon pursuede hem, til he came to Cedrona, whom he beeldide. 10   And thei fledden `vnto toures, that weren in the feeldis of Azotis,

and he brente hem with fijr; and there fellen of hem two thousand of men; and he turnyde a&yogh;ein in to Judee in pees. 11   And Ptholome, sone of Aboby, was ordeynyd duyk in the feeld of Jerico, and he hadde myche syluer and gold; 12   forsothe he weddide the dou&yogh;ter of the hee&yogh;ist prest. 13   And the hert of hym is reysid, and he wolde weelde the cuntree; and he thou&yogh;te gyle a&yogh;einus Symont and his sonys, for to do awey hem. 14   Forsothe Symont walkynge by citees that weren in the cuntree of Judee, and berynge the besynesse of hem, came doun in to Jericho, he, and Mathatias, his sone, and Judas, in the hundrid &yogh;eer and seuen and seuentithe, in the elleuenthe monethe; this is the moneth Sabath. 15   And the sone of Abobi resceyuyde hem in to a litil strengthe, that is clepid Doth, with gijle, whom he beeldide; and he made to hem a grete feest, and hidde men there. 16   And whan Symont was ful of drinke, and his sonys, Ptholome roose with his, `and token her armers, and entriden in to the feest, and slewen hym, and his two sonnys, and sume children of hym. 17   And he did a grete disceyte in Yrael, and &yogh;eeldide yuels for goodis. 18   And Ptholome wrote these thingus, and sente to the kyng, for to sende to hym an oost in to help, and he shulde bitake to hym the cuntre and citees of hem, and tributis. 19   And he sente other in to Gazara, for to do awey Joon; and the tribune sente epistlis, that thei shulden cume to hym, and he shulde &yogh;eue to hem syluer, and gold, and &yogh;iftis. 20   And he sente other, for to ocupie Jerusalem, and the mount of the temple. 21   And summan rennynge byfore tolde to Joon in Gazara, for his fader perishide, and his bretheren, and for he hath sente and thee for to be slayn. 22   Forsothe as he herde, he dredde greteli; and he cau&yogh;te

the men that came for to leese hym, and slew&yogh; hem; forsothe he knewe, for thei sou&yogh;ten for to leese hym. 23   And other thingus of Joons wordis, and of his bateils, and good vertues, in whiche he dide strongly, and of beeldyng of wallis, whom he fully maade, and of thingus don of hym, loo! 24   theese ben writen in the boke of days of his presthod, sithen he was maad prince of prestis aftir his fadir. Here endith the book of the firste Judas Machabeus, and bigynneth the book of secunde Judas Machabeus.

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