The children of Israel prepare themselves to resist Holofernes. They cry to the Lord for help.
The children of Israel excedingly fearing Holofernes forces. 3. prouide to resist him, by the exhortation of the High Priest, vsing both humaine, 8. and diuine meanes.
1Then the children of Israel, who dwelt in the land of Juda, hearing these things, were exceedingly afraid of him.Allora i figliuoli d'Israele, che abitavano la terra di Giuda, udite tali cose, ebbero gran paura di sua venuta.THEN the children of Israel, which dwelt in the Land of Iuda, hearing these thinges, were sore asrayd of his presence.Tunc audientes hæc filii Israël qui habitabant in terra Juda, timuerunt valde a facie ejus. 2Dread and horror seized upon their minds, lest he should do the same to Jerusalem and to the temple of the Lord, that he had done to other cities and their temples.Il tremore, e lo spavento invase i loro spiriti, temendo, ch'ei non facesse a Gerusalemme, e al tempio del Signore quello, che avea fatto alle altre città, e ai loro templi.Trembling also, and horrour inuaded their senses, lest he would doe that to Ierusalem and to the temple of our Lord, which he had done to other cities, and their temples.Tremor et horror invasit sensus eorum, ne hoc faceret Jerusalem et templo Domini, quod fecerat ceteris civitatibus et templis earum. 3And they sent into all Samaria round about, as far as Jericho, and seized upon all the tops of the mountains:E mandaron gente per tutta la Samaria, e nelle vicinanze sino a Jericho, e occuparono tutte le cime dei monti:And they sent into al Samaria round about, as for as Iericho, and preoccupated al the toppes of mountaynes:Et miserunt in omnem Samariam per circuitum usque Jericho, et præoccupaverunt omnes vertices montium: 4And they compassed their towns with walls and gathered together corn for provision for war.E cinsero di mura i loro villaggi, e misero insieme del grano preparandosi alla guerra.and they compassed their townes with walles, and gathered together corne for prouision of battel.et muris circumdederunt vicos suos, et congregaverunt frumenta in præparationem pugnæ. 5And Eliachim the priest wrote to all that were over against Esdrelon, which faceth the great plain near Dothain, and to all by whom there might be a passage of way, that they should take possession of the ascents of the mountains, by which there might be any way to Jerusalem, and should keep watch where the way was narrow between the mountains.E il sommo sacerdote Eliachim scrisse a tutti quelli, che abitavano verso Esdrelon, la quale sta dirimpetto alla gran pianura vicina a Dothaim, e a tutti quelli de' luoghi, per dove quegli potea passare.Eliachim the priest wrote to al, that were against Esdrelon, which is against the face of the great fielde beside Dothain, and to al, by whom there might be passage of way, that they should take the ascentes of the mountaynes, by which there might be way to Ierusalem, and should keepe watch, where the way was narrow betwen the mountaynes.Sacerdos etiam Eliachim scripsit ad universos qui erant contra Esdrelon, quæ est contra faciem campi magni juxta Dothain, et universos per quos viæ transitus esse poterat,
6And the children of Israel did as the priest of the Lord Eliachim had appointed them.Che occupassero le alture dei monti per le quali si potea giungere a Gerusalemme, e mettesser presidi ai passi stretti, che potean esservi tralle montagne.And the children of Israel did according as the Priest of our Lord, Eliachim had appointed them.ut obtinerent ascensus montium, per quos via esse poterat ad Jerusalem, et illic custodirent ubi angustum iter esse poterat inter montes. 7And all the people cried to the Lord with great earnestness, and they humbled their souls in fastings, and prayers, both they and their wives.E i figliuoli d'Israele eseguirono i comandi del sacerdote del Signore Eliachim.And al the people cried to our Lord with great instance, and they humbled their soules in fastings, and prayers they & their wiues.Et fecerunt filii Israël secundum quod constituerat eis sacerdos Domini Eliachim. 