
{1}1{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}It was in the twelfth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, 
king of the Assyrians, who ruled in the great city of Nineveh 
that, at the same time, Arphaxad, king of the Medes, ruled at 
Ecbatana. {I}2_{/}Arphaxad had built around Ecbatana ramparts of 
stone, with each stone cut to the size of one and a half meters 
wide and three meters long. The ramparts were thirty-five meters 
high and twenty-five meters wide. {I}3_{/}He built at the gates city 
towers which were fifty meters high and rested on foundations 
twenty meters wide. {I}4_{/}The gates themselves were thirty-five 
meters high and twenty meters wide, wide enough for his valiant 
warriors and foot soldiers to march through them in battle array. 
{R}_{I}5_{/}In those days, King Nebuchadnezzar made war on King Arphaxad 
in the Great Plain, that is, the plain near the territory of the 
Ragae.
{R}_{I}6_{/}All the people who lived in the mountains, those who lived 
along the banks of the rivers Euphrates, Tigris and Hydaspes, 
those on the plains of Arioch, king of the Elamites, and many 
other peoples joined the ranks of the Chaldeans to fight against 
the sons of Cheleoud.
{R}_{I}7_{/}Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, sent his messengers to 
all those living in Persia and in the West, to the inhabitants of 
Cilicia, Damascus, Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, to those along the 
seacoast, {R}_{I}8_{/}to the people of Carmel, Gilead, Upper Galilee and 
the Great Plain of Esdraelon, {R}_{I}9_{/}to those in Samaria and its 
towns, and beyond the Jordan as far as Jerusalem, Bethany, 
Chelous, Kadesh, the River of Egypt, Tahpanhes, Raamses, and all 
the country of Goshen {R}_{I}10_{/}as far as the region beyond Tanis and 
Memphis, and to all the inhabitants of Egypt as far as the country 
of Ethiopia.
{R}_{I}11_{/}But the inhabitants of all these regions took no notice of 
the order of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, and did not 
join him in waging war. They no longer feared him because they 
considered him just like any other man. They sent back his 
messengers empty-handed and shamefaced. {R}_{I}12_{/}Nebuchadnezzar was 
greatly enraged against all these regions and swore by his throne 
and by his kingdom to punish all the districts of Cilicia, 
Damascus and Syria, and to put to the sword all who were in the 
lands of Moab, Ammon, the whole of Judea, and all those in Egypt 
as far as the coasts between the two seas. {R}_{I}13_{/}In the 
seventeenth year, Nebuchadnezzar went to battle with his army 
against King Arphaxad, and conquered him in the campaign. He drove 
back the army of Arphaxad with all his cavalry and chariots. 
[=]_{I}14_{/}Nebuchadnezzar occupied all the cities. Finally, he 
reached Ecbatana where he demolished its towers, pillaged the 
streets of the city and reduced its splendor to ruins. {I}15_{/}He 
pursued Arphaxad into the mountains of the Ragae, pierced him 
through with arrows and utterly destroyed him. {I}16_{/}Then he 
returned to Nineveh with a great crowd of followers and a 
considerable multitude of soldiers. He and his entire army stayed 
there amusing themselves and feasting for one hundred and twenty 
days.

{1}2{/}

[\u0095]_{R}_{I}1_{/}On the twenty-second day of the first month in the 
eighteenth year of his reign, there was talk in the House of 
Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, of punishing all those who 
had disobeyed the king's commands. {I}2_{/}He called together his 
ministers and his noblemen, and told them his secret plan. {I}3_{/}He 
proclaimed publicly the total destruction of the land and the 
punishment of all those who had disregarded his call.
{R}_{I}4_{/}As soon as Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, had made 
this decision, he summoned Holofernes, the chief general of his 
army who was second in command, and said to him, {R}_{I}5_{/}"So says the 
Great King, Lord of all the earth, you will set out from my 
presence, taking with you men of true courage, about one hundred 
and twenty thousand foot soldiers and a great number of horses 
with about twelve thousand cavalrymen. {R}_{I}6_{/}You will go to all the 
countries in the West and punish all the peoples, because they 
disregarded my orders. {R}_{I}7_{/}Tell them to submit themselves to me 
on land and water, lest in my anger I myself march against them. I 
will cover all the face of the earth with the footprints of my 
army, and I will give them over to my men to be plundered by them. 
{R}_{I}8_{/}The ravines will be filled with their wounded, rivers and 
torrents will be full of their dead. {I}9_{/}I will lead away their 
prisoners as captives to the uttermost parts of the earth. 
{I}10_{/}Go, then, and occupy in my name all their territories; if 
they surrender to you, keep them for me that I may punish them. 
{I}11_{/}Show no pity to those who resist you. Hand them over to be 
massacred and plundered throughout all their lands. {R}_{I}12_{/}For, as 
truly as I live and by the power of my kingdom, I will carry out 
with my own hands what I have said. {I}13_{/}And you, do not disobey 
the words of your lord nor fail to carry them out exactly as I 
have instructed you. Do not change any of them."
{R}_{I}14_{/}Holofernes went out from the presence of his lord and called 
together all the chiefs of staff, the generals and commanders of 
the army of Assyria. {I}15_{/}He gathered about a hundred and twenty 
thousand specially chosen men for the army as his lord had ordered 
him, and twelve thousand archers. {I}16_{/}He arranged them in battle 
positions. {I}17_{/}He took along camels, donkeys and mules to carry 
the baggage, and a great number of sheep, oxen, and goats for 
their food. [=]_{R}_{I}18_{/}He took a sufficient quantity of provisions 
for each man, and an abundant supply of gold and silver from the 
king's treasury.
{R}_{I}19_{/}Then Holofernes set out on the march with all his army, with 
their chariots, cavalry and picked foot soldiers going ahead of 
King Nebuchadnezzar to cover all the lands to the West with this 
army. {I}20_{/}They were accompanied by a great crowd of people, so 
many were they that they were like locusts or the dust of the 
earth.
{I}21_{/}After marching for three days from Nineveh, Holofernes and 
his men reached the plain of Bectileth where they encamped before 
the city, near the mountains to the north of Upper Cilicia. 
{I}22_{/}Then Holofernes took all his army, foot soldiers, cavalry and 
chariots, and marched into the mountain region. {R}_{I}23_{/}He utterly 
destroyed Put and Lud, and plundered all the land of Rassis and of 
Ishmael on the border of the desert to the south of the country of 
the Chaldeans. {R}_{I}24_{/}Then he followed the Euphrates, crossed 
Mesopotamia and destroyed all the cities high above the torrent of 
Abron until he reached the sea. {I}25_{/}He took possession of the 
land of Cilicia, and cut down all who opposed him, and arrived at 
the land of Japheth in the south toward Arabia. {I}26_{/}He surrounded 
all the children of Midian, burned their tents and destroyed their 
livestock. {R}_{I}27_{/}Then descending to the plain of Damascus at the 
time of the wheat harvest, he burned all their fields, scattered 
all their animals and killed the young ones, pillaged their 
villages, devastated their plains, and put all their young men to 
the sword.
{I}28_{/}The fear and terror of him fell upon all the inhabitants of 
the seacoast, those in Tyre and Sidon, in Sur, Ocina and Jamnia. 
The people of Azotus and Ascalon also feared him.

