Chapter 4
After Gorgias and Lysias were defeated, Judas purified the temple; concerning the dedication of the altar and the adornment of the temple.
4:1 And Gorgias took up five thousand men and chosen cavalry.
Gorgias took five thousand into his army, just as the Devil strives to gather to himself those who are given over to the five carnal senses of the body through the allurements of pleasure; he takes a thousand cavalry with him, as he intends to conduct all his warfare in pride and contempt of the commandments of God, so that he may overcome the ranks of the repentant party in this, when he persuades them to transgress the commandments of God: For the beginning of all sin is pride (Sirach 10:13); where the author of death finds ruin for himself and his followers. And it is rightly said that he moved his camp by night; because he desires to exercise all his wickedness through the blindness of mind in those subject to him, so that they may in no way foresee what kind of ruin threatens them from consenting to sin.
4:2 And their sons who were from the citadel were those leaders.
This citadel does not signify the height of virtues, but the excellence of vain glory: for they offer leadership to sinners who dare to rise up in pride; and evil spirits can also be seen in these leaders, who belong to the one who said: I will ascend into heaven and set my throne in the north, and I will be like the Most High (Isa. 14:13). For these leaders of iniquity, agreeing among themselves, never cease to draw others into the pit and abyss of crimes.
4:3 And Judas heard, and he himself and his mighty men arose.
Note, reader, that the opposing party which was joined to Gorgias arranges all its war preparations at night; and Judas and his followers do so during the day: for the workers of wickedness and executors of errors are always defiled, rulers of darkness hating the light of divine commandments and loving the obscurity of worldly pleasures. Therefore, as Paul says: Those who sleep, sleep at night; and those who are drunk, are drunk at night; but we, who are of the day, are not children of the night nor of darkness (1 Thess. 5:7-8). Truly Judas, that is, the confessor of God, arranges all the gear of war in the light of faith and the meditation on the law of God; therefore, he appears in the field with only three thousand men, namely with those who act confidently not in worldly power, but in the faith of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, striving with simplicity of mind to lead an honest life in this world.
4:12 And the foreigners lifted up their eyes.
As the enemies came from the opposite direction into battle, the allies of Judah sounded the trumpet, and the nations were crushed, because through the sound of the trumpet the voice of preaching is expressed; the soldiers of Judah sound the trumpet, when the preachers of Christ proclaim the Gospel throughout the whole world. Therefore the enemies are crushed, because the nations are subjected to the faith of Christ, and likewise the spiritual enemies are crushed by the power of Christ, and, slain by the sword of the Holy Spirit, are plunged into the depths of the abyss.
4:15a And they pursued them as far as Gezeron, and as far as the plains of Idumaea, and Azotus, and Jamnia.
The names of the places up to which Judas pursued his enemies demonstrate the effectiveness of his virtue; for Gezeron is interpreted as “near my light”; Idumaea, “red” or “earthly”; Azotus, “paternal fire”; Jamnia, “sea” or “his right hand.” And what is signified by Gezeron except the light of faith, and by Idumaea except the gentile nations? But what is signified by paternal fire except the ardor of love; and by Jamnia, except the depth of knowledge and the effect of good works? Therefore, the company of holy teachers pursues the gentile people so long, until it leads them from the error of paganism to the light of faith, kindles in them the fire of love, and urges them to the meditation on the divine law and the pursuit of good works. For this persecution is salutary, and the destruction is beneficial. Therefore it is added:
4:15b And three thousand men of them fell.
For just as there were three thousand of the companions of Judah who were being pursued, so also three thousand fell from the side of the enemies; they fell not so that they might be utterly destroyed, but so that, having been raised up after their fall, they might stand better: because, filled with faith in the Holy Trinity, they strove to attain the fellowship of those whom they recognized they had persecuted with a virtuous spirit.
4:16 And Judas returned, and his army following him, etc.
