Chapter 15
General Disbandment.[a] 1 When the men who were still in their tents learned what had happened, they were thrown into confusion. 2 Overcome with fear and trembling, they made no effort to band together in unity, but with one accord they all rushed out and fled by every road across the plain and through the mountains. 3 Those who had been stationed in the hills around Bethulia also took to flight. Then all the Israelite soldiers rushed out in pursuit of them.
4 Uzziah sent messengers to Betomasthaim, to Choba and Kona, and to the whole territory of Israel to inform them what had occurred and to urge all of them to attack the enemy and destroy them. 5 As soon as the Israelites heard the news, they all attacked the enemy with a unified spirit and cut them down all the way to Choba. Even the men from Jerusalem and the entire mountain region participated in the onslaught, for they too had been told of what had happened in the camp of the enemy. The men of Gilead and Galilee surrounded the flanks of the enemy and inflicted a great slaughter, even beyond Damascus and its borders.
6 The rest of the inhabitants of Bethulia fell on the camp of the Assyrians and plundered it, acquiring great riches. 7 And when the Israelites returned from the slaughter, they seized what remained. Even the villages and towns of the hill country and the plain acquired a great amount of booty, which was available in large quantities.
Ceremonies of Thanksgiving
The Honor of Our People![b] 8 Joakim the high priest and the elders of the Israelites who dwelt in Jerusalem came to witness for themselves the wonderful things that the Lord had done for Israel, and to meet Judith and offer her their congratulations. 9 [c]When they came into her presence, they all blessed her with one accord and said to her:
“You are the glory of Jerusalem,
the surpassing pride of Israel,
the great honor of our people.
10 You have done all this with your own hand;
you have been the source of much good to Israel,
and God has approved what you have wrought.
May you be blessed by the Lord Almighty
forever and ever.”
And all the people responded, “Amen!”
11 The entire populace looted the camp for thirty days. They presented Judith with the tent of Holofernes, all his silver dinnerware, his beds, his drinking vessels, and all his furniture. She accepted these gifts, harnessed her mules, hitched them to her wagons, and loaded the gifts on them.
12 All the women of Israel gathered to see her. They sang her praises and performed a dance in her honor. She took branches of ivy[d] in her hands and distributed them among the women around her, 13 while she and those women crowned themselves with olive wreaths. Then, at the head of the procession, she led the women as they danced, while the men of Israel, in full armor, followed them, wearing garlands and singing hymns.
Judith’s Hymn of Thanksgiving
14 In the presence of all Israel, Judith began this hymn of thanksgiving, and the people joined her in singing it:[e]
Footnotes
- Judith 15:1 As at the time of Gideon, a divine terror sows panic in the camp of the enemies (Jdg 7:7-21). To the disbandment of the Assyrian army responds the regathering of the children of Israel: the effect is desired by the author.
- Judith 15:8 The leaders come from Jerusalem to celebrate the victory whose architect was Judith. The feast is organized according to Greek custom. In the acclamation to Judith, the Church sees the announcement of salvation with which another woman is associated, and she applies its words to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
- Judith 15:9 These verses are regularly applied to Mary, the Mother of God, by the Church, especially in her Liturgy. For example, they are found in Mass no. 43 of the new Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This Mass commemorates Mary as the “handmaid of our redemption” because she is the handmaid of the Lord (see Lk 1:38).
This can be done because Judith was a type of Mary. Just as Judith courageously freed her people from the siege by Holofernes, so Mary in her warfare against the serpent, the ancient enemy (see Gen 3:15), brought blessings upon the people of Israel and upon the whole Church.
In the same way, Mary is also the prophetess of the redemption of Israel. Becoming the voice of her people, she magnified the Lord, because, mindful of his mercy, he had come to the rescue of his people by redeeming them from slavery to sin (Lk 1:46, 54-55).
Thus, the Church shows that Mary is a loving Mother, given to us by God in his mercy, one who cares unceasingly with a mother’s love for all God’s children in their need, breaking the chains of every form of captivity, so that we might enjoy full liberty of body and spirit. - Judith 15:12 Branches of ivy: a Greek custom found only in one other place in the Bible: 2 Mac 10:7. The Jews waved palm branches in times of rejoicing (Lev 23:40; Jn 12:13; Rev 7:9).
- Judith 15:14 The hymn of Judith is regarded as one of the most beautiful examples of Hebrew poetry in its conciseness and vivacity.