2 Maccabees 8

Then Judas Maccabeus and the men with him went secretly into the villages. They called their relatives together, and they gathered to themselves everyone who had stayed faithful to the Jewish religion. In all, about six thousand men came together.

1Then Judas Maccabeus, and they that were with him, went privily into the towns, and called their kinsfolks together, and took unto them all such as continued in the Jews’ religion, and assembled about six thousand men.

NoteThe background: in 167 BC the Seleucid king Antiochus IV outlawed Jewish practice in Judea, banning circumcision, the sabbath and the temple sacrifices on pain of death. Judas was one of the sons of the priest Mattathias, who had begun armed resistance. "Maccabeus" is a nickname rather than a family name; it most likely means "hammer." "Such as continued in the Jews' religion" means those who had refused to comply with the ban, at a time when complying was the safe choice.

2They called on the Lord, asking him to look at the people who were being trampled down by everyone, and to pity the temple that ungodly men had made unclean.

2And they called upon the Lord, that he would look upon the people that was trodden down of all; and also pity the temple profaned of ungodly men;

NoteThe temple in Jerusalem had been plundered and then rededicated to Olympian Zeus, with pagan sacrifice offered on its altar. To "profane" a holy place is to treat it as ordinary and put it to common use, which for the temple meant it could no longer function at all.

3They asked him to have compassion on the city, which was badly damaged and about to be leveled to the ground, and to listen to the blood that was crying out to him.

3And that he would have compassion upon the city, sore defaced, and ready to be made even with the ground; and hear the blood that cried unto him,

Note"Hear the blood that cried unto him" echoes the story of Cain and Abel, where God tells Cain that his murdered brother's blood is crying out to him from the ground. Blood spilled and unavenged was thought of as calling out for justice until it was answered.

4They asked him to remember the wicked killing of harmless babies, and the insults spoken against his name, and to show how much he hated wickedness.

4And remember the wicked slaughter of harmless infants, and the blasphemies committed against his name; and that he would shew his hatred against the wicked.

NoteThis refers back to an incident earlier in the book: two women who had circumcised their babies in defiance of the royal ban were paraded through Jerusalem with the infants hung at their breasts and then thrown from the city wall.

5Now once Maccabeus had his company around him, the other nations could not stand against him, because the Lord's anger had turned into mercy.

5Now when Maccabeus had his company about him, he could not be withstood by the heathen: for the wrath of the Lord was turned into mercy.

NoteThe King James "heathen" translates a word meaning simply "the nations," that is, everyone who was not Jewish. It is a term of ethnic and religious boundary, not a comment on how sincerely anyone believed anything.

6So he came without warning and burned up villages and cities. He took control of the most useful positions, and he defeated and put to flight a large number of his enemies.

6Therefore he came at unawares, and burnt up towns and cities, and got into his hands the most commodious places, and overcame and put to flight no small number of his enemies.

7He made special use of the night for these secret attacks, and word of his bravery spread everywhere.

7But specially took he advantage of the night for such privy attempts, insomuch that the fruit of his holiness was spread every where.

NoteThe King James "the fruit of his holiness was spread every where" and the modern "word of his bravery spread" come from a genuine disagreement among the Greek manuscripts, which differ over whether the word here means good conduct or courage in action.

8When Philip saw that this man was gaining ground little by little, and that things were going better and better for him, he wrote to Ptolemeus, the governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, asking him to give more support to the king's cause.

8So when Philip saw that this man increased by little and little, and that things prospered with him still more and more, he wrote unto Ptolemeus, the governor of Celosyria and Phenice, to yield more aid to the king’s affairs.

NotePhilip had been left in charge of Jerusalem by Antiochus IV. Coelesyria and Phoenicia was a single Seleucid province covering inland southern Syria and the coastal strip, and Judea lay inside it, so Ptolemeus was the regional governor with authority over Judas's territory.

9He at once chose Nicanor, the son of Patroclus, one of his closest friends, and sent him out with no fewer than twenty thousand men from all nations, to wipe out the whole Jewish people. He also sent with him Gorgias, a commander with much experience in war.

