Seron, the Syrian lieutenant, aroused by the news of Appolonius’s
defeat, gathered a still larger army than that which had been defeated,
and advanced against Judas. According to their usual custom before
fighting, Judas and his men had fasted; and, weak with hunger and
fatigue, the Jews despaired of success when they saw what a mighty host
was coming to meet them. But Judas encouraged them to fight boldly
against the oppressors of their people, saying that strength came from
heaven and not from large numbers, and reminding them that they fought
for their lives and their laws. When he had finished speaking he rushed
upon the Syrians as they were ascending the rocky hills at Bethoron.
Seron fell early in the battle, and his army, confused and without a
commander, was routed with great loss of life.
THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT PLACED
IN CHARGE OF LYSIAS.
When King Antiochus heard of the victories of Judas, he was greatly
angered and raised a large army to crush him. But along with the news of
the uprising of the Jews came the report that his eastern provinces,
Armenia and Persia, had refused to pay their tribute. Finding his
treasury almost empty, the King was forced to leave Antioch to collect
the tribute from these provinces by force. He gave Lysias, one of the
royal blood, one-half of all the Syrian forces; and placed him in charge
of his kingdom, with orders to destroy the Jewish nation, and people
their land with strangers.
JUDAS’S VICTORY OVER NICANOR
AND GORGIAS.
In obedience to the King’s command, Lysias sent out, on the following
year, forty thousand footmen and five thousand horse, under Nicanor and
Gorgias. These generals set out for Judea, and encamped on the plains of
Emmaus. So confident were the Syrians of victory, that Nicanor, one of
their generals, announced before hand a sale of Jewish captives at
ninety for a talent—about $1000. Many Slave-Merchants were in this way
attracted to the camp, each supplied with large amounts of gold and
silver and chains to lead off their slaves.
Judas, in the meantime, having heard that the Syrian armies had come to
fight against him, assembled his six thousand men at Mizpah near Emmaus,
where they fasted and prayed as in the days of Samuel. They opened the
books of the Law, upon which the heathens had painted images of their
gods; and they were reminded of the desolation of their holy city, the
profaning of the Temple, and all the wicked deeds of Antiochus. Then
Judas, in strict accordance with the Law, ordered all those who had
recently married, built a house, planted a vineyard, or were afraid, to
return to their homes. His army, as a result, was reduced from six
thousand to three thousand men. Judas then encouraged the remaining men
to fight bravely for their people, and ordered them to prepare for
battle.
In the meantime, Gorgias with five thousand footmen and one thousand
horse, had set out to surprise the Jewish army by night. But Judas was
soon informed of this movement, and he immediately devised a plan by
which he could take advantage of the separation of the two generals.
Silently and quickly he gathered his men, and set out with them for
Emmaus, where the remainder of the Syrian army under Nicanor lay
encamped.
It was morning before he arrived; and, encouraging his men not to fear
the large number of the enemy by reminding them how the Jews were saved
from the Egyptians in the Red Sea, he rushed down upon the Syrians. The
Syrian general, thinking that Gorgias would easily crush the small army
of the Jews, had taken no steps to guard against a surprise. The
Syrians, panic-stricken and confused, offered but feeble resistance, and
fled from all sides. Several tents had been set on fire in the
confusion, but Judas wisely forbade the Jews to extinguish the flames or
to plunder the camps, for Gorgias had to be met and defeated.
Gorgias and his army, meanwhile, finding the camps of the Jews deserted,
thought that they had fled to the mountains, and went to look for them.
But what was their surprise when they beheld the smoke rising from the
tents of their comrades! Thus deceived, the Syrians lost all their
courage; and, upon seeing Judas marching toward them, they too turned
their backs and fled.
It was a great victory for the Maccabaean soldiers, and they returned
joyfully to the Syrian camps, where they examined their rich plunder,
consisting not only of large quantities of food and clothing, but also
of the large sums of money which the slave dealers had brought along
with them. As a just punishment for the slave dealers who had come to
buy, the Jews sold as many of them as they could find, as slaves. The
next day was the Sabbath, and it was indeed a day of rest and rejoicing
for the brave Jews.