A   Then Iudas Machabe&us;, and they that were wyth him, wente pryuely &ibar;to the townes, called theyr kynsfolkes ∧ frendes together, toke vnto them all soch as c&obar;tynued yet &ibar; the fayth and lawe of the Iewes and brought forth .vi.M. men.

So they called vpon the Lorde, that he wolde haue an eye vnto hys people, whych was trodden downe of euery man: to be gracyous vnto the temple that was defyled of the vngodly: to haue c&obar;passyon vpon the destruccyon of the citie, whych was shortly lyke to be layed waste, to heare the voyce of þe; bloude that cryed vnto him: to rem&ebar;bre the most vnryghteous deathes of yonge innocent chyldr&ebar;, the blasphemyes also done vnto hys name, and to punysh them.

^noteNow when Machabeus had gathered thys multytude together, he was to myghtye for the Heathen (for the wrath of þe; Lorde was turned into mercy) he fell vpon the townes and cytyes vnwares, brent them, toke the most commodyous places, and slewe many of the enemyes. But specially he made soch chases by nyght, in so moch that hys manlynesse was spoken of euery where

B   So when Phylippe sawe that the man increased by lytle and lytle, ∧ that the matter prospered wyth hym for the most parte: he wrote vnto Ptolomy (which was a captayne in Celosiria ∧ Phenices) to helpe him in the kynges busynes. ^note Then sent he Nicanor Patrocly (a speciall frende of hys) in all the haste, and gaue him of the comen sorte of the Heathen no lesse then .xx.M. harnessed men, to rote out the whole generacyon of þe; Iewes, hauynge to helpe hym one Gorgias a man of warre, whych in matters concernynge battayls, had great experi&ebar;ce. Nycanor ordened also the trybute (which the Romaynes shulde haue had) to be geuen vnto the kynge out of the captyuyte of the Iewes, namely .ii.M talentes. And immediatly he sent to the cities of the see coast, requyr&ibar;g them for to bye Iewes to be theyr seruauntes and bonde men, promysynge to sell them lxxx. and ten for one talente: but he consydered not the wrath of almyghty God, that was to come vpon hym.

C   When Iudas knewe of thys, he tolde the Iewes that were wyth hym of Nicanors c&obar;mynge. Now were there some of them fearfull, not trustynge vnto the ryghteousnes of God, and fled theyr waye.

But the other that remayned, came together, and besought the Lorde, to delyuer th&ebar; fr&obar; that wycked Nicanor, which had solde them or euer he came nye them: and though he wolde not do it for theyr sakes, yet for þe; couenaunt þt; he made wyth theyr fathers, and because they called vp&obar; hys holy ∧ gloryous name. ^noteAnd so Machabe&us; called hys men together, namely aboute .vi.M. exhortyng th&ebar; not to agree vnto their enemies, ^note nether to be afraied for þe; multitude of their aduersaries commynge agaynst them vnryghteously: but to fyght manly, consyderynge the reprofe that they had done to the holy place whthout cause, how they had despysed and oppressed the cytye, yee, and destroyed the lawes of the fathers. ^noteFor they

(sayde he) trust in theyr weapens and boldnesse, but oure confid&ebar;ce is in the almyghty Lorde, which in the twyncklynge of an eye maye both destroy them that come agaynst vs, and all the worlde.

D   He exhorted them also to cal to remembraunce þe; helpe, that God shewed vnto theyr fathers: ^note as wh&ebar; there peryshed an .C. ∧ lxxxv.M. of Sennacheribs people: And of the batayl that they had in Babylon agaynst the Gallacyans: how all the Macedonyans that came to helpe them, stode in feare: and how they be&ibar;g but only vi.M. slewe an .C. ∧ .xx.M. thorow þe; helpe that was geuen them from heau&ebar;, wherby they also had receaued many benefytes.

Thorow these wordes the m&ebar; toke good hertes vnto them, ready to dye for the lawe and the countre. So he set vpon euery company a captayne, one of hys awne brethren: Simon, Ioseph ∧ Ionathas: geuynge echeone .xv.C. men. He caused Esdras also to reade the holy boke vnto them, ∧ to geue them a token of the helpe of God.

^noteThen he hym selfe beynge captayne in the fore front of the battayll, buckled wyth Nicanor. And God was theyr helpe, in so moch that they slewe aboue ix.M. men ∧ compelled the more parte of Nicanors hoost to fle, they were so wo&ubar;ded and feable. E   Thus they toke the money fr&obar; those that came to bye them, and folowed vpon th&ebar; on euery syde. But when the tyme came vpon them, they returned, for it was the Sabboth, and therfore they folowed nomore vpon them. So they toke theyr weapens ∧ spoyles and kepte the Sabbath, geuynge thanckes vnto þe; Lord, which had delyuered them that daye, and shewed th&ebar; hys mercy. After the Sabboth ^note they distributed the spoyles to the sycke, to þe; fatherlesse and to wyddowes, and the resydue had they them selues wyth theyrs. When thys was done, and they all had made a generall prayer: they besought the mercyfull Lorde to be at one wyth hys seruauntes

Of those also that were wyth Timothe&us; and Bachides, which fought agaynst them they slewe .xx.M. wanne hye and str&obar;ge holdes, and deuyded moo spoyles: euer geuinge an equal porcyon vnto þe; syeke, to þe; fatherles, to wyddowes and to aged persons. And when they had dylygently gathered theyr weapens together, they layed th&ebar; all in conueniente places, ∧ the remnaunt of the spoyles brought they to Ierusalem. F   They slewe also Phylarches þe; wycked personne, which was with Tymotheus, and had vexed many Iewes. And when they helde the thankesgeuynge at Ierusalem for the vyctory, they br&ebar;t those that had set fyre on þe; portes of þe; t&ebar;ple: namely Calysthenes, whych was fled &ibar;to an house: ∧ so they gat a worthy rewarde for theyr wyckednesse. As for that most vngracyous Nicanor, whych had brought a thousande marchauntes, to bye the Iewes, he was thorow the helpe of the Lorde brought downe euen of them whom he regarded not: in so moch that he put of hys gloryous raym&ebar;t, fled by see, and came alone to Antyoche, wyth greate shame and dyshonour, whych he gat thorow the destruccyon of hys hoost. Thus he that promysed the Romaynes to paye th&ebar; theyr tribute, when he toke Ierusalem: beganne now to saye playnely, that God was the def&ebar;der of the Iewes, ∧ therfore not possible to wounde them, because they folowed the lawes whych God had made.

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