8And the priests put on haircloths, and they caused the little children to lie prostrate before the temple of the Lord, and the altar of the Lord they covered with haircloth.E tutto il popolo alzò le sue voci al Signore con gran fervore, e umiliarono le anime loro co' digiuni, e colle orazioni eglino, e le loro donne.And the Priestes put on heareclothes, and they laide the infantes prostrate against the face of the temple of our Lord, and the altar of our Lord they couered with hearecloth:Et clamavit omnis populus ad Dominum instantia magna, et humiliaverunt animas suas in jejuniis et orationibus, ipsi et mulieres eorum. 9And they cried to the Lord the God of Israel with one accord, that their children might not be made a prey, and their wives carried off, and their cities destroyed, and their holy things profaned, and that they might not be made a reproach to the Gentiles.E i sacerdoti si vestirono di cilizi, e prostraron per terra i fanciulli davanti al tempio del Signore, e copersero con cilizio l'altare del Signore.and they cried to our Lord the God of Israel With one accord, that their infantes might not be geuē into praye, & their wiues into spoile, and their cities into destruction, and their holie thinges into pollution, and they be made a reproch to the Gentiles.Et induerunt se sacerdotes ciliciis, et infantes prostraverunt contra faciem templi Domini, et altare Domini operuerunt cilicio:
10Then Eliachim the high priest of the Lord went about all Israel and spoke to them,E alzaron tutti insieme le grida al Signore Dio d'Israele, affinchè non fossero rapiti i loro fanciulli, e menate via le loro mogli, e sterminate le loro città, e contaminato il loro santuario, ed essi ridotti ad essere lo scherno delle nazioni.Then Eliachim the high Priest of our Lord went about al Israel and spake to them,et clamaverunt ad Dominum Deum Israël unanimiter ne darentur in prædam infantes eorum, et uxores eorum in divisionem, et civitates eorum in exterminium, et sancta eorum in pollutionem, et fierent opprobrium gentibus. 11Saying: Know ye that the Lord will hear your prayers, if you continue with perseverance in fastings and prayers in the sight of the Lord.Allora Eliachim sommo Sacerdote del Signore girò attorno per tutto Israele parlando loro,saying: Know ye, that our Lord wil heare your prayers, if continewing you continew in fastinges and prayers in the sight of our Lord.Tunc Eliachim sacerdos Domini magnus circuivit omnem Israël, allocutusque est eos, 12Remember Moses the servant of the Lord overcame Amalec that trusted in his own strength, and in his power, and in his army, and in his shields, and in his chariots, and in his horsemen, not by fighting with the sword, but by holy prayers:Dicendo: Sappiate, che il Signore esaudirà le vostre preghiere, se sarete perseveranti ne' digiuni, e nelle orazioni dinanzi, al Signore,Be mindful of Moyses the seruant of our Lord, who ouerthrew Amalec trusting in his power, and in his might, and in his armie, & in his shieldes, & in his chariotes, & in his horsemen, not by fighting, but with holie prayers:dicens: Scitote quoniam exaudiet Dominus preces vestras, si manentes permanseritis in jejuniis et orationibus in conspectu Domini. 13So all the enemies of Israel be, if you persevere in this work which you have begun.Ricordatevi di Mosè servo del Signore, il quale non col ferro combattendo, ma colle orazioni sante pregando abbattè Amalec, che confidava nel suo valore, nella sua possanza, e nelle sue schiere, e ne suoi scudi, e ne suoi cocchi, e nella sua cavalleria:so shal al the enemies of Israel be; if you perseuere in this worke, which you haue begunne.Memores estote Moysi servi Domini, qui Amalec confidentem in virtute sua, et in potentia sua, et in exercitu suo, et in clypeis suis, et in curribus suis, et in equitibus suis, non ferro pugnando, sed precibus sanctis orando dejecit: 14So they being moved by this exhortation of his, prayed to the Lord, and continued in the sight of the Lord.Lo stesso sarà di tutti i nemici d'Israele, se voi sarete perseveranti a fare quel che avete cominciato.They therfore at this exhortation of his, beseching our Lord, continewed in the sight of our Lord,sic erunt universi hostes Israël, si perseveraveritis in hoc opere quod cœpistis. 15So that even they who offered the holocausts to the Lord, offered the sacrifices to the Lord girded with haircloths, and with ashes upon their head.A queste esortazioni adunque quelli raccomandandosi al Signore, non si partirono dal cospetto del Signore.so that they also, which offered the holocaustes to our Lod, did offer the sacrifices to our Lord girded with heareclothes, and there were ashes vpon their head.Ad hanc igitur exhortationem ejus deprecantes Dominum, permanebant in conspectu Domini,