{1}3{/}

{I}1_{/}They therefore sent messengers to Holofernes offering him 
terms of peace: {R}_{I}2_{/}"See, we consider ourselves as servants of 
Nebuchadnezzar, the great king, do with us as you will. {I}3_{/}All 
our farms, our whole territory, all our wheatfields, our oxen and 
our sheepfolds lie before you - use them as you please. {I}4_{/}See, 
our towns and all their inhabitants are yours, deal with them as 
you wish." {I}5_{/}These men went to Holofernes and repeated these 
words.
{I}6_{/}Then Holofernes moved down to the seacoast with his army. He 
stationed garrisons in the hill cities and took from them men whom 
he chose as auxiliaries. {I}7_{/}The people of these cities received 
him, as did all the people of the surrounding countryside, with 
garlands, singing and dancing to the music of tambourines. 
[=]_{I}8_{/}Nevertheless, he still laid waste all their land, cut down 
their sacred woods and destroyed all their gods, that all people 
of all languages and nations might worship Nebuchadnezzar alone 
and proclaim him as god.
{I}9_{/}Then he arrived opposite Esdraelon, near Dothan, facing the 
great chain of Judean hills. {I}10_{/}He encamped between Geba 
Scythopolis, and remained there a month in order to reorganize the 
provisions of his army.

{1}4{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}The children of Israel in Judea  learned what had happened to 
the other nations at the hands of Holofernes, the chief general of 
Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Assyrians, and how he had 
plundered the neighboring villages and destroyed their 
sanctuaries. {R}_{I}2_{/}And they trembled with great fear because of 
him. They were anxious about Jerusalem and the Temple of the Lord 
their God, [=]_{R}_{I}3_{/}since they had only recently returned from 
exile. The people of Judea had just come together and the new 
furnishings of the Altar and the Sanctuary had just been 
consecrated after being profaned. {R}_{I}4_{/}They sent messengers to 
warn all the inhabitants of the territory of Samaria, Kona, Beth-
horon, Belmain, Jericho, Choba and Aesora, and the valley of 
Salem. [=]_{I}5_{/}They occupied all the summits of the mountains, 
fortified the ramparts of the towns and prepared stores of 
foodstuff and provisions for the war, since their field had just 
been harvested.
{R}_{I}6_{/}Joakim, the high priest, who was in Jerusalem in those days, 
wrote to the inhabitants of Bethulia and Betomesthaim opposite 
Esdraelon, at the entrance to the plain of Dothan. {I}7_{/}He told 
them to seize and fortify the mountain passes because it was by 
them that Holofernes would enter Judea. There it would be easy to 
stop those who were advancing since the narrow passes allowed no 
more than two men to go forward at a time.
{R}_{I}8_{/}The children of Israel obeyed the orders of Joakim and of the 
Council of the Elders which assembled in Jerusalem. {R}_{I}9_{/}All the 
people of Israel called upon God with great fervor and humbled 
themselves before him. {I}10_{/}Men, women and children, including the 
animals, all the foreigners who resided among them, their laborers 
and slaves, all clothed themselves in sackcloth. {R}_{I}11_{/}All the men 
of Israel in Jerusalem, with their wives and children, bowed 
before the Temple, sprinkled ashes on their heads and held out 
their hands in supplication before the Lord. {R}_{I}12_{/}They covered 
the Altar in sackcloth, and with one voice earnestly begged the 
God of Israel not to let their children be massacred, their wives 
raped, their towns destroyed and their Sanctuary profaned, that 
they might not become the laughingstock of other nations.
{R}_{I}13_{/}The Lord heard their prayer and looked upon their anguish. 
The people throughout the whole of Judea fasted for many days, and 
those in Jerusalem fasted before the Sanctuary of the Lord 
Almighty. {R}_{I}14_{/}The high priest Joakim, with all the priests and 
ministers, stood before the Lord dressed in sackcloth, and offered 
continual sacrifice, prayers and the voluntary gifts of the 
people. [=]_{R}_{I}15_{/}They put ashes on their turbans and cried out 
with all their strength to the Lord, asking him to watch over the 
whole house of Israel.

{1}5{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}It was reported to Holofernes that the people of Israel were 
prepared for war, that they had closed the mountain passes, 
fortified the ramparts on the summits of all the high mountains 
and placed blockades in the plains. {I}2_{/}Seething with anger, 
Holofernes called the leaders of the Moabites, the generals of 
Ammon and all the governors of the Seacoast, {R}_{I}3_{/}and said to 
them, "Tell me, sons of Canaan, who are these people living in the 
mountain region? Which towns do they inhabit? What is the strength 
of their army? In what does their power and strength consist? Who 
has been placed at their head as commander of their army? {I}4_{/}Why 
have they not appeared before me like everyone else in the West?"
[=]_{I}5_{/}Achior, commander of the Ammonites, said to him, "May my 
Lord listen to the word spoken by your servant, for I will tell 
you the truth about these people from the mountain region whom you 
now encounter. {I}6_{/}These people descend from the Chaldeans. 
{R}_{I}7_{/}They settled first in Mesopotamia, for they did not wish to 
worship any longer the gods of their fathers who lived in Chaldea. 
{R}_{I}8_{/}They abandoned the religion of their ancestors, and worshiped 
the God of Heaven, a God whom they had come to recognize. Because 
of this their fathers drove them out and they fled to Mesopotamia 
where they dwelt for a long time. {R}_{I}9_{/}Then their God told them to 
leave the country where they had settled and go to the land of 
Canaan. They went to live there, and acquired an abundance of gold 
and silver and numerous herds of cattle.
{R}_{I}10_{/}There was famine throughout the land of Canaan, so they went 
down into Egypt where they remained as long as there was food. 
Then they became so numerous that their race could not be counted. 
{R}_{I}11_{/}But the king of Egypt rose up against them and tricked them 
into making bricks, and they were humiliated and made into slaves. 
{R}_{I}12_{/}They called upon their God who punished the whole of Egypt 
with such incurable plagues that the Egyptians drove them out. 
{R}_{I}13_{/}Then God dried up the Red Sea in front of them {R}_{I}14_{/}and he 
led them along the route of Sinai and Kadesh Barnea. The 
Israelites drove all the inhabitants into the desert; {R}_{I}15_{/}they 
inhabited the country of the Amorites and wiped out the 
Heshbonites. Then, having crossed the Jordan, they took possession 
of all the hill country, {R}_{I}16_{/}driving out the Canaanites, the 
Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Shechemites, and the Gergesites, 
and they lived there for a long time.
{R}_{I}17_{/}As long as they did not offend God, they prospered, because 
their God who hates wrongdoing was on their side. {R}_{I}18_{/}But when 
they strayed from the path he had set for them, they were 
completely annihilated in many battles, and they were led off into 
captivity in a country not their own. The temple of their God was 
leveled to the ground and their cities were occupied by their 
enemies. {R}_{I}19_{/}Now that they have turned again to their God, they 
have returned from exile from the various places in which they had 
been scattered. They have retaken Jerusalem where their Sanctuary 
is and they have settled in the mountain region because it has 
remained deserted. {I}20_{/}And now, Sovereign Lord, we must find out 
if there is any wrongdoing in this people. [=]_{R}_{I}21_{/}If they are 
sinning against their God, then we shall march against them and we 
shall conquer. But if there is no sinfulness in their nation, 
then, my Lord, turn aside from them for fear that their Lord and 
God will cover them with his shield and the whole world will 
witness our downfall."
{I}22_{/}Now it happened that when Achior had finished speaking, all 
the people standing in a circle around the tent began criticizing 
and protesting. The officers of Holofernes and all the inhabitants 
of the seacoast and of Moab wanted to beat him black and blue. 
They said, {R}_{I}23_{/}"We are not afraid of the children of Israel. 
Look, they are a people with no strength or energy to sustain a 
violent conflict. {I}24_{/}Let us go forth, and they will be like 
bread for your whole army, O Lord Holofernes!"

