1 Maccabees 4

NEW JERUSALEM	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 Gorgias took with him five thousand foot and a thousand picked cavalry, and the force moved off bynight	1 Then Gorgias took five thousand men, and a thousand of the best horsemen: and they removed out of the camp by night.
2 with the object of attacking the Jewish position and dealing them an unexpected blow; the men fromthe Citadel were there to guide him.	2 That they might come upon the camp of the Jews, and strike them suddenly: and the men that were of the castle were their guides.
3 Judas got wind of it and himself moved off with his fighters to strike at the royal army at Emmaus,	3 And Judas heard of it, and rose up, he and the valiant men, to attack the king's forces that were in Emmaus.
4 while its fighting troops were stil dispersed outside the camp.	4 For as yet the army was dispersed from the camp.
5 Hence, when Gorgias reached Judas' camp, he found no one and began looking for the Jews in themountains. 'For', he said, 'we have got them on the run.'	5 And Gorgias came by night into the camp of Judas, and found no man, and he sought them in the mountains: for he said: These men flee from us.
6 First light found Judas in the plain with three thousand men, although these lacked the armour andswords they would have wished.	6 And when it was day, Judas shewed himself in the plain with three thousand men only, who neither had armour nor swords.
7 They could now see the gentile encampment with its strong fortifications and cavalry surrounding it,clearly people who understood warfare.	7 And they saw the camp of the Gentiles that it was strong, and the men in breastplates, and the horsemen round about them, and these were trained up to war.
8 Judas said to his men, 'Do not be afraid of their numbers, and do not flinch at their attack.	8 And Judas said to the men that were with him: Fear ye not their multitude, neither be ye afraid of their assault.
9 Remember how our ancestors were delivered at the Red Sea when Pharaoh was pursuing them inforce.	9 Remember in what manner our fathers were saved in the Red Sea, when Pharao pursued them with a great army.
10 And now let us cal on Heaven: if he cares for us, he wil remember his covenant with our ancestorsand will destroy this army confronting us today;	10 And now let us cry to heaven: and the Lord will have mercy on us, and will remember the covenant of our fathers, and will destroy this army before our face this day:
11 then all the nations wil know for certain that there is One who ransoms and saves Israel.'	11 And all nations shall know that there is one that redeemeth and delivereth Israel.
12 The foreigners looked up and, seeing the Jews advancing against them,	12 And the strangers lifted up their eyes, and saw them coming against them.
13 came out of the camp to join battle. Judas' men sounded the trumpet	13 And they went out of the camp to battle, and they that were with Judas sounded the trumpet.
14 and engaged them. The gentiles were defeated and fled towards the plain	14 And they joined battle: and the Gentiles were routed, and fled into the plain.
15 and al the stragglers fel by the sword. The pursuit continued as far as Gezer and the plains ofIdumaea, Azotus and Jamnia, and the enemy lost about three thousand men.	15 But all the hindmost of them fell by the sword, and they pursued them as far as Gezeron, and even to the plains of Idumea, and of Azotus, and of Jamnia: and there fell of them to the number of three thousand men.
16 Breaking off the pursuit, Judas returned with his men	16 And Judas returned again with his army that followed him,
17 and said to the people, 'Never mind the booty, for we have another battle ahead of us.	17 And he said to the people: Be not greedy of the spoils: for there is war before us:
18 Gorgias and his troops are still near us in the mountains. First stand up to our enemies and fight them,and then you can safely collect the booty.'	18 And Gorgias and his army are near us in the mountain: but stand ye now against our enemies, and overthrow them, and you shall take the spoils afterwards with safety.
19 The words were hardly out of Judas' mouth, when a detachment came into view, peering down fromthe mountain.	19 And as Judas was speaking these words, behold part of them appeared looking forth from the mountain.
20 Observing that their own troops had been routed and that the camp had been fired -- since the smoke,which they could see, attested the fact-	20 And Gorgias saw that his men were put to flight, ad that they had set fire to the camp: for the smoke that was seen declared what was done.
21 they were panic-stricken at the sight; and when, furthermore, they saw Judas' troops drawn up forbattle on the plain,	21 And when they had seen this, they were seized with great fear, seeing at the same time Judas and his army in the plain ready to fight.
22 they al fled into Philistine territory.	22 So they all fled away into the land of the strangers.
