The Death of Antiochus the Fourth

¹As King Antiochus the Fourth was passing through Mesopotamia, he heard of a city in Persia, named Elymais, which was famous for its riches in silver and gold.

²The temple was very rich, containing gold shields, armor, and weapons left there by Alexander, son of King Philip of Macedonia, who was the first to rule the Greek Empire.

³Antiochus came and tried to take the city and loot it, but he didn't succeed, because the citizens had learned what he was planning to do,

⁴and they drew up their troops to resist him. In great frustration he withdrew to return to Babylonia.

⁵In Persia a messenger reached him with the news that the armies he had sent into Judea had been defeated.

⁶Lysias and his strong army had been forced to flee from the Jews, who were now reinforced by the additional weapons, supplies, and loot they had taken from the defeated armies.

⁷The Jews had pulled down the thing they called The Awful Horror that Antiochus had built on the altar in Jerusalem. They had also surrounded the Temple with high walls, as it had been before, and had taken and fortified the town of Bethzur, one of the king's own towns.

⁸When the king heard this report, he was so dumbfounded and terribly shaken that he went to bed in a fit of deep depression because things had not turned out as he had hoped.

⁹He remained ill for a long time, as waves of despair swept over him, until he finally realized that he was going to die.

¹⁰He called together all those to whom he had given the title Friends of the King and said to them, I cannot sleep, and my heart is broken with grief and worry.

¹¹At first I asked myself why these great waves of trouble were sweeping over me, since I have been kind and well-liked during my reign.

¹²But then I remembered the wrongs I did in Jerusalem when I took all the silver and gold objects from the Temple and tried without any good reason to destroy the inhabitants of Judea.

¹³I know this is why all these terrible things have happened to me and I am about to die in deep despair here in this foreign land.

¹⁴Then he called Philip, one of his most trusted advisers, and put him in charge of his whole empire.

¹⁵He gave him his crown, robe, and official ring, and authorized him to educate his son Antiochus the Fifth and bring him up to be king.

¹⁶King Antiochus died there in the year 149.

¹⁷When Lysias learned that the king had died, he made the young Antiochus king in place of his father. He had brought up Antiochus from childhood and now gave him the name Eupator.

The Campaign of Antiochus the Fifth and Lysias

¹⁸Meanwhile, the enemies in the fort at Jerusalem had been blockading the people of Israel in the area around the Temple, constantly causing them trouble and giving support to the Gentiles.

¹⁹So Judas decided to get rid of them and called all the people together to besiege the fort.

²⁰The people assembled and laid siege to the fort in the year 150. They built siege platforms and battering rams.

²¹But some of the men under siege escaped, and together with some of the renegade Jews, they went to the king and said,

²²How long are you going to wait before you take revenge for what was done to our countrymen?

²³We were willing to serve your father, follow his orders, and obey his decrees.

²⁴But what good did it do us? Now our own countrymen have become our enemies. In fact, they have killed as many of us as they could find and have stolen our possessions.

²⁵But we are not the only ones they have harmed; they have attacked all their neighbors.

²⁶And now they have laid siege to the fort in Jerusalem and are planning to take it. They have also fortified the Temple and Bethzur.

²⁷Unless you act immediately, they will do even more, and you will not be able to stop them.

²⁸When the king heard this, he was furious. He brought together all the army commanders, the cavalry officers, and his most trusted advisers.

²⁹He also hired mercenary soldiers from other countries and from the Greek islands.

³⁰His forces numbered 100,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, and 32 elephants trained for war.

³¹The king and his army passed through Idumea and laid siege to Bethzur, where they fought for a long time. They built battering rams and siege platforms, but the defenders fought bravely and came out of the town and burned down the platforms.

³²Then Judas withdrew his troops from the fort in Jerusalem and set up his camp at Beth Zechariah, blocking the advance of the king's army.

³³Early the next morning, the king rapidly moved his army along the road to Beth Zechariah, where his troops took up battle positions and blew trumpets.