{1}6{/}

{I}1_{/}When the tumult among the men standing around the tent had 
died down, Holofernes, general in chief of the Assyrian army, said 
to Achior in the presence of all the foreigners and all the people 
of Moab, [=]_{R}_{I}2_{/}"Who are you, Achior, you and all the people 
bribed by Israel to prophesy against us as you have done today? 
Why do you counsel us not to make war on the race of Israel 
because their God will cover them with a shield? Who is God, if 
not Nebuchadnezzar. He will send out his army and wipe them off 
the face of the earth and their God will not save them. {R}_{I}3_{/}But 
we, the king's servants, will crush them as though they were just 
one man. They will not withstand the onslaught of our horses. 
{R}_{I}4_{/}We will burn the whole lot of them in their own homes. Their 
mountains will be soaked with their blood, their plains will be 
full of their dead. They will not be able to hold their ground 
before us. Most surely they will perish, as King Nebuchadnezzar, 
lord of all the earth, had foretold. He said it and the words he 
has uttered will not be in vain.
{R}_{I}5_{/}But you, Achior, an Ammonite mercenary who has today uttered 
these words to your shame, from now on you will not see my face 
until I avenge myself on this race who came from Egypt. {R}_{I}6_{/}The 
sword of my soldiers and the lance of my officers will pierce your 
sides. When I return from battle, your body will be with all the 
dead of Israel. {I}7_{/}My servants will lead you into the mountain 
region and will deposit you in one of the towns which are on the 
slopes, {I}8_{/}so that you will share the same fate as the rest of 
them. {I}9_{/}But if you believe that they will not be taken, then do 
not put on such a long face. I have spoken and not one of my words 
will be without effect."
{I}10_{/}Holofernes ordered his guards who were standing in the tent 
to seize Achior, take him to Bethulia and hand him over into the 
hands of the Israelites. {I}11_{/}The servants seized him and took him 
outside the camp onto the plain; from the middle of the plain they 
took him towards the mountain country and reached the springs 
which were at the foot of Bethulia. {I}12_{/}When the men of the town 
at the top of the mountain saw them coming, they took their 
weapons, went out of the town to the summit of the mountain, and 
those who were armed with catapults tried to stop their ascent by 
slinging stones at them. {I}13_{/}The guards took shelter, tied up 
Achior and left him lying on the ground at the foot of the 
mountain. They then returned to their lord.
{R}_{I}14_{/}The sons of Israel descended from the town and went up to 
Achior, and having untied him, they led him to Bethulia, and took 
him to the rulers of the town, {R}_{I}15_{/}who in those days were Uzziah 
the son of Micah of the tribe of Simeon, Chabris the son of 
Gothoniel, and Charmis the son of Melchiel. [=]_{I}16_{/}As they 
called for a meeting of all the elders of the town, the young 
people and the women also joined the assembly. They placed Achior 
in the midst of the assembled people and Uzziah asked him what had 
happened. {R}_{I}17_{/}In reply he told them about the council meeting of 
Holofernes and all that he himself had said to the leaders of the 
Assyrians. He also told them of the threatening words of 
Holofernes against Israel.
{R}_{I}18_{/}The people threw themselves down on the ground, worshiped 
God and called upon his help saying, [=]_{R}_{I}19_{/}"Lord God of 
Heaven, take into consideration the insolence of the Assyrians and 
have pity on your humiliated people. Look this day upon those who 
are consecrated to you." {I}20_{/}They encouraged Achior and 
congratulated him warmly. {R}_{I}21_{/}Then Uzziah led him from the 
assembly into his own house and gave a meal for the elders. All 
through the night the people called upon the God of Israel, 
begging him to come to their aid.

{1}7{/}

{I}1_{/}The next day Holofernes gave an order to the whole of his army 
and to those people who had come to his help to move camp in the 
direction of Bethulia, to occupy the mountain slopes and to wage 
war against the Israelites. {I}2_{/}All his valiant warriors moved 
that day; the forces of fighting men numbered one hundred and 
seventy thousand foot soldiers and twelve thousand cavalry, 
without counting the baggage and the men who looked after it as 
well as the crowd of people who accompanied them - a considerable 
crowd. {I}3_{/}They camped in the valley near Bethulia, near the 
spring; they spread out the whole width from Dothan to Belbain, 
and the length from Bethulia to Cyamon which faces Esdraelon.
[=]_{I}4_{/}When the Israelites saw how numerous they were, they were 
extremely afraid and said to one another, "Without doubt this 
crowd is going to devour all the country, neither the high 
mountains nor the ravines nor the hills will be able to put a stop 
to their progress." {I}5_{/}Nonetheless each one seized his fighting 
equipment; they lit fires on the tops of the towers and kept watch 
all that night.
{I}6_{/}The second day, Holofernes lined up all his cavalry in front 
of the Israelites in Bethulia. {R}_{I}7_{/}He observed the approaches to 
their town, discovered the sources supplying water, seized them 
and stationed guards over them, then he returned to his army. 
{I}8_{/}The leaders of the Edomites, the commanders of the Moabites 
and the generals of the Seacoast approached Holofernes and said, 
{I}9_{/}"Let our Master listen to us, and your army will not suffer 
loss. {R}_{I}10_{/}This people of Israel really do not put their trust in 
javelins but in the height of the mountains which they inhabit, 
for it is not easy to reach the summit of their mountains. 
{I}11_{/}Master, if you wish to save the lives of your men, do not 
fight against them in battle formation. {I}12_{/}Remain in your camp 
and keep all the men in your army safe but let us take possession 
of the spring which flows at the foot of the mountain, 
{R}_{I}13_{/}because it is from there that the people of Bethulia draw 
all their water. They will be dying of thirst and so they will 
hand over their town. We and our people will scale the summits of 
the neighboring mountains and set up outposts to prevent anyone 
from leaving the town. {R}_{I}14_{/}The famine will destroy them; men, 
women and children will be lying dead in the streets of their town 
before ever the sword is raised against them. {I}15_{/}So you will 
have punished them severely for having rebelled and for not having 
come out to meet you with offers of peace."
{I}16_{/}This advice pleased Holofernes and all his officers, and he 
agreed to do what they said. {R}_{I}17_{/}The Moabites, with five 
thousand Assyrians, moved camp; they encamped in the valley and 
cut off the springs and the water supply from the Israelites. 
{I}18_{/}The Edomites and the Ammonites climbed up and camped on the 
mountain near Dothan; they sent some of their men to the south and 
to the east facing Egrebel, near Chusi, which is on the torrent of 
Mochmur. The rest of the Assyrian army encamped in the plain, 
covering the whole countryside. The camp site covered by their 
tents and their bag-gage spread out wide for they were an enormous 
crowd.