16And they all begged of God with all their heart, that he would visit his people Israel.Talmente che quelli ancora, che offerivano olocausti al Signore, presentavano a lui le vittime vestiti di cilizio, e colla testa coperta di cenere.And they al prayed God with al their hart, that he would visite his people Israel.ita ut etiam hi qui offerebant Domino holocausta, præcincti ciliciis offerrent sacrificia Domino, et erat cinis super capita eorum. 17E tutti di tutto cuore pregavano Dio, che visitasse il suo popolo d'Israele.Et ex toto corde suo omnes orabant Deum, ut visitaret populum suum Israël.
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Haydock
Juda, whither those had retreated who had escaped the fury of the Assyrians, under Theglathphalassar, etc. (Haydock)
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Calmet
Temples. Surrendering would not secure these things; so that their very life and religion were at stake. Resistance, in other circumstances, would have been rashness. (Calmet)
Calmet
Greek adds, "because they were recently come up from captivity, and lately all the people had been collected out of Judea, and the vessels, and the altar, and the house, had been purified from profanation," (Haydock) to which they had been exposed under Manasses, (chap. 5:23.; Calmet) who with several of his subjects had been made prisoner, and was now at Babylon; or, if returned, (Haydock) was wholly taken up with the concerns of his soul, and committed the care of affairs to Eliachim. See Josephus, [Antiquities?] 10:4., and 2 Paralipomenon 33:12, 16. (Calmet)
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Menochius
Samaria, though an enemy's country, as the danger was common. (Menochius)
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War. Greek adds, "as the harvest was just ended."
4:5
Haydock
Priest. Greek, "the great priest in Jerusalem, in those days, wrote to the inhabitants of Betouloua, (Haydock; Bethulia, in the tribe of Simeon) and of Betemestham, (Bethsames; Calmet) which is over-against Esdrelon, and the plain near Dothaim, giving orders to seize the mountainous ascents, by which there was a passage into Judea; and it was easy to stop their progress, as the passage was narrow, and would not admit above two men at once." This reminds us of the heroic resistance which Leonidas, with his 300 Spartans, made to the millions in the army of Xerxes, at Thermopylae. (Haydock)
It seems that Jews attempted to defend these defiles. They had received the orders before the enemy encamped near Scythopolis.
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Calmet
Them. Greek adds, "and the senate of all the people of Israel, which sat at Jerusalem." Serarius thinks that Manasses was busy fortifying the city, and had committed the rest of the kingdom to Eliachim, (Menochius; Worthington) who receives such high commendations, Isaias 22:20. (Calmet)
Houbigant
But is more probable that he was at Babylon. (Houbigant)
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Haydock
Wives. Greek adds, "and their little ones, and beasts, and every sojourner, and hired servant and slave. They put sackcloth on their loins, and every man, woman, and child, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, fell prostrate before the temple, and sprinkled ashes on their heads." The very beasts were covered with sackcloth, to denote the general sorrow. (Haydock)
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Haydock
Priests. Greek, "and they spread their sackclothes before the Lord, and arrayed the altar with sackcloth." (Haydock)
Calmet
This spectacle must have made impression on the most obdurate. (Calmet)
4:9
Menochius
Off. Literally, "divided" from their husbands, (Haydock) or among the victors. (Menochius)
Gentiles. Greek adds, "and God heard their petition, and rescued them from their affliction; and all the people fasted many days in all Judea and Jerusalem, before the sanctuary of the Lord all mighty; and the high priest, Joachim, and all the priests who stood before the Lord, and ministered to the Lord, having their loins girded with sackcloth, offered the accustomed holocaust and the vows and presents of the people, and ashes were upon their caps, and they cried to the Lord with all their power, to look down graciously upon all the house of Jerusalem. And," Judith 5.
