Judas went a step further than his father, fortifying those cities which
he took by surprise. His small troop gradually became a small army,
numbering six thousand. Having assured himself that he could rely on
them, Judas prepared to meet the enemy on the field. Appolonius, the
Syrian general who had recently plundered Jerusalem and murdered its
inhabitants, was soon informed of the revolt, and raised a large army to
crush Judas. But Judas, although his army was only a handful compared
with the large forces of the enemy, marched against Appolonius, and
totally defeated his army and slew him. Judas took the sword of
Appolonius as a trophy, and used it in all his latter battles.