Глава 5

1–5. Surprised by the news of the Israelites' preparations for resistance, Holofernes inquires about them from Achior, the leader of the Ammonites. 6–21. Achior's speech about the Israelites. 22–24. Unfavorable impression of the speech on the entire meeting. Judith.5:1 Meanwhile, it was given to Holofernes, the general of the Assyrian army, that the children of Israel had prepared for war: they had sealed the entrances to the mountainous country and fortified every peak of the high mountain with walls, and built barriers in the plains. 1. The preparations of the Jews for resistance, of course, were ridiculous to the point of insignificance, given such the enormity of Holofernes’s troops and the number of victoriously overthrown kingdoms and peoples they passed through. There is no doubt, and for the Jews this was clearly obvious. But the more obvious was the insignificance of their preparations for defense, the more ideological and touching was this weak impulse towards a bloody struggle for their sacred property - an impulse that declared itself with all its mighty force in such a touching demand for Divine help. Judith 5:2 He was very angry and called all the leaders of Moab and the leaders of Ammon and all the rulers of the coastal country, and said to them: Judith 5:3 Tell me, O sons of Canaan, what kind of people are they that live in the hill country, what cities do they inhabit, how many troops do they have, what is their strength and strength, who is appointed king over them, the leader of their army, Judith 5:4 And why do they, more than anyone living in the west, persist in coming out to meet me? 2–4. Wanting to have, obviously, hitherto unknown information about Israel, its country, military fortresses and forces and the reasons for its stubbornness, Holofernes gathers “all the leaders of Moab and the leaders of Ammon and all the rulers of the coastal country” and demands this information from them. As Israel's closest neighbors, they are more aware of all this than others, and their large numbers and diversity should have given this information special value, comprehensiveness and thoroughness. Many found it incredible that Holofernes himself had not heard or known anything about Israel before. However, there is nothing unnatural about this in view of Israel’s general isolation and inconspicuousness among the rest of the world at that time. Even Assyria’s campaigns in Samaria and Judea did little to make other eastern peoples more familiar with them, due to the fact that Assyria itself constituted barely 1/22 of the kingdoms of western Asia. Judging by the fact that Holofernes, as this name indicates, was of Aryan and not Semitic origin, there can be no doubt that he knew even less than the rest of the Assyrians everything that concerned the Israelites. The address in the speech of Holofernes “sons of Canaan” is, in fact, applicable only to the satraps of the coastal region and is not entirely suitable for other members of the assembly, such as, for example, the leaders of Moab and the leaders of Ammon. Therefore, one must think: either Holofernes did not believe between them and did not know any difference, or he meant specifically the coastal people of Canaanite origin, to whom he included the Jews. Judith.5:5 Achior, the leader of all the sons of Ammon, said to him: Hear, my lord, the word from the mouth of your servant; I will tell you the truth about this people who live near you in this mountainous country, and no lie will come out of the mouth of your servant. 5. The name Achior (Αχιώρ) is mentioned as early as Num. 36:27, however - in a modified form. The real form of the name is brother or friend of light. Judith.5:6 This people comes from the Chaldeans. 6. Achior exposes Holofernes primarily to the Chaldean origin of the Jews, apparently with the aim of winning over Holofernes, who himself was a subject of the Assyrian monarchy. Judith.5:7 First they settled in Mesopotamia, because they did not want to serve the gods of their fathers, who were in the land of the Chaldeans, Judith.5:8 And they turned away from the way of their ancestors and began to worship the God of heaven, the God whom they had known; and the Chaldeans drove them out from before their gods, and they fled to Mesopotamia and lived there for a long time. 7–8. The end of the second of these verses adjoins the very beginning of the previous one, spread by a long introductory sentence, and due to this the sequence of events being narrated is somewhat confused and obscured. It seems like this. At first the Israelites lived in the land of the Chaldeans, from whom they descended (v. 6). But then, when they did not want to serve the gods of their Chaldean fathers (7th Art.) and began to worship the God of heaven (Jehovah), the Chaldeans deprived them of their fatherland, and so their wandering life began (8th Art.) before they settled in Mesopotamia (the beginning of the 7th verse, to which the 9th should immediately and sequentially adjoin, the end of the 8th is only a repetition of the beginning of the 7th - “they fled to Mesopotamia and lived there for a long time"), and then went to the land of Canaan, etc. (9th and following verses). Judith.5:9 But their God told them to leave the place of migration and go to the land of Canaan; They settled there and became very rich in gold, silver and a lot of livestock. Judith 5:10 From here they went to Egypt, because famine had covered the face of the land of Canaan, and there they remained until they found food, and they multiplied there until their generation was not numbered. Judith 5:11 And the king of Egypt rose up against them, and used cunning against them, burdening them with labor and making bricks, and made them slaves. Judith 5:12 Then they cried out to their God, and He smote the whole land of Egypt with incurable plagues, and the Egyptians drove them away from them. Judith 5:13 God dried up the Red Sea before them Judith.5:14 And he led them by the way of Sina and Cadiz-Barnea; they drove out all those who lived in this desert; Judith.5:15 settled in the land of the Amorites, destroyed all the Heshbonites with their own strength, crossed the Jordan, inherited the entire mountainous country Judith 5:16 And having driven out from them the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Jebusite, Shechem, and all the Girgashites, they dwelt in it many days. Judith 5:17 And until they sinned against their God, happiness was with them, because God was with them, who hates iniquity. Judith.5:18 But when they turned away from the path that He commanded them, in many wars they suffered very strong defeats, were taken into captivity into a foreign land, the church of their God was destroyed, and their cities were taken by enemies. Judith 5:19 Now, having turned to their God, they returned from the dispersion in which they were, took possession of Jerusalem, wherein was their sanctuary, and settled in the hill country, since it was desolate. Judith 5:20 And now, sovereign lord, if there is error among this people, and they sin against their God, and we notice that there is this stumbling block in them, then we will go and overcome them. Judith 5:21 And if there is no iniquity in this people, then let my lord depart, lest the Lord protect them, and their God be for them, and then we will be a reproach to the whole earth. 9–21. Achior's speech presents the history of Israel in a remarkably accurate, meaningful, and ideologically orthodox way. What is especially curious here is that Achior so correctly unravels the secret of the indestructible strength and vitality of the Israeli people with all the vicissitudes of their fate and trials. This secret is loyalty to Jehovah and the path bequeathed from Him. Achior notes throughout the history of the Israelites the strict correspondence of their well-being - the degree of this loyalty, and impartially - confidently and rightly concludes that even at this moment it is not military force, even the most reliable, that can decide this in favor of Holofernes, but only the degree of loyalty to Jehovah of the people of Israel will be caught in an attack on this people by Holofernes. Judith.5:22 When Achior finished this speech, all the people standing around the tent began to murmur, and the nobles of Holofernes and all those who inhabited the seaside and the land of Moab spoke: they must kill him immediately; Judith 5:23 Because we will not be afraid of the children of Israel: they are a people who have neither army nor strength for a strong army. Judith 5:24 Let us therefore go, O lord Holofernes, and they will become the prey of all your army. 22–24. For all its remarkable restraint and reasonableness, Achior’s speech did not please the assembly precisely because it made the success of such huge hordes, tested in battles and victories, dependent on some mystical power of an insignificant and weak people. His voice remained completely alone and caused a completely opposite effect: the meeting of generals unanimously and devotedly begged Holofernes to lead them to Israel as a sure prey, and they demanded that Achior be immediately put to death.