Nabuchodonosor king of the Assyrians overcometh Arphaxad king of the Medes.
Nabuchodonosor king of Assyrians ouercometh Arphaxad king of the Medes: 7. summoneth manie other nations to submitte themselues to his Empyre: 11. which they refusing he threatneth reuenge.
1Now Arphaxad king of the Medes had brought many nations under his dominions, and he built a very strong city, which he called Ecbatana,Adunque Arphaxad re de' Medi avea soggettate al suo impero molte nazioni, ed egli edificò una città fortissima, cui diede il nome di Ecbatana.ARPHAXAD therfore king of the Medes had subdued manie nations to his empire, & he built a most mightie citie, which he called Ecbatanis,Arphaxad itaque, rex Medorum, subjugaverat multas gentes imperio suo, et ipse ædificavit civitatem potentissimam, quam appellavit Ecbatanis, 2Of stones squared and hewed: he made the walls thereof seventy cubits broad, and thirty cubits high, and the towers thereof he made a hundred cubits high. But on the square of them, each side was extended the space of twenty feet.E fece le sue mura di pietre tagliate a squadra, le quali mura aveano settanta cubiti di larghezza, e trenta di altezza; e alle sue torri diede cento cubiti di altezza.Of stone squared and hewed: he made walles therof in height seuentie cubites, and in breadth thirtie cubites, and the towers therof he made in height an hundred cubites.ex lapidibus quadratis et sectis: fecit muros ejus in altitudinem cubitorum septuaginta, et in latitudinem cubitorum triginta: turres vero ejus posuit in altitudinem cubitorum centum. 3And he made the gates thereof according to the height of the towers:E queste eran quadrate, e ognuno de' lati teneva lo spazio di venti piedi; e fece le sue porte eguali in altezza alle torri:But each side of them was in foure square twentie foote long, and he made the gates therof according to the height of the towers:Per quadrum vero earum latus utrumque vicenorum pedum spatio tendebatur, posuitque portas ejus in altitudinem turrium: 4And he gloried as a mighty one in the force of his army and in the glory of his chariots.E si gloriava come possente pel valore de' suoi eserciti, e pe' famosi suoi cocchi.and he gloried as mightie in the force of his armie, and in the glorie of his chariotes.et gloriabatur quasi potens in potentia exercitus sui, et in gloria quadrigarum suarum. 5Now in the twelfth year of his reign, Nabuchodonosor king of the Assyrians, who reigned in Ninive the great city, fought against Arphaxad and overcame him,Adunque Nabucodonosor re degli Assiri, il quale regnava nella gran città di Ninive, l'anno duodecimo del suo regno venne a battaglia con Arphaxad, e lo vinse.In the twelfth yeare of his reigne: Nabuchodonosor the king of the Assyrians, who reigned in Niniue the greate citie, fought against Arphaxad, and ouer came himAnno igitur duodecimo regni sui, Nabuchodonosor rex Assyriorum, qui regnabat in Ninive civitate magna, pugnavit contra Arphaxad, et obtinuit eum 6In the great plain which is called Ragua, about the Euphrates, and the Tigris, and the Jadason, in the plain of Erioch the king of the Elicians.Nella gran pianura detta Ragau presso all'Eufrate, e al Tigri, e a Jadason nella campagna di Erioch re degli Elici.in the great field, which is called Ragan, about Euphrates, and Tigris, and Iadason in the field of Erioch the king of the Elicians.in campo magno qui appellatur Ragau, circa Euphraten, et Tigrin, et Jadason, in campo Erioch regis Elicorum.
