Judith 2
Good News Translation
The War against the Nations in the West
2 In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, on the twenty-second day of the first month of that year, he and his advisers decided to carry out his threat to take revenge on all those countries that had refused to help him. 2-3 The king called his general staff and senior officers together and reported in detail how those countries had betrayed him. He and his officers agreed that everyone who had refused to help him in the war should be put to death. Then he described to them his plan of attack.
4 At the close of the meeting, Nebuchadnezzar gave the following command to Holofernes, who was the general in command of his armies and second in command to the king:
5 I, Nebuchadnezzar, the great king and ruler of all the earth, command you to choose some experienced soldiers: 120,000 infantry and 12,000 cavalry. 6 Then attack the lands to the west because they refused to respond to my appeal for help. 7 Warn them that they must prepare their offerings of earth and water to show that they have surrendered unconditionally. I will make them feel the full force of my anger and completely destroy them. My armies will march over every foot of their land and plunder it as they go. 8 I will fill the valleys with their dead bodies and will choke up every stream and river with so many corpses that they will all overflow. 9 I will take captive all those who are left alive and carry them off to the ends of the earth.
10 But you, Holofernes, are ordered to go ahead of me and occupy all their territories in advance. If they surrender to you, hold them for me until I come to punish them. 11 But if they resist, do not spare them. Kill them and loot the entire region under your control. 12 I have taken a solemn vow, and at the risk of my life and my royal power I am determined to do what I have vowed to do. 13 Do not disobey me in any way. I am your king; remember that, and carry out without delay every order that I have given you.
The Campaign of Holofernes
14 So Holofernes left the king and called together all the commanders, generals, and officers of the Assyrian army. 15 Just as the king had ordered, he chose 120,000 of the best infantrymen and 12,000 of the best mounted archers 16 and arranged them in battle formation. 17 He also took along a very large number of camels, donkeys, and mules to carry the equipment, as well as many sheep, cattle, and goats for food. 18 Every soldier received plenty of rations and a large payment of gold and silver from the royal treasury.
19 Then Holofernes and his entire army set out, advancing ahead of King Nebuchadnezzar. The chariots, the cavalry, and the infantry marched out to overrun the entire western region. 20 (A)Other troops went with them. There were so many that it was impossible to count them—they were like a swarm of locusts or like grains of sand in the desert.
21 Three days after they had left the city of Nineveh, they reached the plains around Bectileth near the mountains north of Cilicia, where they set up camp. 22 From there Holofernes advanced into the hill country with his entire army, his infantry, cavalry, and chariots. 23 He totally destroyed the countries of Libya and Lydia, then plundered all the people of Rassis and the Ishmaelites who lived on the edge of the desert, south of the land of the Chelleans.
24 Then Holofernes crossed the Euphrates River and marched through the land of Mesopotamia, completely destroying all the walled towns along the Abron River as far as the sea. 25 He seized the territory of Cilicia, killing everyone who resisted him, and went as far as the southern borders of the land of Japheth, near Arabia. 26 He surrounded the Midianites, burned down their tents, and slaughtered their sheep.
27 Holofernes went down into the plains around Damascus during the wheat harvest, burned all the fields, slaughtered the flocks and herds, looted the towns, devastated the entire countryside, and killed all the young men. 28 Panic seized all the people who lived along the Mediterranean Sea, and they shook with fear. Everyone in the towns of Tyre, Sidon, Sur, Ocina, Jamnia, Ashdod, and Ashkelon was terrified.
Judith 2
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Expedition against the West
2 In the eighteenth year, on the twenty-second day of the first month, there was talk in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, about carrying out his revenge on the whole region, just as he had said.(A) 2 He summoned all his attendants and all his nobles and set before them his secret plan and recounted fully, with his own lips, all the wickedness of the region.[a] 3 They decided that all who had not obeyed his command should be destroyed.(B)
4 When he had completed his plan, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, called Holofernes, the chief general of his army, second only to himself, and said to him, 5 “Thus says the Great King, the lord of the whole earth: Leave my presence and take with you men confident in their strength, one hundred twenty thousand foot soldiers and twelve thousand cavalry.(C) 6 March out against all the land to the west, because they disobeyed my orders.(D) 7 Tell them to prepare earth and water, for I am coming against them in my anger and will cover the whole face of the earth with the feet of my troops, to whom I will hand them over to be plundered.(E) 8 Their wounded shall fill their ravines and gullies, and the swelling river shall be filled with their dead.(F) 9 I will lead them away captive to the ends of the whole earth. 10 You shall go and seize all their territory for me in advance. They must yield themselves to you, and you shall hold them for me until the day of their punishment. 11 But to those who resist, show no mercy but hand them over to slaughter and plunder throughout your whole region.(G) 12 For as I live and by the power of my kingdom, what I have spoken I will accomplish by my own hand.(H) 13 And you—take care not to transgress any of your lord’s commands, but carry them out exactly as I have ordered you; do it without delay.”
