1. Septuagint, Tobit, 4.19 (10th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.19. Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For none of the nations has understanding; but the Lord himself gives all good things, and according to his will he humbles whomever he wishes. "So, my son, remember my commands, and do not let them be blotted out of your mind. |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 18.15-18.22, 30.15, 30.19-30.20, 32.35-32.43 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 18.15. נָבִיא מִקִּרְבְּךָ מֵאַחֶיךָ כָּמֹנִי יָקִים לְךָ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֵלָיו תִּשְׁמָעוּן׃ 18.16. כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר־שָׁאַלְתָּ מֵעִם יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּחֹרֵב בְּיוֹם הַקָּהָל לֵאמֹר לֹא אֹסֵף לִשְׁמֹעַ אֶת־קוֹל יְהוָה אֱלֹהָי וְאֶת־הָאֵשׁ הַגְּדֹלָה הַזֹּאת לֹא־אֶרְאֶה עוֹד וְלֹא אָמוּת׃ 18.17. וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֵלָי הֵיטִיבוּ אֲשֶׁר דִּבֵּרוּ׃ 18.18. נָבִיא אָקִים לָהֶם מִקֶּרֶב אֲחֵיהֶם כָּמוֹךָ וְנָתַתִּי דְבָרַי בְּפִיו וְדִבֶּר אֲלֵיהֶם אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר אֲצַוֶּנּוּ׃ 18.19. וְהָיָה הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִשְׁמַע אֶל־דְּבָרַי אֲשֶׁר יְדַבֵּר בִּשְׁמִי אָנֹכִי אֶדְרֹשׁ מֵעִמּוֹ׃ 18.21. וְכִי תֹאמַר בִּלְבָבֶךָ אֵיכָה נֵדַע אֶת־הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־דִבְּרוֹ יְהוָה׃ 18.22. אֲשֶׁר יְדַבֵּר הַנָּבִיא בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה וְלֹא־יִהְיֶה הַדָּבָר וְלֹא יָבוֹא הוּא הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־דִבְּרוֹ יְהוָה בְּזָדוֹן דִּבְּרוֹ הַנָּבִיא לֹא תָגוּר מִמֶּנּוּ׃ 30.15. רְאֵה נָתַתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ הַיּוֹם אֶת־הַחַיִּים וְאֶת־הַטּוֹב וְאֶת־הַמָּוֶת וְאֶת־הָרָע׃ 30.19. הַעִידֹתִי בָכֶם הַיּוֹם אֶת־הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֶת־הָאָרֶץ הַחַיִּים וְהַמָּוֶת נָתַתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ הַבְּרָכָה וְהַקְּלָלָה וּבָחַרְתָּ בַּחַיִּים לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה אַתָּה וְזַרְעֶךָ׃ 32.35. לִי נָקָם וְשִׁלֵּם לְעֵת תָּמוּט רַגְלָם כִּי קָרוֹב יוֹם אֵידָם וְחָשׁ עֲתִדֹת לָמוֹ׃ 32.36. כִּי־יָדִין יְהוָה עַמּוֹ וְעַל־עֲבָדָיו יִתְנֶחָם כִּי יִרְאֶה כִּי־אָזְלַת יָד וְאֶפֶס עָצוּר וְעָזוּב׃ 32.37. וְאָמַר אֵי אֱלֹהֵימוֹ צוּר חָסָיוּ בוֹ׃ 32.38. אֲשֶׁר חֵלֶב זְבָחֵימוֹ יֹאכֵלוּ יִשְׁתּוּ יֵין נְסִיכָם יָקוּמוּ וְיַעְזְרֻכֶם יְהִי עֲלֵיכֶם סִתְרָה׃ 32.39. רְאוּ עַתָּה כִּי אֲנִי אֲנִי הוּא וְאֵין אֱלֹהִים עִמָּדִי אֲנִי אָמִית וַאֲחַיֶּה מָחַצְתִּי וַאֲנִי אֶרְפָּא וְאֵין מִיָּדִי מַצִּיל׃ 32.41. אִם־שַׁנּוֹתִי בְּרַק חַרְבִּי וְתֹאחֵז בְּמִשְׁפָּט יָדִי אָשִׁיב נָקָם לְצָרָי וְלִמְשַׂנְאַי אֲשַׁלֵּם׃ 32.42. אַשְׁכִּיר חִצַּי מִדָּם וְחַרְבִּי תֹּאכַל בָּשָׂר מִדַּם חָלָל וְשִׁבְיָה מֵרֹאשׁ פַּרְעוֹת אוֹיֵב׃ 32.43. הַרְנִינוּ גוֹיִם עַמּוֹ כִּי דַם־עֲבָדָיו יִקּוֹם וְנָקָם יָשִׁיב לְצָרָיו וְכִפֶּר אַדְמָתוֹ עַמּוֹ׃ | 18.15. A prophet will the LORD thy God raise up unto thee, from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;" 18.16. according to all that thou didst desire of the LORD thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying: ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not.’" 18.17. And the LORD said unto me: ‘They have well said that which they have spoken." 18.18. I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him." 18.19. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto My words which he shall speak in My name, I will require it of him." 18.20. But the prophet, that shall speak a word presumptuously in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.’" 18.21. And if thou say in thy heart: ‘How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?’" 18.22. When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken; the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously, thou shalt not be afraid of him." 30.15. See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil," 30.19. I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy seed;" 30.20. to love the LORD thy God, to hearken to His voice, and to cleave unto Him; for that is thy life, and the length of thy days; that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD swore unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them." 32.35. Vengeance is Mine, and recompense, Against the time when their foot shall slip; For the day of their calamity is at hand, And the things that are to come upon them shall make haste." 32.36. For the LORD will judge His people, And repent Himself for His servants; When He seeth that their stay is gone, And there is none remaining, shut up or left at large." 32.37. And it is said: Where are their gods, The rock in whom they trusted;" 32.38. Who did eat the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink-offering? Let him rise up and help you, Let him be your protection." 32.39. See now that I, even I, am He, And there is no god with Me; I kill, and I make alive; I have wounded, and I heal; And there is none that can deliver out of My hand." 32.40. For I lift up My hand to heaven, And say: As I live for ever," 32.41. If I whet My glittering sword, And My hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to Mine adversaries, And will recompense them that hate Me." 32.42. I will make Mine arrows drunk with blood, And My sword shall devour flesh; With the blood of the slain and the captives, From the long-haired heads of the enemy.’" 32.43. Sing aloud, O ye nations, of His people; For He doth avenge the blood of His servants, And doth render vengeance to His adversaries, And doth make expiation for the land of His people." |
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3. Hebrew Bible, Esther, 3, 2 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
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4. Hebrew Bible, Genesis, 4.10, 6.8, 17.9-17.14 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 6.8. וְנֹחַ מָצָא חֵן בְּעֵינֵי יְהוָה׃ 17.9. וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים אֶל־אַבְרָהָם וְאַתָּה אֶת־בְּרִיתִי תִשְׁמֹר אַתָּה וְזַרְעֲךָ אַחֲרֶיךָ לְדֹרֹתָם׃ 17.11. וּנְמַלְתֶּם אֵת בְּשַׂר עָרְלַתְכֶם וְהָיָה לְאוֹת בְּרִית בֵּינִי וּבֵינֵיכֶם׃ 17.12. וּבֶן־שְׁמֹנַת יָמִים יִמּוֹל לָכֶם כָּל־זָכָר לְדֹרֹתֵיכֶם יְלִיד בָּיִת וּמִקְנַת־כֶּסֶף מִכֹּל בֶּן־נֵכָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא מִזַּרְעֲךָ הוּא׃ 17.13. הִמּוֹל יִמּוֹל יְלִיד בֵּיתְךָ וּמִקְנַת כַּסְפֶּךָ וְהָיְתָה בְרִיתִי בִּבְשַׂרְכֶם לִבְרִית עוֹלָם׃ 17.14. וְעָרֵל זָכָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִמּוֹל אֶת־בְּשַׂר עָרְלָתוֹ וְנִכְרְתָה הַנֶּפֶשׁ הַהִוא מֵעַמֶּיהָ אֶת־בְּרִיתִי הֵפַר׃ | 4.10. And He said: ‘What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto Me from the ground." 6.8. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD." 17.9. And God said unto Abraham: ‘And as for thee, thou shalt keep My covet, thou, and thy seed after thee throughout their generations." 17.10. This is My covet, which ye shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee: every male among you shall be circumcised." 17.11. And ye shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covet betwixt Me and you." 17.12. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner, that is not of thy seed." 17.13. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised; and My covet shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covet." 17.14. And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken My covet.’" |
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5. Hebrew Bible, Numbers, 25.1-25.18 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 25.1. וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃ 25.1. וַיֵּשֶׁב יִשְׂרָאֵל בַּשִּׁטִּים וַיָּחֶל הָעָם לִזְנוֹת אֶל־בְּנוֹת מוֹאָב׃ 25.2. וַתִּקְרֶאןָ לָעָם לְזִבְחֵי אֱלֹהֵיהֶן וַיֹּאכַל הָעָם וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲוּוּ לֵאלֹהֵיהֶן׃ 25.3. וַיִּצָּמֶד יִשְׂרָאֵל לְבַעַל פְּעוֹר וַיִּחַר־אַף יְהוָה בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל׃ 25.4. וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה קַח אֶת־כָּל־רָאשֵׁי הָעָם וְהוֹקַע אוֹתָם לַיהוָה נֶגֶד הַשָּׁמֶשׁ וְיָשֹׁב חֲרוֹן אַף־יְהוָה מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל׃ 25.5. וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל־שֹׁפְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הִרְגוּ אִישׁ אֲנָשָׁיו הַנִּצְמָדִים לְבַעַל פְּעוֹר׃ 25.6. וְהִנֵּה אִישׁ מִבְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּא וַיַּקְרֵב אֶל־אֶחָיו אֶת־הַמִּדְיָנִית לְעֵינֵי מֹשֶׁה וּלְעֵינֵי כָּל־עֲדַת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְהֵמָּה בֹכִים פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד׃ 25.7. וַיַּרְא פִּינְחָס בֶּן־אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן־אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן וַיָּקָם מִתּוֹךְ הָעֵדָה וַיִּקַּח רֹמַח בְּיָדוֹ׃ 25.8. וַיָּבֹא אַחַר אִישׁ־יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל־הַקֻּבָּה וַיִּדְקֹר אֶת־שְׁנֵיהֶם אֵת אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאֶת־הָאִשָּׁה אֶל־קֳבָתָהּ וַתֵּעָצַר הַמַּגֵּפָה מֵעַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ 25.9. וַיִּהְיוּ הַמֵּתִים בַּמַּגֵּפָה אַרְבָּעָה וְעֶשְׂרִים אָלֶף׃ 25.11. פִּינְחָס בֶּן־אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן־אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן הֵשִׁיב אֶת־חֲמָתִי מֵעַל בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּקַנְאוֹ אֶת־קִנְאָתִי בְּתוֹכָם וְלֹא־כִלִּיתִי אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּקִנְאָתִי׃ 25.12. לָכֵן אֱמֹר הִנְנִי נֹתֵן לוֹ אֶת־בְּרִיתִי שָׁלוֹם׃ 25.13. וְהָיְתָה לּוֹ וּלְזַרְעוֹ אַחֲרָיו בְּרִית כְּהֻנַּת עוֹלָם תַּחַת אֲשֶׁר קִנֵּא לֵאלֹהָיו וַיְכַפֵּר עַל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ 25.14. וְשֵׁם אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל הַמֻּכֶּה אֲשֶׁר הֻכָּה אֶת־הַמִּדְיָנִית זִמְרִי בֶּן־סָלוּא נְשִׂיא בֵית־אָב לַשִּׁמְעֹנִי׃ 25.15. וְשֵׁם הָאִשָּׁה הַמֻּכָּה הַמִּדְיָנִית כָּזְבִּי בַת־צוּר רֹאשׁ אֻמּוֹת בֵּית־אָב בְּמִדְיָן הוּא׃ 25.16. וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃ 25.17. צָרוֹר אֶת־הַמִּדְיָנִים וְהִכִּיתֶם אוֹתָם׃ 25.18. כִּי צֹרְרִים הֵם לָכֶם בְּנִכְלֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר־נִכְּלוּ לָכֶם עַל־דְּבַר־פְּעוֹר וְעַל־דְּבַר כָּזְבִּי בַת־נְשִׂיא מִדְיָן אֲחֹתָם הַמֻּכָּה בְיוֹם־הַמַּגֵּפָה עַל־דְּבַר־פְּעוֹר׃ | 25.1. And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit harlotry with the daughters of Moab." 25.2. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods; and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods." 25.3. And Israel joined himself unto the Baal of Peor; and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel." 25.4. And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Take all the chiefs of the people, and hang them up unto the LORD in face of the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.’" 25.5. And Moses said unto the judges of Israel: ‘Slay ye every one his men that have joined themselves unto the Baal of Peor.’" 25.6. And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, while they were weeping at the door of the tent of meeting." 25.7. And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand." 25.8. And he went after the man of Israel into the chamber, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel." 25.9. And those that died by the plague were twenty and four thousand." 25.10. And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying:" 25.11. ’Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned My wrath away from the children of Israel, in that he was very jealous for My sake among them, so that I consumed not the children of Israel in My jealousy." 25.12. Wherefore say: Behold, I give unto him My covet of peace;" 25.13. and it shall be unto him, and to his seed after him, the covet of an everlasting priesthood; because he was jealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.’" 25.14. Now the name of the man of Israel that was slain, who was slain with the Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a fathers’house among the Simeonites." 25.15. And the name of the Midianitish woman that was slain was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur; he was head of the people of a fathers’house in Midian." 25.16. And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying:" 25.17. ’Harass the Midianites, and smite them;" 25.18. for they harass you, by their wiles wherewith they have beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the prince of Midian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague in the matter of Peor.’" |
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6. Hebrew Bible, Proverbs, 4.4-4.6 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 4.4. וַיֹּרֵנִי וַיֹּאמֶר לִי יִתְמָךְ־דְּבָרַי לִבֶּךָ שְׁמֹר מִצְוֺתַי וֶחְיֵה׃ 4.5. קְנֵה חָכְמָה קְנֵה בִינָה אַל־תִּשְׁכַּח וְאַל־תֵּט מֵאִמְרֵי־פִי׃ 4.6. אַל־תַּעַזְבֶהָ וְתִשְׁמְרֶךָּ אֱהָבֶהָ וְתִצְּרֶךָּ׃ | 4.4. And he taught me, and said unto me: ‘Let thy heart hold fast my words, Keep my commandments, and live;" 4.5. Get wisdom, get understanding; Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth;" 4.6. Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee; Love her, and she will keep thee." |
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7. Hebrew Bible, 1 Samuel, 12.12 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 12.12. וַתִּרְאוּ כִּי־נָחָשׁ מֶלֶךְ בְּנֵי־עַמּוֹן בָּא עֲלֵיכֶם וַתֹּאמְרוּ לִי לֹא כִּי־מֶלֶךְ יִמְלֹךְ עָלֵינוּ וַיהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם מַלְכְּכֶם׃ | 12.12. And when you saw that Naĥash the king of the children of ῾Ammon came against you, you said to me, No; but a king shall reign over us: when the Lord your God was your king." |
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8. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 1.6, 44.12, 56.2-56.5 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 1.6. מִכַּף־רֶגֶל וְעַד־רֹאשׁ אֵין־בּוֹ מְתֹם פֶּצַע וְחַבּוּרָה וּמַכָּה טְרִיָּה לֹא־זֹרוּ וְלֹא חֻבָּשׁוּ וְלֹא רֻכְּכָה בַּשָּׁמֶן׃ 44.12. חָרַשׁ בַּרְזֶל מַעֲצָד וּפָעַל בַּפֶּחָם וּבַמַּקָּבוֹת יִצְּרֵהוּ וַיִּפְעָלֵהוּ בִּזְרוֹעַ כֹּחוֹ גַּם־רָעֵב וְאֵין כֹּחַ לֹא־שָׁתָה מַיִם וַיִּיעָף׃ 56.2. אַשְׁרֵי אֱנוֹשׁ יַעֲשֶׂה־זֹּאת וּבֶן־אָדָם יַחֲזִיק בָּהּ שֹׁמֵר שַׁבָּת מֵחַלְּלוֹ וְשֹׁמֵר יָדוֹ מֵעֲשׂוֹת כָּל־רָע׃ 56.3. וְאַל־יֹאמַר בֶּן־הַנֵּכָר הַנִּלְוָה אֶל־יְהוָה לֵאמֹר הַבְדֵּל יַבְדִּילַנִי יְהוָה מֵעַל עַמּוֹ וְאַל־יֹאמַר הַסָּרִיס הֵן אֲנִי עֵץ יָבֵשׁ׃ 56.4. כִּי־כֹה אָמַר יְהוָה לַסָּרִיסִים אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁמְרוּ אֶת־שַׁבְּתוֹתַי וּבָחֲרוּ בַּאֲשֶׁר חָפָצְתִּי וּמַחֲזִיקִים בִּבְרִיתִי׃ 56.5. וְנָתַתִּי לָהֶם בְּבֵיתִי וּבְחוֹמֹתַי יָד וָשֵׁם טוֹב מִבָּנִים וּמִבָּנוֹת שֵׁם עוֹלָם אֶתֶּן־לוֹ אֲשֶׁר לֹא יִכָּרֵת׃ | 1.6. From the sole of the foot even unto the head There is no soundness in it; But wounds, and bruises, and festering sores: They have not been pressed, neither bound up, Neither mollified with oil." 44.12. The smith maketh an axe, And worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, And worketh it with his strong arm; Yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth; He drinketh no water, and is faint." 56.2. Happy is the man that doeth this, And the son of man that holdeth fast by it: That keepeth the sabbath from profaning it, And keepeth his hand from doing any evil." 56.3. Neither let the alien, That hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying: ‘The LORD will surely separate me from His people’; Neither let the eunuch say: ‘Behold, I am a dry tree.’" 56.4. For thus saith the LORD Concerning the eunuchs that keep My sabbaths, And choose the things that please Me, And hold fast by My covet:" 56.5. Even unto them will I give in My house And within My walls a monument and a memorial Better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting memorial, That shall not be cut off." |
