Josippon

Judah, his son, called Maccabee, succeeded him. His brothers and his father's entire household supported him, and the whole community of the Hasidim was with him. Judah rejoiced in fighting the battles of Israel: he donned a breastplate like a hero and girded himself with his weapons, and in his strength he appeared like a giant. He shielded the camp of Israel with his sword and pursued its enemies, trampling their lives into the ground and singeing the sinners with the flames of his mouth. The wicked were stunned from fear of him, and all the evildoers were frightened of him, like cattle dread the roar of a lion on the day when he roars to devour his prey. Jacob was glad about his deeds, and Israel rejoiced with his actions, and great kings were afraid. Yehudah's name spread throughout the world, and his wars were recounted unto the ends of the earth. Blessed be his memory among the people of Israel. May there be peace upon the birthplace of his righteousness and blessing upon the bed of his holiness, for he did not spare his soul from death for the sake of Israel, the people of God. And he went from city to city and killed all the wicked people of Judah who terrorized the people of Israel.

Apollonius, chief of the army of Makedon, heard these things and said: "Who is this who has dared to rebel against our lord the king?" He assembled a great and mighty army of Makedonian warriors and came to fight against Israel. Yehudah went out to meet him, and a great battle ensued between the nation of Makedon and the congregation of the Hasidim. During the battle, Yehudah saw Apollonius standing within the ranks of the Makedonians, and in the force of his rage, he raced toward him in the thick of the battle, hacking to his right and left and before him. He felled the warriors of Greece just as the harvester fells his sheaves and the bundles of his harvest, and reaching Apollonius, he struck him with his sword and laid him out on the ground. The Greeks and the warriors of Makedon turned their backs and fled, and Yehudah pursued them with the congregation of the Hasidim, smiting them a mighty blow and taking their booty. Yehudah took the sword of Apollonius and fought with it all the days of his life.

When Seron, chief of the army of Aram, heard of this, he said: "I shall make a name for myself and go fight against Yehudah!" He gathered all his army and came to Beth Ḥoron. When Yehudah was told, he said: "We must not delay; let us go against them even though our brothers the congregation of the Hasidim have left us. If we wait for them to return, then our enemies will say that we are afraid of them." Yehudah advanced against them all night, and at daybreak they saw an immense force, and they said unto Yehudah: "How can we fight against this multitude when we are so few?" Whereupon Yehudah said: "Call upon heaven, and you shall be saved for the battle is God's!" Yehudah came from the flank of the enemy camp, leapt upon them suddenly, and engaged them in battle. Seron and his army panicked and fled; Yehudah pursued after him and caught up with him and smote him, and he slew on that day many of Aram; and fear of Yehudah fell upon all the nations. When King Antiochus heard of these events, he was enraged and mustered his people and all the nations under his sovereignty—an immense multitude. He divided his force and taking half of it went to the land of Persia, for at that time the Persian nation had rebelled against Makedon, seeing that the people of Judah had rebelled. The king gave half of his force to Lysias, an important member of his family of Makedonian royal descent, and said to him: "You are aware of all that Yehudah, son of Mattathias, did to two chiefs I had and to their entire army. Now go and smite all the inhabitants of the land of Judah! Behold, I am sending Eupator, my son, with you, while I will go to the land of Persia and uproot the Persian nation, for they have rebelled against me!"

King Antiochus went to Persia and left Lysias as tutor to his son to fight in the land of Judah. Lysias chose Ptolemy and Nicanor and Gorgias, valiant men, and he sent with them forty thousand warriors and seven thousand cavalry; the entire forces of Aram and Philistia joined them as well, and they invaded the land of Judah to destroy her.

When Yehudah and all the elders of Israel heard of this, they declared a fast, donning sackcloth and putting dust on their heads, and called out to God. After the fast, Yehudah mustered his army and placed over them captains of thousands, captains of hundreds, captains of fifties, and captains of tens, and he took the field to confront all the invading armies. A call passed through the camp: "Whoever has planted a vineyard or has built a house or who has betrothed a woman or is fearful and soft-hearted, let him go and return." So the people returned, and there remained with Yehudah seven thousand young men, and of the brave men of Israel, all brave in battle, only one out of every hundred, men who would not avert their face nor flee from anything.

Yehudah went out to confront Nicanor, who brought with him a multitude of merchants, for he thought to sell them the Judaean boys and girls from the captives whom he planned on taking from the land of Judah, and he came haughtily toward Yehudah. Yehudah went out from the 'adat Ḥasidim with him and called out to God, saying: "My most high God, You who have ruled from the beginning of time and rule even now, who puts an end to wars and in whose hand is power and might to elevate and to bring low, subdue and humiliate this people before the humble of your people, for You it is who subdues peoples beneath us and nations under our feet." Then, after the prayer, the priests sounded the holy trumpets, and the entire army cheered, and Yehudah leapt hurriedly into battle and dealt a mighty blow on Nicanor's camp. They fled before him, and Yehudah pursued after them, smiting all the way, and they dispatched nine thousand souls in that battle. They returned and took their spoil; they took the gold that the merchants brought to purchase the youth of Israel and divided it among the poor. And they rested there in that spot, for this battle took place on the sixth day.

Yehudah left that place and went to Bacchides and to Timotheus and waged a great war with them; twenty thousand warriors of Makedon he laid out in that battle. Bacchides and Timotheus fled; Yehudah pursued after them, but he did not catch up with them, for they came to Astoroth Karnaim. But Yehudah did catch up with Philip, that Philip who did the evil in the land of Yehudah. As Yehudah drew near, Philip turned from the road and entered a nearby house. Yehudah commanded them to knock the house down upon him and burn him there with fire. Thus, he avenged Elazar and the blood of the Hasidim that Philip had spilled. They returned to strip the corpses and sent the booty to Jerusalem. Nicanor had fled from there and escaped, for he had shed the purple garment that he wore and donned the rags of poverty, wherefore he was not recognized; he went to Makedon and related to Lysias everything that had happened to him.