1 Maccabees 7:12-25

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹² Then a group of scribes appeared in a body before Alcimus and Bacchides to ask for just terms. ¹³ The Hasideans were first among the Israelites to seek peace from them, ¹⁴ for they said, “A priest of the line of Aaron has come with the army, and he will not harm us.” ¹⁵ Alcimus^[a] spoke peaceable words to them and swore this oath to them, “We will not seek to injure you or your friends.” ¹⁶ So they trusted him; but he seized sixty of them and killed them in one day, in accordance with the word that was written,

¹⁸ Then the fear and dread of them fell on all the people, for they said, “There is no truth or justice in them, for they have violated the agreement and the oath that they swore.”

¹⁹ Then Bacchides withdrew from Jerusalem and encamped in Beth-zaith. And he sent and seized many of the men who had deserted to him,^[b] and some of the people, and killed them and threw them into a great pit. ²⁰ He placed Alcimus in charge of the country and left with him a force to help him; then Bacchides went back to the king.

²¹ Alcimus struggled to maintain his high priesthood, ²² and all who were troubling their people joined him. They gained control of the land of Judah and did great damage in Israel. ²³ And Judas saw all the wrongs that Alcimus and those with him had done among the Israelites; it was more than the Gentiles had done. ²⁴ So Judas^[c] went out into all the surrounding parts of Judea, taking vengeance on those who had deserted and preventing those in the city^[d] from going out into the country. ²⁵ When Alcimus saw that Judas and those with him had grown strong, and realized that he could not withstand them, he returned to the king and brought malicious charges against them.