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9. Hebrew Bible, Judges, 8.23 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 8.23. וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם גִּדְעוֹן לֹא־אֶמְשֹׁל אֲנִי בָּכֶם וְלֹא־יִמְשֹׁל בְּנִי בָּכֶם יְהוָה יִמְשֹׁל בָּכֶם׃ | 8.23. And Gid῾on said to them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you." |
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10. Hebrew Bible, Nehemiah, 4.14 (5th cent. BCE - 4th cent. BCE)
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11. Hebrew Bible, Zechariah, 13.2 (5th cent. BCE - 4th cent. BCE)
| 13.2. וְהָיָה בַיּוֹם הַהוּא נְאֻם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת אַכְרִית אֶת־שְׁמוֹת הָעֲצַבִּים מִן־הָאָרֶץ וְלֹא יִזָּכְרוּ עוֹד וְגַם אֶת־הַנְּבִיאִים וְאֶת־רוּחַ הַטֻּמְאָה אַעֲבִיר מִן־הָאָרֶץ׃ | 13.2. And it shall come to pass in that day, Saith the LORD of hosts, That I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, And they shall no more be remembered; And also I will cause the prophets And the unclean spirit to pass out of the land." |
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12. Herodotus, Histories, 8.98 (5th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 8.98. While Xerxes did thus, he sent a messenger to Persia with news of his present misfortune. Now there is nothing mortal that accomplishes a course more swiftly than do these messengers, by the Persians' skillful contrivance. It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a day's journey. These are stopped neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. ,The first rider delivers his charge to the second, the second to the third, and thence it passes on from hand to hand, even as in the Greek torch-bearers' race in honor of Hephaestus. This riding-post is called in Persia, angareion. |
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13. Xenophon, The Education of Cyrus, 8.6.17-8.6.18 (5th cent. BCE - 4th cent. BCE)
| 8.6.17. We have observed still another device of Cyrus inaugurates a postal system Cyrus to cope with the magnitude of his empire; by means of this institution he would speedily discover the condition of affairs, no matter how far distant they might be from him: he experimented to find out how great a distance a horse could cover in a day when ridden hard but so as not to break down, and then he erected post-stations at just such distances and equipped them with horses and men to take care of them; at each one of the stations he had the proper official appointed to receive the letters that were delivered and to forward them on, to take in the exhausted horses and riders and send on fresh ones. |
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14. Septuagint, Tobit, 4.19 (4th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.19. Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For none of the nations has understanding; but the Lord himself gives all good things, and according to his will he humbles whomever he wishes. "So, my son, remember my commands, and do not let them be blotted out of your mind. |
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15. Anon., 1 Enoch, 94.5 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 94.5. And hold fast my words in the thoughts of your hearts, And suffer them not to be effaced from your hearts;For I know that sinners will tempt men to evilly-entreat wisdom, So that no place may be found for her, And no manner of temptation may minish. 1. The words of the blessing of Enoch, wherewith he blessed the elect and righteous, who will be,living in the day of tribulation, when all the wicked and godless are to be removed. And he took up his parable and said -Enoch a righteous man, whose eyes were opened by God, saw the vision of the Holy One in the heavens, which the angels showed me, and from them I heard everything, and from them I understood as I saw, but not for this generation, but for a remote one which is,for to come. Concerning the elect I said, and took up my parable concerning them:The Holy Great One will come forth from His dwelling,,And the eternal God will tread upon the earth, (even) on Mount Sinai, [And appear from His camp] And appear in the strength of His might from the heaven of heavens.,And all shall be smitten with fear And the Watchers shall quake, And great fear and trembling shall seize them unto the ends of the earth.,And the high mountains shall be shaken, And the high hills shall be made low, And shall melt like wax before the flame,And the earth shall be wholly rent in sunder, And all that is upon the earth shall perish, And there shall be a judgement upon all (men).,But with the righteous He will make peace.And will protect the elect, And mercy shall be upon them.And they shall all belong to God, And they shall be prospered, And they shall all be blessed.And He will help them all, And light shall appear unto them, And He will make peace with them'.,And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgement upon all, And to destroy all the ungodly:And to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, And of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him. |
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16. Anon., Jubilees, 2.17-2.33, 50.12-50.13 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 2.17. And God appointed the sun to be a great sign on the earth for days and for sabbaths and for months and for feasts and for years and for sabbaths of years and for jubilees and for all seasons of the years. 2.18. And it divideth the light from the darkness [and] for prosperity, that all things may prosper which shoot and grow on the earth. 2.19. These three kinds He made on the fourth day. 2.20. And on the fifth day He created great sea monsters in the depths of the waters, for these were the first things of flesh that were created by His hands, the fish and everything that moves in the waters, and everything that flies, the birds and all their kind. 2.21. And the sun rose above them to prosper (them), and above everything that was on the earth, everything that shoots out of the earth, and all fruit-bearing trees, and all flesh. 2.22. These three kinds He created on the fifth day. 2.23. And on the sixth day He created all the animals of the earth, and all cattle, and everything that moves on the earth. 2.24. And after all this He created man, a man and a woman created He them 2.25. and gave him dominion over all that is upon the earth, and in the seas, and over everything that flies, and over beasts and over cattle, and over everything that moves on the earth, and over the whole earth, and over all this He gave him dominion. 2.26. And these four kinds He created on the sixth day. br And there were altogether two and twenty kinds. 2.27. And He finished all His work on the sixth day--all that is in the heavens and on the earth, and in the seas and in the abysses, and in the light and in the darkness, and in everything. 2.28. And He gave us a great sign, the Sabbath day, that we should work six days, but keep Sabbath on the seventh day from all work. brAnd all the angels of the presence, and all the angels of sanctification 2.29. these two great classes--He hath hidden us to keep the Sabbath with Him in heaven and on earth. 2.30. And He said unto us: "Behold, I will separate unto Myself a people from among all the peoples, and these will keep the Sabbath day 2.31. and I will sanctify them unto Myself as My people, and will bless them; as I have sanctified the Sabbath day and do sanctify (it) unto Myself, even so shall I bless them, and they will be My people and I shall be their God. 2.32. And I have chosen the seed of Jacob from amongst all that I have seen, and have written him down as My firstborn son, and have sanctified him unto Myself for ever and ever; 2.33. and I will teach them the Sabbath day, that they may keep Sabbath thereon from all work."... 50.12. and a holy day: and a day of the holy kingdom for all Israel is this day among their days for ever. 50.13. For great is the honour which the Lord hath given to Israel that they should eat and drink and be satisfied on this festival day, and rest thereon from all labour which belongeth to the labour of the children of men, save burning frankincense and bringing oblations and sacrifices before the Lord for days and for Sabbaths. |
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17. Anon., Testament of Moses, 9.6-9.7 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. CE)
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18. Dead Sea Scrolls, Damascus Covenant, 10.14-11.18 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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19. Dead Sea Scrolls, Pesher On Habakkuk, 11.4-11.5 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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20. Dead Sea Scrolls, (Cairo Damascus Covenant) Cd-A, 10.14-11.18 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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21. Dead Sea Scrolls, 1Qha, 12.16 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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22. Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule, 6.6-6.7 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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23. Hebrew Bible, Daniel, 11.25-11.35 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 11.25. וְיָעֵר כֹּחוֹ וּלְבָבוֹ עַל־מֶלֶךְ הַנֶּגֶב בְּחַיִל גָּדוֹל וּמֶלֶךְ הַנֶּגֶב יִתְגָּרֶה לַמִּלְחָמָה בְּחַיִל־גָּדוֹל וְעָצוּם עַד־מְאֹד וְלֹא יַעֲמֹד כִּי־יַחְשְׁבוּ עָלָיו מַחֲשָׁבוֹת׃ 11.26. וְאֹכְלֵי פַת־בָּגוֹ יִשְׁבְּרוּהוּ וְחֵילוֹ יִשְׁטוֹף וְנָפְלוּ חֲלָלִים רַבִּים׃ 11.27. וּשְׁנֵיהֶם הַמְּלָכִים לְבָבָם לְמֵרָע וְעַל־שֻׁלְחָן אֶחָד כָּזָב יְדַבֵּרוּ וְלֹא תִצְלָח כִּי־עוֹד קֵץ לַמּוֹעֵד׃ 11.28. וְיָשֹׁב אַרְצוֹ בִּרְכוּשׁ גָּדוֹל וּלְבָבוֹ עַל־בְּרִית קֹדֶשׁ וְעָשָׂה וְשָׁב לְאַרְצוֹ׃ 11.29. לַמּוֹעֵד יָשׁוּב וּבָא בַנֶּגֶב וְלֹא־תִהְיֶה כָרִאשֹׁנָה וְכָאַחֲרֹנָה׃ 11.31. וּזְרֹעִים מִמֶּנּוּ יַעֲמֹדוּ וְחִלְּלוּ הַמִּקְדָּשׁ הַמָּעוֹז וְהֵסִירוּ הַתָּמִיד וְנָתְנוּ הַשִּׁקּוּץ מְשׁוֹמֵם׃ 11.32. וּמַרְשִׁיעֵי בְרִית יַחֲנִיף בַּחֲלַקּוֹת וְעַם יֹדְעֵי אֱלֹהָיו יַחֲזִקוּ וְעָשׂוּ׃ 11.33. וּמַשְׂכִּילֵי עָם יָבִינוּ לָרַבִּים וְנִכְשְׁלוּ בְּחֶרֶב וּבְלֶהָבָה בִּשְׁבִי וּבְבִזָּה יָמִים׃ 11.34. וּבְהִכָּשְׁלָם יֵעָזְרוּ עֵזֶר מְעָט וְנִלְווּ עֲלֵיהֶם רַבִּים בַּחֲלַקְלַקּוֹת׃ 11.35. וּמִן־הַמַּשְׂכִּילִים יִכָּשְׁלוּ לִצְרוֹף בָּהֶם וּלְבָרֵר וְלַלְבֵּן עַד־עֵת קֵץ כִּי־עוֹד לַמּוֹעֵד׃ | 11.25. And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall stir himself up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand, for they shall devise devices against him." 11.26. Yea, they that eat of his food shall destroy him, and his army shall be swept away; and many shall fall down slain." 11.27. And as for both these kings, their hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper, for the end remaineth yet for the time appointed." 11.28. And he shall return to his own land with great substance; and his heart shall be against the holy covet; and he shall do his pleasure, and return to his own land." 11.29. At the time appointed he shall return, and come into the south; but it shall not be in the latter time as it was in the former." 11.30. For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be cowed, and he shall return, and have indignation against the holy covet, and shall do his pleasure; and he shall return, and have regard unto them that forsake the holy covet." 11.31. And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall profane the sanctuary, even the stronghold, and shall take away the continual burnt-offering, and they shall set up the detestable thing that causeth appalment." 11.32. And such as do wickedly against the covet shall be corrupt by blandishments; but the people that know their God shall show strength, and prevail." 11.33. And they that are wise among the people shall cause the many to understand; yet they shall stumble by the sword and by flame, by captivity and by spoil, many days." 11.34. Now when they shall stumble, they shall be helped with a little help; but many shall join themselves unto them with blandishments." 11.35. And some of them that are wise shall stumble, to refine among them, and to purify, and to make white, even to the time of the end; for it is yet for the time appointed." |
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24. Septuagint, 1 Maccabees, 1.1-1.64, 2.1-2.28, 2.30-2.70, 3.1-3.26, 3.35, 3.43-3.54, 3.58-3.59, 4.1, 4.5, 4.8-4.11, 4.17-4.18, 4.22-4.26, 4.28-4.61, 5.1-5.27, 5.31, 5.34, 5.38, 5.42-5.43, 5.55, 5.59, 5.61, 5.63, 5.65, 5.68, 6.1-6.17, 6.49, 7.1, 7.5, 7.39-7.50, 10.34, 13.3, 14.29, 14.41, 16.3, 16.5, 16.8-16.10, 16.14, 16.23-16.24 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 1.1. After Alexander son of Philip, the Macedonian, who came from the land of Kittim, had defeated Darius, king of the Persians and the Medes, he succeeded him as king. (He had previously become king of Greece.) 1.2. He fought many battles, conquered strongholds, and put to death the kings of the earth. 1.3. He advanced to the ends of the earth, and plundered many nations. When the earth became quiet before him, he was exalted, and his heart was lifted up. 1.4. He gathered a very strong army and ruled over countries, nations, and princes, and they became tributary to him. 1.5. After this he fell sick and perceived that he was dying. 1.6. So he summoned his most honored officers, who had been brought up with him from youth, and divided his kingdom among them while he was still alive. 1.7. And after Alexander had reigned twelve years, he died. 1.8. Then his officers began to rule, each in his own place. 1.9. They all put on crowns after his death, and so did their sons after them for many years; and they caused many evils on the earth. 1.10. From them came forth a sinful root, Antiochus Epiphanes, son of Antiochus the king; he had been a hostage in Rome. He began to reign in the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the kingdom of the Greeks. 1.11. In those days lawless men came forth from Israel, and misled many, saying, "Let us go and make a covet with the Gentiles round about us, for since we separated from them many evils have come upon us. 1.12. This proposal pleased them 1.13. and some of the people eagerly went to the king. He authorized them to observe the ordices of the Gentiles. 1.14. So they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, according to Gentile custom 1.15. and removed the marks of circumcision, and abandoned the holy covet. They joined with the Gentiles and sold themselves to do evil. 1.16. When Antiochus saw that his kingdom was established, he determined to become king of the land of Egypt, that he might reign over both kingdoms. 1.17. So he invaded Egypt with a strong force, with chariots and elephants and cavalry and with a large fleet. 1.18. He engaged Ptolemy king of Egypt in battle, and Ptolemy turned and fled before him, and many were wounded and fell. 1.19. And they captured the fortified cities in the land of Egypt, and he plundered the land of Egypt. 1.20. After subduing Egypt, Antiochus returned in the one hundred and forty-third year. He went up against Israel and came to Jerusalem with a strong force. 1.21. He arrogantly entered the sanctuary and took the golden altar, the lampstand for the light, and all its utensils. 1.22. He took also the table for the bread of the Presence, the cups for drink offerings, the bowls, the golden censers, the curtain, the crowns, and the gold decoration on the front of the temple; he stripped it all off. 1.23. He took the silver and the gold, and the costly vessels; he took also the hidden treasures which he found. 1.24. Taking them all, he departed to his own land. He committed deeds of murder,and spoke with great arrogance. 1.25. Israel mourned deeply in every community 1.26. rulers and elders groaned,maidens and young men became faint,the beauty of women faded. 