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Israel, before the approach of the enemy. (Haydock) (ver. 5.)
4:15
Calmet
Clothes, conformably to the advice of Joel, 1:13. (Calmet)
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The second part. Gods people are in great feare and distresse.
4:5
The high priest managed also the temporal afsayres of the cōmon welth, at this time, by consent & commission of king Manasses, as is most probable these thinges happening shortly after his repentāce. 2. Paral. 33.
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Concordance Exo. 17.
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St Melito of Sardis † AD 180 Melito, the Philosopher part1
… For he was subject to no control, and carried off the wives of many: for his lust was great, like that of Zuradi the Persian, his friend. Again, the people of Acte worshipped Dionysus, a king, because he had recently
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2. TREMBLING AND HORROR SEIZED THEIR SENSES. — The Greek texts have it more fully: And they feared greatly because of him, and concerning Jerusalem, and the temple of the Lord their God they were troubled, because they had recently been ascending from captivity, and lately all the people had been gathered together from Judaea, and the vessels, and the altar, and the house (of God, that is the temple) had been sanctified from profanation. Many, as I said in the preface with Bellarmine, Salian and others, refer these things to Manasseh king of Judah, who when captured with his own in Babylon, was released to his kingdom, and repenting purified the temple profaned by him through idols, and restored it to the worship of the true God. Yet this too was a captivity, and the liberation of King Manasseh, not of the whole people. Add to this that no mention is made of King Manasseh in this entire book, which surely ought to have been made, since it would pertain to him, as king, rather than to Eliachim the High Priest, to fortify Judaea against Holofernes, and to occupy the passes before a garrison was sent in. Wherefore others better refer these things to the times of Xerxes, when the temple had already been rebuilt by the Chaldaeans, profaned and burned. You will say: How did the Jews recently returned from captivity have such great strength and courage as to dare to oppose themselves to camps so numerous and strong? I answer that this was done from fear of captivity, whose severity and hardships they had recently experienced in Babylon, and from fear of losing the true religion. For Nebuchadnezzar threatened destruction to God and the temple, because he wished to be adored alone as God. But this seemed intolerable to the Jews who worshipped the true God, so that they would rather die than permit it. Finally, the offspring of the Jews was innumerable, and through generation multiplied like frogs and fish, as it was in the time of Moses, Exodus I. For Josephus, book XI of Antiquities, chapter IV, counts the grown men of those returning from the Babylonian captivity in the second year of Darius Hystaspes as four thousand thousands, and moreover 620 thousands, and that from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin only, to whom many from the other ten tribes joined themselves. Thus they could easily raise a numerous army, which would oppose Holofernes, especially in the passes and steep mountains, where one can resist ten enemies.
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4. AND THEY GATHERED TOGETHER GRAIN. — For their fields had recently been harvested, as the Greek texts add: "In other circumstances," says Vegetius in book III, chapter III, "remedy can be provided in time: foraging and provisions in necessity have no remedy, unless prepared beforehand." And therefore the ancient discipline of the Romans, "in most cities for the use of a whole year, in vinegar, grain, lard, and barley and chaff stored up," says Capitolinus in the life of Gordian. For, as Vegetius says, book III, chapter III, "more often penury than battle consumes an army, and hunger is more cruel than iron. In every expedition one and the greatest counsel is, that you have sufficient food, that want breaks the enemies. Before therefore war is begun, careful treatment ought to be made of supplies and expenses, so that fodder, grain, and other provisions of food, which custom demands from the Provincials, may be exacted more promptly, and in places suitable for conducting the matter, and most fortified, a greater amount may always be gathered than is needed." And chapter XXVI: "He who does not prepare necessary grain and provisions is conquered without the sword."