{N}THE DISCOURAGEMENT OF THE PEOPLE{/}

[\u0095]_{R}_{I}19_{/}Disheartened, the people of Israel called upon the Lord 
their God because their enemies had encircled them and had cut off 
all means of escape. {I}20_{/}All the Assyrian army, its foot 
soldiers, its chariots and horsemen surrounded them for thirty-
four days. {R}_{I}21_{/}The inhabitants of Bethulia saw the water jars 
becoming empty and the wells running dry so that drinking water 
had to be rationed every day. {I}22_{/}The small children became weak 
with thirst; the women and the young collapsed in the streets and 
gateways of the town. {I}23_{/}Then everyone - men, women, young 
people and children - gathered and accused Uzziah and the leaders 
of the town. 
They called out with loud cries and said before all the elders, 
{R}_{I}24_{/}"May God judge between you and us, for you are the cause of 
this misfortune by not engaging in peaceful negotiations with the 
Assyrians. {R}_{I}25_{/}And now there is no one who can bring us any 
help; God has delivered us into the hands of these pagans in such 
a way that we lie dying before them from great thirst and misery. 
{I}26_{/}You must call on the Assyrians and let the whole army of 
Holofernes pillage us. [=]_{I}27_{/}It is better for us to become 
their booty, for then we shall become slaves, but at least we 
shall live and not have to see our women, our older children and 
the little ones die before our eyes. [=]_{R}_{I}28_{/}We urge you by 
heaven and earth and by our God, the Lord of our fathers, who 
punishes us according to our sins and the sins of our fathers: 
make this decision this very day."
{R}_{I}29_{/}Altogether they raised a great lamentation in the midst of 
the assembly, and they cried out with a loud voice to the Lord 
God.
{R}_{I}30_{/}Then Uzziah said to them, "Have confidence, my brothers; 
hold out for five days more, during which time the Lord our God 
will show us his mercy, for he will not abandon us forever. 
{I}31_{/}If these days pass without his coming to our help, then we 
shall do what you say." {I}32_{/}Then he dismissed the men, each to 
his post, and they went towards the ramparts and the towers of the 
town, and he sent the women and children back to their homes. Now 
there was a great depression throughout the town.

{1}8{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}The news of what had happened came in those days to Judith, 
daughter of Merari, son of Joseph, of Oziel, of Elkiah, of 
Ananias, of Gideon, of Raphain, of Ahitub, of Elijah, of Hilkiah, 
of Eliab, of Nathanael, of Salamiel, of Sarasadai, of Israel. 
{R}_{I}2_{/}Her husband was Manasseh, of the same tribe and family. He 
had died during the harvesting of the barley [=]_{I}3_{/}as he was 
supervising the reapers who were binding the sheaves on the plain; 
he suffered sunstroke, took to his bed and died in Bethulia, his 
town. He was buried with his ancestors in the field which lies 
between Dothan and Balamon.

{N}JUDITH: THE JEWESS WHO NEVER WAVERED IN HER FAITH{/}

[\u0095]_{I}4_{/}As a widow, Judith remained in her house for three years 
and four months. {I}5_{/}She had built a room on the rooftop of the 
house where she lived. [=]_{R}_{I}6_{/}She covered herself in sackcloth, 
put on widow's garments and fasted all the days of her widowhood 
with the exception of the eves of the Sabbath, the Sabbath day, 
the eves of the new moons, the days of the new moons, and all the 
celebrations of the people of Israel. [=]_{R}_{I}7_{/}She was exceedingly 
beautiful and very pleasing to look at. Manasseh, her husband, had 
left her gold, silver, servants, cattle and fields and she 
remained the owner of all this estate. [=]_{R}_{I}8_{/}No one could say 
anything evil of her because she greatly feared God.
{R}_{I}9_{/}She heard of the threatening words which the people had 
addressed to their leaders because they were downcast, suffering 
from lack of water. Judith also heard all that Uzziah had promised 
in reply, how he had sworn to hand over their city to the 
Assyrians at the end of five days. {I}10_{/}So she sent the 
maidservant who looked after her affairs, to call Chabris and 
Charmis, two elders of the town, to come and see her. {R}_{I}11_{/}They 
came to her house and she said to them, "Listen to me, you elders 
of Bethulia, for the words which you have spoken in front of the 
people today are not right. You did wrong to take an oath between 
God and yourselves, and to say that you would hand over the town 
to our enemies if, within a certain number of days, the Lord does 
not come to your help. {R}_{I}12_{/}Who are you to put God to the test 
and take God's place when you answered the people? {I}13_{/}That is 
not the way to call for his mercy, but rather, one that leads to 
his wrath. [=]_{R}_{I}14_{/}For if you cannot probe the depths of the 
human heart nor know what a man is thinking, how can you 
understand the God who has made all things? Do you know his mind 
or understand his thoughts? No, my brothers, do not annoy the Lord 
our God. [=]_{I}15_{/}For if he does not wish to come to our help 
within these five days, he has the power to protect us for as many 
days as he wishes or else to annihilate us in front of our 
enemies.
{R}_{I}16_{/}As for yourselves, do not challenge the designs of the Lord 
our God, for God cannot give in to threats as a man does, nor can 
any decision be imposed upon him as it can on the sons of men. 
{I}17_{/}That is why, while waiting patiently for him to save us, let 
us beg him to come to our help. He will listen to our plea, if it 
pleases him. {I}18_{/}For it has not happened in our generation nor is 
there among us today any tribe or family or people or city that 
worships gods made by human hands, as happened in days past. 
{I}19_{/}It was for that reason that our fathers were handed over to 
be slain by the sword and pillaged, and that they suffered great 
disaster at the hands of their enemies. {R}_{I}20_{/}But we do not 
recognize any other god than the One God, therefore let us hope 
that he will not look with contempt on us or on any of our race.
{I}21_{/}If the enemies capture us, so in the same way, the whole of 
Judea will be taken; our Sanctuary will be pillaged and we will 
answer for its profanation with our blood. {R}_{I}22_{/}God will bring 
upon our heads the murder of our brothers, the bondage of our 
country and the devastation of our heritage. Wherever among the 
nations we shall be slaves, we shall be maltreated by those to 
whom we belong. {R}_{I}23_{/}Our enslavement will not be changed in our 
favor, but the Lord our God will turn it into dishonor. 
[=]_{R}_{I}24_{/}Now, my brothers, let us show our fellow countrymen that 
their lives depend on ours; that the safety of the Sanctuary, the 
Temple and the Altar rests with us.
{R}_{I}25_{/}Much more, let us thank the Lord our God who is putting us 
to the test as he did our fathers. {R}_{I}26_{/}Remember what he did with 
Abraham, all the trials to which he subjected Isaac and all those 
that happened to Jacob in Mesopotamia of Syria where he looked 
after the sheep of Laban, his mother's brother. {R}_{I}27_{/}Is not God 
making us pass through fire as he did the others to prove their 
hearts? The Lord is not punishing us, but he scourges those who 
draw near to him in order to admonish them."
{I}28_{/}Uzziah said to her, "All that you have said has been said 
with wisdom and no one can contradict your words. {I}29_{/}In fact it 
is not just today that your wisdom is evident, but ever since your 
early days all the people have recognized your intelligence and 
the natural goodness of your heart. {I}30_{/}But the people were 
suffering great thirst so they forced us to carry out what we have 
said, and they have charged us with an oath which we cannot break. 
{I}31_{/}Since you are a devout woman, pray for us that the Lord will 
send rain to fill our reservoirs and we shall no longer be 
exhausted."
{I}32_{/}Judith said to them, "Listen to me, I will do something which 
will be handed down from generation to generation of the children 
of our race. {R}_{I}33_{/}Tonight you will stand at the gate of the town 
and I will go out with my maidservant and, by the end of the time 
which has been fixed for you to hand over the town to our enemies, 
the Lord will visit Israel through my hand. {I}34_{/}But do not try to 
find out what I shall do for I will not tell you, until I have 
fulfilled what I will do."
{R}_{I}35_{/}Then Uzziah and the leaders said to her, "Go in peace and 
may the Lord our God go before you so that you may take vengeance 
upon our enemies." {I}36_{/}Then, leaving Judith's room, they went 
back to their posts.