1.27. Every bridegroom took up the lament;she who sat in the bridal chamber was mourning. 1.28. Even the land shook for its inhabitants,and all the house of Jacob was clothed with shame. 1.29. Two years later the king sent to the cities of Judah a chief collector of tribute, and he came to Jerusalem with a large force. 1.30. Deceitfully he spoke peaceable words to them, and they believed him; but he suddenly fell upon the city, dealt it a severe blow, and destroyed many people of Israel. 1.31. He plundered the city, burned it with fire, and tore down its houses and its surrounding walls. 1.32. And they took captive the women and children, and seized the cattle. 1.33. Then they fortified the city of David with a great strong wall and strong towers, and it became their citadel. 1.34. And they stationed there a sinful people, lawless men. These strengthened their position; 1.35. they stored up arms and food, and collecting the spoils of Jerusalem they stored them there, and became a great snare. 1.36. It became an ambush against the sanctuary,an evil adversary of Israel continually. 1.37. On every side of the sanctuary they shed innocent blood;they even defiled the sanctuary. 1.38. Because of them the residents of Jerusalem fled;she became a dwelling of strangers;she became strange to her offspring,and her children forsook her. 1.39. Her sanctuary became desolate as a desert;her feasts were turned into mourning,her sabbaths into a reproach,her honor into contempt. 1.40. Her dishonor now grew as great as her glory;her exaltation was turned into mourning. 1.41. Then the king wrote to his whole kingdom that all should be one people 1.42. and that each should give up his customs. 1.43. All the Gentiles accepted the command of the king. Many even from Israel gladly adopted his religion; they sacrificed to idols and profaned the sabbath. 1.44. And the king sent letters by messengers to Jerusalem and the cities of Judah; he directed them to follow customs strange to the land 1.45. to forbid burnt offerings and sacrifices and drink offerings in the sanctuary, to profane sabbaths and feasts 1.46. to defile the sanctuary and the priests 1.47. to build altars and sacred precincts and shrines for idols, to sacrifice swine and unclean animals 1.48. and to leave their sons uncircumcised. They were to make themselves abominable by everything unclean and profane 1.49. so that they should forget the law and change all the ordices. 1.50. And whoever does not obey the command of the king shall die. 1.51. In such words he wrote to his whole kingdom. And he appointed inspectors over all the people and commanded the cities of Judah to offer sacrifice, city by city. 1.52. Many of the people, every one who forsook the law, joined them, and they did evil in the land; 1.53. they drove Israel into hiding in every place of refuge they had. 1.54. Now on the fifteenth day of Chislev, in the one hundred and forty-fifth year, they erected a desolating sacrilege upon the altar of burnt offering. They also built altars in the surrounding cities of Judah 1.55. and burned incense at the doors of the houses and in the streets. 1.56. The books of the law which they found they tore to pieces and burned with fire. 1.57. Where the book of the covet was found in the possession of any one, or if any one adhered to the law, the decree of the king condemned him to death. 1.58. They kept using violence against Israel, against those found month after month in the cities. 1.59. And on the twenty-fifth day of the month they offered sacrifice on the altar which was upon the altar of burnt offering. 1.60. According to the decree, they put to death the women who had their children circumcised 1.61. and their families and those who circumcised them; and they hung the infants from their mothers necks. 1.62. But many in Israel stood firm and were resolved in their hearts not to eat unclean food. 1.63. They chose to die rather than to be defiled by food or to profane the holy covet; and they did die. 1.64. And very great wrath came upon Israel. 2.1. In those days Mattathias the son of John, son of Simeon, a priest of the sons of Joarib, moved from Jerusalem and settled in Modein. 2.2. He had five sons, John surnamed Gaddi 2.3. Simon called Thassi 2.4. Judas called Maccabeus 2.5. Eleazar called Avaran, and Jonathan called Apphus. 2.6. He saw the blasphemies being committed in Judah and Jerusalem 2.7. and said, "Alas! Why was I born to see this,the ruin of my people, the ruin of the holy city,and to dwell there when it was given over to the enemy,the sanctuary given over to aliens? 2.8. Her temple has become like a man without honor; 2.9. her glorious vessels have been carried into captivity. Her babes have been killed in her streets,her youths by the sword of the foe. 2.10. What nation has not inherited her palaces and has not seized her spoils? 2.11. All her adornment has been taken away;no longer free, she has become a slave. 2.12. And behold, our holy place, our beauty,and our glory have been laid waste;the Gentiles have profaned it. 2.13. Why should we live any longer? 2.14. And Mattathias and his sons rent their clothes, put on sackcloth, and mourned greatly. 2.15. Then the kings officers who were enforcing the apostasy came to the city of Modein to make them offer sacrifice. 2.16. Many from Israel came to them; and Mattathias and his sons were assembled. 2.17. Then the kings officers spoke to Mattathias as follows: "You are a leader, honored and great in this city, and supported by sons and brothers. 2.18. Now be the first to come and do what the king commands, as all the Gentiles and the men of Judah and those that are left in Jerusalem have done. Then you and your sons will be numbered among the friends of the king, and you and your sons will be honored with silver and gold and many gifts. 2.19. But Mattathias answered and said in a loud voice: "Even if all the nations that live under the rule of the king obey him, and have chosen to do his commandments, departing each one from the religion of his fathers 2.20. yet I and my sons and my brothers will live by the covet of our fathers. 2.21. Far be it from us to desert the law and the ordices. 2.22. We will not obey the kings words by turning aside from our religion to the right hand or to the left. 2.23. When he had finished speaking these words, a Jew came forward in the sight of all to offer sacrifice upon the altar in Modein, according to the kings command. 2.24. When Mattathias saw it, be burned with zeal and his heart was stirred. He gave vent to righteous anger; he ran and killed him upon the altar. 2.25. At the same time he killed the kings officer who was forcing them to sacrifice, and he tore down the altar. 2.26. Thus he burned with zeal for the law, as Phinehas did against Zimri the son of Salu. 2.27. Then Mattathias cried out in the city with a loud voice, saying: "Let every one who is zealous for the law and supports the covet come out with me! 2.28. And he and his sons fled to the hills and left all that they had in the city. 2.30. they, their sons, their wives, and their cattle, because evils pressed heavily upon them. 2.31. And it was reported to the kings officers, and to the troops in Jerusalem the city of David, that men who had rejected the kings command had gone down to the hiding places in the wilderness. 2.32. Many pursued them, and overtook them; they encamped opposite them and prepared for battle against them on the sabbath day. 2.33. And they said to them, "Enough of this! Come out and do what the king commands, and you will live. 2.34. But they said, "We will not come out, nor will we do what the king commands and so profane the sabbath day. 2.35. Then the enemy hastened to attack them. 2.36. But they did not answer them or hurl a stone at them or block up their hiding places 2.37. for they said, "Let us all die in our innocence; heaven and earth testify for us that you are killing us unjustly. 2.38. So they attacked them on the sabbath, and they died, with their wives and children and cattle, to the number of a thousand persons. 2.39. When Mattathias and his friends learned of it, they mourned for them deeply. 2.40. And each said to his neighbor: "If we all do as our brethren have done and refuse to fight with the Gentiles for our lives and for our ordices, they will quickly destroy us from the earth. 2.41. So they made this decision that day: "Let us fight against every man who comes to attack us on the sabbath day; let us not all die as our brethren died in their hiding places. 2.42. Then there united with them a company of Hasideans, mighty warriors of Israel, every one who offered himself willingly for the law. 2.43. And all who became fugitives to escape their troubles joined them and reinforced them. 2.44. They organized an army, and struck down sinners in their anger and lawless men in their wrath; the survivors fled to the Gentiles for safety. 2.45. And Mattathias and his friends went about and tore down the altars; 2.46. they forcibly circumcised all the uncircumcised boys that they found within the borders of Israel. 2.47. They hunted down the arrogant men, and the work prospered in their hands. 2.48. They rescued the law out of the hands of the Gentiles and kings, and they never let the sinner gain the upper hand. 2.49. Now the days drew near for Mattathias to die, and he said to his sons: "Arrogance and reproach have now become strong; it is a time of ruin and furious anger. 2.50. Now, my children, show zeal for the law, and give your lives for the covet of our fathers. 2.51. Remember the deeds of the fathers, which they did in their generations; and receive great honor and an everlasting name. 2.52. Was not Abraham found faithful when tested, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness? 2.53. Joseph in the time of his distress kept the commandment, and became lord of Egypt. 2.54. Phinehas our father, because he was deeply zealous, received the covet of everlasting priesthood. 2.55. Joshua, because he fulfilled the command, became a judge in Israel. 2.56. Caleb, because he testified in the assembly, received an inheritance in the land. 2.57. David, because he was merciful, inherited the throne of the kingdom for ever. 2.58. Elijah because of great zeal for the law was taken up into heaven. 2.59. Haniah, Azariah, and Mishael believed and were saved from the flame. 2.60. Daniel because of his innocence was delivered from the mouth of the lions. 2.61. And so observe, from generation to generation, that none who put their trust in him will lack strength. 2.62. Do not fear the words of a sinner, for his splendor will turn into dung and worms. 2.63. Today he will be exalted, but tomorrow he will not be found, because he has returned to the dust, and his plans will perish. 2.64. My children, be courageous and grow strong in the law, for by it you will gain honor. 2.65. Now behold, I know that Simeon your brother is wise in counsel; always listen to him; he shall be your father. 2.66. Judas Maccabeus has been a mighty warrior from his youth; he shall command the army for you and fight the battle against the peoples. 2.67. You shall rally about you all who observe the law, and avenge the wrong done to your people. 2.68. Pay back the Gentiles in full, and heed what the law commands. 2.69. Then he blessed them, and was gathered to his fathers. 2.70. He died in the one hundred and forty-sixth year and was buried in the tomb of his fathers at Modein. And all Israel mourned for him with great lamentation. 3.1. Then Judas his son, who was called Maccabeus, took command in his place. 3.2. All his brothers and all who had joined his father helped him; they gladly fought for Israel. 3.3. He extended the glory of his people. Like a giant he put on his breastplate;he girded on his armor of war and waged battles,protecting the host by his sword. 3.4. He was like a lion in his deeds,like a lions cub roaring for prey. 3.5. He searched out and pursued the lawless;he burned those who troubled his people. 3.6. Lawless men shrank back for fear of him;all the evildoers were confounded;and deliverance prospered by his hand. 3.7. He embittered many kings,but he made Jacob glad by his deeds,and his memory is blessed for ever. 3.8. He went through the cities of Judah;he destroyed the ungodly out of the land;thus he turned away wrath from Israel. 3.9. He was renowned to the ends of the earth;he gathered in those who were perishing. 3.10. But Apollonius gathered together Gentiles and a large force from Samaria to fight against Israel. 3.11. When Judas learned of it, he went out to meet him, and he defeated and killed him. Many were wounded and fell, and the rest fled. 3.12. Then they seized their spoils; and Judas took the sword of Apollonius, and used it in battle the rest of his life. 3.13. Now when Seron, the commander of the Syrian army, heard that Judas had gathered a large company, including a body of faithful men who stayed with him and went out to battle 3.14. he said, "I will make a name for myself and win honor in the kingdom. I will make war on Judas and his companions, who scorn the kings command. 3.15. And again a strong army of ungodly men went up with him to help him, to take vengeance on the sons of Israel. 3.16. When he approached the ascent of Beth-horon, Judas went out to meet him with a small company. 3.17. But when they saw the army coming to meet them, they said to Judas, "How can we, few as we are, fight against so great and strong a multitude? And we are faint, for we have eaten nothing today. 3.18. Judas replied, "It is easy for many to be hemmed in by few, for in the sight of Heaven there is no difference between saving by many or by few. 3.19. It is not on the size of the army that victory in battle depends, but strength comes from Heaven. 3.20. They come against us in great pride and lawlessness to destroy us and our wives and our children, and to despoil us; 3.21. but we fight for our lives and our laws. 3.22. He himself will crush them before us; as for you, do not be afraid of them. 3.23. When he finished speaking, he rushed suddenly against Seron and his army, and they were crushed before him. 3.24. They pursued them down the descent of Beth-horon to the plain; eight hundred of them fell, and the rest fled into the land of the Philistines. 3.25. Then Judas and his brothers began to be feared, and terror fell upon the Gentiles round about them. 3.26. His fame reached the king, and the Gentiles talked of the battles of Judas. 3.35. Lysias was to send a force against them to wipe out and destroy the strength of Israel and the remt of Jerusalem; he was to banish the memory of them from the place 3.43. But they said to one another, "Let us repair the destruction of our people, and fight for our people and the sanctuary. 3.44. And the congregation assembled to be ready for battle, and to pray and ask for mercy and compassion. 3.45. Jerusalem was uninhabited like a wilderness;not one of her children went in or out. The sanctuary was trampled down,and the sons of aliens held the citadel;it was a lodging place for the Gentiles. Joy was taken from Jacob;the flute and the harp ceased to play. 3.46. So they assembled and went to Mizpah, opposite Jerusalem, because Israel formerly had a place of prayer in Mizpah. 3.47. They fasted that day, put on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on their heads, and rent their clothes. 3.48. And they opened the book of the law to inquire into those matters about which the Gentiles were consulting the images of their idols. 3.49. They also brought the garments of the priesthood and the first fruits and the tithes, and they stirred up the Nazirites who had completed their days; 3.50. and they cried aloud to Heaven, saying, "What shall we do with these?Where shall we take them? 3.51. Thy sanctuary is trampled down and profaned,and thy priests mourn in humiliation. 3.52. And behold, the Gentiles are assembled against us to destroy us;thou knowest what they plot against us. 3.53. How will we be able to withstand them,if thou dost not help us? 3.54. Then they sounded the trumpets and gave a loud shout. 