Judas Defeats Gorgias at Emmaus

1During the night, Gorgias took 5,000 soldiers and 1,000 of his best cavalry and left Emmaus 2to make a surprise attack on Judas. He was led there by some men from the fortress in Jerusalem.

3-4But Judas found out what Gorgias was planning. So he and his soldiers left their camp to attack the troops that Gorgias had left behind at Emmaus.

5Late that night, when Gorgias arrived at the camp of Judas, no one was there. He thought Judas and the others were hiding in the hills, and so he led his troops after them. 6Meanwhile, Judas and his 3,000 soldiers came to the valley near Emmaus about dawn. They did not have enough swords or armor for the battle, 7and they saw expert cavalry patrolling every side of the well-guarded camp.

8Judas told his troops:

The enemy army is strong, but don't be afraid when they attack. 9Years ago our ancestors were attacked at the Red Sea by the king of Egypt and his army, but God rescued them.

10Let's ask God to be kind and keep the agreement he made with our ancestors. If God helps us defeat Gorgias today, 11then every Gentile will know that our God saves and rescues his people.

12The Jewish troops started toward the Gentiles, who saw them coming 13and went out to fight. Then Judas shouted, "Blow the trumpets 14and attack!" The Jews crushed the Gentiles and chased their soldiers to the valley, 15killing everyone they caught.

Some of the enemy troops ran as far as the towns of Gazara, Azotus, and Jamnia. Others reached the valley near Idumea. Judas went after them, and that day three thousand Gentiles died.

16After Judas and his men had stopped chasing the enemy, 17he said to everyone:

Don't be eager to take anything from the bodies of the dead now. We will still have to fight 18Gorgias and his troops when they come out of the nearby hills. Then you can take anything you want.

19About this time, an enemy patrol came out of the hills. 20They saw smoke and knew that their army and their camp had been wiped out. 21Then they looked over at the valley and saw the Jewish army lined up for battle. They were terrified 22and ran to the land of the Philistines.

23Judas now went back and let his soldiers take whatever they wanted from the enemy camp. They found bags of gold and silver, as well as some blue and purple cloth, and many other valuable things. 24-25Then on the way home, they sang hymns of praise to God who had given them a great victory that day. They sang: "Our God, your mercy lasts forever!"

Judas Defeats Lysias

26Some enemy soldiers escaped and told Lysias everything that had happened. 27Lysias was confused and completely disappointed, because he had failed to wipe out the Jews, as King Antiochus had ordered him to do.

28The next year, Lysias got together 60,000 of his best soldiers and 5,000 cavalry to crush the Jews. 29He then led this army to Idumea, where he set up camp near the town of Beth-Zur.

Judas and 10,000 soldiers marched out to fight Lysias. 30 When Judas realized how powerful the enemy force was, he prayed:

Our God, we praise you for always rescuing us. When Saul was king, you let your servant David kill a Philistine giant. You also let Saul's son Jonathan and one other soldier capture an entire Philistine camp. 31Now help us destroy this enemy camp and make fools of their soldiers and cavalry. 32Turn them into cowards who are too weak to fight, and make them tremble while we destroy them.

33Our God, we love you. Please let us slaughter our enemies. Then all of your worshipers will praise you with songs.

34The two armies moved forward, and in the battle, Lysias lost 5,000 soldiers. 35As he watched his army falling apart, he said to himself, "Those Jews are brave fighters, who live and die with honor."

Lysias returned to the city of Antioch and hired some foreign soldiers, so he could invade Judea with an even stronger army.

Judas Dedicates the Temple

36Judas and his brothers said, "Now that we've defeated our enemies, let's make the temple an acceptable place for worship and dedicate it to the Lord once again."

37So the entire army went to Mount Zion. 38They saw the deserted temple and the unclean altar, where the Gentiles had sacrificed unfit animals. The temple's doors had been burned, and the priests' rooms were damaged. Tall bushes and weeds were growing in the temple courtyard, making it look like a forest or a mountain.

39Judas and his soldiers grieved terribly. They tore their clothes, then threw ashes on their heads 40and lay face down on the ground. A trumpet was blown, and they began praying out loud to their God.

41Judas ordered some of his soldiers to keep the enemy fortress under attack, so that others could clean up the temple. 42He chose honest and faithful priests 43and put them in charge of cleaning out the temple.

The priests hauled away the unclean stones to a garbage heap. 44-45And they wondered what to do about the altar for offering sacrifices, because it had been polluted by the Gentiles who had sacrificed unclean animals on it. Finally, they decided to remove this disgrace by tearing down the altar and hauling away the stones. 46They piled them in a special place on the temple hill, believing that God would someday send a prophet who would know what to do with them.

47 The priests did just as the Law of Moses commands. They found stones that had never been cut, and they set up a new altar exactly like the old one. 48The priests also rebuilt the inside and the outside of the temple, and they cleaned the temple courtyard, making it a proper place for worship once again.

49The priests made some new bowls to be used in worship, and they took into the temple the lampstand, the incense altar, and the table for the sacred bread. 50They burned incense on the altar and lit the lamps on the stand, filling the temple with light. 51Then they set the sacred bread on the table and hung up the temple curtains. Finally, everything was done.

52-53 It was now the twenty-fifth day of Chislev, the ninth month, in the year 148 of the Syrian Kingdom. On this day the priests got up early to sacrifice an animal on the new altar, just as the Law of Moses commands.

54Exactly three years earlier, the Gentiles had offered sacrifices to their idols on the altar and had made it unfit for worship. But now the priests were worshiping God at the altar again, while the rest of the people sang and played harps, cymbals, and small stringed instruments. 55Then everyone lay face down on the ground to honor and praise the Lord who had given them victory. 56 For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the new altar and offered gifts and sacrifices to thank the Lord and to ask his blessing.

57The people decorated the front of the temple with gold crowns and small shields, and they repaired the rooms where the priests lived, hanging new doors in them, as well as new gates for the temple. 58Everyone was happy because the disgrace that the Gentiles had brought on the temple had been removed.

59Judas and his brothers, together with everyone else, decided to celebrate the dedication of the altar each year at this same time. This joyous festival would begin on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Chislev and last eight days.

60Then they built strong walls and high towers around Mount Zion to protect the temple from being destroyed by Gentiles again, 61and Judas stationed soldiers there. He also built a fortress in the town of Beth-Zur to keep Israel safe from attack by the Idumeans.