Campaign of Holofernes
14 So Holofernes left the presence of his lord and summoned all the commanders, generals, and officers of the Assyrian army. 15 He mustered the picked troops by divisions as his lord had ordered him to do, one hundred twenty thousand of them, together with twelve thousand archers on horseback,(I) 16 and he organized them as a great army is marshaled for a campaign. 17 He took along a vast number of camels and donkeys and mules for transport and innumerable sheep and oxen and goats for food,(J) 18 also ample rations for everyone and a huge amount of gold and silver from the royal palace.
19 Then he set out with his whole army to go ahead of King Nebuchadnezzar and to cover the whole face of the earth to the west with their chariots and cavalry and picked foot soldiers.(K) 20 Along with them went a mixed crowd like a swarm of locusts, like the dust[b] of the earth, a multitude that could not be counted.(L)
21 They marched for three days from Nineveh to the plain of Bectileth and camped opposite Bectileth near the mountain that is to the north of Upper Cilicia.(M) 22 From there Holofernes[c] took his whole army, the infantry, cavalry, and chariots, and went up into the hill country. 23 He ravaged Put and Lud and plundered all the Rassisites and the Ishmaelites on the border of the desert, south of the country of the Chelleans.(N) 24 Then he followed[d] the Euphrates and passed through Mesopotamia and destroyed all the fortified towns along the Wadi Abron, as far as the sea.(O) 25 He also seized the territory of Cilicia and killed everyone who resisted him. Then he came to the southern borders of Japheth, facing Arabia.(P) 26 He surrounded all the Midianites and burned their tents and plundered their sheepfolds.(Q) 27 Then he went down into the plain of Damascus during the wheat harvest and burned all their fields and destroyed their flocks and herds and sacked their towns and ravaged their lands and put all their young men to the sword.(R)
28 So fear and dread of him fell upon all the people who lived along the seacoast, at Sidon and Tyre, and those who lived in Sur and Ocina and all who lived in Jamnia. Those who lived in Azotus and Ascalon feared him greatly.(S)
Judith 2
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 2
Revenge Planned Against the Western Nations.[a] 1 In the eighteenth year,[b] on the twenty-second day of the first month, there was a discussion in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, about taking revenge on all the land, as he had threatened.(A) 2 He summoned all his attendants and officers, laid before them his secret plan, and with his own lips recounted in full detail the wickedness of all the land. 3 They decided to destroy all who had refused to obey the order he had issued.
4 When he had fully recounted his plan, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, summoned Holofernes, the ranking general[c] of his forces, second only to himself in command, and said to him: 5 “Thus says the great king, the lord of all the earth: Go forth from my presence, take with you men of proven valor, one hundred and twenty thousand infantry and twelve thousand cavalry,(B) 6 and proceed against all the land of the west, because they disobeyed the order I issued. 7 Tell them to have earth and water[d] ready, for I will come against them in my wrath; I will cover all the land with the feet of my soldiers, to whom I will deliver them as spoils. 8 Their wounded will fill their ravines and wadies, the swelling river will be choked with their dead; 9 and I will deport them as exiles to the very ends of the earth.
10 “Go before me and take possession of all their territories for me. If they surrender to you, guard them for me until the day of their sentencing. 11 As for those who disobey, show them no mercy, but deliver them up to slaughter and plunder in all the land you occupy.(C) 12 For as I live,[e] and by the strength of my kingdom, what I have spoken I will accomplish by my own hand.(D) 13 Do not disobey a single one of the orders of your lord; fulfill them exactly as I have commanded you, and do it without delay.”
Campaigns of Holofernes.[f] 14 So Holofernes left the presence of his lord, and summoned all the commanders, generals, and officers of the Assyrian forces. 15 He mustered one hundred and twenty thousand picked troops, as his lord had commanded, and twelve thousand mounted archers, 16 and drew them up as a vast force organized for battle. 17 He took along a very large number of camels, donkeys, and mules for carrying their supplies; innumerable sheep, cattle, and goats for their food;(E) 18 abundant provisions for each man, and much gold and silver from the royal palace.