Likewise, the soldiers of Christ should by no means be quickly confident of victory when war is imminent, but ought to fight as long as necessary, until they are certain of the destruction of their spiritual enemies. For when, by pursuing sinners or unbelievers, they have converted them to repentance for their sins and to faith in Christ, which works through love to produce good deeds, then they must gather their spoils, that is, make use of their knowledge and share in the industry of their virtuous labor. For in gold we may understand knowledge, in silver eloquence, in hyacinth heavenly conduct, in purple the shedding of blood through martyrdom. Then indeed we gather these riches fruitfully, we find them acceptable in true faith, if, however, we transfer this victory to spiritual enemies. Then we ought to be secure, when after the end of this present life there is no longer any need to fear the snares of enemies. For then we gather the spoils profitably, when we receive from Christ the rewards worthy of our labor. Therefore it is rightly said that Judas exhorted his companions not to crave the spoils while the fierce wars of the enemies were still threatening; but when the enemies were utterly defeated, then he returned with his men to gather the spoils of the camps, because it is necessary for every preacher to warn his listeners to beware of the darts of enemies as long as it is a time of war. But when the time of peace comes, namely, that peace which the Savior promised to his disciples, saying: My peace I give to you (Jn. 14:27), then both superiors and subjects together will have eternal joy from the reward received, because they will no longer fear the pain of further labors and tears; then, because it is the time to sing praises to God their helper. Therefore it is written:
4:24 And having turned, they sang a hymn and blessed God in heaven, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever.
There is great salvation in Israel when the number of believers in the Lord among the peoples increases, who recognize the Savior by faith, confess with their mouths, and glorify Him together in one work. Or otherwise, then there will be great salvation in Israel, when in the Church of Christ there will be no hardship. And it is notably added, on that day; on the day, indeed, of the resurrection, because the most noble bride will be joined to the bridegroom in the heavenly kingdom above, when all the saints in the sight of God will rejoice not only in the rest of their souls, but also in the immortality of their bodies. Where it is written:
4:26 However, whoever among the foreigners escaped, came and reported to Lysias all that had happened.
Finally, the foreigners who escaped announce to Lysias the victory of Judas, because some, not yet of the saints, are seized as most beneficial spoils for Christ through the ministries of the teachers, and, though unwilling, because compelled by the truth, they announce the glory of Christ to their instructors by whom they are nurtured unto death. For Lysias, which is interpreted as "generating," signifies the powerful of the world, who, although they are generated, have not yet deserved to be regenerated by the baptism of Christ. Therefore, these soldiers, hearing of Christ’s victory, are discouraged and lose heart, because things did not turn out in Israel as they wished, nor as the king commanded. For their will was such that the preaching of the Gospel by the holy teachers would not prevail, nor would the multitude of those believing in the Lord increase; and they also knew that such things would please their rulers, that is, the unclean spirits; because in the blasphemous images of idols, venerated by men with divine worship, they persuaded them not to receive the faith of Christ, but they did not prevail, because the Father reveals the glory of His Son far and wide among all nations.
4:28 And in the following year he gathered sixty thousand chosen men.
And Lysias selected sixty thousand men and five thousand horsemen to wage war against Israel, with all the power of this world, which is divided into six ages; through the five bodily senses, the prince of this age, with the rulers of these present darknesses inciting, strives to overcome the soldiers of Christ by loosening them through various vices, and through evil men he plots the destruction of the good. But Judas confronted them with ten thousand men, because the army of our King is stronger than the others in this: that it strives in all things to obey the divine commandments, and by sending constant prayers to the Lord, it is strengthened by His hand, in whose power it especially trusts; and it persists in battle until its enemies and the opposing spiritual weapons are utterly slain by the sword. Therefore, in the prayer of Judas, it is added:
4:33 Drive them out with the sword, you who love Him.
There are five books of the law of God, and, as we have previously said, there are five senses in the body. For whoever, according to the teaching of the law, restrains the lust of the flesh, turning away his eyes so that they do not look upon vanity, stopping his ears so that they do not hear a slanderous tongue (Ps. 119:37), and obscene songs against worldly things, by which, when frequently heard, the inner man is defiled; whoever restrains his sense of smell and taste so that he does not use them for the lure of pleasures; whoever keeps his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit, turns away from evil and does good, seeks peace and pursues it (Ps. 34:13-14), this person, overcoming his enemies, will gain the most beneficial victory and will rejoice in the greatest triumph. But spiritual Lysias, although once, twice, or even three times crushed and put to flight, nevertheless does not cease from the wickedness he has undertaken, but revived, he again renews the battles. Therefore it is written:
4:35-36 But when Lysias learned of the flight of his men, etc. But Judas said, etc.
It is well said that Judas, after the enemies were crushed and the wars had been calmed for a time, urged his men to cleanse and renew the holy places, because the holy teachers are greatly concerned that, whenever the Church entrusted to them has been harmed by enemies, it should be restored again to its former state of holy conduct. According to the spiritual interpretation, it is necessary that every faithful person should cleanse his own mountain (which we may rightly understand as selected by the name Mount Zion, because Zion is interpreted as "watchtower," and blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matt. 5:8), if anything in it has been defiled by the deceit of the enemy, with holy and watchful attention, until it is fully renewed. For there we can understand both the deserted sanctification, the profaned altar, and the burnt gates; because there the sacrifice of praise was offered to God on the altar of faith, and the entrance to heavenly life was contemplated. In the courts, however, weeds grow, when in human hearts a multitude of unnecessary thoughts is generated.
