Book of Judith Reader

and let us your servants take hold of the springs of water, which issue forth at the foot of the mountain.

For all the inhabitants of Bethulia have their water there; so thirst will kill them and they will give up their city,

and we and our people will go up to the tops of the mountains nearby and will camp on them to watch so that none can go out of the city. So they and their wives and their children will be consumed with fiery thirst,

as if it were a sword brought against them, and so they will be overthrown in the streets where they dwell. Thus will you render them an evil reward, because they rebelled and did not meet your person peaceably.

And these words pleased Holofernes and all his servants, and he decided to do as they had said.

So the camp of the children of Ammon departed, and with them five thousand of the Assyrians, and they pitched camp in the valley and captured the waters and the origins of the waters of the children of Israel.

Then the children of Esau went up with the children of Ammon and camped in the hill country opposite Dothaim. And they sent some of them toward the south and toward the east opposite Ekrebel, near Chusi upon the brook Mochmur;

and the rest of the army of the Assyrians camped in the plain and covered the face of the whole land; and their tents and carriages were pitched for a very great multitude.

Then the children of Israel cried to the Lord their God, because their heart failed, for all their enemies had surrounded them and there was no way to escape out from among them.

Thus all the company of Assur remained around them, both their foot soldiers, chariots, and horsemen, for thirty-four days,

so that all their vessels of water ran dry for all the inhabitants of Bethulia and the cisterns were emptied. And they did not have enough water to drink their fill for even one day, for they rationed their water.

Therefore their young children lost heart, and their women and young men fainted for thirst and fell down in the streets of the city and by the passageways of the gates; and there was no longer any strength in them.

Then all the people assembled before Uzziah and the chiefs of the city, including young men and women and children, and they cried with a loud voice and said before all the elders,

God be judge between us and you, for you have done us great injury in that you have not made peace with the children of Assur.

For now we have no helper, but God has sold us into their hands, so that we should be thrown down before them with thirst and great destruction.

Now therefore call them to you and deliver the whole city for a spoil to the people of Holofernes and to all his army.

For it is better for us to be made a spoil for them than to die of thirst;

for we will be his servants, so that our souls may live and we will not see the death of our infants before our eyes, nor the dying of our wives or our children.

We present as witness against you: the heaven and the earth, and our God and Lord of our fathers, who punishes us according to our sins and the sins of our fathers, so that he will not allow what we have described to happen on this day.

Then there was great weeping in the midst of the assembly, all with one consent; and they cried to the Lord God with a loud voice.

Then Uzziah said to them, "Brethren, be courageous. Let us endure yet five days, in that period of time the Lord our God may turn his mercy toward us, for he will not forsake us utterly.

And if these days pass and no help comes to us, I will do according to your word."

And he dispersed the people, each to their own posts; and they went to the walls and towers of their city, and sent the women and children into their houses; and they were brought very low in the city.

Now at that time Judith heard about this; she was the daughter of Merari, the son of Ox, the son of Joseph, the son of Ozel, the son of Elcia, the son of Ananiah, the son of Gedeon, the son of Raphaim, the son of Acitho, the son of Eliu, the son of Eliab, the son of Nathanael, the son of Samael, the son of Salasadal, the son of Israel.

And Manasseh was her husband, of her tribe and kindred, who died during the barley harvest.

For as he stood overseeing those who bound sheaves in the field, the heat affected his head, and he fell on his bed, and died in the city of Bethulia; and they buried him with his fathers in the field between Dothaim and Balamo.

So Judith was a widow in her house three years and four months.

And she made her a tent on the top of her house; and she put sackcloth on her loins and wore her widow's clothing. And she fasted all the days of her widowhood, except for the eves of the sabbaths and the sabbaths, and the eves of the new moons and the new moons, and the feasts and solemn days of the house of Israel.

She also had a graceful temperament and was very beautiful to behold. And her husband Manasseh had left her gold and silver, and menservants and maidservants, and cattle and lands, and she remained with them.

And there was no one who spoke an ill word about her, for she feared God greatly.

Now she heard the evil words of the people against the governor and that they fainted for lack of water;

for Judith had heard all the words that Uzziah had spoken to them and that he had sworn to deliver the city to the Assyrians after five days.

So then she sent her woman servant, who was in charge of everything that she had, to call Uzziah and Chabris and Charmis, the elders of the city.