7Then was the kingdom of Nabuchodonosor exalted, and his heart was elevated: and he sent to all that dwelt in Cilicia and Damascus, and Libanus,Allora divenne famoso il regno di Nabucodonosor, e il suo cuore si gonfiò, ed ei mandò ambasciatori a tutti gli abitatori della Cilicia, di Damasco, e del Libano,Then was the kingdom of Nabuchodonosor exalted, and his hart was eleuated: and he sent to al, that dwelt in Cilicia and Damascus, and Libanus,Tunc exaltatum est regnum Nabuchodonosor, et cor ejus elevatum est: et misit ad omnes qui habitabant in Cilicia, et Damasco, et Libano, 8And to the nations that are in Carmelus, and Cedar, and to the inhabitants of Galilee in the great plain of Asdrelon,E a popoli, che dimorano sul Carmelo, e in Cedar, e agli abitanti della Galilea, e della vasta campagna di Esdrelon,and to the nations, that are in Carmelus, and Cedar, and the inhabitantes of Galilee in the great field of Esdrelon,et ad gentes quæ sunt in Carmelo et Cedar, et inhabitantes Galilæam in campo magno Esdrelon, 9And to all that were in Samaria, and beyond the river Jordan even to Jerusalem, and all the land of Jesse till you come to the borders of Ethiopia.E a tutti quelli della Samaria, e di là dal Giordano fino a Gerusalemme, e in tutta la terra di Jesse sino ai confini di Etiopia.and to al that were in Samaria, and beyond the riuer Iordan euen to Ierusalem, and al the land of lesse til you come to the borders of Aethiophia.et ad omnes qui erant in Samaria, et trans flumen Jordanem usque ad Jerusalem, et omnem terram Jesse quousque perveniatur ad terminos Æthiopiæ. 10To all these Nabuchodonosor king of the Assyrians, sent messengers:A tutti questi spedì ambasciatori Nabucodonosor re degli Assiri:To al these Nabuchodosor king of the Assyrians sent messengers:Ad hos omnes misit nuntios Nabuchodonosor rex Assyriorum: 11But they all with one mind refused, and sent them back empty, and rejected them without honour.E questi, tutti d'accordo non si piegarono a suoi voleri, rimandarono coloro colle mani vuote, e gli cacciarono con ignominia.Who al with one minde said nay, & sent them backe emptie, and reiected them without honour.qui omnes uno animo contradixerunt, et remiserunt eos vacuos, et sine honore abjecerunt. 12Then king Nabuchodonosor being angry against all that land, swore by his throne and kingdom that he would revenge himself of all those countries.Allora Nabuchodonosor irato contro tutti que' paesi, giurò pel suo trono, e pel suo regno, che avrebbe presa vendetta di tutte quelle genti.Then Nabuchodonosor the king taking indignation against al that land, swore by his throne and kingdom that he would reuenge him selfe of al those countries.Tunc indignatus Nabuchodonosor rex adversus omnem terram illam, juravit per thronum et regnum suum quod defenderet se de omnibus regionibus his.
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Now, refers to the internal purpose of the author. (St. Gregory, hom 2. in Ezechiel.) (Worthington) Many of the books begin with And; shewing their connection. This work formed a part of the general history. The building of Ecbatana likewise took place soon after the destruction of Ninive, mentioned in the preceding book.
Calmet
Arphaxad. He was probably the same as is called Dejoces by Herodotus; to whom he attributes the building of Ecbatana, the capital city of Media; (Challoner) or rather Arphaxad, more resembles both in name and actions the second king Phraortes or Apharaartas, (Montfaucon and Houbigant) who fortified and embellished the city. (Calmet)
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Calmet
Hewed. Greek adds, "three cubits broad and six long." The ancients aimed at solidity in their architecture, as appears from their ruins. (Calmet)
Menochius
High. Salien (the year of the world 3345) thinks there is a transposition, and that the walls were 70 cubits high. (Menochius)
Ctesias
What need was there of such a breadth? Greek allows 70 in height, and 50 in breadth, which seems more proportionate. Old Vulgate has 60 cubits high, and 50 broad. On the walls of Ninive, three chariots might fight abreast, (Calmet) and six on those of Babylon. (Ctesias.)
