A   Then stode vp Iudas Machabeus in his fathers steade, ∧ all hys brethren helped hym: and so dyd all they that helde wyth hys father, ∧ fought wyth cherefulnesse for Israell. ^note So Iudas gat hys people great honour: He put on a brest plate as a giaunte, ∧ arayed hym selfe with hys harnesse, and defended the hoste wyth hys swearde. In his actes he was lyke a Lyon, ∧ as a lyons whelpe roaringe at his praye. ^noteHe was an enemye to the wycked, ∧ hunted th&ebar; out: ^note and brent vp those that vexed his people: So that hys enemyes fled for feare of hym, ∧ all the worckers of vngodlyues were put to trouble: soch lucke and prosperyte was in hys h&abar;de. This greued diuerse kynges, but Iacob was greatly reioysed thorow his actes, and he gatt hym self a greate name for euer.

He wente thorow the cityes of Iuda, destroyenge the vngodly out of them, turning awaye the wrath from Israell, and receauynge soch as were oppressed: and the fame of him w&ebar;te vnto the vttemost parte of the earth. Then Appollonius (a prynce of Syria) gathered a myghtye greate hoost of the heath&ebar; ∧ out of Samaria, to fyght agaynst Israell. Whych when Iudas perceaued, he wente forth to mete hym, fought wyth him, slewe him, and a great multitude with him, the remnaunt fled, ∧ he toke their substa&ubar;ce Iudas also toke Appollonius awne swearde, and fought wyth it all hys lyfe longe.

B   Now wh&ebar; Seron (another prince of Syria) herde saye, þt; Iudas had gathered vnto him the congregacyon ∧ church of the faythfull, he sayde: I will get me a name ∧ a prayse thorow out þe; realme: for I wyll go fyght with Iudas, ∧ them that are wyth hym, as many as haue despysed the kynges c&obar;maundement. So he made hym ready, and there w&ebar;te wyth him a greate myghtye hoost of þe; vngodly, to stande by him, and to be au&ebar;ged of the children of Israel. And when they came nye vnto Bethoron, Iudas wente forth agaynst them wyth a small company. And when his people sawe soch a great goost before them, they sayde vnto Iudas: How are we able (beinge so fewe) to fyght agaynst so great a multitude and so stronge, seinge we be so weery, and haue fasted all this daye?

^noteBut Iudas sayde: It is a small matter for many to be ouercome &wt; fewe: yee there is no difference to the God of heauen, to deliuer by a greate multitude or by a small c&obar;pany: ^note for þe; victory of the battell standeth not in the multytude of the Hoost, but the strength commeth from heauen. Beholde, they come against vs with a presumptuous and proude multitude, C   to destroye vs, oure wyues and oure chyldren, and to robbe vs. But we will fight for oure lyues, ∧ for oure lawes, ∧ the Lorde hym selfe shall destroye them before oure face: therfore be not ye afrayed of them.

As soone as he had spoken these wordes, he leapte sodenly vpon th&ebar;. Thus was Seron smytten, and his hoost put to flight, and Iudas folowed vp&obar; them beyonde Bethoron vnto the playne felde: where there were slayne eyght hundreth men of them, and the resydue fled into the lande of the Phylystynes. Then all the heath&ebar; on euery syde were afrayed for Iudas and his brethren: so that the rumoure of hym came vnto the kynges eares, for all the Gentyles coulde tell of the warres of Iudas.

D   So when kynge Antiochus hearde these tidynges, he was angry in his minde: wherfore he sente forth, and gathered an hoost of his whole realme, very stronge armyes: and opened hys treasury, and gaue hys hoost a yeares wagyes in hande, commaundynge

them to be ready at all tymes.

Neuerthelesse when he sawe, that there was not moneye ynough in his treasuryes, and þt; thorow the discorde and persecucyon, whych he made in the lande (to put downe the lawes that had bene of olde tymes) hys customes ∧ trybutes of the lande were mynyshed: he feared that he was not able for to beare the costes and charges any longer, nor to haue soch gyftes, to geue so liberally as he dyd afore, more then the kynges that were before hym.

