Judith - The Old Testament

¹ They therefore sent envoys to him to sue for peace, to say,

² 'We are servants of the great King Nebuchadnezzar; we lie prostrate before you. Treat us as you think fit.

³ Our cattle-farms, all our land, all our wheat fields, our flocks and herds, all the sheep-folds in our encampments are at your disposal. Do with them as you please.

⁴ Our towns and their inhabitants too are at your service; go and treat them as you think fit.'

⁵ These men came to Holofernes and delivered the message as above.

⁶ He then made his way down to the coast with his army and stationed garrisons in all the fortified towns, levying outstanding men there as auxiliaries.

⁷ The people of these cities and of all the other towns in the neighbourhood welcomed him, wearing garlands and dancing to the sound of tambourines.

⁸ But he demolished their shrines and cut down their sacred trees, carrying out his commission to destroy all local gods so that the nations should worship Nebuchadnezzar alone and people of every language and nationality should hail him as a god.

⁹ Thus he reached the edge of Esdraelon, in the neighbourhood of Dothan, a village facing the great ridge of Judaea.

¹⁰ He pitched camp between Geba and Scythopolis and stayed there a full month to re-provision his forces.