23 Judas then turned back to plunder the camp, and a large sum in gold and silver, with violet and sea-purple stuffs, and many other valuables were carried off.	23 And Judas returned to take the spoils of the camp, and they got much gold, and silver, and blue silk, and purple of the sea, and great riches.
24 On their return, the Jews chanted praises to Heaven, singing, 'He is kind and his love is everlasting!'	24 And returning home they sung a hymn, and blessed God in heaven, because he is good, because his mercy endureth for ever.
25 That day had seen a remarkable deliverance in Israel.	25 So Israel had a great deliverance that day.
26 Those of the foreigners who had escaped came and gave Lysias an account of all that had happened.	26 And such of the strangers as escaped, went and told Lysias all that had happened.
27 The news shocked and dismayed him, for affairs in Israel had not gone as he intended, and the resultwas quite the opposite to what the king had ordered.	27 And when he heard these things, he was amazed and discouraged: because things had not succeeded in Israel according to his mind, and as the king had commanded.
28 The next year he mobilised sixty thousand picked troops and five thousand cavalry with the intentionof finishing off the Jews.	28 So the year following Lysias gathered together threescore thousand chosen men, and five thousand horsemen, that he might subdue them.
29 They advanced into Idumaea and made their base at Beth-Zur, where Judas met them with tenthousand men.	29 And they came into Judea, and pitched their tents in Bethoron, and Judas met them with ten thousand men.
30 When he saw their military strength he offered this prayer, 'Blessed are you, Saviour of Israel, whoshattered the mighty warrior's attack at the hand of your servant David, and delivered the Philistine camp into thehands of Jonathan son of Saul, and his armour-bearer.	30 And they saw that the army was strong, and he prayed, and said: Blessed art thou, O Saviour of Israel, who didst break the violence of the mighty by the hand of thy servant David, and didst deliver up the camp of the strangers into the hands of Jonathan the son of Saul and of his armourbearer.
31 Crush this expedition in the same way at the hands of your people Israel; let their troops and cavalrybring them nothing but shame.	31 Shut up this army in the hands of thy people Israel, and let them be confounded in their host and their horsemen.
32 Sow panic in their ranks, confound the confidence they put in their numbers and send them reeling indefeat.	32 Strike them with fear, and cause the boldness of their strength to languish, and let them quake at their own destruction.
33 Overthrow them by the sword of those who love you, and all who acknowledge your name wil singyour praises.'	33 Cast them down with the sword of them that love thee: and let all that know thy name, praise thee with hymns.
34 The two forces engaged, and five thousand men of Lysias' troops fel in hand-to-hand fighting.	34 And they joined battle: and there fell of the army of Lysias five thousand men.
35 Seeing the rout of his army and the courage of Judas' troops and their readiness to live or die nobly,Lysias withdrew to Antioch, where he recruited mercenaries for a further invasion of Judaea in even greaterstrength.	35 And when Lysias saw that his men were put to flight, and how bold the Jews were, and that they were ready either to live, or to die manfully, he went to Antioch, and chose soldiers, that they might come again into Judea with greater numbers.
36 Judas and his brothers then said, 'Now that our enemies have been defeated, let us go up to purifythe sanctuary and dedicate it.'	36 Then Judas, and his brethren said: Behold our enemies are discomfited: let us go up now to cleanse the holy places and to repair them.
37 So they marshal ed the whole army, and went up to Mount Zion.	37 And all the army assembled together, and they went up into mount Sion.
38 There they found the sanctuary deserted, the altar desecrated, the gates burnt down, and vegetationgrowing in the courts as it might in a wood or on some mountain, while the storerooms were in ruins.	38 And they saw the sanctuary desolate, and the altar profaned, and the gates burnt, and shrubs growing up in the courts as in a forest, or on the mountains, and the chambers joining to the temple thrown down.
39 They tore their garments and mourned bitterly, putting dust on their heads.	39 And they rent their garments, and made great lamentation, and put ashes on their heads:
40 They prostrated themselves on the ground, and when the trumpets gave the signal they cried aloud toHeaven.	40 And they fell face down to the ground on their faces, and they sounded with the trumpets of alarm, and they cried towards heaven.
41 Judas then ordered his men to keep the Citadel garrison engaged until he had purified the sanctuary.	41 Then Judas appointed men to fight against them that were in the castle, till they had cleansed the holy places.
