1 Maccabees — Chapter 4

Et accepit Gorgias quinque millia peditum

VERSE 1. ET ACCEPIT GORGIAS QUINQUE MILLIA PEDITUM ET MILLE EQUITES ELECTOS. — Gorgias took five thousand infantry and one thousand picked cavalry, and this division moved out by night to fall upon the camp of the Jews and attack them suddenly. Lapide explains Gorgias's tactical plan: a night attack to catch the Jews unprepared, while Nicanor's main force remained in the plains. But Judas learned of the plan through intelligence and moved his camp, so that when Gorgias arrived, he found it empty. Judas then turned to attack Nicanor's leaderless main camp.

Et orta est lux et vidit Judas

VERSE 6. ET ORTA EST LUX ET VIDIT JUDAS IN CAMPO TRIA MILLIA VIRORUM ET EQUITES SEXCENTOS. — When day broke, Judas appeared in the plain with three thousand men, but they did not have armor and swords such as they wished. Lapide notes the disparity in armament: Judas's men lacked the full military equipment of the Seleucid troops, yet they attacked nonetheless. He uses this as an illustration of the principle that the righteous warrior's true armor is faith in God, not material weapons.

Et vidit Judas exercitum fortem

VERSE 8. ET VIDIT JUDAS EXERCITUM FORTEM ET ORAVIT DICENS. — Judas saw that the army was strong, and he prayed saying: \"Blessed are you, O Savior of Israel, who broke the attack of the mighty warrior by the hand of your servant David, and gave the camp of the Philistines into the hands of Jonathan the son of Saul, and his armor-bearer. Shut up this army in the hand of your people Israel; let them be ashamed of their troops and their cavalry.\" Lapide provides an extended commentary on this prayer, calling it a model of the pre-battle prayer of a Christian warrior: it recalls God's past mercies, acknowledges human weakness, and asks for victory in God's name.

Et commissum est praelium

VERSE 14. ET COMMISSUM EST PRAELIUM ET CECIDERUNT EX GENTIBUS QUADRINGENTI MILLIA VIRORUM. — The battle was joined, and about three thousand of Gorgias's force fell that day. Lapide now discusses the actual battle, reconstructing its stages from the text and from Josephus. He notes that Judas's strategy was to strike the enemy's main camp while Gorgias was away on his night raid, thus depriving the enemy of his general at the critical moment. This is a classic application of the military principle of attacking the enemy's center of gravity.

Et reversi sunt Judas et fratres eius

VERSE 24. ET REVERSI SUNT JUDAS ET FRATRES EIUS ET CEPERUNT HYMNUM CANERE ET BENEDICERE DEUM. — Judas and his brothers began to sing hymns and praises to God, saying: \"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever.\" Lapide reflects on the Maccabees' thanksgiving after victory. He notes that the great victory celebration was modeled on the liturgical pattern of 1 Chronicles 16 and Psalms 105-107, which begin with the same refrain. The first instinct of the victorious Maccabee was not to celebrate himself but to praise God.

Et dixit Judas et fratres eius

VERSE 36. ET DIXIT JUDAS ET FRATRES EIUS: ECCE CONTRITI SUNT INIMICI NOSTRI, ASCENDAMUS NUNC MUNDARE SANCTA ET RENOVARE. — Then Judas and his brothers said, \"See, our enemies are crushed; let us go up to cleanse the sanctuary and dedicate it.\" Lapide begins his commentary on the purification and rededication of the Temple — the events commemorated by Hanukkah. He calls this one of the greatest moments in the history of Israel: the reconsecration of the holy place that had been desecrated for three years. The cleansing of the Temple is a type of the purification of the soul from sin and its rededication to God.

Et constituit Judas viros ut pugnarent

VERSE 41. ET CONSTITUIT JUDAS VIROS UT PUGNARENT ADVERSUS EOS QUI ERANT IN ARCE DONEC MUNDARET SANCTA. — Judas detailed men to fight against those in the citadel until he had cleansed the sanctuary. Lapide explains the strategic problem: the Seleucid garrison in the Akra (citadel) still held out and could interfere with the Temple cleansing. Judas wisely assigned troops to contain the garrison while the main effort was directed toward purifying and restoring the Temple. This shows the combination of military and religious wisdom in Judas's leadership.

Et mundaverunt sancta et asportaverunt lapides

VERSE 43. ET MUNDAVERUNT SANCTA ET ASPORTAVERUNT LAPIDES COINQUINATIONIS IN LOCUM IMMUNDUM. — They cleansed the sanctuary and removed the defiled stones to an unclean place. Lapide explains the process of purification: the stones of the old defiled altar had to be removed and the entire sanctuary area cleansed of pagan contamination. The question of what to do with the old altar stones was debated — they could not simply be reused since they had been used for pagan sacrifice — and the solution was to set them aside until a prophet should come to declare what to do with them (verse 46).

Et deposuerunt lapides in monte templi

VERSE 46. ET DEPOSUERUNT LAPIDES IN MONTE TEMPLI IN LOCO APTO DONEC VENIRET PROPHETA ET RESPONDERET DE EIS. — And they stored the stones in a convenient place on the temple hill until a prophet should come to tell what to do with them. Lapide reflects on this remarkable detail: the Maccabees were so scrupulous about sacred things that they preserved even the defiled altar stones for a prophetic ruling. They did not presume to decide themselves what to do with objects that had been both sacred and profaned. He compares this to the careful treatment of blessed objects in the Catholic Church.

Et orta est mane quinta et vigesima mensis noni

VERSE 52. ET ORTA EST MANE QUINTA ET VIGESIMA MENSIS NONI QUI EST CASLEU, ANNO CENTESIMO QUADRAGESIMO OCTAVO. — Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, which is Caslev, in the year 148, they rose and offered sacrifice according to the Law on the new altar of burnt offerings that they had built. Lapide notes the date with precision: the 25th of Kislev, 148 Seleucid era (= 164 BC). This was exactly three years after Antiochus had desecrated the Temple by offering a pig on the altar of Zeus Olympios. The restoration of true worship on the same date as the desecration is a powerful sign of divine providence.

Et cecinuerunt in illa die in dedicatione altaris

VERSE 54. ET CECINUERUNT IN ILLA DIE IN DEDICATIONE ALTARIS HYMNUM ET CANTICUM ET CITHARIS ET CINYRIS ET CYMBALIS. — At the very season and on the very day that the Gentiles had profaned it, it was dedicated with songs and harps and lutes and cymbals. Lapide sees this as a perfect providential reversal: the exact anniversary of the profanation became the anniversary of the rededication. He discusses the musical instruments used in the Temple liturgy, drawing on 1 Chronicles 15-16 for the background. The rejoicing of the rededication was modeled on the dedication of Solomon's Temple (2 Chronicles 7).

Et constituit Judas et fratres eius et universa Ecclesia

VERSE 59. ET CONSTITUIT JUDAS ET FRATRES EIUS ET UNIVERSA ECCLESIA ISRAEL UT AGERETUR DIES DEDICATIONIS ALTARIS IN TEMPORIBUS SUIS. — Then Judas and his brothers and all the assembly of Israel determined that every year at that season the days of dedication of the altar should be observed with gladness and joy for eight days, beginning with the twenty-fifth day of the month of Caslev. This is the institution of the feast of Hanukkah. Lapide notes that the authority of the Maccabees to institute a new feast rested on their legitimate political and priestly authority over Israel, and on the unique miraculous nature of the events being commemorated.