{1}9{/}

[=]_{R}_{I}1_{/}Judith knelt and bowed her head to the ground, put ashes 
on her head and uncovered the sackcloth with which she was 
clothed. At precisely the same moment as incense was being offered 
in the House of God at Jerusalem, Judith invoked aloud the Lord 
God, she said, [=]_{R}_{I}2_{/}"Lord, God of my father Simeon, you placed 
a sword in his hand to punish the foreigners who did violence to a 
young girl. For they had abused her, uncovering her body to shame 
her and violating her womb to dishonor her. They did this though 
you said: This shall not be done. {I}3_{/}Because of this you handed 
over their leaders to be slain and their bed, reddened because of 
their deceit, was left red with their blood. You struck down the 
slaves with their leaders and the leaders themselves with their 
servants. {I}4_{/}You handed over their women to rape, their daughters 
to slavery and all their possessions to be shared among your 
favored sons who were filled with horror at this defilement of 
their blood and invoked your help.
{R}_{I}5_{/}O God, my God, listen to me, a widow! It is you who made all 
things past, what is present and what is yet to come. It is you 
who consider things present and to come. Those things which you 
decided have been realized. {I}6_{/}The things you have planned have 
presented themselves saying: Here we are. In truth, all your ways 
are prepared and your decision is known from the beginning of 
time. 
{I}7_{/}Therefore see what a great multitude these Assyrians make with 
their army, how they pride themselves on their horses and their 
cavalrymen. They have placed great pride in the strength of their 
foot soldiers and their trust in their shields, javelins, bows and 
arrows. [=]_{R}_{I}8_{/}But they do not recognize that you, Lord, decide 
the outcome of wars. Lord is your name; wipe out their force with 
your power, and in your anger overthrow their superiority; for 
they intend to profane your Sanctuary, to defile your Tabernacle 
where your glorious Name resides, to overturn by force the horn of 
your Altar.
{I}9_{/}Consider their pride, let your anger fall on their heads and 
give to my hands, the hands of a widow, the strength necessary for 
what I have decided. [=]_{I}10_{/}By my lying lips punish the slave 
with his master and the master with his servant; put an end to 
their arrogance by the hand of a woman.
{R}_{I}11_{/}Truly your strength is not in number nor your power in 
strong men for you are a God of the humble, the defender of the 
little ones, the support of the weak, the protector of the 
abandoned, the savior of those in despair.
{R}_{I}12_{/}Yes, God of my fathers and God of the heritage of Israel, 
Ruler of the heavens and the earth, Creator of the waters, King of 
all creation, listen to my prayer.
{R}_{I}13_{/}Give me tempting words to wound and kill those who have 
conceived cruel designs against your Covenant, your consecrated 
House, Mount Zion and the House which belongs to your sons.
{R}_{I}14_{/}Make the nation and all the tribes know that you are God, 
all-powerful and strong, and that, apart from you, there is no 
other protector for the people of Israel."

{N}THE EXPLOIT OF JUDITH{/}

{1}10{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}When Judith had finished her prayer to the God of Israel, 
{I}2_{/}she rose from the ground, and after calling her maidservant, 
she went down into the house where she usually spent the sabbath 
days and the feasts. [=]_{R}_{I}3_{/}She took off the sackcloth and her 
widow's clothes in which she was dressed. She washed her whole 
body with water, anointed it with rich perfume, combed her hair 
and placed a jewelled band around it. She dressed herself in the 
beautiful garments she had been accustomed to wear when her 
husband, Manasseh, was living. [=]_{I}4_{/}She put sandals on her 
feet, put on her anklets, bracelets and rings, her earrings and 
all her jewels. She made herself extremely beautiful in order to 
attract the attention of the men who would see her.
{I}5_{/}She gave the servant a skin of wine and a jar of oil, she 
filled a bag with flour made from barley and some small cakes made 
from dried figs and fine flour. She wrapped up all these things 
and put the maid in charge of them. {I}6_{/}Then they set out in the 
direction of the gate of the town of Bethulia where they found 
stationed Uzziah and the elders of the town, Chabris and Charmis. 
{I}7_{/}As soon as the men saw her, her face so transformed and her 
clothes so different, they were full of admiration for her beauty 
and said to her, {R}_{I}8_{/}"May the God of our fathers grant that you 
may find favor and that your undertakings may be successful for 
the glory of the sons of Israel and the exaltation of Jerusalem."
She adored God and said to them, {I}9_{/}"Command that the gate of the 
town be opened for me and I will go forth in order to accomplish 
what you have just said." They ordered the young men to open the 
gate as she had asked. {I}10_{/}They carried out the command and 
Judith went out with her maidservant.
The townsmen watched her until she reached the foot of the 
mountain and crossed the valley, then they lost sight of her. 
{I}11_{/}Judith and the maid walked straight through the valley and a 
sentry for the Assyrians came to meet them. {I}12_{/}He stopped them 
and asked, "Who are you? Where have you come from? Where are you 
going?" She replied, "I am a daughter of the Hebrews; I am fleeing 
far from them because they are on the point of handing themselves 
over to be despoiled by you. {R}_{I}13_{/}I have come to present myself 
to Holofernes, the general-in-chief of your army, to speak to him 
in all sincerity. I will show him a way by which he can advance 
and become master of the whole mountain without losing a single 
man either from injury or loss of life."
{I}14_{/}As soon as the men had heard her words and noticed her face 
(for she was strikingly beautiful) they said to her, {I}15_{/}"You 
have saved your life by hurrying to present yourself before our 
lord. Approach his tent; certain men from among us will accompany 
you until they have handed you over safely into his hands. 
{I}16_{/}When you stand before him, do not have any fear in your 
heart, but tell him what you have to say and he will treat you 
well."
{I}17_{/}They chose one hundred men from their number; these men 
accompanied Judith and the maid and led them to the tent of 
Holofernes. {I}18_{/}In the whole camp the news of her arrival spread 
from tent to tent, and throughout the whole camp men came running. 
They made a circle round her as she stood waiting outside 
Holofernes' tent while someone informed him of her arrival. 
{R}_{I}19_{/}They were captivated by her beauty and, on seeing her, they 
praised the sons of Israel and said to one another, "Who can look 
down on the people who have such women? It would be a mistake to 
leave one man alive; they would be able to deceive the whole 
world."
{I}20_{/}Those who were sleeping near Holofernes and all his officers 
came out and led her into the tent. {I}21_{/}Holofernes was lying on 
his bed under hangings of purple and gold set with emerald and 
precious stones. {I}22_{/}Having been informed about her, he moved 
towards the entrance of the tent, with silver lamps carried before 
him. {I}23_{/}As Judith came before him and his officers, they all 
admired the beauty of her face. Throwing herself face downwards to 
the ground, she bowed before him; the servants of Holofernes 
raised her up.