3.58. And Judas said, "Gird yourselves and be valiant. Be ready early in the morning to fight with these Gentiles who have assembled against us to destroy us and our sanctuary. 3.59. It is better for us to die in battle than to see the misfortunes of our nation and of the sanctuary. 4.1. Now Gorgias took five thousand infantry and a thousand picked cavalry, and this division moved out by night 4.5. When Gorgias entered the camp of Judas by night, he found no one there, so he looked for them in the hills, because he said, "These men are fleeing from us. 4.8. But Judas said to the men who were with him, "Do not fear their numbers or be afraid when they charge. 4.9. Remember how our fathers were saved at the Red Sea, when Pharaoh with his forces pursued them. 4.10. And now let us cry to Heaven, to see whether he will favor us and remember his covet with our fathers and crush this army before us today. 4.11. Then all the Gentiles will know that there is one who redeems and saves Israel. 4.17. and he said to the people, "Do not be greedy for plunder, for there is a battle before us; 4.18. Gorgias and his force are near us in the hills. But stand now against our enemies and fight them, and afterward seize the plunder boldly. 4.22. they all fled into the land of the Philistines. 4.23. Then Judas returned to plunder the camp, and they seized much gold and silver, and cloth dyed blue and sea purple, and great riches. 4.24. On their return they sang hymns and praises to Heaven, for he is good, for his mercy endures for ever. 4.25. Thus Israel had a great deliverance that day. 4.26. Those of the foreigners who escaped went and reported to Lysias all that had happened. 4.28. But the next year he mustered sixty thousand picked infantrymen and five thousand cavalry to subdue them. 4.29. They came into Idumea and encamped at Beth-zur, and Judas met them with ten thousand men. 4.30. When he saw that the army was strong, he prayed, saying, "Blessed art thou, O Savior of Israel, who didst crush the attack of the mighty warrior by the hand of thy servant David, and didst give the camp of the Philistines into the hands of Jonathan, the son of Saul, and of the man who carried his armor. 4.31. So do thou hem in this army by the hand of thy people Israel, and let them be ashamed of their troops and their cavalry. 4.32. Fill them with cowardice; melt the boldness of their strength; let them tremble in their destruction. 4.33. Strike them down with the sword of those who love thee, and let all who know thy name praise thee with hymns. 4.34. Then both sides attacked, and there fell of the army of Lysias five thousand men; they fell in action. 4.35. And when Lysias saw the rout of his troops and observed the boldness which inspired those of Judas, and how ready they were either to live or to die nobly, he departed to Antioch and enlisted mercenaries, to invade Judea again with an even larger army. 4.36. Then said Judas and his brothers, "Behold, our enemies are crushed; let us go up to cleanse the sanctuary and dedicate it. 4.37. So all the army assembled and they went up to Mount Zion. 4.38. And they saw the sanctuary desolate, the altar profaned, and the gates burned. In the courts they saw bushes sprung up as in a thicket, or as on one of the mountains. They saw also the chambers of the priests in ruins. 4.39. Then they rent their clothes, and mourned with great lamentation, and sprinkled themselves with ashes. 4.40. They fell face down on the ground, and sounded the signal on the trumpets, and cried out to Heaven. 4.41. Then Judas detailed men to fight against those in the citadel until he had cleansed the sanctuary. 4.42. He chose blameless priests devoted to the law 4.43. and they cleansed the sanctuary and removed the defiled stones to an unclean place. 4.44. They deliberated what to do about the altar of burnt offering, which had been profaned. 4.45. And they thought it best to tear it down, lest it bring reproach upon them, for the Gentiles had defiled it. So they tore down the altar 4.46. and stored the stones in a convenient place on the temple hill until there should come a prophet to tell what to do with them. 4.47. Then they took unhewn stones, as the law directs, and built a new altar like the former one. 4.48. They also rebuilt the sanctuary and the interior of the temple, and consecrated the courts. 4.49. They made new holy vessels, and brought the lampstand, the altar of incense, and the table into the temple. 4.50. Then they burned incense on the altar and lighted the lamps on the lampstand, and these gave light in the temple. 4.51. They placed the bread on the table and hung up the curtains. Thus they finished all the work they had undertaken. 4.52. Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, which is the month of Chislev, in the one hundred and forty-eighth year 4.53. they rose and offered sacrifice, as the law directs, on the new altar of burnt offering which they had built. 4.54. At the very season and on the very day that the Gentiles had profaned it, it was dedicated with songs and harps and lutes and cymbals. 4.55. All the people fell on their faces and worshiped and blessed Heaven, who had prospered them. 4.56. So they celebrated the dedication of the altar for eight days, and offered burnt offerings with gladness; they offered a sacrifice of deliverance and praise. 4.57. They decorated the front of the temple with golden crowns and small shields; they restored the gates and the chambers for the priests, and furnished them with doors. 4.58. There was very great gladness among the people, and the reproach of the Gentiles was removed. 4.59. Then Judas and his brothers and all the assembly of Israel determined that every year at that season the days of dedication of the altar should be observed with gladness and joy for eight days, beginning with the twenty-fifth day of the month of Chislev. 4.60. At that time they fortified Mount Zion with high walls and strong towers round about, to keep the Gentiles from coming and trampling them down as they had done before. 4.61. And he stationed a garrison there to hold it. He also fortified Beth-zur, so that the people might have a stronghold that faced Idumea. 5.1. When the Gentiles round about heard that the altar had been built and the sanctuary dedicated as it was before, they became very angry 5.2. and they determined to destroy the descendants of Jacob who lived among them. So they began to kill and destroy among the people. 5.3. But Judas made war on the sons of Esau in Idumea, at Akrabattene, because they kept lying in wait for Israel. He dealt them a heavy blow and humbled them and despoiled them. 5.4. He also remembered the wickedness of the sons of Baean, who were a trap and a snare to the people and ambushed them on the highways. 5.5. They were shut up by him in their towers; and he encamped against them, vowed their complete destruction, and burned with fire their towers and all who were in them. 5.6. Then he crossed over to attack the Ammonites, where he found a strong band and many people with Timothy as their leader. 5.7. He engaged in many battles with them and they were crushed before him; he struck them down. 5.8. He also took Jazer and its villages; then he returned to Judea. 5.9. Now the Gentiles in Gilead gathered together against the Israelites who lived in their territory, and planned to destroy them. But they fled to the stronghold of Dathema 5.10. and sent to Judas and his brothers a letter which said, "The Gentiles around us have gathered together against us to destroy us. 5.11. They are preparing to come and capture the stronghold to which we have fled, and Timothy is leading their forces. 5.12. Now then come and rescue us from their hands, for many of us have fallen 5.13. and all our brethren who were in the land of Tob have been killed; the enemy have captured their wives and children and goods, and have destroyed about a thousand men there. 5.14. While the letter was still being read, behold, other messengers, with their garments rent, came from Galilee and made a similar report; 5.15. they said that against them had gathered together men of Ptolemais and Tyre and Sidon, and all Galilee of the Gentiles, "to annihilate us. 5.16. When Judas and the people heard these messages, a great assembly was called to determine what they should do for their brethren who were in distress and were being attacked by enemies. 5.17. Then Judas said to Simon his brother, "Choose your men and go and rescue your brethren in Galilee; I and Jonathan my brother will go to Gilead. 5.18. But he left Joseph, the son of Zechariah, and Azariah, a leader of the people, with the rest of the forces, in Judea to guard it; 5.19. and he gave them this command, "Take charge of this people, but do not engage in battle with the Gentiles until we return. 5.20. Then three thousand men were assigned to Simon to go to Galilee, and eight thousand to Judas for Gilead. 5.21. o Simon went to Galilee and fought many battles against the Gentiles, and the Gentiles were crushed before him. 5.22. He pursued them to the gate of Ptolemais, and as many as three thousand of the Gentiles fell, and he despoiled them. 5.23. Then he took the Jews of Galilee and Arbatta, with their wives and children, and all they possessed, and led them to Judea with great rejoicing. 5.24. Judas Maccabeus and Jonathan his brother crossed the Jordan and went three days journey into the wilderness. 5.25. They encountered the Nabateans, who met them peaceably and told them all that had happened to their brethren in Gilead: 5.26. 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-- 5.27. 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. 5.31. So Judas saw that the battle had begun and that the cry of the city went up to Heaven with trumpets and loud shouts 5.34. And 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. 5.38. Judas 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. 5.42. When 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. 5.43. Then 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. 5.55. Now while Judas and Jonathan were in Gilead and Simon his brother was in Galilee before Ptolemais 5.59. And Gorgias and his men came out of the city to meet them in battle. 5.61. Thus the people suffered a great rout because, thinking to do a brave deed, they did not listen to Judas and his brothers. 5.63. The man Judas and his brothers were greatly honored in all Israel and among all the Gentiles, wherever their name was heard. 5.65. Then Judas and his brothers went forth and fought the sons of Esau in the land to the south. He struck Hebron and its villages and tore down its strongholds and burned its towers round about. 5.68. But Judas turned aside to Azotus in the land of the Philistines; he tore down their altars, and the graven images of their gods he burned with fire; he plundered the cities and returned to the land of Judah. 6.1. King Antiochus was going through the upper provinces when he heard that Elymais in Persia was a city famed for its wealth in silver and gold. 6.2. Its temple was very rich, containing golden shields, breastplates, and weapons left there by Alexander, the son of Philip, the Macedonian king who first reigned over the Greeks. 6.3. So he came and tried to take the city and plunder it, but he could not, because his plan became known to the men of the city 6.4. and they withstood him in battle. So he fled and in great grief departed from there to return to Babylon. 6.5. Then some one came to him in Persia and reported that the armies which had gone into the land of Judah had been routed; 6.6. that Lysias had gone first with a strong force, but had turned and fled before the Jews; that the Jews had grown strong from the arms, supplies, and abundant spoils which they had taken from the armies they had cut down; 6.7. that they had torn down the abomination which he had erected upon the altar in Jerusalem; and that they had surrounded the sanctuary with high walls as before, and also Beth-zur, his city. 6.8. When the king heard this news, he was astounded and badly shaken. He took to his bed and became sick from grief, because things had not turned out for him as he had planned. 6.9. He lay there for many days, because deep grief continually gripped him, and he concluded that he was dying. 6.10. So he called all his friends and said to them, "Sleep departs from my eyes and I am downhearted with worry. 6.11. I said to myself, `To what distress I have come! And into what a great flood I now am plunged! For I was kind and beloved in my power. 6.12. But now I remember the evils I did in Jerusalem. I seized all her vessels of silver and gold; and I sent to destroy the inhabitants of Judah without good reason. 6.13. I know that it is because of this that these evils have come upon me; and behold, I am perishing of deep grief in a strange land. 6.14. Then he called for Philip, one of his friends, and made him ruler over all his kingdom. 6.15. He gave him the crown and his robe and the signet, that he might guide Antiochus his son and bring him up to be king. 6.16. Thus Antiochus the king died there in the one hundred and forty-ninth year. 6.17. And when Lysias learned that the king was dead, he set up Antiochus the kings son to reign. Lysias had brought him up as a boy, and he named him Eupator. 6.49. He made peace with the men of Beth-zur, and they evacuated the city, because they had no provisions there to withstand a siege, since it was a sabbatical year for the land. 7.1. In the one hundred and fifty-first year Demetrius the son of Seleucus set forth from Rome, sailed with a few men to a city by the sea, and there began to reign. 7.5. Then there came to him all the lawless and ungodly men of Israel; they were led by Alcimus, who wanted to be high priest. 7.39. Now Nicanor went out from Jerusalem and encamped in Beth-horon, and the Syrian army joined him. 7.40. And Judas encamped in Adasa with three thousand men. Then Judas prayed and said 7.41. When the messengers from the king spoke blasphemy, thy angel went forth and struck down one hundred and eighty-five thousand of the Assyrians. 7.42. So also crush this army before us today; let the rest learn that Nicanor has spoken wickedly against the sanctuary, and judge him according to this wickedness. 7.43. So the armies met in battle on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. The army of Nicanor was crushed, and he himself was the first to fall in the battle. 7.44. When his army saw that Nicanor had fallen, they threw down their arms and fled. 7.45. The Jews pursued them a days journey, from Adasa as far as Gazara, and as they followed kept sounding the battle call on the trumpets. 7.46. And men came out of all the villages of Judea round about, and they out-flanked the enemy and drove them back to their pursuers, so that they all fell by the sword; not even one of them was left. 7.47. Then the Jews seized the spoils and the plunder, and they cut off Nicanors head and the right hand which he so arrogantly stretched out, and brought them and displayed them just outside Jerusalem. 7.48. The people rejoiced greatly and celebrated that day as a day of great gladness. 7.49. And they decreed that this day should be celebrated each year on the thirteenth day of Adar. 7.50. So the land of Judah had rest for a few days. 10.34. And all the feasts and sabbaths and new moons and appointed days, and the three days before a feast and the three after a feast -- let them all be days of immunity and release for all the Jews who are in my kingdom. 13.3. he encouraged them, saying to them, "You yourselves know what great things I and my brothers and the house of my father have done for the laws and the sanctuary; you know also the wars and the difficulties which we have seen. 14.29. Since wars often occurred in the country, Simon the son of Mattathias, a priest of the sons of Joarib, and his brothers, exposed themselves to danger and resisted the enemies of their nation, in order that their sanctuary and the law might be perserved; and they brought great glory to their nation. 14.41. And the Jews and their priests decided that Simon should be their leader and high priest for ever, until a trustworthy prophet should arise 16.3. But now I have grown old, and you by His mercy are mature in years. Take my place and my brothers, and go out and fight for our nation, and may the help which comes from Heaven be with you. 16.5. Early in the morning they arose and marched into the plain, and behold, a large force of infantry and horsemen was coming to meet them; and a stream lay between them. 16.8. And they sounded the trumpets, and Cendebeus and his army were put to flight, and many of them were wounded and fell; the rest fled into the stronghold. 16.9. At that time Judas the brother of John was wounded, but John pursued them until Cendebeus reached Kedron, which he had built. 16.10. They also fled into the towers that were in the fields of Azotus, and John burned it with fire, and about two thousand of them fell. And he returned to Judea safely. 16.14. Now Simon was visiting the cities of the country and attending to their needs, and he went down to Jericho with Mattathias and Judas his sons, in the one hundred and seventy-seventh year, in the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat. 16.23. The rest of the acts of John and his wars and the brave deeds which he did, and the building of the walls which he built, and his achievements 16.24. behold, they are written in the chronicles of his high priesthood, from the time that he became high priest after his father. |
