1Maccabees:5
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Now when the nations round about heard that the altar was built and the sanctuary renewed as before ,
it displeased them very much .
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Wherefore they thought to destroy the generation of Jacob that was among them ,
and thereupon they began to slay and destroy the people .
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Then Judas fought against the children of Esau in Idumea at Arabattine ,
because they besieged Gael :
and he gave them a great overthrow ,
and abated their courage ,
and took their spoils .
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Also he remembered the injury of the children of Bean ,
who had been a snare and an offence unto the people ,
in that they lay in wait for them in the ways .
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He shut them up therefore in the towers ,
and encamped against them ,
and destroyed them utterly ,
and burned the towers of that place with fire ,
and all that were therein .
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Afterward he passed over to the children of Ammon ,
where he found a mighty power ,
and much people ,
with Timotheus their captain .
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So he fought many battles with them ,
till at length they were discomfited before him ;
and he smote them .
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And when he had taken Jazar ,
with the towns belonging thereto ,
he returned into Judea .
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Then the heathen that were at Galaad assembled themselves together against the Israelites that were in their quarters ,
to destroy them ;
but they fled to the fortress of Dathema .
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And sent letters unto Judas and his brethren ,
The heathen that are round about us are assembled together against us to destroy us :
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And they are preparing to come and take the fortress whereunto we are fled ,
Timotheus being captain of their host .
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Come now therefore ,
and deliver us from their hands ,
for many of us are slain :
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Yea ,
all our brethren that were in the places of Tobie are put to death :
their wives and their children also they have carried away captives ,
and borne away their stuff ;
and they have destroyed there about a thousand men .
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While these letters were yet reading ,
behold ,
there came other messengers from Galilee with their clothes rent ,
who reported on this wise ,
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And said ,
They of Ptolemais ,
and of Tyrus ,
and Sidon ,
and all Galilee of the Gentiles ,
are assembled together against us to consume us .
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Now when Judas and the people heard these words ,
there assembled a great congregation together ,
to consult what they should do for their brethren ,
that were in trouble ,
and assaulted of them .
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Then said Judas unto Simon his brother ,
Choose thee out men ,
and go and deliver thy brethren that are in Galilee ,
for I and Jonathan my brother will go into the country of Galaad .
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So he left Joseph the son of Zacharias ,
and Azarias ,
captains of the people ,
with the remnant of the host in Judea to keep it .
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Unto whom he gave commandment ,
saying ,
Take ye the charge of this people ,
and see that ye make not war against the heathen until the time that we come again .
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Now unto Simon were given three thousand men to go into Galilee ,
and unto Judas eight thousand men for the country of Galaad .
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Then went Simon into Galilee ,
where he fought many battles with the heathen ,
so that the heathen were discomfited by him .
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And he pursued them unto the gate of Ptolemais ;
and there were slain of the heathen about three thousand men ,
whose spoils he took .
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And those that were in Galilee ,
and in Arbattis ,
with their wives and their children ,
and all that they had ,
took he away with him ,
and brought them into Judea with great joy .
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Judas Maccabeus also and his brother Jonathan went over Jordan ,
and travelled three days '
journey in the wilderness ,
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Where they met with the Nabathites ,
who came unto them in a peaceable manner ,
and told them every thing that had happened to their brethren in the land of Galaad :
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And how that many of them were shut up in Bosora ,
and Bosor ,
and Alema ,
Casphor ,
Maked ,
and Carnaim ;
all these cities are strong and great :
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And that they were shut up in the rest of the cities of the country of Galaad ,
and that against to morrow they had appointed to bring their host against the forts ,
and to take them ,
and to destroy them all in one day .
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Hereupon Judas and his host turned suddenly by the way of the wilderness unto Bosora ;
and when he had won the city ,
he slew all the males with the edge of the sword ,
and took all their spoils ,
and burned the city with fire ,
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From whence he removed by night ,
and went till he came to the fortress .
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And betimes in the morning they looked up ,
and ,
behold ,
there was an innumerable people bearing ladders and other engines of war ,
to take the fortress :
for they assaulted them .
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When Judas therefore saw that the battle was begun ,
and that the cry of the city went up to heaven ,
with trumpets ,
and a great sound ,
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He said unto his host ,
Fight this day for your brethren .
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So he went forth behind them in three companies ,
who sounded their trumpets ,
and cried with prayer .
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Then the host of Timotheus ,
knowing that it was Maccabeus ,
fled from him :
wherefore he smote them with a great slaughter ;
so that there were killed of them that day about eight thousand men .