³⁴They got the elephants ready for battle by showing them grape juice and mulberry juice.

³⁵The huge animals were distributed among the infantry units. A thousand men, protected by chain armor and bronze helmets, were stationed with each elephant. Each animal was also accompanied by a special force of 500 cavalry,

³⁶which always remained with the elephant.

³⁷A strong, protected wooden platform was securely fastened by a special harness to the back of each elephant. Three soldiers rode on each animal, in addition to the elephant driver.

³⁸Lysias placed the rest of the cavalry on the two flanks of the army where they could be protected by the infantry while harassing the enemy.

³⁹The sunlight, reflected off the bronze and gold shields, shone on the mountains and flashed like burning torches.

⁴⁰Part of the king's army was spread out over the higher ground of the mountain slopes and part over the lower land, but they all moved forward steadily and in good order.

⁴¹All the people were terrified when they heard the noise made by the clashing of weapons and the marching of that great and powerful army.

⁴²Judas and his army advanced into battle, and immediately killed 600 of the king's army.

⁴³When Eleazar Avaran saw that one of the elephants was larger than the others and that it was covered with royal armor, he thought that the king was riding on it.

⁴⁴Eleazar sacrificed his life to save his people and to gain eternal fame.

⁴⁵He ran boldly toward the elephant, which was in the middle of a battalion of infantry. He rushed forward killing men to the right and left, so that the enemy soldiers fell back before him on both sides.

⁴⁶He slipped in under the elephant and stabbed it to death, and it fell on him and killed him.

⁴⁷But when the Jews realized how strong the royal army was and how determined it was to fight, they retreated.

⁴⁸The king and his army advanced to fight the Jews at Jerusalem and laid siege to the whole of Judea and Jerusalem.

⁴⁹He made peace with the Jews of Bethzur, who then left the town. There had not been enough food in the town for them to withstand the siege because it was the sabbatical year, when no crops were planted.

⁵⁰The king occupied Bethzur and stationed a body of troops there to guard it.

⁵¹Then he surrounded the Temple and besieged it for a long time. He set up siege platforms, battering rams, catapults for throwing fire and stones, and other weapons to throw spears and rocks.

⁵²The defenders also made war machines to oppose those of the enemy, and so the battle went on for a long time.

⁵³But there was no food left in the Temple storage bins because it was the sabbatical year, and the people who had fled from the Gentiles and taken refuge in Judea had eaten all the food that had been stored there.

⁵⁴The shortage of food had been so severe that many people had scattered to their homes, and only a few men were left in the Temple.

⁵⁵Meanwhile, Philip, who had been appointed by King Antiochus before his death to educate his son to be king,

⁵⁶returned from Persia and Media. He had come back with the royal army and planned to take control of the government. When Lysias heard this news,

⁵⁷he made rapid preparations to depart. He said to the young king, to his officers, and to his men, We are growing weaker each day; we are short of provisions, and this place we are besieging is strong. Besides, there are pressing government affairs which need our attention.

⁵⁸So now let's arrange a truce and make a peace treaty with the Jews and their whole nation.

⁵⁹We will allow them to follow their own laws and customs as they did before. All this trouble started when we provoked them by abolishing their laws and customs.

⁶⁰This recommendation was well received by the king and the officers, so Lysias proposed peace terms to the Jews, and they accepted them.

⁶¹When the king and his officers solemnly agreed to abide by these terms, the Jews came out of their fortress.

⁶²But when the king entered the Temple area on Mount Zion and saw the strong fortifications, he broke his word and ordered the walls surrounding the Temple to be torn down.

⁶³Then he hurriedly left and returned to Antioch, where he found Philip in control of the city. The king attacked the city and took it by force.

God's Punishment of Sinners

¹A large family is nothing to be desired if the children are worthless. Godless children are nothing to be proud of.

²No matter how many children you have, don't look on them with pride unless they fear the Lord.

³Don't put much hope in their future or expect them to live a long time. One child who does the Lord's will is better than a thousand who do not. It is better to go to your grave with no children at all than to have children who are godless.