9Then forthwith choosing Nicanor the son of Patroclus, one of his special friends, he sent him with no fewer than twenty thousand of all nations under him, to root out the whole generation of the Jews; and with him he joined also Gorgias a captain, who in matters of war had great experience.

Note"One of his special friends" is a formal court rank, not a description of personal affection: the Friends of the King were a graded order of royal officials in the Hellenistic kingdoms. "Twenty thousand of all nations" reflects the fact that Seleucid armies were largely mercenary, recruited from many different peoples.

10Nicanor set out to raise enough money from selling captured Jews to cover the tribute of two thousand talents that the king had to pay to the Romans.

10So Nicanor undertook to make so much money of the captive Jews, as should defray the tribute of two thousand talents, which the king was to pay to the Romans.

NoteA talent was a unit of weight used for silver, roughly seventy-five pounds, and an enormous sum. The tribute to Rome goes back to the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BC, when Rome defeated Antiochus III and imposed a crushing indemnity on the Seleucid kingdom, payable in installments. Selling prisoners of war into slavery was a normal way for an ancient commander to turn a campaign into cash.

11So he immediately sent word to the cities along the sea coast, announcing a sale of captured Jews and promising ninety people for one talent. He did not expect the punishment that was going to come on him from Almighty God.

11Wherefore immediately he sent to the cities upon the sea coast, proclaiming a sale of the captive Jews, and promising that they should have fourscore and ten bodies for one talent, not expecting the vengeance that was to follow upon him from the Almighty God.

Note"Fourscore and ten" is ninety. A talent was six thousand drachmas, so ninety captives for a talent works out to a fraction of the usual market price for a slave, which ran into the hundreds of drachmas. Nicanor is advertising a clearance sale, and selling the captives before he has caught them. The coastal cities were the Phoenician and Philistine ports, the region's slave markets.

12Now when news of Nicanor's coming reached Judas, he told the men with him that the army was close by.

12Now when word was brought unto Judas of Nicanor’s coming, and he had imparted unto those that were with him that the army was at hand,

13Those who were afraid, and who did not trust God's justice, ran away and slipped out of the country.

13They that were fearful, and distrusted the justice of God, fled, and conveyed themselves away.

14Others sold everything they had left. At the same time they begged the Lord to rescue those whom wicked Nicanor had sold as slaves before he had even met them.

14Others sold all that they had left, and withal besought the Lord to deliver them, sold by the wicked Nicanor before they met together:

NoteSelling what you still owned to raise cash had a specific purpose here: ransoming Jews already taken and sold was a recognized religious duty, and money was the only way to do it.

15They asked him to do it, if not for their own sake, then for the agreements he had made with their ancestors, and for the sake of his holy and glorious name, the name by which they were called.

15And if not for their own sakes, yet for the covenants he had made with their fathers, and for his holy and glorious name’s sake, by which they were called.

Note"The covenants he had made with their fathers" are the binding agreements God was believed to have sworn with Abraham and with Israel at Sinai, which obliged him regardless of the present generation's merits. To be "called by" God's name meant to belong to him the way a household belongs to its head, so that the household's disgrace was the head's disgrace.

16So Maccabeus called his men together, six thousand of them, and urged them not to be struck with terror at the enemy, and not to fear the huge crowd of foreign soldiers who were coming wrongfully against them, but to fight bravely.

16So Maccabeus called his men together unto the number of six thousand, and exhorted them not to be stricken with terror of the enemy, nor to fear the great multitude of the heathen, who came wrongly against them; but to fight manfully,

17He told them to keep before their eyes the wrong that had been done, against all law, to the holy place, and the cruel treatment of the city, which they had turned into a joke, and also the taking away of the way of governing handed down from their ancestors.

17And to set before their eyes the injury that they had unjustly done to the holy place, and the cruel handling of the city, whereof they made a mockery, and also the taking away of the government of their forefathers:

Note"The taking away of the government of their forefathers" refers to Antiochus IV abolishing the ancestral constitution of Judea, under which the Jews had been permitted to live by their own law under their own high priest. Losing it meant losing not just worship but the entire legal and civic order.

18"They," he said, "trust in their weapons and their daring. But our confidence is in the Almighty, who with a nod can throw down both those who are coming against us and the whole world as well."