{1}11{/}

[=]_{R}_{I}1_{/}Holofernes said to Judith, "Have confidence, woman, have 
no fear in your heart, I do not harm any person who has chosen to 
serve Nebuchadnezzar, king of all the earth. {I}2_{/}And, if those of 
your people who dwell on the mountain had not ignored me, I should 
not have raised my sword against them; but they have brought this 
upon themselves. {I}3_{/}Now, tell me why you have fled from their 
midst and have come to us. Are you doing this to save yourself? 
Have confidence, your life is safe tonight and also in the future. 
{R}_{I}4_{/}No one will harm you, you will be well-treated as are all the 
servants of my lord, King Nebuchadnezzar."
{I}5_{/}Judith replied, "Listen to the words of your servant, so that 
I may speak freely in your presence and I will not lie to my lord 
tonight. {R}_{I}6_{/}And if you follow the advice of your servant, 
everything will be accomplished by the hand of God and my lord 
will not fail in his undertakings. [=]_{R}_{I}7_{/}For just as truly as 
Nebuchadnezzar is king of all the earth and his presence is felt, 
and he has sent you for the correction of others, it is thanks to 
your power that not only do men serve him but also wild beasts, 
animals and the birds of the air live for Nebuchadnezzar and all 
his house.
[=]_{R}_{I}8_{/}We have heard of your wisdom and prudence of mind and it 
is said throughout the world that you alone are the bravest man in 
the kingdom, powerful because of your knowledge and outstanding in 
military strategy. {I}9_{/}We have heard about the discourse delivered 
in your council by Achior, and of its terms, because the men of 
Bethulia took him in and he reported to them all that he had said 
in your presence. [=]_{R}_{I}10_{/}Now all-powerful lord, do not dismiss 
what he said but keep it in mind because it is true. Our nation 
will never be punished nor the sword used against it unless its 
people sin against their God. {R}_{I}11_{/}Yet my lord will not be driven 
back and fail. Death will overtake them, for they have fallen into 
the sin that arouses the anger of God every time they commit it. 
{R}_{I}12_{/}As a result of the shortage of food and water, they have 
decided to lay hands on their animals. They have resolved to eat 
those things which God in his laws forbade them to eat, including 
the first fruits of the harvest and the tithes of wine and oil 
which, after their consecration, had been put aside for the 
priests who minister before the face of our God in Jerusalem. 
[=]_{I}13_{/}They have decided to consume these things completely, 
although it is not lawful for any of the people even to touch them 
with their hands. {R}_{I}14_{/}They have sent messengers to Jerusalem - 
for those who dwell there have also done this - and they have 
charged these men to bring back this permission from the Council 
of the Elders. {I}15_{/}Now it will come to pass that when this 
permission arrives and the people will have acted upon it, on that 
same day they will be delivered over to you for their destruction. 
{R}_{I}16_{/}That is why I, your servant, having understood all this, 
have fled far from them. God has sent me to bring about, along 
with you, deeds that will strike terror throughout the whole world 
and cause those who hear them to talk. {R}_{I}17_{/}For your servant is a 
pious woman who serves God night and day. From now on I will 
remain near you, my lord. Each evening I will go out towards the 
ravine and I will pray to God and he will tell me when they have 
fallen into sin. {R}_{I}18_{/}Then I will report this to you, so that you 
will go forth with your whole army and there will be no man able 
to withstand you. [=]_{R}_{I}19_{/}Then I will lead you through Judea 
until I arrive in Jerusalem where I will set up your tent. You 
will lead them like sheep without a shepherd and not one dog will 
growl at you. I have been given a premonition of these things. It 
has been revealed to me, and I have been sent to make it known to 
you."
{I}20_{/}Her words pleased Holofernes and all his officers. They 
admired her wisdom and said, {I}21_{/}"From one end of the earth to 
the other there is no woman like her for the beauty of her face 
and the wisdom of her words." {R}_{I}22_{/}Holofernes said to her, "God 
has done well to send you ahead of this people to show them that 
the power is in my hands and that destruction is the fate of those 
who despised my lord. [=]_{R}_{I}23_{/}You are beautiful to look at and 
prudent in your words: if you do as you have said, your God shall 
be my God and you will live in the house of King Nebuchadnezzar, 
and be famous throughout all the world."

{1}12{/}

{I}1_{/}Then Holofernes had her brought into the place where his 
silver dishes were laid out and commanded them to serve her from 
his food and to give her his wine to drink. [=]_{I}2_{/}But Judith 
said, "I will not eat it for fear that it might be the occasion of 
my downfall. What I have brought with me is sufficient." 
{I}3_{/}Holofernes said to her, "When you have finished the things 
that you have brought, where will we be able to get the same kind 
of food to give you, for there is no one of your race here?" 
{R}_{I}4_{/}Judith said to him, "As your soul lives my lord, your servant 
will not have finished what I have brought with me before the Lord 
will have carried out by my hand what he has decided to do."
[=]_{I}5_{/}Then the officers of Holofernes led her to the tent and 
she slept until midnight. She arose at the morning watch {I}6_{/}and 
sent a message to Holofernes, "Will my lord command that his 
servant be allowed to go out to pray." {I}7_{/}Holofernes ordered his 
bodyguards not to prevent her from doing so.
She remained in the camp three days. Each night she went to the 
ravine of Bethulia and bathed herself in the spring which was in 
the camp. {R}_{I}8_{/}When she returned to the tent, she prayed to the 
Lord, the God of Israel, that he would guide her steps in the 
right path to bring about the release of her people; {I}9_{/}and now 
purified, once she had returned, she remained in the tent until 
she took her food towards evening.

