1 Maccabees 6:48-63

Good News Translation

⁴⁸ The king and his army advanced to fight the Jews at Jerusalem and laid siege to the whole of Judea and Jerusalem. ⁴⁹ He made peace with the Jews of Bethzur, who then left the town. There had not been enough food in the town for them to withstand the siege because it was the sabbatical year, when no crops were planted. ⁵⁰ The king occupied Bethzur and stationed a body of troops there to guard it. ⁵¹ Then he surrounded the Temple and besieged it for a long time. He set up siege platforms, battering rams, catapults for throwing fire and stones, and other weapons to throw spears and rocks. ⁵² The defenders also made war machines to oppose those of the enemy, and so the battle went on for a long time. ⁵³ But there was no food left in the Temple storage bins because it was the sabbatical year, and the people who had fled from the Gentiles and taken refuge in Judea had eaten all the food that had been stored there. ⁵⁴ The shortage of food had been so severe that many people had scattered to their homes, and only a few men were left in the Temple.

⁵⁵ Meanwhile, Philip, who had been appointed by King Antiochus before his death to educate his son to be king, ⁵⁶ returned from Persia and Media. He had come back with the royal army and planned to take control of the government. When Lysias heard this news, ⁵⁷ he made rapid preparations to depart. He said to the young king, to his officers, and to his men,

⁶⁰ This recommendation was well received by the king and the officers, so Lysias proposed peace terms to the Jews, and they accepted them. ⁶¹ When the king and his officers solemnly agreed to abide by these terms, the Jews came out of their fortress. ⁶² But when the king entered the Temple area on Mount Zion and saw the strong fortifications, he broke his word and ordered the walls surrounding the Temple to be torn down. ⁶³ Then he hurriedly left and returned to Antioch, where he found Philip in control of the city. The king attacked the city and took it by force.