1On the next day, Holofernes ordered his whole army and all the people who had joined him as allies to break camp and advance on Bethulia, to seize the mountain passes, and to make war against the sons of Israel.
2And on that day every mighty man of theirs broke camp. Their fighting force was 170,000 foot soldiers and 12,000 horsemen, apart from the baggage train and the very great multitude of men on foot who were with them.
3They encamped in the valley near Bethulia by the spring. They extended in width from Dothan to Belbaim, and in length from Bethulia to Cyamon, which is opposite Esdraelon.
4But when the sons of Israel saw their multitude, they were greatly terrified, and each said to his neighbor, “Now these men will strip bare the face of the whole earth; neither the high mountains, nor the valleys, nor the hills will bear their weight.”
5Each man took up his weapons of war, lit fires on their towers, and remained on guard that whole night.
6On the second day, Holofernes led out all his cavalry in full view of the sons of Israel who were in Bethulia,
7and he inspected the approaches to their city, scouted out the springs of water and seized them, and set garrisons of fighting men over them. Then he himself returned to his people.
8And all the rulers of the sons of Esau, all the leaders of the people of Moab, and the commanders of the seacoast came to him and said,
9“Let our master now hear a word, so that your force may not be shattered.”
10“For this people, the sons of Israel, do not trust in their spears but in the heights of their mountains, where they dwell. For it is not easy to ascend to the peaks of their mountains.”
11“And now, master, do not wage war against them in a pitched battle, and not a single one of your men will fall.”
12“Remain in your camp, keeping every man of your force safe, and let your servants take control of the spring of water that flows out from the foot of the mountain,”
13“because from there all the inhabitants of Bethulia draw water. Thirst will kill them, and they will surrender their city. And we and our people will go up on the nearby mountain peaks and encamp on them as a guard, so that not one man may exit from the city.”
14“They will waste away in famine—they, their wives, and their children. And before the sword comes upon them, they will be laid low in the streets of their city.”
15“And you will repay them with an evil recompense because they rebelled and did not meet you in peace.”
16Their words pleased Holofernes and all his servants, and he commanded that it be done as they had spoken.
17So a detachment of the sons of Ammon set out, and with them five thousand of the sons of Assur, and they encamped in the valley and seized the water supply and the springs of the sons of Israel.
18The sons of Esau and the sons of Ammon went up and encamped in the hill country opposite Dothan. They sent some of their number to the south and to the east, opposite Egrebel, which is near Chous on the brook Mochmur. The rest of the Assyrian army encamped in the plain and covered the whole face of the land. Their tents and baggage were pitched in a great throng, and they were a very great multitude.
19And the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord their God, for they lost heart, because all their enemies had surrounded them and there was no way to escape from their midst.
20The whole camp of Assur—their foot soldiers, chariots, and horsemen—remained around them for thirty-four days. And all the water jars of all the inhabitants of Bethulia ran dry.
21The cisterns were being emptied, and for not a single day did they have enough water to drink their fill, because their drinking water was rationed.
22Their infants became listless, and the women and young men were fainting from thirst. They were falling in the streets of the city and in the passages of the gates, and there was no longer any strength in them.
23Then all the people—the young men, the women, and the children—gathered before Uzziah and the rulers of the city. They cried out with a loud voice and said in the presence of the elders,
24“May God judge between you and us, because you have done us a great injustice by not making terms of peace with the sons of Assur.”
25“And now there is no one to help us; rather, God has sold us into their hands to be laid low before them in thirst and great destruction.”
26“So now summon them and surrender the whole city for plunder to the people of Holofernes and to all his army.”
27“For it is better for us to become their plunder. We will become slaves, and we will live. We will not see with our own eyes the death of our infants, or our wives and children breathing their last.”
28“We call to witness against you heaven and earth, and our God and the Lord of our fathers, who punishes us according to our sins and the sins of our fathers, so that he may not act according to these words this very day.”
29And there was a great weeping in the midst of the whole assembly with one accord, and they cried out to the Lord God with a loud voice.
30And Uzziah said to them, “Take courage, brothers! Let us hold out for five more days, during which the Lord our God will restore his mercy to us, for he will not abandon us completely.”
31But if these days pass and help does not come to us, I will do according to your words.
32And he dispersed the people, each to his own quarters, and they went to the walls and the towers of their city. And he sent the women and the children to their homes. And they were in great dejection in the city.
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