4:38 Pastophoria, he says, saw the ruins.
Pastophoria in Greek are called chambers, or rooms, in which the Levites kept watch in the courts of the house of the Lord, whose mention is made in the last vision of the prophet Ezekiel. Therefore, pastophoria are destroyed when the secrets of the mind are torn apart by illicit desires; but above all, it is necessary that all these things be most urgently purified through repentance for sins, amendment of conduct, and devout prayers to the Lord. Therefore, it is rightly written about the army of Judah that when they saw the sanctification deserted, they tore their garments and mourned with great weeping . (verse 4:39)
4:41a Then Judas appointed men to fight against those who were in the citadel, until the holy things were cleansed, etc.
It is rightly said that Judas appointed men to fight against those who were in the citadel (4:41b) until the holy things were cleansed, because this is what our Redeemer ordains through his preachers: that his soldiers should fight diligently against those who dwell in the citadel of pride, that is, men puffed up with the spirit of arrogance, or swelling with pride like evil spirits, until they purge the hearts of the elect from every stain of iniquity. And they chose priests without blemish, having the will to follow the law of God, and they cleansed the holy things, (4:42) because, after removing from ecclesiastical office those who bore the leprosy of error or the stain of crimes, they chose as ministers of the word those who were willing and morally upright in faith, so that the assemblies of the holy Church might be made free from every infection of error. Indeed, it is further stated that they took the stones of contamination to a clean place, because heretics who did not wish to become precious stones through a life of right faith and sound doctrine, having been struck with anathema and cast out, were shown to all to be reprobate, etc.
4:44 And he considered what to do about the altar of burnt offerings, which had been profaned, etc.
The altar of burnt offerings is pure faith, pure doctrine, and the pure conduct of the ministers of Christ. But this altar had been desecrated by heretical depravity or the horror of crimes; now it had to be destroyed, that is, removed from the dignity of the priesthood, lest perhaps it be a disgrace to the holy Church to have corrupt and criminal teachers who have been seduced by diabolical cunning. Therefore, the Lord says to the disciples in the Gospel: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its flavor, with what shall it be salted? It is good for nothing anymore except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. (Matt. 5:13) Of this, too, Paul, writing to Titus, says: A man who is a heretic, after the first and second admonition, avoid, knowing that such a one is perverted and sins, being condemned by his own judgment. (Titus 3:10-11) Therefore also, to certain offenders he says: Because of you the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles. (Rom. 2:24) Therefore, after the mystical altar has been therefore removed, those mystical stones must be set aside on the mountain of the house in a suitable place, until the coming prophet responds, saying that those who sin must be brought under penance, until through holy teachers, a fitting sanctification is carried out for the crime committed. But in their place, whole stones according to the law must be substituted, so that a new altar may be made according to what was before, because men sound in the Catholic faith, filled with the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, holy in good morals, must be appointed in the place of those who have fallen from rule; according to the authorities of the divine law, so that without reproach in newness of life and the standard of righteousness, the ministry may be exhibited to God in the holy Church, which Christ acquired for himself as a bride at the price of his blood, and not having spot or wrinkle (Eph. 5:27).
4:48 And they built the holy things, and those that were next to the house on the inside: and they consecrated the temple and the courts, etc.
Holy preachers build holy things within the house inside and the temple, when they adorn the subject people both inwardly with the knowledge of sound faith, and outwardly with upright conduct; they consecrate the courts when, by initiating those newly coming to the faith with divine rituals, they dedicate them. They make new holy vessels when they render the hearts of human beings suitable for receiving the word of God. They bring the lampstand, and the altar of incense, and the table into the temple when they awaken in the Church of God the light of spiritual teaching, the purity of holy prayer, and the meditation on the holy Scriptures. In the lampstand, therefore, in which lamps ought to shine, we can rightly discern the word of evangelical teaching, in which holy teachers, kindled by the fire of the Holy Spirit, ought to shine, so that those who enter may see the light.