Menochius
Feet. Projecting from the wall, to remove an enemy. (Menochius)
Haydock
Greek, "and the towers thereof he placed above the gates 100 cubits, and the foundation was 60 cubits broad. And he made the gates to rise 70 cubits, being 40 cubits in breadth, to send out the armies of his mighty men, and to draw up his infantry." (Haydock)
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Worthington
Gloried. Fool, this night wilt thou perish, Luke 12:20. (Worthington)
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Year of the World 3347, Year before Christ 657.
Challoner
Nabuchodonosor. Not the king of Babylon, who took and destroyed Jerusalem, but another of the same name, who reigned in Nivine; and is called by profane historians Saosduchin. He succeeded Asarhaddon in the kingdom of the Assyrians, and was contemporary with Manasses, king of Juda. (Challoner)
Xenophon
He might be the same with Asarhaddon, who resided at Ninive in the 20th year of his reign. After the defeat at Bethulia, the Medes recovered part of their power, under Cyaxares I., who was succeeded by Astyages and Cyaxares II., with whom Cyrus was associated in the empire. (Xenophon)
Houbigant
Asarhaddon spent the latter years of his life at Babylon, of which he had made himself master. (Houbigant)
Haydock
The Jews frequently give names to foreign princes different from those by which they are known in profane history. See Tobias ultra. (Haydock)
Houbigant
Him. Greek afterwards (ver. 15) insinuates, that he prevented any from mounting the throne of Media, till this work was written, "he transfixed him with his darts, and destroyed him till this day." (Houbigant)
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Menochius
Ragau, near Rages. (Tobias 1:16.) (Menochius)
Calmet
Syriac, "Dura," mentioned [in] Daniel 3:1. (Calmet)
Jadason, or Mount Jason, above the Caspian gates; (Strabo xi.) unless it may be the city Jassu, in Armenia. Greek has "the Hydaspes," a river of India, though Curtius (v.) places it near Susa; confounding it with the Choaspes.
Calmet
Elicians. Greek, "Elymeans," perhaps the same with Pontus. Hebrew Ellasar, Genesis 14:9. Various battles were fought during this war, which the Greek intimates lasted seven years. (Calmet)
Haydock
That version also would represent these and various other nations coming to meet Nabuchodonosor, who hereupon sent his ambassadors to all in Persia, and westward to Cilicia, etc. As they were treated contemptuously, he swore that he would revenge himself. But first he attacked Arphaxad, took and sacked Ninive, slew the king, and then abandoned himself with his army to pleasure in the conquered city, "120 days." (Haydock)
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Calmet
Refused. Greek adds, "and did not come to help him in the war, because they feared him not, (Haydock; supposing he would have enough to do with Arphaxad) as he was but like their equal, or as one man. (Calmet)
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Calmet
Countries. Those who were subject to him did wrong in refusing aid. But the Jews were under no such obligations; and God espoused their cause the more, as the king set up for a deity, Judith 3:(Calmet)
He had at first entertained thoughts of universal dominion, (Haydock) being elated by his victory, like other conquerors.
Tacitus
Auferre, trucidare, rapere falsis nominibus imperium, atque ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant. (Tacitus, Agric.)
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Arphaxad.... He was probably the same as is called Dejoces by Herodotus; to whom he attributes the building of Ecbatana, the capital city of Media.
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The author being resolued to write this historie, ioyneth his narration to his internal purpose, saying: Arphaxad therfore &c. S. Greg. ho. 2. in Ezech.
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Thou foole this night they shal take thy life from thee, & these things whose shal they be? Luc. 12. •. 〈◊〉.
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defenderet se.