Wherfore, he was heuy in his mynde, and thought ^note to go &ibar;to Persides, for to take tributes of the lande, ∧ so to gather moch moneye. So he left Lysias (a noble man of the kynges bloude) to ouerse the kynges busynesses, from the water Euphrates vnto the borders of Egypte: ∧ to kepe well his sonne Antiochus, tyll he came agayne.

E   Moreouer, he gaue him half of his hoost, and Elephantes, c&obar;mytted vnto him euery thynge of hys mynde, concernynge those whych dwelt in Iuda and Ierusalem: that he shulde sende out an armye agaynst them, to destroye and to rote out the power of Israel and the remnaunt of Ierusalem: to put out their memoryall from that place, to set stra&ubar;gers for to inhabyt all theyr quarters, and to parte theyr lande amonge th&ebar;: Thus the kynge toke the other parte of the hoost, and departed from Antioch (a cyte of hys realme) ouer the water of Euphrates, in the h&ubar;dreth and .xlvii. yeare, and went thorow the hye countrees. ^note

^noteAnd Lysias chose vnto hym Ptolomy the sonne of Doriminus, Nicanor and Gorgias myghty men, and the kynges frendes. These he sent with .xl. thousande fote men ∧ .vii. thousande horsmen, for to go into the lande of Iuda ∧ to destroye it, as the kynge commaunded. So they w&ebar;te forth wyth all their power, and came to Emmaus into the plaine felde. When the marchauntes hearde the rumoure of them, they ∧ theyr seruauntes toke very moch syluer ∧ gold, for to bye the childr&ebar; of Israel to be their bonde men: There came vnto them also yet moo m&ebar; of warre on euery syde, out of Siria and from the Palestynes.

F   Now when Iudas ∧ hys brethren sawe þe; trouble increased, ∧ that the hoost drew nye vnto their borders c&obar;sidering þe; kynges wordes which he commaunded vnto the people: namely, that they shulde vtterly waste and destroye them: They sayde one to another: Let vs redresse the decaye of oure people, let vs fyght for oure folke and for oure Sanctuary. Then the congregacyon were soone ready gathered to fyght, to praye ∧ to make supplicacyon vnto God for mercy ∧ grace.

^noteAs for Ierusalem, it laye voyde, ∧ was as it had bene a wyldernesse. There wente no man in nor out at it, and the Sanctuary was troden downe. The alea&ubar;tes kepte the castell, there was the habitacion of the Heath&ebar;. The myrth of Iacob was tak&ebar; awaye, the pype and the harpe was gone fr&obar; amonge them.

The Israelites gathered them together, and came to Maspha before Ierusalem: for in Maspha was þe; place ^note where they prayed afore tyme in Israel. So they fasted þt; daye ∧ put sackclothes vp&obar; them, cast asshes vp&obar; their heades, r&ebar;te their clothes, ∧ layde forth the bokes of the lawe (wherout the heathen sought the lykenesse of theyr ymages) and brought þe; Prestes ornam&ebar;tes, the fyrstlinges ∧ the tithes. They sett there also þe; ^note absteyners (whych had fulfylled theyr dayes) before God, and cryed wyth a loude voyce towarde heau&ebar;, sayinge: What shall we do with these? and whyther shall we cary them awaye? G   For thy Sanctuary is troden downe and defyled, thy prestes are come to heuynesse and dyshonoure: and beholde, the Heathen are come together for to destroye vs. Thou knowest what thynges they ymagin agaynst vs. How may we stande before th&ebar;, excepte thou (O God) be oure helpe?

They blewe out the tr&obar;pette also wyth a loude voyce. Th&ebar; Iudas ordened ^note captaynes ouer the people: ouer thousandes, ouer hundredes, ouer fyftye, and ouer ten. But as for soch as buylded th&ebar; houses, maryed wyues, planted them vyneyardes, and those þt; were fearfull: he commaunded them euery m&abar; to go home agayne, accordynge ^note to the lawe, So the hoost remoued, and pytched vpon the southsyde of Emmaus.

And Iudas sayde: Arme youre selues, be stronge (O my chyldren) make you ready agaynst to morow in the mornynge, that ye maye fyght wyth these people, which are agreed together to destroye vs and oure sanctuary. Better is it for vs to dye in battaill, than to se oure people and our sanctuary in soch a myserable case: ^note Neuerthelesse, as thy wyll is in heauen, so be it.

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