And they came to her, and she said to them, "Hear me now, you governors of the inhabitants of Bethulia; for your words which you spoke before the people this day are not right, concerning this oath which you made and pronounced between God and yourselves, and your promise to deliver the city to our enemies, unless within these days the Lord turns to help you.

And now who are you to have tempted God this day, and to stand among the children of men instead of God?

And now test the Lord Almighty, but you will never know anything. For you cannot find the depth of the heart of man, neither can you perceive the things which he thinks; so then how can you search out God, who has made all these things, and know his mind or comprehend his purpose?

No, my brethren, do not provoke the Lord our God to anger.

For if he will not help us within these five days, he has power to defend us when he will, even every day, or to destroy us before our enemies.

Do not bind the plans of the Lord our God; for God is not like man as if he could be threatened; neither is he like the son of man so that he would be wavering.

Therefore let us wait for salvation from him and call upon him to help us, and he will hear our voice, if it pleases him. For there arose none in our age, neither is there any now in these days, neither tribe, nor family, nor people, nor city among us, who worship gods made with hands, as has happened in past times. For this reason our fathers were given to the sword and as a spoil and had a great fall before our enemies.

But we know no other God, therefore we trust that he will not despise us, nor any of our nation.

For if we are overcome, then all Judea will lie waste and our sanctuary will be pillaged; and he will place the blame for the profanation of it at our mouth;

and the slaughter of our brethren and the captivity of the country and the desolation of our inheritance, he will blame on our heads among the Gentiles, wherever we will be in captivity;

and we will be an offence and a reproach to all those who possess us.

For our servitude will not be directed towards our benefit, but the Lord our God will turn it to our dishonor.

Now therefore, O brethren, let us show an example to our brethren, because their hearts depend on us, and the sanctuary and the house and the altar rest on us.

Moreover, let us give thanks to the Lord our God, who tests us, even as he did our fathers. Remember the things he did to Abraham, and how he tested Isaac, and what happened to Jacob in Mesopotamia of Syria, when he kept the sheep of Laban his mother's brother.

For he has not tested us in the fire, as he did them for the examination of their hearts, neither has he taken vengeance on us; but the Lord does scourge those who come near to him, to admonish them."

Then Uzziah said to her, "All that you have spoken, you have spoken with a good heart and there is no one who can refute your words.

For this is not the first day that your wisdom has been manifested; but from the beginning of your days all the people have known your understanding, because the disposition of your heart has been good.

But the people were very thirsty; and they compelled us to do to them as we have spoken and to bring an oath on ourselves, which we will not break.

Now therefore pray for us, because you are a godly woman, and then the Lord will send us rain to fill our cisterns and we will faint no more."

Then Judith said to them, "Listen to me and I will do something which will be remembered throughout all generations among the children of our nation.

You will watch this night at the gate, and I will go forth with my woman servant; and, within the days that you have promised to deliver the city to our enemies, the Lord will visit Israel by my hand.

But do not ask me what I will do, for I will not reveal it to you until the things that I do are completed."

Then Uzziah and the princes said to her, "Go in peace, and may the Lord God go before you to take vengeance on our enemies."

So they returned from the tent and went to their posts.

Judith fell upon her face and put ashes on her head and uncovered the sackcloth she was wearing; and, about the time that the incense of that evening was offered in Jerusalem in the house of the Lord, Judith cried with a loud voice, and said,

O Lord God of my father Simeon, to whom you gave a sword to take vengeance on the strangers, who loosened the girdle of a maid to defile her, and uncovered the thigh to her shame, and polluted her virginity to her reproach; for you said, 'It will not be so,' and yet they did so.

Therefore you gave their rulers to be slain, so that they dyed their bed in blood, being deceived, and you struck the servants with their lords

and the lords upon their thrones; and you have given their wives for a prey and their daughters to be captives and all their spoils to be divided among your dear children, who were moved with your zeal and abhorred the pollution of their blood and called upon you for aid.

And you have wrought not only those things, but also the things which happened before and which followed afterwards; you have thought about the things which are now and which are to come. Yes, the things you established were ready at hand, and they said, 'Lo, we are here,' for all your ways are prepared and your judgments are in your foreknowledge.

For, behold, the Assyrians are multiplied in their power; they are exalted with horse and man; they glory in the strength of their foot soldiers;

they trust in shield and spear and bow and sling; and they do not know that you are the Lord who breaks the battles: the Lord is your name.

Throw down their strength in your power and bring down their force in your wrath;

for they have resolved to defile your sanctuary and to pollute the tabernacle where your glorious name rests and to cast down with sword the horn of your altar.

