Anonymous (Septuagint) · a new plain-English translation from the original language
1| John went up from Gazara and reported to Simon his father what Cendebeus had been doing.
2| Then Simon called his two older sons, Judas and John, and said to them: I and my brothers and my father's house have fought Israel's wars from my youth until this very day, and things have prospered in our hands so that we rescued Israel many times.
3| But now I have grown old, while you, by mercy, are of sufficient years. Take my place and my brother's, and go out and fight for our nation, and may the help that comes from heaven be with you.
4| And he chose from the country twenty thousand fighting men and cavalry, and they marched against Cendebeus, and they camped for the night at Modein.
5| And rising early they went into the plain, and there was a great force to meet them, foot soldiers and cavalry, and a torrent-bed lay between them.
6| And he drew up his forces facing them, he and his people, and he saw the people afraid to cross the torrent, so he crossed first; and the men saw him and crossed after him.
7| And he divided the people, putting the cavalry in the middle of the infantry, for the enemy's cavalry was very great.
8| And they sounded the trumpets, and Cendebeus and his camp were routed, and many of them fell wounded, while the rest fled to the stronghold.
9| At that time Judas, John's brother, was wounded; but John pursued them until he came to Kedron, which Cendebeus had built.
10| And they fled into the towers in the territory of Azotus, and John set it on fire; and about a thousand of them fell, and he returned to Judea in peace.
11| Now Ptolemy son of Abubus had been appointed commander over the plain of Jericho, and he had much silver and gold,
12| for he had married the daughter of the high priest.
13| And his heart grew proud, and he wanted to gain control of the country, and he plotted treacherously against Simon and his sons, to do away with them.
14| Simon was going about the cities of the country, attending to their needs, and he went down to Jericho, he and Mattathias and Judas his sons, in the hundred and seventy-seventh year, in the eleventh month — this is the month Shebat.
15| And the son of Abubus received them treacherously into the little stronghold called Dok, which he had built, and he made them a great banquet, and hid men there.
16| And when Simon and his sons were drunk, Ptolemy rose up with his men, and they took their weapons and came in upon Simon at the banquet, and killed him and his sons and some of his servants.
17| Thus he committed a great treachery, and repaid good with evil.
18| And Ptolemy wrote all this and sent word to the king, asking him to send forces to help him and to hand over their country and its cities.
19| And he sent others to Gazara to kill John, and to the captains of thousands he sent letters, calling them to him, so that he could reward them with silver, with gold, and with other gifts.
20| And he sent others to seize Jerusalem and the temple mount.
21| But someone ran ahead and reported to John at Gazara that his father and his brothers had perished, and that Ptolemy had sent men to kill him too.
22| And on hearing this he was greatly shaken, and he seized the men who had come to kill him and put them to death, for he knew they were seeking to destroy him.
23| Now the rest of the acts of John, his wars and the brave deeds he did, the building of the walls he built, and his other deeds,
24| behold, these are written in the book of the days of his high priesthood, from the time he became high priest after his father.