Where Truth itself says in the Gospel: No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel, but on a lampstand, so that it may give light to all who are in the house (Matt. 5:15). By the altar of incense we can understand nothing better than the perfect life of the saints, from which there daily rises the fragrance of virtues and of holy prayer in the sight of the Most High. We therefore understand the table of the Lord as nothing other than Holy Scripture, in which the perfection of souls consists. But when it is said that they hung the veils and completed all the work that they had done, in the hanging of the veils is expressed the concealment of mysteries. For the mysteries of the divine law are not to be laid open to all in every respect, but according to the capacity of each person’s understanding and the progress of knowledge and virtues. Therefore the Lord commanded the apostles, saying: Do not give what is holy to dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine (Matt. 7:6); and Paul says to his untrained disciples: I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able, nor indeed are you even now able (1 Cor. 3:2). Concerning the knowledge of the perfect, therefore, he says elsewhere: And we, with unveiled face, contemplate the glory of the Lord, being transformed into the same image, as by the Spirit of the Lord, etc. ( 2 Cor. 3:18)
Therefore, they bring to completion all the works that must be done in the house of God, they who, by faith, word, and deed, strive according to the proper order to fulfill all the commandments of the Lord; nor is anything lacking in perfection where the human will in all things obeys the divine will.
4:52 And before morning they rose on the twenty‑fifth day of the ninth month, etc.
Josephus narrates this renewal in this way, saying (Antiq. 12.10): “On the twenty‑fifth day of the month Casleu, which the Macedonians call Appelleon, they lit the lamps on the lampstand and offered up the burnt sacrifices which they presented on the new altar.” These things happened after three years, on the very day on which their religion had been changed to the profane practice of their idols. For the temple, destroyed by Antiochus, remained so for three years: for in the one hundred and fifteenth year the deed was done in the temple on the twenty‑fifth day of the month Appelleon; in the one hundred and forty‑eighth year, in the one hundred and fifty‑fourth Olympiad. The desolation of the temple came to pass according to Daniel’s preface, which he had foretold in the eighteenth year beforehand, through which he indicated that the Macedonians would destroy it. But Judas, together with his fellow‑citizens, celebrated sacrifices for the renewal of the temple for eight days, omitting no kind of delight, feeding them with the most precious banquets. They glorified God with praises and psalms and took mutual joy in songs. For the renewal of the solemn observances, after the religion had been re‑established for a long time, the guardians of the Law decreed that later generations should celebrate this renewal of the temple for eight days. And so from that time until now we celebrate this feast, calling it “Lights,” because beyond our expectation this splendid light of the religion to be observed appeared to us; mystically, however, the renewal of the temple is the conversion of people to repentance for sins, who had been stained by certain errors and crimes. For then it is time for all the faithful to sing, rejoice, exult, shout for joy, and give praise, when they see their neighbors, by correcting their ways and meditating on the Law of God, restoring within themselves what previously they had destroyed through negligence.
And so the holy Gospel relates that the Savior said (Luke 15:7) that in heaven joy arises over one sinner who repents; if over one, how much more will there be rejoicing over many who are converted to the true worship of God. For, as it is written: In the multitude of the people is the glory of the prince (Prov. 14:28); namely of that prince who wills all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4).
4:59 And Judas and his brothers, and the whole Church of Israel, established that the day of the dedication of the altar should be celebrated in its proper seasons.
This feast the Savior Himself is read in the Gospel to have honored by His preaching, where it is written: “The Feast of Dedication was held in Jerusalem; it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon,” etc. (Jn. 10:22). From this it must be understood that this Feast of Dedication which we have learned about from the Gospel reading does not refer to the first dedication of the temple, but to the last; which is easily conditional from the fact that it is said to have taken place in winter. For its first dedication, by Solomon, took place in the autumn; the middle one, by Zerubbabel and the priest Jeshua, in the spring; but the last, by Judas Maccabeus, took place in the winter, when it is specifically read that it was decreed that this same dedication should be recalled every year in memory by solemn rites, as we understand from the above-mentioned passage of the Gospel that this was observed up to the time of the Lord’s Incarnation. This was the reason for the second and third dedications. For Solomon completed in seven years the work of the temple which he built for the Lord, and in the eighth year, on the tenth day of the seventh month, which we call October, he dedicated it with great glory. But after four hundred and thirty years the Chaldeans went up against this temple, and having destroyed the city of Jerusalem, they led the people of Israel captive into Babylon; who, after seventy years, under the rule of the Persians, were sent back to their homeland. Then the temple was rebuilt over forty-six years, and on the third day of the twelfth month, which we call March, the work was fully brought to completion. At that time indeed there presided over the work the most heroic leaders of the people, as we have said, Zerubbabel of the royal line, and Jeshua, the high priest; and the prophets Haggai and Zechariah aided them, strengthening the hearts of the people against the plots of those who tried to hinder the work. Then, after about three hundred and fifty-six years, the most wicked king of the Greeks, Antiochus, having deceitfully seized Jerusalem, defiled that same temple with the filth of idols, taking away and breaking the golden altar of the Lord, the table of the showbread, the lampstand of light, and the other things mentioned above.