{N}IN THE TENT OF HOLOFERNES{/}

[\u0095]_{I}10_{/}Then on the fourth day, Holofernes gave a banquet for his 
personal servants without sending invitations to any of his 
officers. {I}11_{/}He said to the eunuch Bagoas who looked after his 
affairs, "Go and persuade this Hebrew woman who is under your care 
to come eat and drink with us, {I}12_{/}for it would be a disgrace if 
we allowed such a woman to depart without having enjoyed her 
company. If we are not able to allure her, she will laugh at us."
{I}13_{/}So Bagoas left Holofernes and entered Judith's tent, and said 
to her, "Will this beautiful slave not hesitate to come to my 
lord's tent to be honored in his presence, merrily to drink wine 
with us and to become this very day like an Assyrian woman who 
dwells in the house of Nebuchadnezzar?" [=]_{R}_{I}14_{/}Judith said to 
him, "Who am I to go against the wishes of my Lord? All that 
pleases him I will hasten to do and that will be for me a joy 
until the day of my death."
{I}15_{/}Then she arose; she dressed in her beautiful garments and all 
the finery of a woman. Her servant went and spread on the ground, 
in front of Holofernes, the fleece which Judith had received from 
Bagoas for her daily use so that she could recline on it while she 
ate.
{I}16_{/}So Judith entered the tent and took her place. The heart of 
Holofernes was ravished by her beauty, his whole being was 
captivated and he had a passionate desire to possess her. Ever 
since the first day he had seen her, he had been waiting for an 
occasion to seduce her. {I}17_{/}Holofernes said to her: "Drink and 
share our happiness." {I}18_{/}Judith said, "I will drink then, my 
lord, because today my life has become more precious to me than on 
any other day since my birth." {I}19_{/}She took what her servant had 
prepared for her and ate and drank in front of him. 
{I}20_{/}Holofernes was bewitched by her and he drank a great quantity 
of wine, much more than he had ever drunk on any single day since 
his birth.

{N}GOD WORKS MARVELS{/}

{1}13{/}

[\u0095]_{I}1_{/}When it was late, the  servants hurried away. Bagoas 
dismissed from the presence of his master those who were standing 
around, and closed the tent from the outside. All the men hurried 
to bed for they were tired from having drunk too much. {I}2_{/}So 
Judith was left alone in the tent with Holofernes who, sodden with 
wine, had collapsed onto the bed. {I}3_{/}Judith told her servant to 
stand outside the room and watch for her coming out because she 
would go out to pray, as she did each day. She also spoke to 
Bagoas in much the same way.
{R}_{I}4_{/}Everyone left the tent of Holofernes, not one - small or 
great - remained in the room. Judith, then, stood by Holofernes' 
bed and prayed in her heart, "Lord God all-powerful, help me now 
in what I will do for the glory of Jerusalem. {I}5_{/}For now is the 
time to support the cause of your people and to ensure that my 
undertaking brings about the ruin of the enemies who are drawn up 
against us."
{I}6_{/}Then she moved towards the bedpost near Holofernes' head and 
took down the sword and, {R}_{I}7_{/}approaching the bed, she seized the 
hair of his head saying, "O Lord God of Israel, give me strength, 
this very moment!" {I}8_{/}Then with all her strength she struck his 
neck twice and cut off his head. {I}9_{/}She then rolled his body from 
the bed and took off the hangings from the columns. Then she went 
out at once and gave the head of Holofernes to her servant 
{I}10_{/}who put it in the bag in which she carried the food. Then 
they went out together as they used to do for prayer. After they 
had crossed the camp, they passed round the edge of the ravine, 
climbed the mountain to Bethulia and reached the gates of the 
town.
{R}_{I}11_{/}Judith called from a distance to those who were keeping 
guard at the gates, "Open, open the gates! God, our God, is with 
us! Today he has once again worked a miracle in Israel and exerted 
his power against our enemies." {I}12_{/}As soon as the townsfolk 
heard her voice, they called the elders and hurried down to the 
gates of the town. {R}_{I}13_{/}They all ran together, from the smallest 
to the greatest, for they were waiting for her return. They opened 
the gates and welcomed the two women; then, having lighted a fire 
so as to see them, they gathered around the two. [=]_{R}_{I}14_{/}She 
said to them in a loud voice, "Praise God, praise him! Praise God 
who has not withheld his mercy from the House of Israel. This very 
night he has crushed our enemies by my hand." [=]_{I}15_{/}And, taking 
out the head of Holofernes from the bag, she showed it to them 
saying, "Here is the head of Holofernes, general-in-chief of the 
Assyrian army, and here are the hangings under which he was lying 
in his drunkenness. The Lord has struck him down by the hand of a 
woman. {R}_{I}16_{/}As truly as the Lord lives, it was my face that 
seduced him to his undoing, but the Lord has protected me. This 
man could not sin with me to disgrace or dishonor me." {R}_{I}17_{/}All 
the people were greatly amazed, so they bowed down and worshiped 
God, saying with one voice, "Blessed are you, our God, who today 
have crushed the enemies of your people."

{N}BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG ALL WOMEN{/}

[\u0095]_[=]_{R}_{I}18_{/}Uzziah said to her, "My daughter, may the Most High 
God bless you more than all women on earth. 
And blessed be the Lord God, the Creator of heaven and earth, who 
has led you to behead the leader of our enemies. 
{R}_{I}19_{/}Never will people forget the confidence you have shown; they 
will always remember the power of God.
[=]_{R}_{I}20_{/}May God ensure your everlasting glory, and may he reward 
and bless you for you have risked your life when your race was 
humiliated. 
You chose instead to do the best before God in order to prevent 
our downfall." 
And all the people said, "Amen! Amen!"

{1}14{/}

[=]_{I}1_{/}Judith said to them, "Listen, my brothers, take this head 
and hang it from the battlements of our rampart, {I}2_{/}then when 
dawn breaks and the sun rises over the earth, let each of you take 
his weapons and let all those able to fight go outside the town. 
And under the command of a captain, proceed as if you were about 
to go down into the plain in the direction of the Assyrian 
outposts, but you will not descend. [=]_{I}3_{/}The Assyrian guards 
will seize their arms, and go towards their camp to awaken the 
generals of the Assyrian army. These officers will run to the tent 
of Holofernes but will not find him; fear will then come upon them 
and they will flee from you. {R}_{I}4_{/}Then you and all those who dwell 
in the land of Israel will follow them and strike them down as 
they go. {R}_{I}5_{/}But, before you do this, call Achior the Ammonite so 
that he may see and recognize the one who despised the people of 
Israel, the man who sent him to you as to his death."
{I}6_{/}Achior was brought from the house of Uzziah. As soon as he 
arrived and saw the head of Holofernes in the hand of one of the 
people, he fainted and fell face down on the ground. {I}7_{/}When they 
had lifted him up, he threw himself at the feet of Judith, bowed 
before her and said, "May you be blessed throughout Judea and 
among all the nations, who on hearing your name will be amazed. 
{I}8_{/}But now, tell me all that you did during these days."
Standing in the midst of the people, Judith told him all that she 
had done from the day she set out until the moment in which she 
was now speaking to them. {I}9_{/}When she had finished talking, the 
people cried out with great joy, and this was heard throughout the 
town. {R}_{I}10_{/}When Achior saw all that the God of Israel had done, 
he immediately believed in him. He was circumcised and became a 
member of the community of Israel down to this day.
{R}_{I}11_{/}When the sun had risen and they had hung Holofernes' head on 
the rampart, all the men took their arms and went out in groups to 
the mountain slopes. {I}12_{/}As soon as the Assyrians saw them, they 
warned their commanders. These men, in turn, went to inform the 
generals, the captains and all their officers. {I}13_{/}Then they all 
went to the tent of Holofernes and said to the steward in charge 
of his affairs, "Waken our Lord, for the slaves plan to come down 
and fight against us to their utter destruction. {I}14_{/}So Bagoas 
drew back the curtain and knocked, thinking that Holofernes was 
sleeping with Judith. {R}_{I}15_{/}As no one answered, he entered the 
room, and found Holofernes lying across the wooden footstool dead 
with his head cut off. {I}16_{/}He cried out with a loud voice and 
tore his clothes. {I}17_{/}He entered the tent where Judith had stayed 
but did not find her. Then he rushed out to the troops, shouting, 
{R}_{I}18_{/}"The slaves have deceived us! One Hebrew woman has put to 
shame the army of King Nebuchadnezzar, for Holofernes lies dead on 
the ground. {I}19_{/}When the officers of the Assyrian army heard 
these words, they were greatly distressed. They tore their 
garments and cried out with a loud voice in their camp.