42 Next, he selected priests who were blameless and zealous for the Law	42 And he chose priests without blemish, whose will was set upon the law of God:
43 to purify the sanctuary and remove the stones of the 'Pollution' to some unclean place.	43 And they cleansed the holy places, and took away the stones that had been defiled into an unclean place.
44 They discussed what should be done about the altar of burnt offering which had been profaned,	44 And he considered about the altar of holocausts that had been profaned, what he should do with it.
45 and very properly decided to pul it down, rather than later be embarrassed about it since it had beendefiled by the gentiles. They therefore demolished it	45 And a good counsel came into their minds, to pull it down: lest it should be a reproach to them, because the Gentiles had defiled it; so they threw it down.
46 and deposited the stones in a suitable place on the hil of the Dwel ing to await the appearance of aprophet who should give a ruling about them.	46 And they laid up the stones in the mountain of the temple in a convenient place, till there should come a prophet, and give answer concerning them.
47 They took unhewn stones, as the Law prescribed, and built a new altar on the lines of the old one.	47 Then they took whole stones according to the law, and built a new altar according to the former:
48 They restored the Holy Place and the interior of the Dwel ing, and purified the courts.	48 And they built up the holy places, and the things that were within the temple: and they sanctified the temple, and the courts.
49 They made new sacred vessels, and brought the lamp-stand, the altar of incense, and the table intothe Temple.	49 And they made new holy vessels, and brought in the candlestick, and the altar of incense, and the table into the temple.
50 They burned incense on the altar and lit the lamps on the lamp-stand, and these shone inside theTemple.	50 And they put incense upon the altar, and lighted up the lamps that were upon the candlestick, and they gave light in the temple.
51 They placed the loaves on the table and hung the curtains and completed al the tasks they hadundertaken.	51 And they set the loaves upon the table, and hung up the veils, and finished all the works that they had begun to make.
52 On the twenty-fifth of the ninth month, Chislev, in the year 148 they rose at dawn	52 And they arose before the morning on the five and twentieth day of the ninth month (which is the month of Casleu) in the hundred and forty-eighth year.
53 and offered a lawful sacrifice on the new altar of burnt offering which they had made.	53 And they offered sacrifice according to the law upon the new altar of holocausts which they had made.
54 The altar was dedicated, to the sound of hymns, zithers, lyres and cymbals, at the same time of yearand on the same day on which the gentiles had original y profaned it.	54 According to the time, and according to the day wherein the heathens had defiled it, in the same was it dedicated anew with canticles, and harps, and lutes, and cymbals.
55 The whole people fel prostrate in adoration and then praised Heaven who had granted them success.	55 And all the people fell upon their faces, and adored, and blessed up to heaven, him that had prospered them.
56 For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar, joyful y offering burnt offerings, communionand thanksgiving sacrifices.	56 And they kept the dedication of the altar eight days, and they offered holocausts with joy, and sacrifices of salvation, and of praise.
57 They ornamented the front of the Temple with crowns and bosses of gold, renovated the gates andstorerooms, providing the latter with doors.	57 And they adorned the front of the temple with crowns of gold, and escutcheons, and they renewed the gates, and the chambers, and hanged doors upon them.
58 There was no end to the rejoicing among the people, since the disgrace inflicted by the gentiles hadbeen effaced.	58 And there was exceeding great joy among the people, and the reproach of the Gentiles was turned away.
59 Judas, with his brothers and the whole assembly of Israel, made it a law that the days of thededication of the altar should be celebrated yearly at the proper season, for eight days beginning on the twenty-fifth of the month of Chislev, with rejoicing and gladness.	59 And Judas, and his brethren, and all the church of Israel decreed, that the day of the dedication of the altar should be kept in its season from year to year for eight days, from the five and twentieth day of the month of Casleu, with joy and gladness.
60 They then proceeded to build high wal s with strong towers round Mount Zion, to prevent the gentilesfrom coming and riding roughshod over it as in the past.	60 They built up also at that time mount Sion, with high walls, and strong towers round about, lest the Gentiles should at any time come, and tread it down as they did before.
61 Judas stationed a garrison there to guard it; he also fortified Beth-Zur, so that the people would havea fortress confronting Idumaea.	61 And he placed a garrison there to keep it, and he fortified it to secure Bethsura, that the people might have a defence against Idumea.