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25. Septuagint, 2 Maccabees, 2.18, 3.1, 3.22, 4.3, 4.40, 5.23, 5.25, 5.27, 6.1-6.12, 6.24-6.28, 6.31, 7.4-7.5, 7.37-7.38, 8.1-8.7, 8.14-8.21, 8.25-8.29, 9.9, 10.6, 10.15, 11.4, 11.27-11.32, 12.6, 12.38, 13.3-13.5, 13.14, 14.1, 14.3, 14.37-14.38, 15.1-15.5, 15.37 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 2.18. as he promised through the law. For we have hope in God that he will soon have mercy upon us and will gather us from everywhere under heaven into his holy place, for he has rescued us from great evils and has purified the place.' 3.1. While the holy city was inhabited in unbroken peace and the laws were very well observed because of the piety of the high priest Onias and his hatred of wickedness,' 3.22. While they were calling upon the Almighty Lord that he would keep what had been entrusted safe and secure for those who had entrusted it,' 4.3. When his hatred progressed to such a degree that even murders were committed by one of Simon's approved agents,' 4.40. And since the crowds were becoming aroused and filled with anger, Lysimachus armed about three thousand men and launched an unjust attack, under the leadership of a certain Auranus, a man advanced in years and no less advanced in folly.' 5.23. and at Gerizim, Andronicus; and besides these Menelaus, who lorded it over his fellow citizens worse than the others did. In his malice toward the Jewish citizens,' 5.25. When this man arrived in Jerusalem, he pretended to be peaceably disposed and waited until the holy sabbath day; then, finding the Jews not at work, he ordered his men to parade under arms.' 5.27. But Judas Maccabeus, with about nine others, got away to the wilderness, and kept himself and his companions alive in the mountains as wild animals do; they continued to live on what grew wild, so that they might not share in the defilement.' 6.1. Not long after this, the king sent an Athenian senator to compel the Jews to forsake the laws of their fathers and cease to live by the laws of God,' 6.2. and also to pollute the temple in Jerusalem and call it the temple of Olympian Zeus, and to call the one in Gerizim the temple of Zeus the Friend of Strangers, as did the people who dwelt in that place.' 6.3. Harsh and utterly grievous was the onslaught of evil. 6.4. For the temple was filled with debauchery and reveling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots and had intercourse with women within the sacred precincts, and besides brought in things for sacrifice that were unfit.' 6.5. The altar was covered with abominable offerings which were forbidden by the laws. 6.6. A man could neither keep the sabbath, nor observe the feasts of his fathers, nor so much as confess himself to be a Jew.' 6.7. On the monthly celebration of the king's birthday, the Jews were taken, under bitter constraint, to partake of the sacrifices; and when the feast of Dionysus came, they were compelled to walk in the procession in honor of Dionysus, wearing wreaths of ivy.' 6.8. At the suggestion of Ptolemy a decree was issued to the neighboring Greek cities, that they should adopt the same policy toward the Jews and make them partake of the sacrifices,' 6.9. and should slay those who did not choose to change over to Greek customs. One could see, therefore, the misery that had come upon them.' 6.10. For example, two women were brought in for having circumcised their children. These women they publicly paraded about the city, with their babies hung at their breasts, then hurled them down headlong from the wall.' 6.11. Others who had assembled in the caves near by, to observe the seventh day secretly, were betrayed to Philip and were all burned together, because their piety kept them from defending themselves, in view of their regard for that most holy day.' 6.12. Now I urge those who read this book not to be depressed by such calamities, but to recognize that these punishments were designed not to destroy but to discipline our people.' 6.24. Such pretense is not worthy of our time of life, he said, 'lest many of the young should suppose that Eleazar in his ninetieth year has gone over to an alien religion,' 6.25. and through my pretense, for the sake of living a brief moment longer, they should be led astray because of me, while I defile and disgrace my old age.' 6.26. For even if for the present I should avoid the punishment of men, yet whether I live or die I shall not escape the hands of the Almighty.' 6.27. Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will show myself worthy of my old age' 6.28. and leave to the young a noble example of how to die a good death willingly and nobly for the revered and holy laws.'When he had said this, he went at once to the rack.' 6.31. So in this way he died, leaving in his death an example of nobility and a memorial of courage, not only to the young but to the great body of his nation.' 7.4. These were heated immediately, and he commanded that the tongue of their spokesman be cut out and that they scalp him and cut off his hands and feet, while the rest of the brothers and the mother looked on.' 7.5. When he was utterly helpless, the king ordered them to take him to the fire, still breathing, and to fry him in a pan. The smoke from the pan spread widely, but the brothers and their mother encouraged one another to die nobly, saying,' 7.37. I, like my brothers, give up body and life for the laws of our fathers, appealing to God to show mercy soon to our nation and by afflictions and plagues to make you confess that he alone is God,' 7.38. and through me and my brothers to bring to an end the wrath of the Almighty which has justly fallen on our whole nation.' 8.1. But Judas, who was also called Maccabeus, and his companions secretly entered the villages and summoned their kinsmen and enlisted those who had continued in the Jewish faith, and so they gathered about six thousand men.' 8.2. They besought the Lord to look upon the people who were oppressed by all, and to have pity on the temple which had been profaned by ungodly men,' 8.3. and to have mercy on the city which was being destroyed and about to be leveled to the ground, and to hearken to the blood that cried out to him,' 8.4. and to remember also the lawless destruction of the innocent babies and the blasphemies committed against his name, and to show his hatred of evil.' 8.5. As soon as Maccabeus got his army organized, the Gentiles could not withstand him, for the wrath of the Lord had turned to mercy.' 8.6. Coming without warning, he would set fire to towns and villages. He captured strategic positions and put to flight not a few of the enemy.' 8.7. He found the nights most advantageous for such attacks. And talk of his valor spread everywhere. 8.14. Others sold all their remaining property, and at the same time besought the Lord to rescue those who had been sold by the ungodly Nicanor before he ever met them,' 8.15. if not for their own sake, yet for the sake of the covets made with their fathers, and because he had called them by his holy and glorious name.' 8.16. But Maccabeus gathered his men together, to the number six thousand, and exhorted them not to be frightened by the enemy and not to fear the great multitude of Gentiles who were wickedly coming against them, but to fight nobly,' 8.17. keeping before their eyes the lawless outrage which the Gentiles had committed against the holy place, and the torture of the derided city, and besides, the overthrow of their ancestral way of life.' 8.18. For they trust to arms and acts of daring,'he said, 'but we trust in the Almighty God, who is able with a single nod to strike down those who are coming against us and even the whole world.' 8.19. Moreover, he told them of the times when help came to their ancestors; both the time of Sennacherib, when one hundred and eighty-five thousand perished,' 8.20. and the time of the battle with the Galatians that took place in Babylonia, when eight thousand in all went into the affair, with four thousand Macedonians; and when the Macedonians were hard pressed, the eight thousand, by the help that came to them from heaven, destroyed one hundred and twenty thousand and took much booty.' 8.21. With these words he filled them with good courage and made them ready to die for their laws and their country; then he divided his army into four parts. 8.25. They captured the money of those who had come to buy them as slaves. After pursuing them for some distance, they were obliged to return because the hour was late.' 8.26. For it was the day before the sabbath, and for that reason they did not continue their pursuit.' 8.27. And when they had collected the arms of the enemy and stripped them of their spoils, they kept the sabbath, giving great praise and thanks to the Lord, who had preserved them for that day and allotted it to them as the beginning of mercy.' 8.28. After the sabbath they gave some of the spoils to those who had been tortured and to the widows and orphans, and distributed the rest among themselves and their children.' 8.29. When they had done this, they made common supplication and besought the merciful Lord to be wholly reconciled with his servants.' 9.9. And so the ungodly man's body swarmed with worms, and while he was still living in anguish and pain, his flesh rotted away, and because of his stench the whole army felt revulsion at his decay.' 10.6. And they celebrated it for eight days with rejoicing, in the manner of the feast of booths, remembering how not long before, during the feast of booths, they had been wandering in the mountains and caves like wild animals.' 10.15. Besides this, the Idumeans, who had control of important strongholds, were harassing the Jews; they received those who were banished from Jerusalem, and endeavored to keep up the war.' 11.4. He took no account whatever of the power of God, but was elated with his ten thousands of infantry, and his thousands of cavalry, and his eighty elephants.' 11.27. To the nation the king's letter was as follows:'King Antiochus to the senate of the Jews and to the other Jews, greeting.' 11.28. If you are well, it is as we desire. We also are in good health.' 11.29. Menelaus has informed us that you wish to return home and look after your own affairs. 11.30. Therefore those who go home by the thirtieth day of Xanthicus will have our pledge of friendship and full permission 11.31. for the Jews to enjoy their own food and laws, just as formerly, and none of them shall be molested in any way for what he may have done in ignorance.' 11.32. And I have also sent Menelaus to encourage you. 12.6. and, calling upon God the righteous Judge, attacked the murderers of his brethren. He set fire to the harbor by night, and burned the boats, and massacred those who had taken refuge there.' 12.38. Then Judas assembled his army and went to the city of Adullam. As the seventh day was coming on, they purified themselves according to the custom, and they kept the sabbath there.' 13.3. Menelaus also joined them and with utter hypocrisy urged Antiochus on, not for the sake of his country's welfare, but because he thought that he would be established in office.' 13.4. But the King of kings aroused the anger of Antiochus against the scoundrel; and when Lysias informed him that this man was to blame for all the trouble, he ordered them to take him to Beroea and to put him to death by the method which is the custom in that place.' 13.5. For there is a tower in that place, fifty cubits high, full of ashes, and it has a rim running around it which on all sides inclines precipitously into the ashes.' 13.14. So, committing the decision to the Creator of the world and exhorting his men to fight nobly to the death for the laws, temple, city, country, and commonwealth, he pitched his camp near Modein.' 14.1. Three years later, word came to Judas and his men that Demetrius, the son of Seleucus, had sailed into the harbor of Tripolis with a strong army and a fleet,' 14.3. Now a certain Alcimus, who had formerly been high priest but had wilfully defiled himself in the times of separation, realized that there was no way for him to be safe or to have access again to the holy altar,' 14.37. A certain Razis, one of the elders of Jerusalem, was denounced to Nicanor as a man who loved his fellow citizens and was very well thought of and for his good will was called father of the Jews.' 14.38. For in former times, when there was no mingling with the Gentiles, he had been accused of Judaism, and for Judaism he had with all zeal risked body and life.' 15.1. When Nicanor heard that Judas and his men were in the region of Samaria, he made plans to attack them with complete safety on the day of rest.' 15.2. And when the Jews who were compelled to follow him said, 'Do not destroy so savagely and barbarously, but show respect for the day which he who sees all things has honored and hallowed above other days,' 15.3. the thrice-accursed wretch asked if there were a sovereign in heaven who had commanded the keeping of the sabbath day. 15.4. And when they declared, 'It is the living Lord himself, the Sovereign in heaven, who ordered us to observe the seventh day,' 15.5. he replied, 'And I am a sovereign also, on earth, and I command you to take up arms and finish the king's business.'Nevertheless, he did not succeed in carrying out his abominable design.' 15.37. This, then, is how matters turned out with Nicanor. And from that time the city has been in the possession of the Hebrews. So I too will here end my story.' |
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26. Septuagint, Ecclesiasticus (Siracides), 1.19, 4.13, 6.18-6.37, 17.12, 24.14, 33.7-33.15 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.13. Whoever holds her fast will obtain glory,and the Lord will bless the place she enters. 17.12. He established with them an eternal covet,and showed them his judgments. 24.14. I grew tall like a palm tree in En-gedi,and like rose plants in Jericho;like a beautiful olive tree in the field,and like a plane tree I grew tall. 33.7. Why is any day better than another,when all the daylight in the year is from the sun? 33.8. By the Lords decision they were distinguished,and he appointed the different seasons and feasts; 33.9. some of them he exalted and hallowed,and some of them he made ordinary days. 33.11. In the fulness of his knowledge the Lord distinguished them and appointed their different ways; 33.12. some of them he blessed and exalted,and some of them he made holy and brought near to himself;but some of them he cursed and brought low,and he turned them out of their place. 33.13. As clay in the hand of the potter -- for all his ways are as he pleases -- so men are in the hand of him who made them,to give them as he decides. 33.14. Good is the opposite of evil,and life the opposite of death;so the sinner is the opposite of the godly. 33.15. Look upon all the works of the Most High;they likewise are in pairs, one the opposite of the other. |
