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First Book of Machabees
chapter 1
1
Now it
came to pass, after that Alexander the son of Philip the Macedonian, who first
reigned in Greece, coming out of the land of Cethim, had overthrown Darius king
of the Persians and Medes:
2 He fought many battles, and took the strong holds of
all, and slew the kings of the earth:
3 And he went through even to the ends of the earth,
and took the spoils of many nations: and the earth was quiet before him.
4 And he gathered a power, and a very strong army: and
his heart was exalted and lifted up.
5 And he subdued countries of nations, and princes: and
they became tributaries to him.
6 And after these things, he fell down upon his bed,
and knew that he should die.
7 And he called his servants the nobles that were
brought up with him from his youth: and he divided his kingdom among them,
while he was yet alive.
8 And Alexander reigned twelve years, and he died.
9 And his servants made themselves kings every one in
his place:
10 And they all put crowns upon themselves after his
death, and their sons after them many years, and evils were multiplied in the
earth.
11 And there came out of them a wicked root, Antiochus
the Illustrious, the son of king Antiochus, who had been a hostage at Rome: and
he reigned in the hundred and thirty-seventh year of the kingdom of the Greeks.
12 In those days there went out of Israel wicked men,
and they persuaded many, saying: Let us go, and make a covenant with the
heathens that are round about us: for since we departed from them, many evils
have befallen us.
13 And the word seemed good in their eyes.
14 And some of the people determined to do this, and
went to the king: and he gave them license to do after the ordinances of the
heathens.
15 And they built a place of exercise in Jerusalem,
according to the laws of the nations:
16 And they made themselves prepuces, and departed from
the holy covenant, and joined themselves to the heathens, and were sold to do
evil.
17 And the kingdom was established before Antiochus,
and he had a mind to reign over the land of Egypt, that he might reign over two
kingdoms.
18 And he entered into Egypt with a great multitude,
with chariots and elephants, and horsemen, and a great number of ships:
19 And he made war against Ptolemee king of Egypt, but
Ptolemee was afraid at his presence, and fled, and many were wounded unto
death.
20 And he took the strong cities in the land of Egypt:
and he took the spoils of the land of Egypt.
21 And after Antiochus had ravaged Egypt in the hundred
and forty-third year, he returned and went up against Israel.
22 And he went up to Jerusalem with a great multitude.
23 And he proudly entered into the sanctuary, and took
away the golden altar, and the candlestick of light, and all the vessels
thereof, and the table of proposition, and the pouring vessels, and the vials,
and the little mortars of gold, and the veil, and the crowns, and the golden
ornament that was before the temple: and he broke them all in pieces.
24 And he took the silver and gold, and the precious
vessels: and he took the hidden treasures which he found: and when he had taken
all away he departed into his own country.
25 And he made a great slaughter of men, and spoke very
proudly.
26 And there was great mourning in Israel, and in every
place where they were.
27 And the princes, and the ancients mourned, and the
virgins and the young men were made feeble, and the beauty of the women was
changed.
28 Every bridegroom took up lamentation: and the bride
that set in the marriage bed, mourned:
29 And the land was moved for the inhabitants thereof,
and all the house of Jacob was covered with confusion.
30 And after two full years the king sent the chief
collector of his tributes to the cities of Juda, and he came to Jerusalem with
a great multitude.
31 And he spoke to them peaceable words in deceit: and
they believed him.
32 And he fell upon the city suddenly, and struck it
with a great slaughter, and destroyed much people in Israel.
33 And he took the spoils of the city, and burnt it
with fire, and threw down the houses thereof, and the walls thereof round
about:
34 And they took the women captive, and the children,
and the cattle they possessed.
35 And they built the city of David with a great and
strong wall, and with strong towers, and made it a fortress for them:
36 And they placed there a sinful nation, wicked men,
and they fortified themselves therein: and they stored up armour, and victuals,
and gathered together the spoils of Jerusalem;
37 And laid them up there: and they became a great
snare.
38 And this was a place to lie in wait against the
sanctuary, and an evil devil in Israel.
39 And they shed innocent blood round about the
sanctuary, and defiled the holy place.
40 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem fled away by reason
of them, and the city was made the habitation to strangers, and she became a
stranger to her own seed, and her children forsook her.
41 Her sanctuary was desolate like a wilderness, her
festival days were turned into mourning, her sabbaths into reproach, her
honours were brought to nothing.
42 Her dishonour was increased according to her glory,
and her excellency was turned into mourning.
43 And king Antiochus wrote to all his kingdom, that
all the people should be one: and every one should leave his own law.
44 And all nations consented according to the word of
king Antiochus.
45 And many of Israel consented to his service, and
they sacrificed to idols, and profaned the sabbath.
46 And the king sent letters by the hands of messengers
to Jerusalem, and to all the cities of Juda: that they should follow the law of
the nations of the earth,
47 And should forbid holocausts and sacrifices, and
atonements to be made in the temple of God.
48 And should prohibit the sabbath, and the festival
days, to be celebrated.
49 And he commanded the holy places to be profaned, and
the holy people of Israel.
50 And he commanded altars to be built, and temples,
and idols, and swine's flesh to be immolated, and unclean beasts.
51 And that they should leave their children
uncircumcised, and let their souls be defiled with all uncleannesses, and
abominations, to the end that they should forget the law, and should change all
the justifications of God.
52 And that whosoever would not do according to the
word of king Antiochus should be put to death.
53 According to all these words he wrote to his whole
kingdom, and he appointed rulers over the people that should force them to do
these things.
54 And they commanded the cities of Juda to sacrifice.
55 Then many of the people were gathered to them that
had forsaken the law of the Lord: and they committed evils in the land:
56 And they drove away the people of Israel into
lurking holes, and into the secret places of fugitives.
57 On the fifteenth day of the month Casleu, in the
hundred and forty-fifth year, king Antiochus set up the abominable idol of
desolation upon the altar of God, and they built altars throughout all the
cities of Juda round about:
58 And they burnt incense, and sacrificed at the doors
of the houses, and in the streets.
59 And they cut in pieces, and burnt with fire the
books of the law of God:
60 And every one with whom the books of the testament
of the Lord were found, and whosoever observed the law of the Lord, they put to
death, according to the edict of the king.
61 Thus by their power did they deal with the people of
Israel, that were found in the cities month after month.
62 And on the five and twentieth day of the month they
sacrificed upon the altar of the idol that was over against the altar of God.
63 Now the women that circumcised their children, were
slain according to the commandment of king Antiochus.
64 And they hanged the children about their necks in
all their houses: and those that had circumcised them, they put to death.
65 And many of the people of Israel determined with
themselves, that they would not eat unclean things: and they chose rather to
die than to be defiled with unclean meats.
66 And they would not break the holy law of God, and
they were put to death:
67 And there was very great wrath upon the people.
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