Judith 8

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Judith was informed at the time of what had happened. She was the daughter of Merari son of Ox, sonof Joseph, son of Oziel, son of Elkiah, son of Ananias, son of Gideon, son of Raphaim, son of Ahitub, son ofElijah, son of Hilkiah, son of Eliab, son of Nathanael, son of Salamiel, son of Sarasadai, son of Israel.	1 And it happened that these words were heard by Judith, a widow who was the daughter of Merari, the son of Idox, the son of Joseph, the son of Oziel, the son of Elai, the son of Jamnor, the son of Gideon, the son of Raphaim, the son of Ahitub, the son of Melchiel, the son of Enan, the son of Nathaniel, the son of Salathiel, the son of Simeon, the son of Ruben.
2 Her husband Manasseh, of her own tribe and family, had died at the time of the barley harvest.	2 And her husband was Manasseh, who died in the days of the barley harvest.
3 He was supervising the men as they bound up the sheaves in the field when he caught sunstroke andhad to take to his bed. He died in Bethulia, his home town, and was buried with his ancestors in the field that liesbetween Dothan and Balamon.	3 For he was standing over those who bound sheaves in the field, and the heat overcame his head, and he died in Bethulia, his own city, and he was buried there with his fathers.
4 As a widow, Judith stayed inside her home for three years and four months.	4 But Judith, his bereaved, was a widow now for three years and six months.
5 She had had an upper room built for herself on the roof. She wore sackcloth next to the skin anddressed in widow's weeds.	5 And she made herself a private chamber in the upper part of her house, in which she stayed enclosed with her handmaids.
6 She fasted every day of her widowhood except for the Sabbath eve, the Sabbath itself, the eve of NewMoon, the feast of New Moon and the joyful festivals of the House of Israel.	6 And she had haircloth around her waist, and she fasted all the days of her life, except Sabbaths, and new moons, and the feasts of the house of Israel.
7 Now she was very beautiful, charming to see. Her husband Manasseh had left her gold and silver,menservants and maidservants, herds and land; and she lived among al her possessions	7 Moreover, she was exceedingly elegant in appearance, and her husband left her many riches, and an abundant household, as well as the ownership of plentiful herds of oxen and flocks of sheep.
8 without anyone finding a word to say against her, so devoutly did she fear God.	8 And she was greatly renowned among all, because she feared the Lord very much, nor was there anyone who spoke an ill word about her.
9 Hearing how the water shortage had demoralised the people and how they had complained bitterly tothe headman of the town, and being also told what Uzziah had said to them and how he had given them his oathto surrender the town to the Assyrians in five days' time,	9 And so, when she heard that Uzziah had promised that he would hand over the city with the passing of five days, she sent to the elders Chabris and Charmis.
10 Judith immediately sent the serving-woman who ran her household to summon Chabris and Charmis,two elders of the town.	10 And they came to her, and she said to them: “What is this word, by which Uzziah has consented to hand over the city to the Assyrians, if within five days no help arrives for us?
11 When these came in she said: 'Listen to me, leaders of the people of Bethulia. You were wrong tospeak to the people as you did today and to bind yourself by oath, in defiance of God, to surrender the town toour enemies if the Lord did not come to your help within a set number of days.	11 And who are you to test the Lord?
12 Who are you, to put God to the test today, you, of al people, to set yourselves above him?	12 This is not a word that will provoke mercy, but rather one that may excite wrath and enkindle fury.
13 You put the Lord Almighty to the test! You do not understand anything, and never wil .	13 You have set a time limit for the mercy of the Lord, and you have established a day for him, according to your choice.
14 If you cannot sound the depths of the human heart or unravel the arguments of the human mind, howcan you fathom the God who made all things, or sound his mind or unravel his purposes? No, brothers, do notprovoke the anger of the Lord our God.	14 But, since the Lord is patient, let us be repentant about this same matter, and let us beg his indulgence with many tears.
15 Although it may not be his wil to help us within the next five days, he has the power to protect us for asmany days as he pleases, just as he has the power to destroy us before our enemies.	15 For God will not threaten like man, nor will he be inflamed to anger like a son of man.
16 But you have no right to demand guarantees where the designs of the Lord our God are concerned.For God is not to be threatened as a human being is, nor is he, like a mere human, to be cajoled.	16 And, for this reason, let us humble our souls before him, and, continuing to serve him in a spirit of humility,
17 Rather, as we wait patiently for him to save, let us plead with him to help us. He wil hear our voice ifsuch is his good pleasure.	17 let us speak to the Lord with tears, so that he may act according to his will in his mercy toward us. So then, just as our heart is disturbed by their arrogance, so also may we glory in our humility.