19 Then he and all his forces set out on their expedition in advance of King Nebuchadnezzar, to overrun all the lands of the western region with their chariots, cavalry, and picked infantry. 20 A huge, irregular force, too many to count, like locusts, like the dust of the earth, went along with them.(F)
21 After a three-day march[g] from Nineveh, they reached the plain of Bectileth, and camped opposite Bectileth near the mountains to the north of Upper Cilicia. 22 From there Holofernes took all his forces, the infantry, cavalry, and chariots, and marched into the hill country. 23 He devastated Put and Lud,[h] and plundered all the Rassisites and the Ishmaelites on the border of the wilderness toward the south of the Chelleans.(G)
24 Then, following the Euphrates, he went through Mesopotamia, and battered down every fortified city along the Wadi Abron, until he reached the sea. 25 He seized the territory of Cilicia, and cut down everyone who resisted him. Then he proceeded to the southern borders of Japheth, toward Arabia. 26 He surrounded all the Midianites, burned their tents, and sacked their encampments.(H) 27 Descending to the plain of Damascus at the time of the wheat harvest, he set fire to all their fields, destroyed their flocks and herds, looted their cities, devastated their plains, and put all their young men to the sword.(I)
28 (J)Fear and dread of him fell upon all the inhabitants of the coastland, upon those in Sidon and Tyre,(K) and those who dwelt in Sur and Ocina, and the inhabitants of Jamnia. Those in Azotus and Ascalon also feared him greatly.[i]
Notas al pie
- 2:1–13 Nebuchadnezzar commissions Holofernes to take vengeance on the vassal nations that refused him auxiliary military support (see 1:7–12).
- 2:1 Eighteenth year: 587 B.C. Most of the story is set in the catastrophic year when the historical Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, destroyed Jerusalem.
- 2:4 The ranking general: Holofernes is so identified six times in Judith. See also 4:1; 5:1; 6:1; 10:13; 13:15. Holofernes and Bagoas (12:11) are Persian names; two officers of Artaxerxes III Ochos (358–338 B.C.) were so named.
- 2:7 Earth and water: in the Persian period, offering these to a conqueror was a symbolic gesture signifying humble submission of one asking for a treaty.
- 2:12 As I live: an oath proper to God; see the promissory oath of God the divine warrior in Dt 32:39–42; cf. Is 49:18; Jer 22:24; Ez 5:11. By my own hand: in his pride, Nebuchadnezzar claims to do this by his own hand (cf. Is 10:13). In contrast, Judith claims that God will deliver Israel “by my hand” (8:33; 12:4).
- 2:14–3:10 As Holofernes attacks the western nations, terror sweeps across the empire at large (2:28), then Judea (4:1–2), and finally Bethulia (7:1). In these verses, the line of advance is from Nineveh to Damascus and all who submit are nonetheless devastated and forced to worship Nebuchadnezzar.
- 2:21 A three-day march: no ancient army could have traveled three hundred miles from Nineveh to Cilicia in three days.
- 2:23 Put and Lud: mentioned together in Jer 46:9; Ez 27:10; 30:5. Put is thought to be in Libya in Africa; Lud is usually identified with Lydia in Asia Minor. Rather than indicating definite localities here, Put and Lud add assonance and prophetic overtones to the narrative.
- 2:28 Symbolic of the completeness of the terror that descended on the area, seven towns are listed: Tyre, Sidon, Sur, Ocina, Jamnia, Ashdod, and Ashkelon.
Judith 2
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
2 In the thirteenth year of the reign of Nabuchodonosor, the two and twentieth day of the first month, the word was given out in the house of Nabuchodonosor king of the Assyrians, that he would revenge himself.
2 And he called all the ancients, and all the governors, and his officers of war, and communicated to them the secret of his counsel:
3 And he said that his thoughts were to bring all the earth under his empire.
4 And when this saying pleased them all, Nabuchodonosor, the king, called Holofernes the general of his armies,
5 And said to him: Go out against all the kingdoms of the west, and against them especially that despised my commandment.
6 Thy eye shall not spare any kingdom, and all the strong cities thou shalt bring under my yoke.
7 Then Holofernes called the captains and officers of the power of the Assyrians: and he mustered men for the expedition, as the king commanded him, a hundred and twenty thousand fighting men on foot, and twelve thousand archers, horsemen.
8 And he made all his warlike preparations to go before with a multitude of innumerable camels, with all provisions sufficient for the armies in abundance, and herds of oxen, and flocks of sheep, without number.
9 He appointed corn to be prepared out of all Syria in his passage.
10 But gold and silver he took out of the king's house in great abundance.
11 And he went forth he and all the army, with the chariots, and horsemen, and archers, who covered the face of the earth, like locusts.
12 And when he had passed through the borders of the Assyrians, he came to the great mountains of Ange, which are on the left of Cilicia: and he went up to all their castles, and took all the strong places.
13 And he took by assault the renowned city of Melothus, and pillaged all the children of Tharsis, and the children of Ismahel, who were over against the face of the desert, and on the south of the land of Cellon.
14 And he passed over the Euphrates and came into Mesopotamia: and he forced all the stately cities that were there, from the torrent of Mambre, till one comes to the sea:
15 And he took the borders thereof from Cilicia to the coasts of Japheth, which are towards the south.
16 And he carried away all the children of Madian, and stripped them of all their riches, and all that resisted him he slew with the edge of the sword.
17 And after these things he went down into the plains of Damascus in the days of the harvest, and he set all the corn on fire, and he caused all the trees and vineyards to be cut down.
18 And the fear of them fell upon alit the inhabitants of the land.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)