be over the rest of the forces; and charged them to keep Judea very
carefully, and to fight no battles with any persons whomsoever until his
return. Accordingly, Simon-went into Galilee, and fought the enemy, and
put them to flight, and pursued them to the very gates of Ptolemais,
and slew about three thousand of them, and took the spoils of those
that were slain, and those Jews whom they had made captives, with their
baggage, and then returned home.

3. Now as for Judas Maccabeus, and his brother Jonathan, they passed
over the river Jordan; and when they had gone three days journey, they
lighted upon the Nabateans, who came to meet them peaceably, and who
told them how the affairs of those in the land of Gilead stood; and how
many of them were in distress, and driven into garrisons, and into the
cities of Galilee; and exhorted him to make haste to go against the
foreigners, and to endeavor to save his own countrymen out of their
hands. To this exhortation Judas hearkened, and returned to the
wilderness; and in the first place fell upon the inhabitants of Bosor,
and took the city, and beat the inhabitants, and destroyed all the
males, and all that were able to fight, and burnt the city. Nor did he
stop even when night came on, but he journeyed in it to the garrison
where the Jews happened to be then shut up, and where Timotheus lay
round the place with his army. And Judas came upon the city in the
morning; and when he found that the enemy were making an assault upon
the walls, and that some of them brought ladders, on which they might
get upon those walls, and that others brought engines [to batter
them], he bid the trumpeter to sound his trumpet, and he encouraged his
soldiers cheerfully to undergo dangers for the sake of their brethren
and kindred; he also parted his army into three bodies, and fell upon
the backs of their enemies. But when Timotheus's men perceived that it
was Maccabeus that was upon them, of both whose courage and good success
in war they had formerly had sufficient experience, they were put to
flight; but Judas followed them with his army, and slew about eight
thousand of them. He then turned aside to a city of the foreigners
called Malle, and took it, and slew all the males, and burnt the city
itself. He then removed from thence, and overthrew Casphom and Bosor,
and many other cities of the land of Gilead.

4. But not long after this, Timotheus prepared a great army, and took
many others as auxil