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27. Septuagint, Judith, 8.6 (2nd cent. BCE - 0th cent. CE)
| 8.6. She fasted all the days of her widowhood, except the day before the sabbath and the sabbath itself, the day before the new moon and the day of the new moon, and the feasts and days of rejoicing of the house of Israel. |
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28. Josephus Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 4.150-4.155, 12.257-12.266, 12.269, 12.271-12.272, 12.274-12.284, 12.384-12.385, 12.389, 13.251-13.252, 14.60-14.65, 14.226, 14.228, 14.268-14.269, 14.280, 14.440-14.442, 14.445, 17.41-17.45, 18.11, 18.23-18.25, 18.318-18.324 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 4.151. for he avoided that, lest many should imitate the impudence of his language, and thereby disturb the multitude. Upon this the assembly was dissolved. However, the mischievous attempt had proceeded further, if Zimri had not been first slain, which came to pass on the following occasion:— 4.152. Phineas, a man in other respects better than the rest of the young men, and also one that surpassed his contemporaries in the dignity of his father, (for he was the son of Eleazar the high priest, and the grandson of [Aaron] Moses’s brother,) who was greatly troubled at what was done by Zimri, he resolved in earnest to inflict punishment on him, before his unworthy behavior should grow stronger by impunity, and in order to prevent this transgression from proceeding further, which would happen if the ringleaders were not punished. 4.153. He was of so great magimity, both in strength of mind and body, that when he undertook any very dangerous attempt, he did not leave it off till he overcame it, and got an entire victory. So he came into Zimri’s tent, and slew him with his javelin, and with it he slew Cozbi also 4.154. Upon which all those young men that had a regard to virtue, and aimed to do a glorious action, imitated Phineas’s boldness, and slew those that were found to be guilty of the same crime with Zimri. Accordingly many of those that had transgressed perished by the magimous valor of these young men; 4.155. and the rest all perished by a plague, which distemper God himself inflicted upon them; so that all those their kindred, who, instead of hindering them from such wicked actions, as they ought to have done, had persuaded them to go on, were esteemed by God as partners in their wickedness, and died. Accordingly there perished out of the army no fewer than fourteen [twenty-four] thousand at this time. 12.257. 5. When the Samaritans saw the Jews under these sufferings, they no longer confessed that they were of their kindred, nor that the temple on Mount Gerizzim belonged to Almighty God. This was according to their nature, as we have already shown. And they now said that they were a colony of Medes and Persians; and indeed they were a colony of theirs. 12.258. So they sent ambassadors to Antiochus, and an epistle, whose contents are these: “To king Antiochus the god, Epiphanes, a memorial from the Sidonians, who live at Shechem. 12.259. Our forefathers, upon certain frequent plagues, and as following a certain ancient superstition, had a custom of observing that day which by the Jews is called the Sabbath. And when they had erected a temple at the mountain called Gerrizzim, though without a name, they offered upon it the proper sacrifices. 12.261. We therefore beseech thee, our benefactor and Savior, to give order to Apollonius, the governor of this part of the country, and to Nicanor, the procurator of thy affairs, to give us no disturbance, nor to lay to our charge what the Jews are accused for, since we are aliens from their nation, and from their customs; but let our temple, which at present hath no name at all be named the Temple of Jupiter Hellenius. If this were once done, we should be no longer disturbed, but should be more intent on our own occupation with quietness, and so bring in a greater revenue to thee.” 12.262. When the Samaritans had petitioned for this, the king sent them back the following answer, in an epistle: “King Antiochus to Nicanor. The Sidonians, who live at Shechem, have sent me the memorial enclosed. 12.263. When therefore we were advising with our friends about it, the messengers sent by them represented to us that they are no way concerned with accusations which belong to the Jews, but choose to live after the customs of the Greeks. Accordingly, we declare them free from such accusations, and order that, agreeable to their petition, their temple be named the Temple of Jupiter Hellenius.” 12.264. He also sent the like epistle to Apollonius, the governor of that part of the country, in the forty-sixth year, and the eighteenth day of the month Hecatorabeom. 12.265. 1. Now at this time there was one whose name was Mattathias, who dwelt at Modin, the son of John, the son of Simeon, the son of Asamoneus, a priest of the order of Joarib, and a citizen of Jerusalem. 12.266. He had five sons; John, who was called Gaddis, and Simon, who was called Matthes, and Judas, who was called Maccabeus, and Eleazar, who was called Auran, and Jonathan, who was called Apphus. 12.269. because his fellow citizens would follow his example, and because such a procedure would make him honored by the king. But Mattathias said he would not do it; and that if all the other nations would obey the commands of Antiochus, either out of fear, or to please him, yet would not he nor his sons leave the religious worship of their country. 12.271. “If,” said he, “any one be zealous for the laws of his country, and for the worship of God, let him follow me.” And when he had said this, he made haste into the desert with his sons, and left all his substance in the village. 12.272. Many others did the same also, and fled with their children and wives into the desert, and dwelt in caves. But when the king’s generals heard this, they took all the forces they then had in the citadel at Jerusalem, and pursued the Jews into the desert; 12.274. But when they would not comply with their persuasions, but continued to be of a different mind, they fought against them on the Sabbath day, and they burnt them as they were in the caves, without resistance, and without so much as stopping up the entrances of the caves. And they avoided to defend themselves on that day, because they were not willing to break in upon the honor they owed the Sabbath, even in such distresses; for our law requires that we rest upon that day. 12.275. There were about a thousand, with their wives and children, who were smothered and died in these caves; but many of those that escaped joined themselves to Mattathias, and appointed him to be their ruler 12.276. who taught them to fight, even on the Sabbath day; and told them that unless they would do so, they would become their own enemies, by observing the law [so rigorously], while their adversaries would still assault them on this day, and they would not then defend themselves, and that nothing could then hinder but they must all perish without fighting. 12.277. This speech persuaded them. And this rule continues among us to this day, that if there be a necessity, we may fight on Sabbath days. 12.278. So Mattathias got a great army about him, and overthrew their idol altars, and slew those that broke the laws, even all that he could get under his power; for many of them were dispersed among the nations round about them for fear of him. He also commanded that those boys which were not yet circumcised should be circumcised now; and he drove those away that were appointed to hinder such their circumcision. 12.279. 3. But when he had ruled one year, and was fallen into a distemper, he called for his sons, and set them round about him, and said, “O my sons, I am going the way of all the earth; and I recommend to you my resolution, and beseech you not to be negligent in keeping it 12.281. but to become such sons as are worthy of me; to be above all force and necessity, and so to dispose your souls, as to be ready, when it shall be necessary, to die for your laws; as sensible of this, by just reasoning, that if God see that you are so disposed he will not overlook you, but will have a great value for your virtue, and will restore to you again what you have lost, and will return to you that freedom in which you shall live quietly, and enjoy your own customs. 12.282. Your bodies are mortal, and subject to fate; but they receive a sort of immortality, by the remembrance of what actions they have done. And I would have you so in love with this immortality, that you may pursue after glory, and that, when you have undergone the greatest difficulties, you may not scruple, for such things, to lose your lives. 12.283. I exhort you, especially, to agree one with another; and in what excellency any one of you exceeds another, to yield to him so far, and by that means to reap the advantage of every one’s own virtues. Do you then esteem Simon as your father, because he is a man of extraordinary prudence, and be governed by him in what counsels he gives you. 12.284. Take Maccabeus for the general of your army, because of his courage and strength, for he will avenge your nation, and will bring vengeance on your enemies. Admit among you the righteous and religious, and augment their power.” 12.384. for Lysias advised the king to slay Menelaus, if he would have the Jews be quiet, and cause him no further disturbance, for that this man was the origin of all the mischief the Jews had done them, by persuading his father to compel the Jews to leave the religion of their fathers. 12.385. So the king sent Menelaus to Berea, a city of Syria, and there had him put to death, when he had been high priest ten years. He had been a wicked and an impious man; and, in order to get the government to himself, had compelled his nation to transgress their own laws. After the death of Menelaus, Alcimus, who was also called Jacimus, was made high priest. 12.389. 1. About the same time Demetrius, the son of Seleucus, fled away from Rome, and took Tripoli, a city of Syria, and set the diadem on his own head. He also gathered certain mercenary soldiers together, and entered into his kingdom, and was joyfully received by all, who delivered themselves up to him. 13.251. “When Antiochus had erected a trophy at the river Lycus, upon his conquest of Indates, the general of the Parthians, he staid there two days. It was at the desire of Lyrcanus the Jew, because it was such a festival derived to them from their forefathers, whereon the law of the Jews did not allow them to travel.” 13.252. And truly he did not speak falsely in saying so; for that festival, which we call Pentecost, did then fall out to be the next day to the Sabbath. Nor is it lawful for us to journey, either on the Sabbath day, or on a festival day. 14.61. but even on that side there were great towers, and a ditch had been dug, and a deep valley begirt it round about, for on the parts towards the city were precipices, and the bridge on which Pompey had gotten in was broken down. However, a bank was raised, day by day, with a great deal of labor, while the Romans cut down materials for it from the places round about. 14.62. And when this bank was sufficiently raised, and the ditch filled up, though but poorly, by reason of its immense depth, he brought his mechanical engines and battering-rams from Tyre, and placing them on the bank, he battered the temple with the stones that were thrown against it. 14.63. And had it not been our practice, from the days of our forefathers, to rest on the seventh day, this bank could never have been perfected, by reason of the opposition the Jews would have made; for though our law gives us leave then to defend ourselves against those that begin to fight with us and assault us, yet does it not permit us to meddle with our enemies while they do any thing else. 14.64. 3. Which thing when the Romans understood, on those days which we call Sabbaths they threw nothing at the Jews, nor came to any pitched battle with them; but raised up their earthen banks, and brought their engines into such forwardness, that they might do execution the next days. 14.65. And any one may hence learn how very great piety we exercise towards God, and the observance of his laws, since the priests were not at all hindered from their sacred ministrations by their fear during this siege, but did still twice a day, in the morning and about the ninth hour, offer their sacrifices on the altar; nor did they omit those sacrifices, if any melancholy accident happened by the stones that were thrown among them; 14.226. Alexander, the son of Theodorus, the ambassador of Hyrcanus, the son of Alexander, the high priest and ethnarch of the Jews, appeared before me, to show that his countrymen could not go into their armies, because they are not allowed to bear arms or to travel on the Sabbath days, nor there to procure themselves those sorts of food which they have been used to eat from the times of their forefathers;— 14.228. 13. And these were the concessions that Dolabella made to our nation when Hyrcanus sent an embassage to him. But Lucius the consul’s decree ran thus: “I have at my tribunal set these Jews, who are citizens of Rome, and follow the Jewish religious rites, and yet live at Ephesus, free from going into the army, on account of the superstition they are under. This was done before the twelfth of the calends of October, when Lucius Lentulus and Caius Marcellus were consuls 14.268. 1. Now it so fell out, that about this very time the affairs of Syria were in great disorder, and this on the occasion following: Cecilius Bassus, one of Pompey’s party, laid a treacherous design against Sextus Caesar, and slew him, and then took his army, and got the management of public affairs into his own hand; so there arose a great war about Apamia, while Caesar’s generals came against him with an army of horsemen and footmen; 14.269. to these Antipater also sent succors, and his sons with them, as calling to mind the kindnesses they had received from Caesar, and on that account he thought it but just to require punishment for him, and to take vengeance on the man that had murdered him. 14.441. Now when they were within two days’ march of Samosata, the barbarians had laid an ambush there to disturb those that came to Antony, and where the woods made the passes narrow, as they led to the plains, there they laid not a few of their horsemen, who were to lie still until those passengers were gone by into the wide place. 14.442. Now as soon as the first ranks were gone by, (for Herod brought on the rear,) those that lay in ambush, who were about five hundred, fell upon them on the sudden, and when they had put the foremost to flight, the king came riding hard, with the forces that were about him, and immediately drove back the enemy; by which means he made the minds of his own men courageous, and imboldened them to go on, insomuch that those who ran away before now returned back, and the barbarians were slain on all sides. 14.445. 9. And when he was near to Samosata, Antony sent out his army in all their proper habiliments to meet him, in order to pay Herod this respect, and because of the assistance he had given him; for he had heard what attacks the barbarians had made upon him [in Judea]. 17.41. For there was a certain sect of men that were Jews, who valued themselves highly upon the exact skill they had in the law of their fathers, and made men believe they were highly favored by God, by whom this set of women were inveigled. These are those that are called the sect of the Pharisees, who were in a capacity of greatly opposing kings. A cunning sect they were, and soon elevated to a pitch of open fighting and doing mischief. 