18For they, said he, trust in their weapons and boldness; but our confidence is in the Almighty who at a beck can cast down both them that come against us, and also all the world.

Note"At a beck" is old English for at a nod or a flick of the hand, that is, with no effort at all.

19He also reminded them of the help their ancestors had found, and how they were rescued, in the time of Sennacherib, when a hundred and eighty-five thousand men died.

19Moreover, he recounted unto them what helps their forefathers had found, and how they were delivered, when under Sennacherib an hundred fourscore and five thousand perished.

NoteSennacherib was king of Assyria, who besieged Jerusalem around 701 BC. The story in 2 Kings tells of his army being struck down in a single night, with a hundred and eighty-five thousand dead, after which he withdrew. The King James "an hundred fourscore and five thousand" is that same number.

20He told them about the battle they fought in Babylon against the Galatians. Only eight thousand of them went into that action, along with four thousand Macedonians. When the Macedonians were at a loss, the eight thousand destroyed a hundred and twenty thousand, because of the help they had from heaven, and they took a great deal of plunder.

20And he told them of the battle that they had in Babylon with the Galatians, how they came but eight thousand in all to the business, with four thousand Macedonians, and that the Macedonians being perplexed, the eight thousand destroyed an hundred and twenty thousand because of the help that they had from heaven, and so received a great booty.

NoteThe Galatians were Gauls who had migrated into Asia Minor in the third century BC and were widely feared as mercenaries and raiders. "Macedonians" here means the Greek-speaking soldiers of the Seleucid army, who traced their military tradition to Alexander's Macedonians. The battle described, with Jewish troops serving alongside them somewhere in Babylonia, is not recorded anywhere else and cannot be identified.

21When he had made them brave with these words, and ready to die for the law and their country, he divided his army into four parts.

21Thus when he had made them bold with these words, and ready to die for the law and the country, he divided his army into four parts;

Note"The law" means the Torah, the body of written commandments and their ancestral interpretation that governed Jewish life. Since Antiochus had outlawed keeping it, dying for the law was a live and literal prospect, not a figure of speech.

22He set his own brothers alongside himself as leaders of the divisions: Simon, Joseph, and Jonathan, giving each of them fifteen hundred men.

22And joined with himself his own brethren, leaders of each band, to wit Simon, and Joseph, and Jonathan, giving each one fifteen hundred men.

NoteThese are Judas's actual brothers, sons of Mattathias. The brother called Joseph here is called John in the parallel account in 1 Maccabees. Simon and Jonathan would each later lead the Jewish state in their turn.

23He also appointed Eleazar to read aloud from the holy book. When he had given them the watchword "The help of God," he himself led the first division into the fight.

23Also he appointed Eleazar to read the holy book: and when he had given them this watchword, The help of God; himself leading the first band,

NoteReading aloud from the scroll before battle follows an old rule that the army be addressed from the law before fighting. A watchword was a password shouted in the field, both to steady the troops and to let men recognize each other in the confusion of close combat.

24With the help of the Almighty they killed more than nine thousand of their enemies. They wounded and disabled most of Nicanor's army, and they forced them all to run.

24And by the help of the Almighty they slew above nine thousand of their enemies, and wounded and maimed the most part of Nicanor’s host, and so put all to flight;

25They took the money of the men who had come to buy them as slaves. They chased them a long way, but they turned back because they ran out of time.

25And took their money that came to buy them, and pursued them far: but lacking time they returned:

26It was the day before the sabbath, and for that reason they did not keep chasing them.

26For it was the day before the sabbath, and therefore they would no longer pursue them.

NoteThe Jewish sabbath ran from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday, so "the day before the sabbath" is Friday, and the pursuit had to stop before dark. Fighting on the sabbath was a real difficulty for this movement: an earlier group of Jewish rebels had let themselves be slaughtered rather than defend themselves on that day, after which Mattathias ruled that they could fight when attacked.

27So when they had collected the enemies' weapons and stripped the spoils from them, they kept the sabbath, giving very great praise and thanks to the Lord, who had kept them safe up to that day. That day was the beginning of mercy coming down on them.

27So when they had gathered their armour together, and spoiled their enemies, they occupied themselves about the sabbath, yielding exceeding praise and thanks to the Lord, who had preserved them unto that day, which was the beginning of mercy distilling upon them.

