1Now a certain Eleazar, a distinguished man of the Jews from the country, already advanced in age and adorned with every virtue in his life, quieted the elders around him to call upon the holy God, and prayed as follows:
2“O King of great power, Most High, Almighty God, who governs all creation with compassion,
3look upon the seed of Abraham, the children of Jacob your sanctified one, the people of your sanctified portion, a people sojourning in a foreign land and unjustly perishing.
4Father, you destroyed Pharaoh, the former ruler of this Egypt, who abounded in chariots and was lifted up with lawless insolence and a boastful tongue; you drowned him in the sea with his arrogant army, revealing a light of mercy to the race of Israel.
5You shattered Sennacherib, the oppressive king of the Assyrians—who exulted in his countless forces, had already taken the whole land captive by the spear, was lifted up against your holy city, and spoke grievous things with boasting and insolence—you, Master, shattered him, showing your might plainly to many nations.
6You rescued the three companions in Babylonia who had willingly given their lives to the fire rather than serve vain idols; you cooled the fiery furnace and delivered them unharmed, down to a single hair, while sending a flame upon all their adversaries.
7You brought Daniel, who through envious slanders was cast down as prey for lions, up into the light unharmed.
8And Jonah, when he was wasting away in the belly of a sea-monster from the deep—you looked upon him, Father, and restored him unharmed to all his household.
9And now, you who hate arrogance, most merciful, judge of all, appear quickly to those of the holy race of Israel, who are being outraged by abominable and lawless nations.
10But if our life has been entangled in impieties during our exile, first rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and then, Master, destroy us by whatever fate you choose.
11Let not the vain-minded praise their vain idols at the destruction of your beloved ones, saying, ‘Not even their god rescued them.’
12But you, O Eternal One, who have all strength and all power, look upon us now. Have mercy on us, who are being removed from life by the senseless insolence of the lawless, in the manner of conspirators.
13Let the nations cower today before your unconquerable power, O Honored One, you who have the power to bring salvation to the race of Jacob.
14The whole multitude of infants and their parents implore you with tears.
15Let it be shown to all the nations that you are with us, Lord, and have not turned your face from us. But just as you said, ‘Even when they are in the land of their enemies, I did not overlook them,’ so fulfill it, Lord.”
16Just as Eleazar was finishing his prayer, the king arrived at the hippodrome with the beasts and with all the arrogance of his forces.
17And when the Jews saw this, they cried out loudly to heaven, so that the nearby valleys also echoed, causing uncontrollable terror throughout the whole army.
18Then the all-glorious, almighty, and true God, revealing his holy face, opened the gates of heaven, from which two glorious angels of dreadful appearance descended, visible to all except the Jews.
19They stood in opposition, filled the force of the adversaries with confusion and cowardice, and bound them with immovable shackles.
20The king’s body also became rigid with fear, and forgetfulness seized his fierce arrogance.
21And the beasts turned back against the armed forces that followed them, and trampled and destroyed them.
22And the king’s anger was turned to pity and tears over the things he had previously devised.
23For when he heard the cry and saw them all fallen headlong into destruction, he wept and angrily threatened his friends, saying:
24“You abuse your royal power and have surpassed tyrants in cruelty! You are now trying to remove me, your own benefactor, from my rule and my life, secretly plotting things not beneficial to the kingdom.
25Who has removed from their homes those who have faithfully guarded the strongholds of our country and has senselessly gathered every one of them here?
26Who has so lawlessly surrounded with torments those who from the beginning have surpassed all nations in goodwill toward us and have often undergone the worst of human dangers?
27Loosen, release their unjust bonds! Send them away to their own homes in peace, begging pardon for your previous commands.
28Release the sons of the almighty, heavenly, living God, who from the time of our ancestors until now has granted unhindered stability with glory to our affairs.”
29So he said these things, and they, released in a moment, blessed their holy Savior God, having just escaped death.
30Then the king, summoning to the city the one in charge of revenues, commanded that wine and the other things suitable for a feast be supplied to the Jews for seven days, decreeing that in the very place where they expected to meet their destruction, they should hold a feast of deliverance with all gladness.
31Then those who were previously disgraced and near Hades—or rather, standing on its very threshold—organized a banquet of deliverance instead of a bitter and disorderly doom. Full of gladness, they portioned out for festive couches the very place that had been prepared for their fall and burial.
32And ceasing from the mournful melody of dirges, they took up their ancestral song, praising God, the savior and wonder-worker of Israel. Casting off all wailing and lamentation, they formed choirs as a sign of peaceful gladness.
33Likewise, the king also held a great banquet on this account and unceasingly gave magnificent praise to heaven for the miraculous deliverance that had come to them.
34And those who had previously determined that they would be destroyed and become food for birds of prey, and who had registered them with joy, now groaned aloud, clothed in shame, their fire-breathing audacity having been ignominiously extinguished.
35And the Jews, as we have said before, formed the choir we mentioned and continued their feasting with joyful thanksgivings and psalms.
36And they established a common ordinance concerning these things for their entire diaspora community for all generations, decreeing that they should celebrate the aforementioned days with gladness—not for the sake of drinking and gluttony, but for the deliverance that came to them from God.
37Then they petitioned the king, asking for their release to their own homes.
38Now, they were registering them from the twenty-fifth of Pachon until the fourth of Epiphi, for forty days; and they plotted their destruction from the fifth until the seventh of Epiphi, for three days.
39During these days the Ruler of all manifested his mercy most gloriously and rescued them all together, unharmed.
40And they feasted, with all things supplied by the king, until the fourteenth day, on which they also made their petition for their release.
41The king agreed with them and magnanimously wrote for them the following letter to the governors in every city, a letter of earnest purpose:
Open in the interactive reader →