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1. ARPHAXAD THEREFORE KING OF THE MEDES. — The word therefore is partly a mark of the beginning of the history, or of the book; for this denotes the Hebrew vau, that is, and therefore, as I said on Ezekiel 1, 1. Thus Cicero sometimes begins his epistles thus: "You therefore, you indeed, I indeed;" partly it signifies that this history was taken and excerpted from the ancient diaries, or chronicles of the Hebrews, in which this history was appended to the histories of earlier times, and was connected to them by this therefore. Thus Serarius. Arphaxad here, or Arcapad, is the same as Arbaces. Whence Serarius and others understand by Arphaxad Arbaces, who after killing Sardanapalus made himself king of Media, of whom more in verse 5. Others with Bellarmine and Salianus think Arphaxad to be Dejoces or Diodes, who ruled the Medes in the time of Manasseh king of Judah. For Phraortes succeeded Dejoces, says Herodotus, Cyaxares succeeded Phraortes, Astyages succeeded Cyaxares, grandfather of Cyrus, although Ctesias in Diodorus and others assign more Median kings. Moreover Dejoces built Ecbatana, as testified by Herodotus, Eusebius and others, although Genebrardus here understands by Arphaxad Cyaxares, Salianus Phraortes. Thirdly, others who think this history occurred under Xerxes believe Arbaces was prefect of Media, who from Nineveh, or from Darius Hystaspes obtained the name and title of royal dignity; for all kings of Media from the first king Arbaces took the name, and were called Arbaces, or Arbacidae, just as Roman Emperors from Julius Caesar were called Caesars; Egyptians from the first Ptolemy were called Ptolemies; Greeks from the first king Seleucus were called Seleucidae; Parthians from the first Arsaces were called Arsacidae. Moreover "Arphaxad" in Hebrew is the same as weakening, as it were depopulation, says Pagninus, and that aptly. For he himself by his proud structures and chariots weakened, exhausted, and as it were depopulated the people, and therefore was despoiled and subjugated by Nabuchodonosor. HE HIMSELF BUILT A MOST POWERFUL CITY WHICH HE CALLED ECBATANA. — The name Ecbatana or Ecbatane is used sometimes as if indeclinable. That this city existed before is established. Whence Diodorus, book II, asserts that it existed before Semiramis, saying that after Babylon was built she came here, erected magnificent palaces there, and since the city also suffered from a lack of water, he says that by boring through Mount Orontes, which is twelve stadia away, he brought an abundance of water to it. It is said, however, that Arphaxad built it here, because he increased and adorned it with new palaces, towers, and walls. Whence the Greek texts have: He built in Ecbatana walls round about from hewn stones. Thus Nabuchodonosor says he built Babylon, that is, adorned and enlarged it, Dan. IV, 27. For Nemrod with his associates first built the tower of Babel and Babylon, Genesis chapter X. Thus Romulus is said to have built Rome, although Virgil says, Aeneid VIII: Then king Evander, founder of the Roman citadel. 2. From squared and hewn stones. — The Greek texts add: broad three cubits; long indeed six. HE MADE ITS WALLS IN WIDTH SEVENTY CUBITS (this width of walls was immense, in which therefore many chariots could proceed and run at the same time), AND IN HEIGHT THIRTY CUBITS. — The Greek texts have 50.
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3. BY THE SQUARE MOREOVER OF THEM (the towers) EACH SIDE EXTENDED THROUGH A SPACE OF TWENTY FEET, — that is, each side of the towers with the other opposite and facing it, that is, each four sides of the towers were twenty feet. For it was a geometric square, of which all sides are equal. For twenty feet, the Greek texts have sixty cubits.
