1 Maccabees 1

1And it came to pass after Alexander, the son of Philip the Macedonian, who came from the land of Chittim, had smitten Darius, king of the Persians and Medes, that he reigned in his stead. And he waged many wars, and won strongholds, and slew kings, and pressed forward to the ends of the earth, and took spoils from many peoples. But when the land was silenced before him, he became exalted, and his heart was lifted up. Then he gathered together a very mighty army, and ruled over lands and peoples and principalities; and they became tributary unto him.

And after these things he took to his bed, and perceived that he was about to die. Then he called his chief ministers, men who had been brought up with him from his youth, and divided his kingdom among them while he was yet alive. And Alexander had reigned twelve years when he died. And his ministers ruled, each in his particular domain. And after he was dead they all assumed the diadem, and their sons after them ^[did likewise; and this continued for^[ many years. And these wrought much evil on the earth.

And a sinful shoot came forth from them, Antiochus Epiphanes, the son of Antiochus the king, who had been a hostage in Rome, and had become king in the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the Greek kingdom. In those days there came forth out of Israel lawless men, and persuaded many, saying: ‘Let us go and make a covenant with the nations that are round about us; for since we separated ourselves from them many evils have come upon us.’ And the saying appeared good in their eyes; and as certain of the people were eager ⁽to carry this out⁽, they went to the king, and he gave them authority to introduce the customs of the Gentiles. And they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem according to the manner of the Gentiles. They also submitted themselves to uncircumcision, and repudiated the holy covenant; yea, they joined themselves to the Gentiles, and sold themselves to do evil.

And when, in the opinion of Antiochus, the kingdom was ⁽sufficiently⁽ established, he determined to exercise dominion also over the land of Egypt, in order that he might rule over two kingdoms. So he pushed forward into Egypt with an immense force; with chariots, and elephants and horsemen, together with a great fleet. And he waged war against Ptolemy, the king of Egypt. And Ptolemy turned back from before him, and fled; and there fell many wounded. And they captured the fortified cities in Egypt; and he took the spoils from the land of Egypt.

And Antiochus, after he had smitten Egypt, returned in the one hundred and fifty-third year, and went up against Israel and Jerusalem with a great army. And in ⁽his⁽ arrogance he entered into the sanctuary, and took the golden altar, and the candlestick for the light, and all its accessories, and the table of the shewbread, and the cups, and the bowls, and the golden censers, and the veil, and the crowns, and the golden adornment on the façade of the Temple, and he scaled it all off. Moreover, he took the silver, and the gold, and the choice vessels; he also took the hidden treasures which he found. And having taken everything, he returned to his own land.

‘And there was great mourning in Israel in every place;

And the rulers and elders groaned;

Virgins and young men languished,

And the beauty of the women faded away;

Every bridegroom took up ⁽his⁽ lament,

She that sat in the bridal-chamber mourned.

And the land was moved for her inhabitants,

And all the house of Jacob was clothed with shame.’

After the lapse of two years the king sent a chief collector of tribute to the cities of Judah; and he came to Jerusalem with a great host. And he spoke unto them peaceful words in subtilty, so that they had confidence in him; but he fell upon the city suddenly, and smote it with a grievous stroke, and destroyed much people in Israel. And he took the spoils of the city, and burned it with fire, and pulled down the houses thereof and the walls thereof round about. And they led captive the women and the children, and took possession of the cattle. And they fortified the city of David with a great and strong wall with strong towers, so that it was made into a citadel for them. And they placed there a sinful nation, lawless men; and they strengthened themselves therein. And they stored up ⁽there⁽ arms and provisions, and collecting together the spoils of Jerusalem, they laid them up there. And it became a sore menace, for it was a place to lie in wait in against the sanctuary, and an evil adversary to Israel continually.

And they shed innocent blood on every side of the sanctuary,

And they defiled the sanctuary.

And because of them the inhabitants of Jerusalem fled,

And she became a dwelling for strangers,

Being herself estranged to her offspring,

And her children forsook her.

Her sanctuary became desolate as a wilderness,

Her feasts were turned into mourning,

Her sabbaths into shame,

Her honour into contempt.

According as her glory ⁽had been⁽ so was ⁽now⁽ her dishonour increased,

And her high estate was turned to mourning.

And the king wrote unto his whole kingdom, that all should be one people, and that every one should give up his ^[religious^[ usages. And all the nations acquiesced in accordance with the command of the king. And many in Israel took delight in his ⁽form of⁽ worship, and they began sacrificing to idols, and profaned the sabbath. Furthermore, the king sent letters by the hand of messengers to Jerusalem and to the cities of Judah ⁽to the effect that⁽ they should practise customs foreign to ⁽the traditions of⁽ the land, and that they should cease the ⁽sacrificing of⁽ whole burnt offerings, and sacrifices, and drink offerings in the sanctuary, and that they should profane the sabbaths and feasts, and pollute the sanctuary and those who had been sanctified; that they should ⁽moreover⁽ build high places, and sacred groves, and shrines for idols, and that they should sacrifice swine and ⁽other⁽ unclean animals; and that they should leave their sons uncircumcized, and make themselves abominable by means of ⁽practising⁽ everything that was unclean and profane, so that they might forget the Law, and change all the ⁽traditional⁽ ordinances. And whosoever should not act according to the word of the king, should die. In this manner did he write unto the whole of his kingdom; and he appointed overseers over all the people; and he commanded the cities of Judah to sacrifice, every one of them. And many of the people joined themselves unto them, all those ^[namely^[ who had forsaken the Law; these did evil in the land, and caused Israel to hide in all manner of hiding-places.

And on the fifteenth day of Chislev in the one hundred and forty-fifth year they set up upon the altar an ‘abomination of desolation’, and in the cities of Judah on every side they established high-places; and they offered sacrifice at the doors of the houses and in the streets. And the books of the Law which they found they rent in pieces, and burned them in the fire. And with whomsoever was found a book of the covenant, and if he was ⁽found⁽ consenting unto the Law, such an one was, according to the king’s sentence, condemned to death. Thus did they in their might to the Israelites who were found month by month in their cities. And on the twenty-fifth day of the month they sacrificed upon the altar which was upon the altar of burnt-offering. And, according to the decree, they put to death the women who had circumcised their children, hanging their babes round their ⁽mothers’⁽ necks, and they put to death their ⁽entire⁽ families, together with those who had circumcised them. Nevertheless many in Israel stood firm and determined in their hearts that they would not eat unclean things, and chose rather to die so that they might not be defiled with meats, thereby profaning the holy covenant; and they did die. And exceeding great wrath came upon Israel.