17.42. Accordingly, when all the people of the Jews gave assurance of their good-will to Caesar, and to the king’s government, these very men did not swear, being above six thousand; and when the king imposed a fine upon them, Pheroras’s wife paid their fine for them. 17.43. In order to requite which kindness of hers, since they were believed to have the foreknowledge of things to come by divine inspiration, they foretold how God had decreed that Herod’s government should cease, and his posterity should be deprived of it; but that the kingdom should come to her and Pheroras, and to their children. 17.44. These predictions were not concealed from Salome, but were told the king; as also how they had perverted some persons about the palace itself; so the king slew such of the Pharisees as were principally accused, and Bagoas the eunuch, and one Carus, who exceeded all men of that time in comeliness, and one that was his catamite. He slew also all those of his own family who had consented to what the Pharisees foretold; 17.45. and for Bagoas, he had been puffed up by them, as though he should be named the father and the benefactor of him who, by the prediction, was foretold to be their appointed king; for that this king would have all things in his power, and would enable Bagoas to marry, and to have children of his own body begotten. 18.11. 2. The Jews had for a great while had three sects of philosophy peculiar to themselves; the sect of the Essenes, and the sect of the Sadducees, and the third sort of opinions was that of those called Pharisees; of which sects, although I have already spoken in the second book of the Jewish War, yet will I a little touch upon them now. 18.11. However, he fell in love with Herodias, this last Herod’s wife, who was the daughter of Aristobulus their brother, and the sister of Agrippa the Great. This man ventured to talk to her about a marriage between them; which address, when she admitted, an agreement was made for her to change her habitation, and come to him as soon as he should return from Rome: one article of this marriage also was this, that he should divorce Aretas’s daughter. 18.23. 6. But of the fourth sect of Jewish philosophy, Judas the Galilean was the author. These men agree in all other things with the Pharisaic notions; but they have an inviolable attachment to liberty, and say that God is to be their only Ruler and Lord. They also do not value dying any kinds of death, nor indeed do they heed the deaths of their relations and friends, nor can any such fear make them call any man lord. 18.23. Now the centurion who was set to keep Agrippa, when he saw with what haste Marsyas came, and what joy Agrippa had from what he said, he had a suspicion that his words implied some great innovation of affairs, and he asked them about what was said. 18.24. And since this immovable resolution of theirs is well known to a great many, I shall speak no further about that matter; nor am I afraid that any thing I have said of them should be disbelieved, but rather fear, that what I have said is beneath the resolution they show when they undergo pain. 18.24. 1. But Herodias, Agrippa’s sister, who now lived as wife to that Herod who was tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, took this authority of her brother in an envious manner, particularly when she saw that he had a greater dignity bestowed on him than her husband had; since, when he ran away, it was because he was not able to pay his debts; and now he was come back, it was because he was in a way of dignity, and of great good fortune. 18.25. And it was in Gessius Florus’s time that the nation began to grow mad with this distemper, who was our procurator, and who occasioned the Jews to go wild with it by the abuse of his authority, and to make them revolt from the Romans. And these are the sects of Jewish philosophy. 18.25. Now Caius saluted Herod, for he first met with him, and then looked upon the letters which Agrippa had sent him, and which were written in order to accuse Herod; wherein he accused him, that he had been in confederacy with Sejanus against Tiberius’s and that he was now confederate with Artabanus, the king of Parthia, in opposition to the government of Caius; 18.318. 2. But when the governor of Babylonia understood this, and had a mind to put a stop to them before they grew greater, and before greater mischiefs should arise from them, he got together as great an army as he could, both of Parthians and Babylonians, and marched against them, thinking to attack them and destroy them before any one should carry them the news that he had got an army together. 18.319. He then encamped at a lake, and lay still; but on the next day (it was the Sabbath, which is among the Jews a day of rest from all sorts of work) he supposed that the enemy would not dare to fight him thereon, but that he would take them and carry them away prisoners, without fighting. He therefore proceeded gradually, and thought to fall upon them on the sudden. 18.321. And when he had said this, some of them went out to spy out what was the matter; and they came again immediately, and said to him, that “neither hast thou been mistaken in telling us what our enemies were doing, nor will those enemies permit us to be injurious to people any longer. 18.322. We are caught by their intrigues like brute beasts, and there is a large body of cavalry marching upon us, while we are destitute of hands to defend ourselves withal, because we are restrained from doing it by the prohibition of our law, which obliges us to rest [on this day].” 18.323. But Asiueus did not by any means agree with the opinion of his spy as to what was to be done, but thought it more agreeable to the law to pluck up their spirits in this necessity they were fallen into, and break their law by avenging themselves, although they should die in the action, than by doing nothing to please their enemies in submitting to be slain by them. Accordingly, he took up his weapons, and infused courage into those that were with him to act as courageously as himself. 18.324. So they fell upon their enemies, and slew a great many of them, because they despised them and came as to a certain victory, and put the rest to flight. |
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29. Josephus Flavius, Jewish War, 1.41, 1.145-1.147, 1.216-1.217, 1.225, 1.321-1.322, 2.143, 2.152-2.153, 2.567, 3.11, 4.159 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.41. 5. So this Antiochus got together fifty thousand footmen, and five thousand horsemen, and fourscore elephants, and marched through Judea into the mountainous parts. He then took Bethsura, which was a small city; but at a place called Bethzacharias, where the passage was narrow, Judas met him with his army. 1.41. But the king, by the expenses he was at, and the liberal disposal of them, overcame nature, and built a haven larger than was the Pyrecum [at Athens]; and in the inner retirements of the water he built other deep stations [for the ships also]. 1.145. 3. But Pompey himself filled up the ditch that was on the north side of the temple, and the entire valley also, the army itself being obliged to carry the materials for that purpose. And indeed it was a hard thing to fill up that valley, by reason of its immense depth, especially as the Jews used all the means possible to repel them from their superior station; 1.146. nor had the Romans succeeded in their endeavors, had not Pompey taken notice of the seventh days, on which the Jews abstain from all sorts of work on a religious account, and raised his bank, but restrained his soldiers from fighting on those days; for the Jews only acted defensively on Sabbath days. 1.147. But as soon as Pompey had filled up the valley, he erected high towers upon the bank, and brought those engines which they had fetched from Tyre near to the wall, and tried to batter it down; and the slingers of stones beat off those that stood above them, and drove them away; but the towers on this side of the city made very great resistance, and were indeed extraordinary both for largeness and magnificence. 1.216. 10. In the meantime, there was a disturbance among the Romans about Apamia, and a civil war occasioned by the treacherous slaughter of Sextus Caesar, by Cecilius Bassus, which he perpetrated out of his goodwill to Pompey; he also took the authority over his forces; but as the rest of Caesar’s commanders attacked Bassus with their whole army, in order to punish him for the murder of Caesar 1.217. Antipater also sent them assistance by his sons, both on account of him that was murdered, and on account of that Caesar who was still alive, both of which were their friends; and as this war grew to be of a considerable length, Marcus came out of Italy as successor to Sextus. 1.225. 4. Upon the war between Cassius and Brutus on one side, against the younger Caesar [Augustus] and Antony on the other, Cassius and Marcus got together an army out of Syria; and because Herod was likely to have a great share in providing necessaries, they then made him procurator of all Syria, and gave him an army of foot and horse. Cassius promised him also, that after the war was over, he would make him king of Judea. 1.321. However, Herod did not desist from his resolution of going to Antony; but when he heard that he was besieging Samosata with a great army, which is a strong city near to Euphrates, he made the greater haste; as observing that this was a proper opportunity for showing at once his courage, and for doing what would greatly oblige Antony. 1.322. Indeed, when he came, he soon made an end of that siege, and slew a great number of the barbarians, and took from them a large prey; insomuch that Antony, who admired his courage formerly, did now admire it still more. Accordingly, he heaped many more honors upon him, and gave him more assured hopes that he should gain his kingdom; and now king Antiochus was forced to deliver up Samosata. 2.143. 8. But for those that are caught in any heinous sins, they cast them out of their society; and he who is thus separated from them does often die after a miserable manner; for as he is bound by the oath he hath taken, and by the customs he hath been engaged in, he is not at liberty to partake of that food that he meets with elsewhere, but is forced to eat grass, and to famish his body with hunger, till he perish; 2.152. and indeed our war with the Romans gave abundant evidence what great souls they had in their trials, wherein, although they were tortured and distorted, burnt and torn to pieces, and went through all kinds of instruments of torment, that they might be forced either to blaspheme their legislator, or to eat what was forbidden them, yet could they not be made to do either of them, no, nor once to flatter their tormentors, or to shed a tear; 2.153. but they smiled in their very pains, and laughed those to scorn who inflicted the torments upon them, and resigned up their souls with great alacrity, as expecting to receive them again. 2.567. Nor did they neglect the care of other parts of the country; but Joseph the son of Simon was sent as general to Jericho, as was Manasseh to Perea, and John, the Essene, to the toparchy of Thamma; Lydda was also added to his portion, and Joppa, and Emmaus. 3.11. 1. And now Vespasian, with his son Titus, had tarried some time at Ptolemais, and had put his army in order. But when Placidus, who had overrun Galilee, and had besides slain a number of those whom he had caught (which were only the weaker part of the Galileans, and such as were of timorous souls) 3.11. This excursion was led on by three men, who were the chief of them all, both for strength and sagacity; Niger, called the Peraite, Silas of Babylon, and besides them John the Essene. 4.159. and indeed they were Gorian the son of Josephus, and Symeon the son of Gamaliel, who encouraged them, by going up and down when they were assembled together in crowds, and as they saw them alone, to bear no longer, but to inflict punishment upon these pests and plagues of their freedom, and to purge the temple of these bloody polluters of it. |
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30. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.182-2.183, 2.217-2.219 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.182. 21. And indeed, hence hath arisen that accusation which some make against us, that we have not produced men that have been the inventors of new operations, or of new ways of speaking; for others think it a fine thing to persevere in nothing that has been delivered down from their forefathers, and these testify it to be an instance of the sharpest wisdom when these men venture to transgress those traditions; 2.183. whereas we, on the contrary, suppose it to be our only wisdom and virtue to admit no actions nor supposals that are contrary to our original laws; which procedure of ours is a just and sure sign that our law is admirably constituted; for such laws as are not thus well made, are convicted upon trial to want amendment. /p 2.217. And as for attempts of unjust behavior towards parents, or for impiety against God, though they be not actually accomplished, the offenders are destroyed immediately. However, the reward for such as live exactly according to the laws, is not silver or gold; it is not a garland of olive branches or of small age, nor any such public sign of commendation; 2.218. but every good man hath his own conscience bearing witness to himself, and by virtue of our legislator’s prophetic spirit, and of the firm security God himself affords such a one, he believes that God hath made this grant to those that observe these laws, even though they be obliged readily to die for them, that they shall come into being again, and at a certain revolution of things shall receive a better life than they had enjoyed before. 2.219. Nor would I venture to write thus at this time, were it not well known to all by our actions that many of our people have many a time bravely resolved to endure any sufferings, rather than speak one word against our law. /p |
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31. Josephus Flavius, Life, 14, 191, 12 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
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32. New Testament, Acts, 13.6 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 13.6. When they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar Jesus |
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33. New Testament, Apocalypse, 16.13, 19.20, 20.10 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 16.13. I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, something like frogs; 19.20. The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. They two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. 20.10. The devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet are also. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever. |
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34. New Testament, Hebrews, 2.1, 4.1, 4.14 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.1. Therefore we ought to pay greater attention to the things that were heard, lest perhaps we drift away. 4.1. Let us fear therefore, lest perhaps a promise being left of entering into his rest, anyone of you should seem to have come short of it. 4.14. Having then a great high priest, who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold tightly to our confession. |
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35. New Testament, Luke, 6.26, 8.15 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 6.26. Woe, when men speak well of you! For their fathers did the same thing to the false prophets. 8.15. That in the good ground, these are such as in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it tightly, and bring forth fruit with patience. |