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4. AND HE GLORIED AS A MIGHTY MAN. — This was the cause of war, namely pride and the lust for dominion, such as was that of the ancient monarchs of the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks and Romans: whence the civil war between Pompey and Julius Caesar arose, because Pompey would not have Caesar as his equal, and Caesar would not have Pompey as his superior. Similar is the boasting of that Thraso in Seneca thus vaunting: And what one greater than the stars, and all above / With lofty haughty head touching the high pole; / I dismiss the gods above; I have attained the summit of my prayers. / O I, most exalted of the heavenly ones, / And king of kings! I have surpassed my prayers. 5. In the twelfth year therefore (this war began, but was finished in the seventeenth year, if we believe the Greek text, which says this war lasted six years) of his reign Nabuchodonosor. — You will ask who was this Nabuchodonosor? First, Zonaras and Genebrardus think he was that great Nabuchodonosor, who overthrew Jerusalem with its temple, and led the Jews away into Babylon. But he reigned in Babylon, not in Nineveh, as is said here, and he conquered the Jews, whereas here he is conquered by them through Judith. Secondly, Bellarmine and Salianus think he was Merodach Baladan (whom Ptolemy in the Almagest calls Mardocempad) who indeed reigned in Babylon; but after defeating Asarhaddon king of Nineveh, he fixed the seat of his kingdom in that same Nineveh, as the Turk did in Constantinople after he captured it. For Nabuchodonosor was a common name for the kings of the Chaldeans. Whence Nabonassar in the Alphonsine tables, and by Albitegnius is always called Nabuchodonosor. See Serarius here, Question IV. For the same, or nearly the same is each name: whence some think this Nabuchodonosor was the father of that Nabuchodonosor who was the father of the great Nabuchodonosor, who led the Jews away into Babylon. Thirdly, Serarius himself thinks this Nabuchodonosor was the son of Asarhaddon, who after his father's death succeeded to the kingdom of Nineveh and of the Assyrians. Serarius adds, to whom Genebrardus, Pererius and others assent, that Asarhaddon, or Sarphedon, as the Septuagint has it, is Sardanapalus: wherefore this Nabuchodonosor was the son of Sardanapalus, who, wishing to avenge his father's death, subdued in war Arbaces the prefect of Media, who had compelled his father to death and burning, and deprived him of kingdom and life. Wherefore Arbaces is here called Arphaxad, but by Diodorus and Ctesias is called Diocles. Diodorus favors this, lib. III, cap. 1, saying that Sardanapalus, when he saw the destruction of himself and Nineveh impending from Arbaces, sent his sons from Nineveh into Paphlagonia to Cottus its prefect, so that they might escape the hands of Arbaces. Hear Diodorus: "With the king (Sardanapalus) besieged in the city (Nineveh), many nations, desiring liberty, defected to Arbaces. The king, seeing the kingdom in great peril, sent three sons and two daughters with a great abundance of gold and silver into Paphlagonia to Cottus the prefect." Among these three sons was this Nabuchodonosor, who, aided by the prefect of Paphlagonia with armed force, recovered Nineveh and his father's kingdom, and conquered and killed Arbaces. Indeed, if we say that the history of Judith happened before the Babylonian captivity under Manasses, this opinion seems very probable: for then Asarhaddon reigned, who if he was Sardanapalus, then certainly Arbaces also reigned in Media at that time; for he, having conquered and killed Sardanapalus, made himself king of Media. But if we say that the history of Judith (as I said in the preface) happened after the Babylonian captivity, we must consequently assert that this Nabuchodonosor was either Cambyses the son of Cyrus, as St. Augustine, Eusebius, Bede and others think, whence the Alexandrian chronicle: "They say," it says, "that Cambyses is called Nabuchodonosor among the Hebrews," because both afflicted them; or Darius Hystaspis, as Sanchez wishes. For Xerxes was so puffed up with his forces and strength that he thought he could rule not only the land, but also the waters and sea. Hear Herodotus, lib. VII: "There is a crossing of seven stadia from Abydos to the further continent, which, when joined by bridges, a great storm broke and dissolved all of it. When Xerxes heard this, bearing it indignantly, he ordered three hundred lashes to be inflicted