Behold their pride and send your wrath upon their heads; give into my hand, the hand of a widow, the power that I have conceived.

Strike, by the deceit of my lips, the servant with the prince, and the prince with the servant; break down their stateliness by the hand of a woman.

For your power is not found in numbers, nor your might in strong men;

for you are a God of the afflicted, a helper of the oppressed, an upholder of the weak, a protector of the forlorn, a savior of those who are without hope.

I pray to you, I beg you, O God of my father and God of the inheritance of Israel, Lord of the heavens and the earth, Creator of the waters, King of every creature, hear my prayer;

and make my speech and deceit to be their wound and stripe, who have resolved cruel things against your covenant and your hallowed house, and against the top of Zion and the house of the possession of your children;

and so make every nation and tribe acknowledge that you are the God of all power and might, and that there is no other who protects the people of Israel but you.

Now after this, she ceased to cry to the God of Israel, and she completed all these words. She rose where she had fallen down and called her maid; and she went down into the house in which she lived on the sabbath days and on her feast days, and she pulled off the sackcloth which she had on, and put off the garments of her widowhood,

and washed her body all over with water, and anointed herself with precious ointment, and braided the hair of her head

and put a headdress on it, and put on her garments of gladness, which she used to wear during the life of Manasseh her husband.

And she put sandals on her feet, and she put on her bracelets and her chains and her rings and her earrings and all her ornaments, and she decked herself out boldly, to allure the eyes of all men who might see her.

Then she gave her maid a bottle of wine and a cruse of oil, and filled a bag with parched grain and lumps of figs and with fine bread; so she folded all these things together and laid them upon her. Thus they went forth to the gate of the city of Bethulia,

and they found standing there Uzziah and the elders of the city, Chabris and Charmis.

And when they saw her, that her countenance was altered and her apparel was changed, they wondered at her beauty very greatly and said to her,

May God, the God of our fathers, give you favor and accomplish your endeavors to the glory of the children of Israel and to the exaltation of Jerusalem. Then they worshipped God.

And she said to them, "Command the gates of the city to be opened for me, so that I may go forth to accomplish the things that you have discussed with me."

So they commanded the young men to open it for her, as she had said. And when they had done so,

Judith went out, she and her maid with her; and the men of the city looked after her, until she had gone down the mountain and had passed the valley and they could see her no more.

Thus they went straight ahead in the valley, and the first watch of the Assyrians met her and captured her; and they asked her, "Of what people are you? And where have you come from? And where are you going?"

And she said, "I am a woman of the Hebrews, and I have fled from them, for they will be given over to you to be consumed.

And I am going before Holofernes the chief captain of your army, to declare words of truth;

and I will show him a way, by which he can go and win all the hill country, without losing the body or life of any of his men."

Now when the men heard her words and beheld her countenance, they wondered greatly at her beauty and said to her,

You have saved your life because you have hurried to come down to the presence of our lord. Now therefore come to his tent, and some of us will conduct you, until they have delivered you to his hands.

And when you stand before him, do not be afraid in your heart, but reveal to him what you have said, and he will treat you well.

Then they chose from among them a hundred men to accompany her and her maid; and they brought her to the tent of Holofernes.

Then a crowd began to assemble from throughout all the camp, for the news of her arrival had spread among the tents, and they gathered around her as she stood outside the tent of Holofernes, until they had told him about her. And they wondered at her beauty and admired the children of Israel because of her,

and each one said to his neighbor, "Who could despise this people, who have such women among them?

Surely it is not good for one man among them to be left, who, being set free, might deceive the whole earth."

And those who lay near Holofernes went out, and they and all his servants brought her into the tent.

Now Holofernes rested on his bed under a canopy, which was woven with purple and gold and emeralds and precious stones. So they informed him about her; and he came out in front of his tent with silver lamps going before him.

And when Judith was presented before him and his servants, they all marveled at the beauty of her countenance; and she fell down upon her face and did him reverence, and his servants lifted her up.

Then Holofernes said to her, "Woman, be of good comfort; fear not in your heart.

For I have never hurt any who were willing to serve Nebuchadnezzar, the king of all the earth.

Now therefore, if your people who dwell in the mountains had not treated me heedlessly, I would not have lifted up my spear against them, but they have done these things to themselves.

But now tell me how you have fled from them and come to us; for you have reached safety,

so be of good comfort; you will live this night and hereafter.

For none will hurt you, but they will treat you well, as they do the servants of king Nebuchadnezzar my lord."

