Judith 13

Wycliffe Bible

13 Forsooth as soon as eventide was made, his servants hast(en)ed to their inns, that is, (to their) tents; and Bagoas closed together the doors of the closet where Holofernes lay, and went forth. [As forsooth eventide is done, his servants hied to their harbourgeries; and Bagoas closed the doors of the privy chamber, and went.]

² For all men were made faint, or drunk, of (or from) (the) wine;

³ and Judith alone was there within the closet (with him). [and Judith was alone in the privy chamber.]

⁴ Certainly Holofernes lay in the bed, asleeped with full much drunkenness. [But Holofernes lay in the bed with too much drunkenness asleep.]

⁵ And Judith said to her damsel, that she should stand withoutforth before the door of the closet, and espy, (or watch), that no man were nigh. [And Judith said to her child woman, that she should stand withoutforth before the door of the privy chamber, and wait about.]

⁶ And Judith stood before the bed of Holofernes, and she prayed with tears, and with moving of her lips she said in silence, [And Judith stood before the bed, praying with tears, and with moving of lips in silence, saying,]

⁷ Lord God of Israel, confirm me, or make me stable, and in this time behold thou to the works of mine hands, (so) that, as thou hast promised, thou raise up Jerusalem thy city; and that I perform this thing, which thing I believing thought to be able to be done by thee. [Confirm me, Lord God of Israel, and behold in this hour to the works of mine hands, that thou rear up thy city Jerusalem, as thou hast promised; and that, that I believing to be able to be done by thee thought, I perform.]

⁸ And when she had said this, she nighed, (or approached), [or went] to the pillar that was at the head of his bed, and she loos(en)ed his sword, that hanged [or hung] there bound on the pillar.

⁹ And when she had drawn out of the sheath that sword, she took the hair of his head; and said, Lord God of Israel, confirm me in this hour. [And when she had drawn it out, she took the hair of his head, and saith, Confirm me, God of Israel, in this hour.]

¹⁰ And she smote twice on his neck, and she cutted off his head; and she took away his curtain from the pillars, and she wallowed (or rolled) away his body headless. [And she smote twice into his neck, and she cut off his head; and she took away his canopy from the pillars, and she turned out his body beheaded.]

¹¹ And after a little [while] she went out, and she betook the head of Holofernes to her handmaid, and commanded, that she should put it into her script (or into her bag).

¹² And the two women went out by their custom as (if) to (or for) prayer, and they passed the tents, that is, (the) host, of (the) Assyrians, and they compassed the valley, and came to the gate of the city.

¹³ And Judith said afar to the keepers of the walls, Open ye the gates, for God is with us, that hath done great virtue in Israel.

¹⁴ And it was done, when the men had heard her voice, they called the priests of the city.

¹⁵ And all men from the least till to the most ran to her; for they hoped not, that she should come now (for they had not even hoped, or expected, that she would ever return).

¹⁶ And they tended (the) lights, and all men compassed about her. And she went up into an higher place, and commanded silence to be made. And when all (the) men were still [or And when all had held their peace], Judith said,

¹⁷ Praise ye the Lord our God, that hath not forsaken them that trust in him, and by me, his handmaid,

¹⁸ he hath fulfilled his mercy, which he promised to the house of Israel, and in this night he hath slain in (or by) mine hand the enemy of his people. [he hath fulfilled his mercy, that he promised to the house of Israel, and hath slain in mine hand the enemy of his people this night.]

¹⁹ And she took out of the script (or out of the bag) the head of Holofernes, and showed it to them, and said, Lo! the head of Holofernes, prince of the chivalry of (the) Assyrians; and lo! his curtain, in (or under) which he lay in his drunkenness, where also the Lord our God killed him by the hand of a woman. [And bringing forth of the script the head of Holofernes, showed to them, saying, Lo! the head of Holofernes, prince of the chivalry of Assyrians; and lo! the canopy of him, in which he lay in his drunkenhood, where and by the hand of a woman smote him the Lord our God.]

²⁰ Forsooth the Lord God liveth, for his angel hath kept me, both going from hence, and dwelling there, and (re)turning again from thence hither; and the Lord hath not suffered (or allowed) his handmaid to be defouled (or defiled), but without defouling [or pollution] of sin he hath again-called me to you, and I have joy in (the) victory of the Lord, or in his victory, and in my escaping, and in your deliverance.

²¹ Acknowledge ye all to him, or to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy is into without end.

²² Soothly all men worshipped the Lord, and said to her, The Lord hath blessed thee in his virtue, for by thee he hath brought to nought our enemies.

²³ And then Ozias, the prince of the people of Israel, said to Judith, Daughter, thou art blessed of (or by) the high Lord God, before all women on (the) earth. [But Ozias, the prince of the people of Israel, said to her, Blessed thou art, daughter, of the Lord, the high God, before all women upon earth.]

²⁴ Blessed be the Lord God, that made heaven and earth, and that (ad)dressed (or directed) thee into the wounds of the head of the prince of our enemies;

²⁵ for today he hath magnified so thy name, that thy praising go not away from the mouth of men, that shall be mindful of the virtue of the Lord without end (or who shall remember the power of the Lord forevermore); for which thou sparedest not thy life for the anguishes and tribulations of thy kin [or of thy kindred], but helpedest the falling before the sight of our God/for which men thou sparedest not thy life, but puttedest it for the anguishes and tribulations of thy kin, and thou hast holpen (or hast helped) the falling of the people before the sight of our God.

²⁶ And all the people said, Amen! amen!/Be it thus done! be it thus done! [And all the people said, So be it! so be it!]

²⁷ And then Achior was called, and he came; and Judith said to him, That God of Israel, to whom thou gavest witnessing, that he avengeth him(self) of his enemies, hath cut off the head of all unbelieveful men in this night by mine hand.

²⁸ And (so) that thou prove that it is so, lo! the head of Holofernes, which in the despite of his pride despised God of Israel, and he menaced death to thee, and said, When the people of Israel is taken, I shall command thy sides to be pierced with a sword. [And that thou prove for so it is, lo! the head of Holofernes, that in the despising of his pride God of Israel despised, and to thee death threatened, saying, When the people of Israel were taken, I shall command with a sword to stick him through the sides.]

²⁹ And when Achior saw the head of Holofernes, he was anguished for dread, and he fell down on his face upon the earth, and his soul suffered anesthetizing, that is, swooning, [or his life quopped].

³⁰ And after that he had taken again his spirit, and was comforted, he felled down at the feet of Judith, and worshipped [or honoured] her, and said,

³¹ Blessed art thou of thy God in all the tabernacles of Jacob; for in all folk, that shall hear thy name, God of Israel shall be magnified in thee.