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This done ,
Judas turned aside to Maspha ;
and after he had assaulted it he took and slew all the males therein ,
and received the spoils thereof and and burnt it with fire .
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From thence went he ,
and took Casphon ,
Maged ,
Bosor ,
and the other cities of the country of Galaad .
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After these things gathered Timotheus another host and encamped against Raphon beyond the brook .
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So Judas sent men to espy the host ,
who brought him word ,
saying ,
All the heathen that be round about us are assembled unto them ,
even a very great host .
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He hath also hired the Arabians to help them and they have pitched their tents beyond the brook ,
ready to come and fight against thee .
Upon this Judas went to meet them .
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Then Timotheus said unto the captains of his host ,
When Judas and his host come near the brook ,
if he pass over first unto us ,
we shall not be able to withstand him ;
for he will mightily prevail against us :
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But if he be afraid ,
and camp beyond the river ,
we shall go over unto him ,
and prevail against him .
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Now when Judas came near the brook ,
he caused the scribes of the people to remain by the brook :
unto whom he gave commandment ,
saying ,
Suffer no man to remain in the camp ,
but let all come to the battle .
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So he went first over unto them ,
and all the people after him :
then all the heathen ,
being discomfited before him ,
cast away their weapons ,
and fled unto the temple that was at Carnaim .
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But they took the city ,
and burned the temple with all that were therein .
Thus was Carnaim subdued ,
neither could they stand any longer before Judas .
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Then Judas gathered together all the Israelites that were in the country of Galaad ,
from the least unto the greatest ,
even their wives ,
and their children ,
and their stuff ,
a very great host ,
to the end they might come into the land of Judea .
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Now when they came unto Ephron , (
this was a great city in the way as they should go ,
very well fortified )
they could not turn from it ,
either on the right hand or the left ,
but must needs pass through the midst of it .
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Then they of the city shut them out ,
and stopped up the gates with stones .
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Whereupon Judas sent unto them in peaceable manner ,
saying ,
Let us pass through your land to go into our own country ,
and none shall do you any hurt ;
we will only pass through on foot :
howbeit they would not open unto him .
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Wherefore Judas commanded a proclamation to be made throughout the host ,
that every man should pitch his tent in the place where he was .
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So the soldiers pitched ,
and assaulted the city all that day and all that night ,
till at the length the city was delivered into his hands :
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Who then slew all the males with the edge of the sword ,
and rased the city ,
and took the spoils thereof ,
and passed through the city over them that were slain .
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After this went they over Jordan into the great plain before Bethsan .
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And Judas gathered together those that came behind ,
and exhorted the people all the way through ,
till they came into the land of Judea .
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So they went up to mount Sion with joy and gladness ,
where they offered burnt offerings ,
because not one of them were slain until they had returned in peace .
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Now what time as Judas and Jonathan were in the land of Galaad ,
and Simon his brother in Galilee before Ptolemais ,
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Joseph the son of Zacharias ,
and Azarias ,
captains of the garrisons ,
heard of the valiant acts and warlike deeds which they had done .
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Wherefore they said ,
Let us also get us a name ,
and go fight against the heathen that are round about us .
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So when they had given charge unto the garrison that was with them ,
they went toward Jamnia .
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Then came Gorgias and his men out of the city to fight against them .
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And so it was ,
that Joseph and Azaras were put to flight ,
and pursued unto the borders of Judea :
and there were slain that day of the people of Israel about two thousand men .
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Thus was there a great overthrow among the children of Israel ,
because they were not obedient unto Judas and his brethren ,
but thought to do some valiant act .
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Moreover these men came not of the seed of those ,
by whose hand deliverance was given unto Israel .
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Howbeit the man Judas and his brethren were greatly renowned in the sight of all Israel ,
and of all the heathen ,
wheresoever their name was heard of ;
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Insomuch as the the people assembled unto them with joyful acclamations .
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Afterward went Judas forth with his brethren ,
and fought against the children of Esau in the land toward the south ,
where he smote Hebron ,
and the towns thereof ,
and pulled down the fortress of it ,
and burned the towers thereof round about .
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From thence he removed to go into the land of the Philistines ,
and passed through Samaria .
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At that time certain priests ,
desirous to shew their valour ,
were slain in battle ,
for that they went out to fight unadvisedly .
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So Judas turned to Azotus in the land of the Philistines ,
and when he had pulled down their altars ,
and burned their carved images with fire ,
and spoiled their cities ,
he returned into the land of Judea .
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