18 'And indeed of recent times and stil today there is not one tribe of ours, or family, or vil age, or townthat has worshipped gods made by human hand, as once was done,	18 For we have not followed the sins of our fathers, who abandoned their God in order to worship strange gods.
19 which was the reason why our ancestors were delivered over to sword and sack, and perished inmisery at the hands of our enemies.	19 Because of this crime, they were given over to their enemies: to the sword, and to pillaging, and to confusion. But we know no other God except him.
20 We for our part acknowledge no other God but him; and so we may hope he wil not look on usdisdainfully or desert our nation.	20 Let us wait with humility for his consolation, and the Lord our God will requite our blood by the afflictions of our enemies, and he will humble all the nations that will rise up against us, and he will cause them to be without honor.
21 'If indeed they capture us, as you expect, then al Judaea wil be captured too, and our holy placesplundered, and we shal answer with our blood for their profanation.	21 And now, brothers, because you are the elders among the people of God, and their very soul hangs upon you, rescue their hearts by your eloquence, so that they may remember that our fathers were tested in order to prove whether or not they truly worshiped their God.
22 The slaughter of our brothers, the captivity of our country, the unpeopling of our heritage, will recoil onour own heads among the nations whose slaves we shal become, and our new masters wil look down on us asan outrage and a disgrace;	22 They are obliged to remember how our father Abraham was tested, and being proved by many tribulations, he was made the friend of God.
23 for our surrender wil not reinstate us in their favour; no, the Lord our God will make it a thing to beashamed of.	23 So Isaac, so Jacob, so Moses, and all that have pleased God, passed through many tribulations, remaining faithful.
24 So now, brothers, let us set an example to our brothers, since their lives depend on us, and thesanctuary -- Temple and altar -- rests on us.	24 But those who did not accept the trials with the fear of the Lord, and who brought forward their impatience and the disgrace of their murmuring against the Lord,
25 'Al this being so, let us rather give thanks to the Lord our God who, as he tested our ancestors, is nowtesting us.	25 were exterminated by the exterminator, and they perished by serpents.
26 Remember how he treated Abraham, all the ordeals of Isaac, al that happened to Jacob in SyrianMesopotamia while he kept the sheep of Laban, his mother's brother.	26 And as for us, therefore, let us not revenge ourselves for these things that we suffer.
27 For as these ordeals were intended by him to search their hearts, so now this is not vengeance thatGod is exacting on us, but a warning inflicted by the Lord on those who are near his heart.'	27 But, in considering these same sufferings to be less than our sins deserve, let us believe that the scourges of the Lord, by which we are corrected like servants, have occurred for our improvement and not for our destruction.”
28 Uzziah replied, 'Everything you have just said comes from an honest heart and no one will contradict aword of it.	28 And Uzziah and the elders said to her: “All the things that you have spoken are true, and there is nothing reprehensible in your words.
29 Not that today is the first time your wisdom has been displayed; from your earliest years all the peoplehave known how shrewd you are and of how sound a heart.	29 Now, therefore, pray for us, because you are a holy woman, and one fearing God.”
30 But, parched with thirst, the people forced us to act as we had promised them and to bind ourselves byan inviolable oath.	30 And Judith said to them: “You know that what I have been able to say is of God.
31 You are a devout woman; pray to the Lord, then, to send us a downpour to fil our storage-wel s, so thatour faintness may pass.'	31 So, concerning that which I propose to do, examine whether or not it is from God, and pray that God may act to strengthen my plan.
32 Judith replied, 'Listen to me, I intend to do something, the memory of which wil be handed down to thechildren of our race from age to age.	32 You will stand at the gate this night, and I will go forth with my handmaid. And pray that, just as you have said, within five days the Lord may look kindly on his people Israel.
33 Tonight you must be at the gate of the town. I shal make my way out with my attendant. Before thetime fixed by you for surrendering the town to our enemies, the Lord wil make use of me to rescue Israel.	33 But I am not willing to have you examine my actions, and, until I report to you, let nothing else be done, except to pray for me to the Lord our God.”
34 You must not ask what I intend to do; I shall not tel you until I have done it.'	34 And Uzziah, the leader of Judah, said to her, “Go in peace, and may the Lord be with you to take revenge among our enemies.” So, turning back, they departed.
35 Uzziah and the chief men said, 'Go in peace. May the Lord show you a way to take revenge on ourenemies.'
36 And leaving the upper room they went back to their posts.