But Judas Maccabeus, since he was of priestly lineage, having gathered an army of the righteous and taking up arms against the generals of Antiochus, drove them out of Judea, put an end to the most cruel persecution, and, cleansing the temple from the images of idols, made new altars again and the other vessels and ornaments and placed them in the temple, and dedicated them together with the temple. He purified and renewed it on the twenty‑fifth day of the ninth month, which among us is called December, and it is beyond doubt that it belongs to winter. And he established a decree, as we have said before, that every year the day of the Encaenia, that is, of the renewal and dedication of the temple, be celebrated with devout festivity, as this place now bears witness.
All these things indeed, as the Apostle teaches (1 Cor. 10:11), were done as a figure of us, and were of course written for our sake, and must therefore be examined by us more carefully according to a spiritual understanding. For King Solomon, whose name is interpreted “peaceful,” typically signifies our Redeemer himself; of whom Isaiah says: “His dominion will be multiplied, and there will be no end of peace.” (Isa. 9:7) The temple that he built is his Catholic Church, which he gathers together from all believers throughout the world, as though from living stones, into one structure compacted by his faith and love. That the temple was built in seven years signifies that throughout the whole duration of this age, which unfolds in seven days, the holy structure of the Church never ceases to grow. That it was dedicated in the eighth year, and that very famous and great earnestness was celebrated by King Solomon for all the sons of Israel at the time of the completed dedication, mystically suggests that, when the number of the elect is perfected at the end of the world, there will be the secure festivity of the long-desired immortality; and when the miracle of the universal resurrection has been accomplished, then all who belong to the kingdom of the true peaceful King, that is, of Solomon, will at once enter with him into the eternal joys of the heavenly homeland.
For since our Lord wished to rise from the dead on the eighth day, that is, after the seventh day of the sabbath, the number eight fittingly signifies also the future feast of our resurrection. The fact that the temple, once burned by enemies, is again rebuilt by the Lord’s mercy; that, having been defiled by idolaters, it is once more cleansed by the aid of heavenly devotion, this suggests the various events of the holy Church, which is now oppressed by the persecution of unbelievers, and now, when the persecutors are removed and it is given greater freedom, serves more peacefully, under the Lord’s guidance, in bondage as a handmaid: now in some of its members it is endangered by the snares of the ancient enemy, and now, through the diligence of faithful teachers, those whom it seemed for a time to be losing it receives back, already humiliated, through repentance.
But the fact that the second temple was built in forty-six years spiritually refers to the signification of the Lord’s body, which He took from the Virgin; about which He Himself says to the Jews: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (Jn. 2:19), because, indeed, when His body was destroyed by the Passion, He Himself raised it to life on the third day. Moreover, physicians report that the human body is formed on the forty-sixth day after the beginning of conception, in the differentiation of the limbs; and it was not done by chance, but providentially arranged by God, that the temple should be built in that number of years in which, by the same number of days, the body of the Lord, prefigured by the temple, had to be brought to completion in the virginal womb.
But the fact that it has been ordained that the Dedication be celebrated every year certainly reminds us that, always keeping in mind the remembrance of the Lord’s resurrection, which we believe has already taken place, we should so conduct ourselves in hope of our own future resurrection that we may deserve to rise not for judgment, but, as the Lord has promised to those who have done good, to rise to life.
4:60 And in that time they built the mountain Zion, and all around it high walls and strong towers, etc.
The holy teachers build the mountain Zion when, by word and example, they stir the holy Church to progress in virtues; they construct high walls all around when they strengthen it on every side with the summit of the Catholic faith and with the work of prayers; they raise strong towers when they command that all hope be placed in the goodness of God. So that the nations may not trample it as the former mountain; so that the wickedness of evil spirits or the hatred of perverse men may no longer be able to harm them.
4:61 “And he stationed,” he says, “the army there so that they might guard him,” etc.
The army is placed on Zion to guard him, when the multitude of ministers, for the preservation of the law of God, is employed in the Church for the rite of heavenly sacraments. They fortify him to protect Bethzur, when by strong exhortations they stir up ecclesiastical persons to observe divine worship in an orderly way (for Bethzur is interpreted as “house of the strong”). So that the people may have fortification against the face of Idumaea. That is, so that it may preserve loyalty of faith against enemies and against the stubbornness of a raging world.