1   These couenants being made, Lysias went foreward to the king, and the Iewes gaue themselues to husbandrie.

2   But they that stayed there, ^note Timothie & ^note Appollonius the sonne of Gennaius, & also Ierom, & Demophon, besides these also Nicanor the gouerner of Cyprus, did not suffer them to liue in rest and quietnes.

3   And the Ioppites committed a certaine flagicious fact, which was this: They desired the Iewes with whom they dwelt, to goe into the botes, which they had

prepared, with their wiues & children, as though no secret emnities were betwen them.

4   Therfore according to the common decree of the citie, & they agreeing therto, & because of the peace suspecting nothing: when they were gone forward, into the depth, they drowned no lesse then two hundred.

5   Which crueltie Iudas as he vnderstood to be done vpon the men of his nation, commanded the men that were with him: and inuocating God the iust iudge,

6   he came against the murderers of his brethren, & the hauen he set on fire in the night, the botes he burnt, & them that were fled from the fire, he slew with the sword.

7   And when he had thus done these thinges, he departed as to returne againe, and to roote out al the Ioppites.

8   But when he vnderstood that they also, which were at Iamnia, would doe in like maner to the Iewes dwelling with them,

9   he came vpon the Iamnites also by night, and set the hauen on fyre with the shippes, so that the light of the fire appeared at Ierusalem ^note two hundred fourtie furlongs of.

10   When they were now departed thence nine furlongs, and made their iourney towards Timothee, the Arabians fiue thousand men, and fiue hundred horsemen ioyned battel with them.

11   And when there was a mightie battel, and by the helpe of God it had succeded prosperously, the rest of the Arabians that were ouercome, besought Iudas that the right hand might be geuen them, promising that they would geue pastures, and profite them, in other thinges.

12   And Iudas thinking in very deede that they might be profitable in manie thinges, promised peace, and right handes being taken, they departed to their tabernacles.

13   And he set also vpon a certaine citie strong with bridges, and enuironed with walles, which was inhabited with multitudes of heathen of al sortes, the name wherof is Caspin.

14   But they that were within, trusting in the firmenes of the walles, & the prouision of victuals, dealt the more slackly, with reuiling wordes prouoking Iudas, and blaspheming, and speaking such thinges as is not lawful to speake.

15   But Machabeus inuocating the great prince of the world, who without rammes and engines in Iesus time threwe downe Ierico, fiercely assaulted the walles.

16   And the citie being taken by the wil of our Lord he made innumerable slaughters, so that the poole adioyning of two furlongs in bredth, semed to runne died with bloud.

17   From thence they departed seuen hundred fiftie furlongs, and they came to Characa to those Iewes, that are called

^noteTubianeians:

18   and in those places they tooke not Timothee, and nothing being done he went backe, hauing left in a certaine place a very strong garrison.

19   But Dositheus, and Sosipater, who were captayns with Machabeus, slewe them that were left of Timothee in the hold, ten thousand men.

20   And Machabeus ordayning about him six thousand, and placing them by bandes, went forth against Timothee, who had with him an hundred twenty thousand footemen, & of horsemen two thousand fiue hundred.

21   And the coming of Iudas being knowen, Timothee sent the wemen and children, and the other baggage before into the fortresse, that is called Carnion: for it was inuincible, and hard to come by, by reason of the straites of the places.

22   And when the first band of Iudas had appeared, feare was stroken into the enemies, by the presence of God, who seeth al thinges, and they were put to flight one of an other, so that they were rather ouerthrowen of their owne companie, and were weakened with the strokes of their owne swordes.

23   But Iudas was exceding earnest punishnig the prophane men, and he ouerthrewe of them thirtie thousand men.

24   And Timothee him selfe fel into the handes of Dositheus and Sisipaters partes, and with manie prayers he besought that he might be let go aliue, because he had parents & brethren of manie of the Iewes, whom it might happen by his death to be deceiued.

25   And when he had geuen his faith that he would restore them according to the appointm&ebar;t they let him goe without harme, for the safetie of their brethren.

26   And Iudas came backe from Carnion, hauing slayne twentie fiue thousand.

27   After the flight and slaughter of these, he moued his armie to Ephron a strong citie, wherin a multitude dwelt of diuerse nations: & strong young men standing before the walles resisted manfully, & in this were manie engins, and prouision of dartes.

28   But when they had inuocated the Almightie, who with his power breaketh the forces of the enemies, they tooke the citie: and of them that were within they ouerthrew twentie fiue thousand.

29   From thence they departed to a citie of the Scythians, which was distant from Ierusalem six hundred furlongs.

30   But those Iewes that were with the Scythopolitans testifying that they were vsed curteously of them, euen in the times of miserie that they dealt modestly with them:

31   geuing them thankes, and exhorting them also thence forward to be fauourable toward their stock,

they came to Ierusalem the solemne day of the weekes approching.

32   And after Pentecost they went against ^note Gorgias the gouernour of Idumea.

33   And he went forth with footemen three thousand, and horsemen foure hundred.

34   Who buckling together, it chanced few of the Iewes to be slayne.

35   But Dositheus one of the Bacenors an horseman, a valiant man, held Gorgias: and wheras he would haue taken him aliue, a certayne horseman of the Thracians came vpon him, and cut of his shoulder: and so Gorgias escaped into Maresa.

36   But they that were with Esdrin, fighting long, and being wearied, Iudas inuocated our Lord to be their helper, and captayne of the battel:

37   beginning in his countrey language, and with hymmes raising a crie, draue Gorgias souldiars into flight.

38   And Iudas hauing gathered an armie came into the citie Odollam: & when the seuenth day came on, being purifyed according to the custome, they kept the Sabbath in the same place.

39   And the day folowing Iudas came with his companie, to take away the bodies of them that were ouerthrowen, and with their kinsmen to lay them in the sepulchers of their fathers.

40   And they found vnder the coates of the slayne some ^noteof the donaryes of the idols, that were in Iamnia, from which the lawe forbiddeth the Iewes: therfore it was made playne to al, that for that cause they were slayne.

41   Al therfore blessed the iust iudgement of our Lord, who had made manifest the hidden thinges.

42   And so turning to prayers, they besought him, that the same offence, which was committed, might be forgotten. But the most valient Iudas exhorted the people to keepe themselues without sinne, seing before their eyes what was done, because of the sinnes of them that were ouerthrowen.

43   And ^note making a gathering, he sent twelue thousand drachmes of siluer to Ierusalem for sacrifice to be offered for sinne, wel and religiously thinking of the resurrection.

44   (for vnles he hoped that they that were slaine, should rise againe, it should seeme superfluous, and vaine to pray for the dead)

45   And because he considered that they, which had taken their sleepe ^note with godlines, had very good grace layd vp for them.

46   09Q0326It is therfore ^note a holie, and healthful cogitation to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sinnes. ^note

Previous section

Next section