1And John went up from Gazara and reported to his father Simon what Cendebeus had done.
2And Simon called his two older sons, Judas and John, and said to them, “I and my brothers and my father’s house have fought the wars of Israel from our youth until this day, and we have often been successful in rescuing Israel.
3But now I have grown old, and you, by God’s mercy, are of sufficient age. Take my place and my brother’s, go out and fight for our nation, and may help from heaven be with you.”
4And he chose from the country twenty thousand fighting men and cavalry, and they marched against Cendebeus and camped in Modein.
5Rising early in the morning, they marched into the plain, and behold, a large force of infantry and cavalry came to meet them, and there was a torrent between them.
6And he and his people deployed opposite them. He saw that the people were afraid to cross the torrent, so he crossed first. And when the men saw him, they crossed after him.
7He arrayed the cavalry in the midst of the infantry, for the enemy’s cavalry was very numerous.
8And they sounded the trumpets, and Cendebeus and his army were routed, and many of his men fell wounded. The rest fled to the fortress.
9Then Judas, John’s brother, was wounded. But John pursued them until he came to Kedron, which Cendebeus had fortified.
10And they fled to the towers in the fields of Azotus, and he set it on fire. About a thousand of their men fell, and he returned to Judea in peace.
11Now Ptolemy son of Abubus had been appointed general for the plain of Jericho, and he had a great deal of silver and gold,
12for he was the son-in-law of the high priest.
13And his heart was lifted up, and he resolved to take control of the country. So he plotted deceitfully against Simon and his sons to do away with them.
14Now Simon was touring the cities in the country and seeing to their needs. He went down to Jericho with his sons Mattathias and Judas in the one hundred and seventy-seventh year, in the eleventh month; this is the month of Shebat.
15And the son of Abubus received them deceitfully into the little fortress called Dok, which he had built. He prepared a great banquet for them and hid men there.
16And when Simon and his sons were drunk, Ptolemy and his men rose up, took their weapons, and rushed in on Simon in the banquet hall. They killed him and his two sons and some of his attendants.
17He committed a great act of treachery and returned evil for good.
18Then Ptolemy wrote about these events and sent a message to the king, asking him to send forces to help him, and promising to hand over the country and its cities.
19He also sent other men to Gazara to do away with John, and he sent letters to the military commanders to come to him so that he might give them silver, gold, and gifts.
20And he sent others to seize Jerusalem and the temple mount.
21But someone ran ahead and reported to John at Gazara that his father and brothers had perished, and that Ptolemy had also sent men to kill him.
22When he heard this, he was greatly astounded. He seized the men who had come to destroy him and killed them, for he knew that they were seeking to destroy him.
23Now the rest of the acts of John, his wars and the mighty deeds he performed, the walls he built, and his other accomplishments—
24behold, they are written in the chronicles of his high priesthood, from the time he became high priest after his father.
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