2 Maccabees 15:22–37

^22ytherefore in his prayer he said after this manner; O ^zLord, ^athou didst send thine angel in the time of Ezekias king of Judea, and didst slay in the host of Sennacherib an hundred fourscore and five thousand: ²³wherefore now also, O ^bLord of heaven, send ^ca good angel before us for a fear and dread unto them; ²⁴and through the might of thine arm let those be stricken with terror, that come against ^dthy holy people to blaspheme. And he ended thus.

²⁵Then ^eNicanor and they that were with him came forward with trumpets and songs. ²⁶But ^eJudas and his company encountered the enemies with invocation and prayer. ²⁷So that ^ffighting with their hands, and praying unto God with their hearts, they slew no less than thirty and five thousand men: for through ^gthe appearance of God they were greatly cheered. ²⁸Now when the ^hbattle was done, returning again with joy, they knew that ⁱNicanor lay dead in his ^kharness. ²⁹Then they made a great shout and a noise, praising the ^lAlmighty ^min their own language. ³⁰And Judas, who was ever the chief defender of the citizens both in body and mind, and who continued his love toward his countrymen all his life, commanded to strike off ⁿNicanor’s head, and his hand with his shoulder, and ⁿbring them to Jerusalem. ³¹So when he was there, and had called them of his nation together, and set the priests before the altar, he sent for them that were of ^othe tower, ³²and shewed them vile Nicanor’s head, and the hand of that blasphemer, ^pwhich with proud brags he had stretched out against the holy temple of the ^qAlmighty. ³³And when he had cut out the tongue of that ungodly Nicanor, he commanded that they should give it by pieces ^runto the fowls, and hang up the reward of his madness before the temple. ³⁴So every man ^spraised toward the heaven the glorious Lord, saying, Blessed be he that hath kept his own place undefiled. ^35tHe hanged also Nicanor’s head upon ^othe tower, an evident and manifest sign unto all of ^uthe help of the Lord. ³⁶And ^vthey ordained all with a common decree in no case to let that day pass without solemnity, but to celebrate the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which in the Syrian tongue is called ^wAdar, ^xthe day before ^yMardocheus’ day. ³⁷Thus went it with Nicanor: and from that time forth the Hebrews had the city in their power. And here will I make an end.