1   Then was it declared to Olofernes the chiefe captaine of the army of Assur, that the children of Israel had prepared for warre, and had shut the passages of the mountaines, and had walled all the toppes of the hie hilles, and had layd impediments in the champion countrey.

2   Wherewith he was very angrie, and called all the princes of Moab, and the captaines of Ammon, and all the gouernours of the sea coast.

3   And he sayd vnto th&ebar;, Shewe me, O ye sonnes of Chanaan, Who is this people that dwelleth in the mountaines? and what are the cities that they inhabite? and what is the multitude of their armie? and wherein is their strength and their power? and what king or captaine is raised among them ouer their armie?

4   And why haue they determined not to come to meete me, more then all the inhabitantes of the West?

5   ¶2; Then ^note saide Achior the captaine of all the sonnes of Ammon, Let my lord heare þe; word of the mouth of his seruant, and I will declare vnto thee þe; trueth concerning this people, that dwell in these mountaines, neere where thou remainest: and there shall no lie come out of the mouth of thy seruant.

6   This people come of the stocke of the Chaldeans.

7   And ^note they dwelt before in Mesopotamia, because they would not followe the gods of their fathers, which were in the land of Chaldea.

8   But they went out of the way of their ancesters and worshipped the God of heauen, the God whom they knewe: so they cast them out from the face of their gods, and they fled into Mesopotamia, and soiourned there many dayes.

9   Then ^note their God commaunded them to depart from the place where they soiourned, and to go into the land of Chanaan, where they dwelt, and were increased with golde and siluer, and with very much cattell.

10   But when a famine couered all the lande of Chanaan, they went downe into Egypt, and dwelt there till they returned, and became there a great multitude, so þt; one could not number their linage.

11    ^noteTherfore the king of Egypt rose vp against them, and vsed deceite against them, and brought them lowe with labouring in bricke, and made them slaues.

12   Then they cried vnto their God, & he smote all the land of Egypt with incurable plagues: so the ^note Egyptians cast them out of their sight.

13   And ^note God dried þe; red sea in their presence,

14   And ^note brought them into mount Sina and Cades barne, and cast foorth all that dwelt in the wildernesse.

15   So they dwelt in the lande of the Amorites, and they destroyed by their strength all them of Esebon, and passing ouer Iordan, they inherited all the mountaines.

16   And they ^note cast forth before them the Chanaanites, and the Pheresites, and the Iebusites, and them of Sichem, and all the Gergesites, and they dwelt in that countrey many dayes.

17   And whiles they sinned not before their God, they prospered, because the God that hated iniquitie, was with them.

18   But ^note when they departed from the way which he appoynted them, they were destroyed in many battels after a wonderfull sort, ^note and were led captiues into a land that was not theirs and the Temple of their God was cast to the grounde, and their cities were taken by the enemies.

19   But ^note nowe they are turned to their God, and are come vp from the scattering wherein they were scattered, and haue possessed Ierusalem, where their Temple is, and dwell in the mountaines which were desolate.

20   Nowe therefore, my lorde and gouernour, if

there be any fault in this people, so that they haue sinned against their God, let vs consider that this shall be their ruine, and let vs goe vp, and we shall ouercome them.

21   But if there be none iniquitie in this people, let my lord passe by, least their Lord defende them, and their God be for them, and we become a reproche before all the worlde.

22   ¶2; And when Achior had finished these sayings, all the people, standing round about the tent, murmured: and the chiefe men of Olofernes, and all that dwelt by the sea side and in Moab, spake that he should kill him.

23   For, say they, we feare not to meete the children of Israel: for loe, it is a people that haue no strength nor power against a mightie armie.

24   Let vs therefore goe vp, O lorde Olofernes, and they shalbe meate for thy whole armie.

Previous section

Next section