Then Judith said to him, "Receive the words of your servant and permit your handmaid to speak in your presence, and I will declare no lie to my lord this night. And if you will follow the words of your handmaid, God will bring something perfectly to pass by you, and my lord will not fail in his purposes.

As Nebuchadnezzar king of all the earth lives, and as his power lives, he has sent you for the upholding of every living thing; for not only men will serve him by you, but also the beasts of the field, and the cattle and the birds of the air, will live by your power under Nebuchadnezzar and all his house.

For we have heard of your wisdom and your policies, and it is reported across all the earth, that you alone are excellent in all the kingdom, and mighty in knowledge, and wonderful in feats of war.

Now as concerning the matter which Achior spoke about in your council, we have heard his words; for the men of Bethulia saved him, and he declared to them all that he had spoken to you.

Therefore, O lord and governor, respect not his word, but store it in your heart, for it is true;

for our nation will not be punished, nor can sword prevail against them, unless they sin against their God.

And now, so that my lord will not be defeated and frustrated in his purpose, even death has now fallen upon them and their sin has overtaken them,

and therefore they will provoke their God to anger whenever they do what is not right to be done.

For their food stores fail them and their water supply is scant, and they have decided to lay hands on their cattle, and have resolved to consume all those things which God has forbidden them to eat by his laws.

And they are resolved to use up the first fruits and the tenths of wine and oil, which they had sanctified and which are reserved for the priests who serve in Jerusalem before the face of our God,

the things it is not lawful for any of the people so much as to touch with their hands. For they have sent an envoy to Jerusalem, because those who dwell there have also done the same, to bring them a license from the senate.

Now when they bring them word, they will immediately do it, and they will be given to you to be destroyed the same day.

Therefore I, your handmaid, knowing all this, have fled from their presence; and God has sent me to work things with you, things at which all the earth will be astonished, whosoever hears it.

For your servant is religious and serves the God of heaven day and night.

Therefore, my lord, I will remain with you now, and your servant will go out by night into the valley, and I will pray to God,

and he will tell me when they have committed their sins. And I will return and reveal it to you. Then you will go forth with all your army, and there will be none among them who will withstand you.

And I will lead you through the midst of Judea, until you come against Jerusalem, and I will set your throne in the midst thereof;

and you will drive them as sheep which have no shepherd, and a dog will not so much as open his mouth at you;

for these things were told to me according to my foreknowledge, and they were declared to me, and I am sent to tell you."

Then her words pleased Holofernes and all his servants; and they marveled at her wisdom and said,

There is no other such woman from one end of the earth to the other, both for beauty of face and wisdom of words.

Likewise Holofernes said to her, "God has done well to send you before the sons of your people, so that strength might be in our hands and destruction be on those who regard my lord lightly.

And now you are both beautiful in your countenance and clever in your words; surely if you do as you have spoken, your God will be my God,

and you will dwell in the house of king Nebuchadnezzar and will be renowned throughout the whole earth."

Then he commanded them to bring her in to where his plate was set; and he directed them to prepare for her from his own meats and that she should drink from his own wine.

And Judith said, "I will not eat of it, lest there be an offence, but provision will be made for me from the things which I have brought."

Then Holofernes said to her, "If your provisions should fail, how should we give you the like? For there are none among us from your nation."

Then Judith said to him, "As your soul lives, my lord, your handmaid will not use up those things which I have before the Lord works by my hand the things he has determined."

Then the servants of Holofernes brought her into the tent, and she slept until midnight,

and she arose when it was toward the morning watch. And she sent to Holofernes, saying, "Let my lord now command that your handmaid may go forth to prayer."

Then Holofernes commanded his guard not to prevent her; thus she resided in the camp for three days,

and went out in the night into the valley of Bethulia and washed herself in a spring of water by the camp. And when she came out, she beseeched the Lord God of Israel to direct her way in order to accomplish the raising up of the children of her people. So she came in clean and remained in the tent until she ate her meat in the evening.

And on the fourth day, Holofernes made a feast for his own servants only, and he called none of the officers to the banquet. Then he said to Bagoas the eunuch, who was in charge of all that he had,

"Go now and persuade this Hebrew woman who is with you that she should come to us, and eat and drink with us.

For, see, it will be a shame upon our person, if we let such a woman go without having had her company; for if we do not draw her to us, she will laugh at us in scorn."

Then Bagoas went from the presence of Holofernes, and he came to her and said,