NoteCollecting the enemy's weapons and stripping their bodies was the normal and expected aftermath of an ancient battle, and the arms were valuable: an army short of equipment rearmed itself from the dead.

28After the sabbath they gave part of the spoils to those who had been maimed, and to the widows and orphans. The rest they divided among themselves and their servants.

28And after the sabbath, when they had given part of the spoils to the maimed, and the widows, and orphans, the residue they divided among themselves and their servants.

NoteThose "maimed" are their own men crippled in the fighting, who could no longer earn a living. Widows and orphans had no legal claim on anyone's property in this society and were the standard biblical examples of people dependent on others' charity, so paying them first out of the plunder is a deliberate order of priority. Some Greek manuscripts read "children" here rather than "servants."

29When this was done, and they had prayed together, they begged the merciful Lord to be fully reconciled with his servants forever.

29When this was done, and they had made a common supplication, they besought the merciful Lord to be reconciled with his servants for ever.

30They also killed more than twenty thousand of the men who were with Timotheus and Bacchides, who fought against them. They took high, strong fortresses without much trouble, and they divided among themselves a great deal more plunder. They gave those who had been maimed, and the orphans, the widows, and the aged as well, an equal share of the spoils with themselves.

30Moreover of those that were with Timotheus and Bacchides, who fought against them, they slew above twenty thousand, and very easily got high and strong holds, and divided among themselves many spoils more, and made the maimed, orphans, widows, yea, and the aged also, equal in spoils with themselves.

NoteTimotheus and Bacchides were Seleucid commanders operating in the territories east and south of Judea; both appear again later in the fighting.

31When they had collected the weapons, they stored them all carefully in suitable places, and they carried the rest of the spoils to Jerusalem.

31And when they had gathered their armour together, they laid them up all carefully in convenient places, and the remnant of the spoils they brought to Jerusalem.

32They also killed the tribal commander who served with Timotheus, a very wicked man who had harmed the Jews in many ways.

32They slew also Philarches, that wicked person, who was with Timotheus, and had annoyed the Jews many ways.

NoteThe King James "Philarches" is not a name but a misread title. The Greek word is "phylarch," the commander of a tribal contingent of troops, so the man killed is an officer on Timotheus's staff whose name the text does not give.

33Later, while they were keeping the feast for the victory in their own homeland, they burned Callisthenes, the man who had set fire to the holy gates and had run into a small house. So he got the payment his wickedness deserved.

33Furthermore at such time as they kept the feast for the victory in their country they burnt Callisthenes, that had set fire upon the holy gates, who had fled into a little house; and so he received a reward meet for his wickedness.

NoteThe gates of the temple had been burned during the earlier attacks on Jerusalem, a detail the book mentions again elsewhere. Burning the men who had burned the gates matches the punishment to the crime, which is the point the writer is making. The King James "meet" means fitting or deserved.

34As for that utterly wicked Nicanor, who had brought a thousand traders with him to buy the Jews,

34As for that most ungracious Nicanor, who had brought a thousand merchants to buy the Jews,

35with the Lord's help he was brought low by the very people he counted as worth the least. He took off his splendid clothes, sent away the men with him, and made his way inland to Antioch like a runaway slave, in very great disgrace, because his army had been destroyed.

35He was through the help of the Lord brought down by them, of whom he made least account; and putting off his glorious apparel, and discharging his company, he came like a fugitive servant through the midland unto Antioch having very great dishonour, for that his host was destroyed.

NoteThe "glorious apparel" is the official dress of his rank, which would have identified him instantly. A "fugitive servant" is a runaway slave, the lowest and most hunted thing a traveler could be taken for. Antioch, on the Syrian coast north of Judea, was the Seleucid capital, so he was traveling inland to report to the king.

36So the man who had taken it on himself to make sure the Romans got their tribute by selling captives from Jerusalem told everyone that the Jews had God fighting for them, and that this was why they could not be harmed, because they followed the laws he had given them.

36Thus he, that took upon him to make good to the Romans their tribute by means of captives in Jerusalem, told abroad, that the Jews had God to fight for them, and therefore they could not be hurt, because they followed the laws that he gave them.