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5. THE PRIEST ALSO ELIACHIM — In Greek Joachim, as also he is called by Our Author in chapter XV, verse 9. For these two names signify the same thing, namely God the establisher or establishing, who namely made the armies of the Jews stand firm against Holofernes. For God is thus called אל El, and יו Io, which is an abbreviation of Jehova. Hence it is clear that this happened in the time of Xerxes. For then Joachim was High Priest, as I said in the preface, who, the king being absent, administered the commonwealth: for, as Josephus says, in book II Against Apion: "The constitution of the Jewish commonwealth commonly commits to priests, so that they administer the greatest matters. But to the High Priest it entrusts the leadership of all the other priests." Briefly however: "The priests," he says, "are overseers of all, judges of those things which are ambiguous, avengers of those things which are condemned." He went around all Israel, so that he might exhort all to constancy, confidence and perseverance in prayers and fastings, promising them victory if they did this. "The precepts of Christ," says St. Ambrose, sermon 86, "are arms to Christians, and divine fear expels hostile terror from us. But these arms of ours are those with which our Saviour equipped us, prayer, mercy and fasting. For fasting protects better than a wall; mercy frees more easily than plunder; prayer wounds farther than an arrow. For an arrow strikes the enemy only when he is near at hand; but prayer wounds the enemy placed at a distance." The Greek texts have this more fully: Joachim the High Priest, and all who stood before the Lord, the Priests, the others who ministered to the Lord, girded their loins with sackcloth and offered that continual holocaust and vows; and the voluntary gifts of the people, and dust was upon their mitres or turbans, and they cried out to the Lord with all their strength, for good; or that he would visit and come to the aid of the entire house of Israel. Let Bishops and Princes imitate this High Priest, let them go around the peoples committed to them, visit them, encourage them, instruct them, correct them.
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8. AND ALL THE PEOPLE CRIED TO THE LORD WITH GREAT URGENCY. — Note here the use, manner and force of public prayer and penance in public calamity, to be imitated by Christians, so that in like manner they may avert their calamities. Namely first, all the people cried with great urgency; second, they humbled their souls in fastings and prayers; third, they clothed themselves in sackcloth; fourth, they prostrated infants before the Lord and the temple; fifth, they covered the altar with sackcloth, so that by a public as it were mourning of religion, justice, temple and altar they might provoke God to pity and to come to their aid; as if by a hand made and force applied, as Tertullian says in the Apology, they might compel him. The Ninevites did the same, in Jonah II, and the Maccabees, I Maccabees III, 47, and therefore all deserved to be heard and freed by God. The Greek texts have this more abundantly: The people were fasting (and fasting and praying) for many days throughout all Judaea and Jerusalem before the face of the Holy Ones, namely the Holy of Holies, that is the temple. For those who were in Jerusalem to pray went to the temple; but those who were outside turned their face toward the temple.
4:11
11. THEN ELIACHIM THE GREAT PRIEST OF THE LORD WENT AROUND ALL ISRAEL, — so that all might be exhorted to constancy,
4:13
13. REMEMBER MOSES THE SERVANT OF THE LORD, WHO AMALEC, etc. — See the history of Exodus XVII, where I explained it. Note: Eliachim as well as Moses here prescribes two things for war, first that they invoke God, and from him seek and await victory, second that they fortify their cities, occupy the passages, and gather together all human defenses for resisting. For God does not help the idle, but those who labor and fight. The pagan Cato saw this in Sallust in the Catilinarian war, saying: "The aids of the gods are not prepared by vows, nor by womanish supplications; by watching, by acting, by good counsel, all things turn out prosperously;" namely: The Thunderer helps not the thundering, but the striving.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
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.