{1}15{/}

{I}1_{/}When those who were in the camp heard the cries, they were 
astounded. {I}2_{/}Terror and fear fell on them, they no longer 
controlled themselves but at the same moment they all broke rank 
and fled by way of the roads across the plain and the mountain. 
{R}_{I}3_{/}Those who were encamped in the mountains around Bethulia also 
began to flee. Then the men of Israel, all among them who were 
capable of fighting, fell on them. {R}_{I}4_{/}Uzziah sent messengers to 
Betomasthaim, Choba, Kona, and throughout the land of Israel, to 
announce what had happened and to invite them all to fall upon the 
enemy and destroy them. {R}_{I}5_{/}When the men of Israel heard this, 
they threw themselves on the enemy and pursued them as far as 
Choba. Even those from Jerusalem came, as well as those from all 
the mountainous region, because they were told what had happened 
in the camp of their enemies. Those from Gilead and from Galilee 
caught them on the flank and struck great blows against them until 
they reached Damascus and its surrounding territory. [=]_{I}6_{/}As 
for the inhabitants of Bethulia who remained behind, they rushed 
into the Assyrian camp, pillaged it and thereby greatly enriched 
themselves. {I}7_{/}Once they returned from the carnage, the Israelite 
men took possession of what remained. Also the people from the 
villages and farms in the mountains and on the plains seized great 
booty because there was plenty that they could get.
{R}_{I}8_{/}Then the high priest Joakim and the council of the Elders of 
Israel in Jerusalem came to hear the good things which the Lord 
had done for Israel, and to see Judith and congratulate her. 
{R}_{I}9_{/}As soon as they had approached her they blessed her all 
together and said, 
"You are the pride and joy of Jerusalem! You are the glory of 
Israel. You are the honor of our people. 
{R}_{I}10_{/}You alone have accomplished all this. You have done great 
things for Israel and God has blessed your work. May the almighty 
Lord bless you forever." 
And all the people said, "Amen!"
{I}11_{/}All the people pillaged the camp for thirty days. They gave 
Holofernes' tent to Judith, with all his silver, his beds, his 
drinking vessels and all his furniture. She took them, and after 
harnessing her mule, she prepared her chariots and piled up all 
these goods in them.
{I}12_{/}All the Israelite women also ran out to see her, they blessed 
her and a number of them formed a choir in her honor. She took 
olive branches in her hand and gave some to the women who 
accompanied her. {R}_{I}13_{/}She and the women with her made crowns of 
olive leaves. Then she went ahead of the people, leading the women 
in dance. All the Israelite men followed, clad in their armor, 
carrying crowns and loudly chanting hymns. {R}_{I}14_{/}Then Judith 
intoned this hymn of thanksgiving and the entire people of Israel 
echoed this praise.

{N}THE SONG OF JUDITH{/}

{1}16{/}

{R}_{I}1_{/}Judith said, "Sing a song to my God with tambourines,
sing in honor of God with cymbals.
Compose for him a psalm of praise.
Exalt and bless his Name!
{R}_{I}2_{/}The Lord is truly a God who crushes war,
who encamps in the midst of his people
for he has snatched me from the hand of those who pursued me.
{I}3_{/}The Assyrian came from the mountains of the north.
He came with the myriads of his army,
his soldiers have filled the torrents
and his cavalry covered the hills.
{I}4_{/}He wanted to burn my land,
to kill the young men by the sword,
to destroy my children at the breast,
to hand over my little ones to slaughter
and to rape my young maidens.
{I}5_{/}The Lord Almighty has driven them back by the hand of a woman.
{R}_{I}6_{/}Their hero has not been overcome by young warriors;
he was not struck down by the sons of the Titans,
or laid low by any great giants.
But it is Judith, the daughter of Merari,
who by the beauty of her face has defeated him.
For the relief of the oppressed in Israel {I}7_{/}she took off her 
widow's robes,
anointed her face with perfume,
{I}8_{/}put a jewelled band around her hair,
and put on a linen dress in order to seduce him.
{R}_{I}9_{/}Her sandals delighted his eyes,
her beauty captivated his soul,
and the scimitar cut through his neck.
{R}_{I}10_{/}The Persians trembled with fear at her boldness,
and the Medes were upset by her daring.
{I}11_{/}Then my oppressed people shouted for joy;
my weak ones cried out,
the enemy was terrified;
they raised their voices; the enemy took to flight.
{R}_{I}12_{/}The children of young women pierced them through and struck 
them down like fugitives,
and so the enemy perished in a battle
arranged by God.
{R}_{I}13_{/}I will sing to my God a new song:
Lord, you are great and glorious,
wonderfully strong, invincible!
{R}_{I}14_{/}May the whole of your creation serve you,
for you spoke and all things were,
you sent forth your spirit and all things came into being:
No one can resist your voice.
{I}15_{/}For the mountains with the waters will be shaken to their 
foundations,
the rocks will melt like wax before you,
but to those who fear you
you will always show mercy.
{R}_{I}16_{/}The fragrance of any sacrifice is little to please you
and the holocausts of fatted animals
are as nothing before you,
but he who fears the Lord is forever great.
{I}17_{/}Woe to the nations which rise up against my people:
The Lord Almighty will punish them in the day of judgment,
with fire and worms under their skin,
and they will keep on weeping, suffering forever."
{R}_{I}18_{/}When they arrived in Jerusalem, they worshiped God and, when 
the people had been purified, they presented their holocausts, 
freewill offerings and gifts. {I}19_{/}Then Judith offered all of 
Holofernes' belongings which the people had given her and she 
dedicated to the Lord the hangings from his room which she herself 
had taken. {R}_{I}20_{/}So the people remained in Jerusalem, rejoicing 
before the Sanctuary for three months and Judith stayed with them.
{I}21_{/}After these days were over, each one returned to his own 
house. Judith returned to Bethulia and devoted herself to her 
household. During her lifetime she was famous throughout the land.
{R}_{I}22_{/}Though many desired to marry her, she had no relation with 
any man since the death and burial of Manasseh, her husband.
{R}_{I}23_{/}She spent her old age in the house of her husband. And she 
set her maidservant free. She died in Bethulia at the age of a 
hundred and five and was buried in the grave of Manasseh, her 
husband. {R}_{I}24_{/}All Israel mourned for her for seven days. Before 
her death she had divided her property among the relatives of her 
husband, Manasseh, and those of her own family.
{R}_{I}25_{/}No one again threatened the people of Israel while Judith 
lived, nor for a very long time after her death.