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36. New Testament, Mark, 1.6, 13.22 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.6. John was clothed with camel's hair and a leather belt around his loins. He ate locusts and wild honey. 13.22. For there will arise false christs and false prophets, and will show signs and wonders, that they may lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones. |
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37. New Testament, Matthew, 7.15, 24.11, 24.24 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 7.15. Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. 24.11. Many false prophets will arise, and will lead many astray. 24.24. For there will arise false Christs, and false prophets, and they will show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. |
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38. Seneca The Younger, Letters, 4.1 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
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39. Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 132a. שכן אם עבר זמנה בטלה אלא היינו טעמא דרבי אליעזר דאמר קרא (ויקרא יב, ג) וביום השמיני ימול בשר ערלתו ואפילו בשבת,וליכתוב רחמנא במילה וליתו הנך וליגמור מיניה משום דאיכא למיפרך מה למילה שכן נכרתו עליה שלש עשרה בריתות:,ע"כ לא פליגי רבנן עליה אלא במכשירי מילה אבל מילה גופה דברי הכל דוחה שבת מנלן אמר עולא הלכה וכן אמר רבי יצחק הלכה,מיתיבי מניין לפיקוח נפש שדוחה את השבת רבי אלעזר בן עזריה אומר מה מילה שהיא אחת מאיבריו של אדם דוחה את השבת קל וחומר לפיקוח נפש שדוחה את השבת,ואי סלקא דעתך הלכה קל וחומר מהלכה מי אתי והתניא אמר לו רבי אלעזר (בן עזריה) עקיבא עצם כשעורה מטמא הלכה ורביעית דם קל וחומר ואין דנין קל וחומר מהלכה,אלא אמר רבי אלעזר אתיא אות אות,אלא מעתה תפילין דכתיב בהן אות לידחי שבת,אלא אתיא ברית ברית,גדול דכתיב ביה ברית לידחי שבת,אלא אתיא דורות דורות,ציצית דכתיב ביה דורות לידחי שבת,אלא אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק דנין אות ברית ודורות מאות ברית ודורות לאפוקי הנך דחד חד הוא דכתיב בהן,ור' יוחנן אמר אמר קרא ביום ביום אפילו בשבת,אמר ליה ריש לקיש לרבי יוחנן אלא מעתה מחוסרי כפרה דכתיב בהו ביום הכי נמי דדחו שבת ההוא מיבעי ליה ביום ולא בלילה,האי נמי מיבעי ליה ביום ולא בלילה ההוא מבן שמנת ימים נפקא,האי נמי מביום צוותו נפקא,אע"ג דנפקא מביום צוותו אצטריכא סד"א הואיל וחס רחמנא עליה לאתויי בדלות בלילה נמי ליתי קמ"ל,מתקיף לה רבינא אלא מעתה יהא זר כשר בהן ויהא אונן כשר בהן הא אהדריה קרא,רב אחא בר יעקב אמר אמר קרא שמיני שמיני אפילו בשבת,האי שמיני מיבעי ליה למעוטי שביעי שביעי מבן שמנת ימים נפקא,ואכתי מיבעי ליה חד למעוטי שביעי וחד למעוטי תשיעי דאי מחד הוה אמינא שביעי הוא דלא מטא זמניה אבל משמיני ואילך זמניה הוא אלא מחוורתא כדרבי יוחנן,תניא כוותיה דרבי יוחנן ודלא כרב אחא בר יעקב שמיני ימול אפילו בשבת ומה אני מקיים (שמות לא, יד) מחלליה מות יומת בשאר מלאכות חוץ ממילה או אינו אלא אפי' מילה ומה אני מקיים שמיני ימול חוץ משבת ת"ל ביום אפילו בשבת,אמר רבא האי תנא מעיקרא מאי קא ניחא ליה ולבסוף מאי קא קשיא ליה,הכי קאמר שמיני ימול אפילו בשבת ומה אני מקיים מחלליה מות יומת בשאר מלאכו' חוץ ממילה אבל מילה דחיא,מ"ט ק"ו הוא ומה צרע' שדוחה את העבודה | 132a. in each, bas if its time passed, it is void,unlike the mitzva of circumcision, which can be fulfilled at a later date if the child is not circumcised on the eighth day. bRather, this is the reasonfor the opinion bof Rabbi Eliezer, as the verse says: “And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised”(Leviticus 12:3), indicating that he is circumcised on the eighth day bevenif it falls bon Shabbat. /b,The Gemara asks: bAnd let the Torah writethis principle only bwith regard tothe mitzva of bcircumcision, and let theseother mitzvot bcome and derivetheir ihalakhot bfrom it.The Gemara answers: bBecausethis suggestion bcan be refuted: Whatis unique about the mitzva of bcircumcision? That thirteen covets were established over it,as the word covet is mentioned thirteen times in the passage dealing with the circumcision of Abraham (Genesis 17). Owing to its great significance, other mitzvot cannot be derived from it.,The Gemara departs from the facilitators of circumcision to the ihalakhaof circumcision itself and asks: bThe Rabbis only disagree withRabbi Eliezer bwith regard to actions that facilitate circumcision,which, in their view, do not override Shabbat; bhowever,with regard to bcircumcision itself, everyone agreesthat it boverrides Shabbat. From where do wederive this ihalakha /i? bUlla said:This is ba ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai, but there is no biblical basis for it. bAnd so too, Rabbi Yitzḥak said:It is ba ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai.,The Gemara braises an objectionfrom that which was taught in the iTosefta /i: bFrom whereis it derived bthat saving a life overrides Shabbat? Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya saysit is derived from the mitzva of circumcision: bJust as circumcision, whichpertains to only bone of a person’s limbs, overrides Shabbat,all the more so it is an ia fortioriinferencethat bsaving a life,which is a mitzva that pertains to the entire person, boverrides Shabbat. /b, bAnd if it should enter your mindto say that circumcision may be performed on Shabbat based on a ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai, bis an ia fortioriinference derived from a ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai? bWasn’t it taughtexplicitly in a ibaraitathat an ia fortioriinference cannot be derived from a ihalakhatransmitted to Moses from Sinai? Rabbi Akiva sought to derive that a nazirite who comes into contact with a quarter ilogof blood from a corpse becomes ritually impure and is required to shave his hair. He sought to do this based on an ia fortioriinference from the ihalakhaof the bone from a dead person the size of a grain of barley, as he had a received tradition that a nazirite is required to shave his hair due to that contact. bRabbi Elazar ben Azarya said to him: Akiva,the ihalakhathat ba bone the size of agrain of bbarley transmits ritual impurity is a ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai, bandyou would derive from it that ba quarterof a ilog bof bloodtransmits ritual impurity based upon ban ia fortioriinference, and one does not derive an ia fortioriinference from a ihalakha /itransmitted to Moses from Sinai. The iToseftaexplicitly states that Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya himself derived an ia fortioriinference from the ihalakhaof circumcision on Shabbat. Clearly, then, it is derived from the Torah itself and not from a ihalakhatransmitted to Moses from Sinai., bRather, Rabbi Elazar said:This ihalakhais bderivedby means of a verbal analogy between the word bsignthat appears with regard to circumcision: “And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a sign of the covet between Me and you” (Genesis 17:11), and bsignthat appears with regard to Shabbat: “However, you shall keep My iShabbatot /i, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations” (Exodus 31:13). From this verbal analogy, it is derived that circumcision, which is a sign, may be performed even on Shabbat, which is itself a sign.,The Gemara asks: bBut ifwhat you say is bso, phylacteries, with regard to whichthe term bsign isalso bwritten:“And it shall be for a sign on your hand and for frontlets between your eyes” (Exodus 13:16), bshouldalso boverride Shabbat,and they should be donned on that day., bRather,this principle is bderivedby means of a different verbal analogy from the word bcovetthat appears with regard to circumcision: “And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a sign of the covet between Me and you” (Genesis 17:11), and the word bcovetthat appears with regard to Shabbat: “The children of Israel shall keep the Shabbat, to observe the Shabbat throughout their generations for a perpetual covet” (Exodus 31:16).,The Gemara raises a difficulty: If this is so, then the circumcision of ban adultshould also be permitted on Shabbat and it should not be limited to a child on the eighth day, basthe term bcovet is written with regard to himas well, as it applies to any Jewish male not yet circumcised. Therefore, blethis circumcision boverride Shabbat.The ihalakha /i, however, is that only circumcision at its proper time on the eighth day overrides Shabbat., bRather,this ihalakha bis derivedby means of a verbal analogy between the word bgenerationsthat appears with regard to Shabbat: “Throughout their generations for a perpetual covet” (Exodus 31:16), and the word bgenerationsthat appears with regard to circumcision: “And I shall establish My covet between Me and you, and between your seed after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covet” (Genesis 17:7).,The Gemara asks: If so, blet ritual fringestoo, bwith regard to whichthe term bgenerations isalso bwritten, override Shabbat,and it should be permitted to affix ritual fringes to a garment on Shabbat., bRather, Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said:This ihalakhais derived not from one common word alone, but bone derivesit based upon the three words bsign, covet, and generationsthat appear with regard to circumcision, bfrom sign, covet, and generationsthat appear with regard to Shabbat, bto the exclusion of these,i.e., ritual fringes and phylacteries, bthat with regard to each of them, oneof these bis writtenbut not all three words together., bAnd Rabbi Yoḥa said: The verse says:“And bon theeighth day…shall be circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3), which means that the child is circumcised bon theeighth bdaywhenever it occurs, beven on Shabbat. /b, bReish Lakish said to Rabbi Yoḥa: But ifwhat you say is bso,then, with regard to bthose lacking atonement,such as a izavor a healed leper, who must after their immersion still bring an atonement offering in order to complete their purification process, bwith regard to whomthe term bon the day isalso bwritten,as in the verse: “And on the eighth day he shall take two he-lambs without blemish, and one ewe-lamb of the first year without blemish” (Leviticus 14:10), sacrificing their atonement offerings bshould also override Shabbat.Rabbi Yoḥa responded: bThatverse bis necessaryto teach that the sacrifice must be brought bduring the day and not at night. /b,Reish Lakish asked: bThisverse with regard to the mitzva of circumcision bis also necessaryto teach that circumcision must be performed bduring the day and not at night.Rabbi Yoḥa replied: bThatis derived bfroma different verse, which states: “And bhe that is eight days oldshall be circumcised among you throughout your generations” (Genesis 17:12). That circumcision must take place during the day is derived from that verse.,Reish Lakish says: bThatmatter, that the atonement offering must be sacrificed during the day, can balsobe derived bfroma different verse, as it is stated: “This is the law of the burnt-offering, of the meal-offering, and of the sin-offering, and of the guilt-offering, and of the consecration-offering, and of the sacrifice of the peace-offerings; which the Lord commanded Moses at Mount Sinai bon the day He commandedthe children of Israel to present their offerings to the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai” (Leviticus 7:37–38), and from here bit is derivedthat all offerings are sacrificed by day and not at night.,The Gemara answers: bAlthoughthis ihalakha bis derived from: “On the day He commanded,”an additional source bis necessaryfor those lacking atonement. bIt might have entered your mind to saythat bsince the Torah shows him mercyby allowing him bto bringan offering bof poverty,as if one cannot afford to sacrifice the regular atonement offering, the Torah enables him to sacrifice a less costly one, blet him also bring it at night,as perhaps the Torah shows him mercy and allows him to hasten his atonement. Therefore, bit teaches usthat he too must bring his offering only by day and not at night., bRavina strongly objects to thisreasoning: bBut ifwhat you say is bso,that the Torah has compassion on a person lacking atonement and is lenient with regard to the ihalakhotof the atonement offering, ba non-priest should be fitto sacrifice bthem, andsimilarly, a priest who is ban acute mourner,i.e., one whose relative died that same day and has not yet been buried, bshould be fit tosacrifice bthem.The Gemara answers: bThe verse has restored this.The additional verse that teaches that even one lacking atonement must sacrifice during the day, also teaches that the Torah was lenient with regard to this offering only in the ways explicitly stated in the Torah., bRav Aḥa bar Ya’akov said:There is a different proof from the Torah that circumcision is performed even on Shabbat, for bthe verse said:“On the beighthday,” underscoring that circumcision is performed specifically on the beighthday and indicating that it is performed beven on Shabbat. /b,The Gemara raises a difficulty: bThisusage of the term beighth is necessary to excludethe bseventhday, i.e., a child may not be circumcised before the eighth day. The Gemara answers: The fact that one may not circumcise on the bseventhday bis derivedfrom a different verse, as it is stated: “And bhe that is eight days oldshall be circumcised among you throughout your generations” (Genesis 17:12).,The Gemara raises a further difficulty: Both verses are bstill necessary, one to excludethe bseventhday band one to excludethe bninthday. bAs ifit were derived bfrom oneverse alone, bI would have said: It ison the bseventhday that one may not circumcise, since bthe timeto circumcise this child bhas notyet barrivedand the obligation of circumcision is not yet in effect; bhowever, fromthe beighthday band onward is its time,and therefore it is permissible to postpone a circumcision until the ninth day. No answer was found to this question, and the Gemara concludes: bRather,the derivation bis clear according to Rabbi Yoḥa. /b, bIt was taughtin a ibaraita bin accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yoḥa and not in accordance withthe opinion of bRav Aḥa bar Ya’akov,as the itannainterprets the phrase: “On the beighthday bhe shall be circumcised”to mean that the circumcision must be performed beven on Shabbat. And how do I fulfillthe prohibition against performing prohibited labor explicit in the Torah in the verse: “And you shall guard the Shabbat, for it is holy to you; bhe who desecrates it shall surely die”(Exodus 31:14)? That is referring bto other prohibited labors besides circumcision.The itannaquestions his previous statement: bOr perhaps that is notthe case, and the prohibition of performing prohibited labor on Shabbat includes beven circumcision, and,on the contrary, bhow do I fulfillthe verse: “On the beighthday bhe shall be circumcised”?It applies when the eighth day is any day bother than Shabbat. The verse states: “On the day,”meaning on that very day when he turns eight days old, beven on Shabbat.The itannaof this ibaraitarejects Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov’s proof and accepts Rabbi Yoḥa’s assertion that the phrase “On the day” conclusively establishes that circumcision is performed even on Shabbat.,With regard to this ibaraita /i, bRava said: Initially, whatdid bthis itanna /ifind bacceptable, and ultimately, whatdid bhefind bdifficult?Initially he suggested that: “On the eighth day he shall be circumcised” is a valid source for the fact that circumcision overrides Shabbat, but ultimately, he deemed that difficult and turned to an alternative source, yet provided no reason, neither for his initial statement nor for his second statement.,Rather, we can explain that bthis is what he is saying:“On the beighthday bhe shall be circumcised”applies beven on Shabbat. And how do I fulfill: “He who desecrates it shall surely die”?That is referring to the bother prohibited labors besides circumcision; however, circumcision overridesShabbat., bWhat is the reasonfor this? bIt isderived by means of ban ia fortioriinference: Just as leprosy, which overrides theTemple bservice,as a priest who is a leper may not serve in the Temple and it is prohibited to cut off the symptoms of leprosy |
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