on the Hellespont, and a pair of shackles to be cast into its sea. I have already heard that he also sent with these those who would brand the Hellespont, saying barbarous words: The lord inflicts this punishment upon you, because you have harmed him. The same thing is reported by Valerius Maximus, lib. III, cap. II, and he adds to these that he threatened the sky with darkness, because it had been hostile and injurious to him. What is more foolish, insolent and arrogant? But because Xerxes reigned in Persia, not in Nineveh, and was a friend and well-wisher to the Jews, as Josephus testifies, so much so that his son Artaxerxes sent Esdras and Nehemias back to Judaea to rebuild Jerusalem; which he would certainly not have done if his father Xerxes had been so shamefully killed by the Jews in his commander Holofernes. Indeed, it seems more true that this Nabuchodonosor was some one of the princes and prefects of Xerxes, to whom on account of his merits, strength and power Xerxes, or rather the father of Xerxes Darius Hystaspis, granted the kingdom of Nineveh and Assyria, but under tribute and tax: who, seeing Xerxes defeated by the Greeks, denied this tribute, and made himself an absolute king, and gradually growing in arms, strength and peoples, invaded and overcame Arphaxad king of Media. In origin and nation he seems to have been Babylonian (for this is indicated by his name Nabuchodonosor, which is Chaldean) and perhaps he was a grandson, or rather a great-grandson, or kinsman of the great Nabuchodonosor, and therefore usurped his name. Furthermore, "Nabuchodonosor" in Hebrew is the same as constraining generation with straits, says Pagninus in Nomin. Hebr., and that aptly. For he himself constrained the Jews and other nations, and reduced them to extremities, as is evident from what follows. NABUCHODONOSOR KING OF THE ASSYRIANS, WHO REIGNED IN NINEVEH. — This is added, so that he may be distinguished from the great Nabuchodonosor, who reigned in Babylon, and therefore transferred the Monarchy from Nineveh and the Assyrians to Babylon and the Chaldeans: although Nineveh was near to Babylon, and the Assyrians to the Chaldeans, and therefore the monarchy of the Chaldeans arose from the Assyrians: wherefore it is reckoned as almost one and the same. Hence also the name Nabuchodonosor is partly Chaldean, partly Assyrian. For Nabo was the name of an idol of the Chaldeans: Asar was the name of the kings of the Assyrians, as is evident in Salmanasar, Teglathphalasar, Asarhaddon, which are compounded from Asar. HE FOUGHT AGAINST ARPHAXAD, AND OBTAINED HIM, — that is, he captured him, and pierced him with javelins. For the Greek texts have it thus: In his war Nabuchodonosor was strengthened, and he overturned all the power of Arphaxad, and all his cavalry, and all his chariots; and he became master of his cities, and reached even to Ecbatana, and took possession of its towers, and laid waste the streets; and he reduced his ornament to his reproach. And he captured Arphaxad in the mountains of Ragau, and pierced him with his own javelins, and when he had utterly destroyed and exterminated him until that day. Arphaxad merited this slaughter by his proud boasting in his forces and chariots: for, as Seneca says in Hercules: God the avenger follows the proud from behind. The same in Thyestes: You, to whom the ruler of sea and earth / Has given great power over death and life, / Put away your swollen and puffed-up faces; / And: Whom the day saw fleeing in pride, / Him the day saw fleeing laid low: / Let no one trust too much in prosperity. Wherefore Artabanus, king under Xerxes (under whom these things happened, or whom Sanchez thinks was Nabuchodonosor), prudently gave this warning: "Do you see that very large animals are struck by lightning, and God does not allow them to grow insolent in their thoughts: but those which are small, He does not even touch in the least? Do you see that upon the greatest buildings and trees, He always hurls such missiles? For God loves to cut down, or to truncate, all things that stand out." And the reason is added: "For He does not allow anyone to think anything great of himself, except Himself." What Nabuchodonosor did after obtaining this victory, the Greek narrator thus relates: He returned himself with his own forces to Nineveh, and all the army that had gathered to him, a very great multitude of fighting men, and he was there at leisure, and devoted to feasting, both he and his army, for one hundred and twenty days.