⁴A city's population may grow because of the wisdom of one person, while a whole tribe of lawless people disappears.

⁵I have seen such things many times and have heard of even more striking examples.

⁶The Lord's flaming anger will break out against a small gathering of sinners or a disobedient nation.

⁷He did not forgive those ancient giants who rebelled against him, confident of their own strength.

⁸He detested the arrogance of the people among whom Lot lived, and he did not spare them.

⁹He showed no mercy on that nation which he doomed to destruction for its sins,

¹⁰nor on those 600,000 people on the march through the wilderness who gathered together in stubborn rebellion.

¹¹Even if there had been only one stubborn person, it would have been a miracle if he had escaped punishment. The Lord is merciful, but he can also become angry. He can be overwhelming in his forgiveness or in his anger.

¹²His punishment is as severe as his mercy is great. He judges people by what they have done.

¹³No sinner can escape with what he has stolen. The Lord will reward the patience of devout people.

¹⁴Every righteous person will be rewarded; everyone will get what he deserves.

¹⁷Never say, I will hide from the Lord. Nobody up there is going to give me a thought. How can I be noticed among so many people? The creation is so enormous, what am I worth?

¹⁸When the Lord comes, everything will tremble: the earth and the great waters beneath it, the sky and the heavens above it.

¹⁹The mountains will shake, and the foundations of the earth will shudder when he looks at them.

²⁰The Lord isn't going to give me a thought. Nobody cares what I do.

²¹If I sin and am secretly disloyal, nobody will know it.

²²If I do what is right, nobody will tell the Lord about it. Who wants to wait for him, anyway? He is too slow in doing what he has said he would.

²³Only someone with very little sense, and foolishly misguided, would think things like that.

God's Wisdom in Creation

²⁴My child, listen and pay attention to me; you will gain knowledge if you do.

²⁵I will give you diligent and accurate instruction.

²⁶In the beginning the Lord did his work of creation, and gave everything a place of its own.

²⁷He arranged everything in an eternal order and decreed that it should be that way forever. Not one part of creation ever grows hungry; no part grows tired or stops its work.

²⁸The parts do not crowd one another, and they never disobey his word.

²⁹When the Lord had made all this, he looked at the earth and filled it with good things.

³⁰He covered it with all kinds of creatures that must die and return to the dust.

¹Then the Lord formed human beings from the dust and sent each of them back to it again.

²He gave them only a limited time to live, but he gave them authority over everything on earth.

³He made them to be like himself, and gave them his own strength.

⁴He made all other creatures afraid of them; he gave them authority over all the animals and birds.

⁶He gave them their tongues, their eyes, their ears, their minds, and their consciences.

⁷He filled them with knowledge and understanding and showed them the difference between good and evil.

⁸He gave them his own insight to let them see the majesty of his creation.

¹⁰They will praise his holy name and proclaim the greatness of all he does.

¹¹He made knowledge available to them and gave them the Law as a source of life.

¹²He made an eternal covenant with them and revealed his commands to them.

¹³They saw the splendor of his majesty and heard the glory of his voice.

¹⁴He warned them against unrighteousness and taught each person how to treat others.

God Is Judge

¹⁵The Lord is always aware of what people do; there is no way to hide from him.

¹⁷He gave each nation its own ruler, but Israel is the Lord's own possession.

¹⁹The Lord is always watching what people do; everything they do is as clear as day to him.

²⁰None of their sins are hidden from him; he is aware of them all.

²²When we give to the poor, the Lord considers it as precious as a valuable ring. Human kindness is as precious to him as life itself.

²³Later he will judge the wicked and punish them; they will get what they deserve.

²⁴But the Lord will allow those who repent to return to him. He always gives encouragement to those who are losing hope.

A Call to Repentance

²⁵Come to the Lord, and leave your sin behind. Pray sincerely that he will help you live a better life.

²⁶Return to the Most High and turn away from sin. Have an intense hatred for wickedness.

