1 Maccabees 5:24–54

²⁴Judas Maccabeus and Jonathan his brother crossed the Jordan and went three days’ journey into the wilderness. ²⁵They encountered the Nabateans, who met them peaceably and told them all that had happened to their brethren in Gilead: ²⁶“Many of them have been shut up in Bozrah and Bosor, in Alema and Chaspho, Maked and Carnaim”— all these cities were strong and large— ²⁷“and some have been shut up in the other cities of Gilead; the enemy are getting ready to attack the strongholds tomorrow and take and destroy all these men in one day.”

²⁸Then Judas and his army quickly turned back by the wilderness road to Bozrah; and he took the city, and killed every male by the edge of the sword; then he seized all its spoils and burned it with fire. ²⁹He departed from there at night, and they went all the way to the stronghold of Dathema. ³⁰At dawn they looked up, and behold, a large company, that could not be counted, carrying ladders and engines of war to capture the stronghold, and attacking the Jews within. ³¹So Judas saw that the battle had begun and that the cry of the city went up to Heaven with trumpets and loud shouts, ³²and he said to the men of his forces, “Fight today for your brethren!” ³³Then he came up behind them in three companies, who sounded their trumpets and cried aloud in prayer. ³⁴And when the army of Timothy realized that it was Maccabeus, they fled before him, and he dealt them a heavy blow. As many as eight thousand of them fell that day.

³⁵Next he turned aside to Alema, and fought against it and took it; and he killed every male in it, plundered it, and burned it with fire. ³⁶From there he marched on and took Chaspho, Maked, and Bosor, and the other cities of Gilead.

³⁷After these things Timothy gathered another army and encamped opposite Raphon, on the other side of the stream. ³⁸Judas sent men to spy out the camp, and they reported to him, “All the Gentiles around us have gathered to him; it is a very large force. ³⁹They also have hired Arabs to help them, and they are encamped across the stream, ready to come and fight against you.” And Judas went to meet them.

⁴⁰Now as Judas and his army drew near to the stream of water, Timothy said to the officers of his forces, “If he crosses over to us first, we will not be able to resist him, for he will surely defeat us. ⁴¹But if he shows fear and camps on the other side of the river, we will cross over to him and defeat him.” ⁴²When Judas approached the stream of water, he stationed the scribes of the people at the stream and gave them this command, “Permit no man to encamp, but make them all enter the battle.” ⁴³Then he crossed over against them first, and the whole army followed him. All the Gentiles were defeated before him, and they threw away their arms and fled into the sacred precincts at Carnaim. ⁴⁴But he took the city and burned the sacred precincts with fire, together with all who were in them. Thus Carnaim was conquered; they could stand before Judas no longer.

⁴⁵Then Judas gathered together all the Israelites in Gilead, the small and the great, with their wives and children and goods, a very large company, to go to the land of Judah. ⁴⁶So they came to Ephron. This was a large and very strong city on the road, and they could not go round it to the right or to the left; they had to go through it. ⁴⁷But the men of the city shut them out and blocked up the gates with stones. ⁴⁸And Judas sent them this friendly message, “Let us pass through your land to get to our land. No one will do you harm; we will simply pass by on foot.” But they refused to open to him. ⁴⁹Then Judas ordered proclamation to be made to the army that each should encamp where he was. ⁵⁰So the men of the forces encamped, and he fought against the city all that day and all the night, and the city was delivered into his hands. ⁵¹He destroyed every male by the edge of the sword, and razed and plundered the city. Then he passed through the city over the slain.

⁵²And they crossed the Jordan into the large plain before Beth-shan. ⁵³And Judas kept rallying the laggards and encouraging the people all the way till he came to the land of Judah. ⁵⁴So they went up to Mount Zion with gladness and joy, and offered burnt offerings, because not one of them had fallen before they returned in safety.