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7. THEN THE KINGDOM OF NABUCHODONOSOR WAS EXALTED AND HIS HEART WAS LIFTED UP, — so that thinking himself stronger than all, he sought to seize the monarchy, and determined to subject all nations to himself. Truly Seneca in the Troades: A king cannot be restrained / By bridle, and anger, and the burning enemy, and victory, / And the fortunate sword, whose once uncontrolled / Madness is desire. AND HE SENT TO ALL, — legates, who demanded that all nations subject themselves to Nabuchodonosor the victor. These things are narrated differently in the Greek, namely that Nabuchodonosor before the victory over Arphaxad sent messengers to all neighboring nations asking for aid against Arphaxad: which being denied by the nations, he swore to himself that he would cut them off; then he fought with Arphaxad in the 17th year of his reign; and he conquered him, and pierced him with javelins, and destroyed Ecbatana; then he returned with triumph to Nineveh, and there devoted himself to leisure and luxury for 120 days. But the authentic text for us must be the common Latin edition, and the Greek must be reconciled with it, if it can be; if it cannot be, it must be rejected: in this place it can be reconciled. For Nabuchodonosor could have sent messengers twice, namely first before the battle, as the Greek has it; secondly after the battle, as the Vulgate has it.
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8. AND TO THE NATIONS THAT ARE IN CARMEL AND CEDAR, AND THOSE INHABITING GALILEE. — The Greek enumerates more nations. Hence it is clear that Nabuchodonosor was not Xerxes. For as a monarch, most nations obeyed him, and especially the Galileans: for from Ezra and Nehemiah it is established that Darius the father of Xerxes and Artaxerxes the son of Xerxes sent to Judea Nehemiah and other leaders, who governed the Jews in his name.
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11. WHO ALL WITH ONE MIND CONTRADICTED, AND SENT THEM BACK EMPTY, AND CAST THEM OUT WITHOUT HONOR (indeed with ignominy, as the Greek has it). — That is: the arrogance of Nabuchodonosor, grown insolent from victory, merited more; so that just as he himself had laid low the arrogance of Arphaxad, so his own insolence would be laid low by Judith, and he would be mocked by the nations.
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12. HE SWORE BY HIS THRONE AND HIS KINGDOM, THAT HE WOULD DEFEND (that is, avenge) HIMSELF. — For he thought that a great injury and ignominy had been inflicted upon him by the nations, and therefore to recover and defend his honor that had been wounded by them, he ought to avenge this reproach both by war and by destruction: as many today think they ought to avenge those who have wounded their honor with some insult, and to kill them. But this is a paralogism of the world, and a lying spirit of the devil. Thus to defend is taken for to vindicate, cap. IX, vers. 2, and by the Apostle, Rom. XII, 19: "Not defending yourselves," that is vindicating, "dearest." See the things said there.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
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2. A. king of Media (Jdt. 1:1 and 5), defeated by Nebuchadnezzar of Nineveh; of neither the one nor the other is there any trace in other ancient documents. …
Herodotus says of the first that it is the city "of the seven encircling walls" and gives a long description of it. This resembles in part the one given in the deuterocanonical book of Jdt. 1:1-4.
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… It does not here indicate Phraortes I (ca. 647-625 B.C.), successor of Deioces, who founded the Median dynasty (Herodotus, I, 102); but rather Phraortes II, who, according to the Behistun inscription (Bisutûn), was defeated by Darius I (522-485) in the region of Raga (cf. Jdt. 1:5, 15). Others suppose another personage from the times of Artaxerxes II (404-358) or of Artaxerxes III (358-337), not yet identifiable. …
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… Diglah; in Old Persian the Aramaic name phonetically became Tigrā, whence the Greco-Latin Tīyquc) is remembered as one of the four rivers of Paradise (Gen. 2:14) and as a river of Mesopotamia it is mentioned in the later histories (Dan. 10:4; Tob. 6:1; Jdt. 1:6; Sir. 24:35 [25]).
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.