²⁷Those who are alive can give thanks to the Lord, but can anyone in the world of the dead sing praise to the Most High?

²⁸A person who is alive and well can sing the Lord's praises, but the dead, who no longer exist, have no way to give him thanks.

²⁹How great is the Lord's merciful forgiveness of those who turn to him!

³⁰But this is not the nature of human beings; not one of us is immortal.

³¹Nothing is brighter than the sun, but even the sun's light fails during an eclipse. How much easier it is for human thoughts to be eclipsed by evil!

³²The Lord can look out over all the stars in the sky. Human beings? They are dust and ashes.

The Greatness of God

¹The Lord, who lives forever, created the whole universe,

²and he alone is just.

⁴He has given no one enough power to describe what he has done, and no one can investigate it completely.

⁵Who can measure his majestic power? Who can tell the whole story of his merciful actions?

⁶We cannot add to them; we cannot subtract from them. There is no way to comprehend the marvelous things the Lord has done.

⁷When we come to the end of that story, we have not even begun; we are simply at a loss for words.

Human Beings Are Nothing

⁸What are human beings? Of what use are we? The good that we do—the evil that we do—what does it all mean?

⁹If we live a hundred years, we have lived an unusually long time,

¹⁰but compared with all eternity, those years are like a drop of water in the ocean, like a single grain of sand.

¹¹That is why the Lord is so patient with us, why he is so free with his mercy.

¹²He looks at us and knows that we are doomed to die; that is why he is so willing to forgive us.

¹³We can show compassion to someone we know, but the Lord shows compassion for all humanity. He corrects us; he disciplines us; he teaches us. Like a shepherd tending sheep, he brings us back to himself.

¹⁴He will have compassion on us if we accept his guidance and are eager for him to show us where we are wrong.

Kindness and Charity

¹⁵My child, when you help someone, don't reprimand him at the same time. When you make a gift, don't say anything that hurts.

¹⁶Your words count for more than what you give. Even dew gives some relief during a spell of hot weather.

¹⁷Yes, kind words are more effective than the best of gifts, and if you are really concerned, you will give both.

¹⁸It is stupid to be unkind and insulting. No one's eyes are going to sparkle at a gift that you resent giving.

Self-examination

¹⁹Know what you are talking about before you speak, and give attention to your health before you get sick.

²⁰Examine your conscience before the Lord judges you; then when that time comes, he will forgive you.

²¹Humble yourself before you are punished with sickness. When you have sinned, show repentance.

²²If you make a promise to the Lord, keep it as soon as you can. Don't wait until you are about to die to set things straight.

²³But before you make such a promise, be prepared to keep it. Don't try to test the Lord's patience.

²⁴Think! Do you want him to be angry with you on the day you die? When you face his judgment, do you want him to turn his back on you?

²⁵When you have all you want, think what it is like to be hungry, what it is to be poor.

²⁶Things can change in a single day; the Lord can act very quickly.

²⁷If you are wise, you will be careful in everything you do. When sin is all around you, be especially careful that you do not become guilty.

²⁸Every intelligent person can recognize wisdom and will honor anyone who shows it.

²⁹If you appreciate wisdom when you hear it, you will become wise yourself, and your words will be a source of wisdom for others.

Self-control

³⁰Don't be controlled by your lust; keep your passions in check.

³¹If you allow yourself to satisfy your every desire, you will be a joke to your enemies.

³²Don't indulge in luxurious living; the expense of it will ruin you.

³³Don't make yourself a beggar by borrowing for expensive banquets when you don't have enough money of your own.

The Thirty Wise Sayings

¹⁷Listen, and I will teach you what the wise have said. Study their teachings,

¹⁸and you will be glad if you remember them and can quote them.

¹⁹I want you to put your trust in the Lord; that is why I am going to tell them to you now.

²⁰I have written down thirty sayings for you. They contain knowledge and good advice,

²¹and will teach you what the truth really is. Then when you are sent to find it out, you will bring back the right answer.