Chapter Five

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. The speech of Achior concerning the Israelites. 22–24. The unfavorable impression of the speech upon the whole assembly.

Judith 5:1. Holofernes, the commander of the Assyrian army, was informed that the children of Israel had prepared for war: they had closed the passages to the highlands, fortified every summit of the high mountain with walls, and on the plains had set up barriers. 1. The preparations of the Jews for resistance were, of course, absurdly insignificant compared to the enormous forces of Holofernes and the multitude of kingdoms and peoples he had already conquered and overthrown victoriously. There is no doubt that for the Jews this was glaringly obvious. But the more evident the insignificance of their defensive preparations, the more ideal and touching was this feeble attempt at bloody struggle for their sacred possessions—an attempt that with all its powerful force was expressed in such a touching appeal for divine help.

Judith 5:2. He was very angry and, calling together all the rulers of Moab and the leaders of Ammon and all the governors of the seacoast, said to them: Judith 5:3. Tell me, sons of Canaan, what is this people that dwells in the highlands, what cities do they inhabit, how large is their army, and what is their strength and power, who is set over them as king and commander of their forces, Judith 5:4. and why have they more than all those who dwell in the west refused to come out to meet me? 2–4. Desiring, apparently, to obtain unknown information about Israel, its country, military strongholds and forces, and the reasons for its obstinacy, Holofernes gathers “all the rulers of Moab and the leaders of Ammon and all the governors of the seacoast” and demands these reports from them. As the nearest neighbors of Israel, they are better informed than others about all this, and by their numbers and diversity they should lend to these reports special value, comprehensiveness, and detail. Many considered it incredible that Holofernes himself had never heard of or known about Israel before. Yet there is nothing unnatural in this in view of the general seclusion and insignificance of Israel among the rest of the world at that time. Even the campaigns of Assyria into Samaria and Judea contributed little to closer acquaintance with them on the part of other Eastern peoples, since Assyria itself constituted barely one-twenty-second of the kingdoms of Western Asia. Judging by the fact that Holofernes, as his name indicates, was of Aryan rather than Semitic origin, one can have no doubt that he was even less aware than other Assyrians of all that concerned the Israelites. The address in Holofernes’ speech “sons of Canaan” properly applies only to the satraps of the coastal region and does not entirely fit the other members of the assembly, such as, for instance, the rulers of Moab and the leaders of Ammon. Therefore, one must suppose that either Holofernes made no distinction between them and did not know of any, or had in mind precisely the coastal peoples of Canaanite origin, to whom he counted even the Hebrews.

Judith 5:5. Achior, the leader of all the sons of Ammon, said to him: Listen, my master, to a word from the mouth of your servant; I will tell you the truth about this people living near you in this highlands, and no falsehood will come from the mouth of your servant. 5. The name Achior (Αχιώρ) is mentioned again in Num 36:27, though in an altered form. The true form of the name means friend or brother of light.

Judith 5:6. This people came from the Chaldeans. 6. Achior points out to Holofernes first of all the Chaldean origin of the Jews, apparently in order to dispose Holofernes favorably toward them, since he himself was a subject of the Assyrian monarchy.

Judith 5:7. Formerly they were settled in Mesopotamia, because they were unwilling to serve the gods of their fathers, which were in the land of the Chaldeans, Judith 5:8. and departed from the way of their fathers and began to worship the God of heaven, the God whom they had come to know; and the Chaldeans drove them out from the sight of their gods—and they fled to Mesopotamia and dwelt there for a long time. 7–8. The end of the second of these verses attaches to the very beginning of the previous one, extended by a long introductory clause, and as a result the sequence of the events described is somewhat confused and obscured. The matter is this. First the Israelites lived in the land of the Chaldeans, from whom they descended (verse 6). But then, when they refused to serve the gods of their fathers the Chaldeans (verse 7) and began to worship the God of heaven (Jehovah), the Chaldeans deprived them of their homeland, and their wandering life began (verse 8). At first they were settled in Mesopotamia (the beginning of verse 7, which should connect directly and consecutively to verse 9; the end of verse 8 is merely a repetition of the beginning of verse 7—“they fled to Mesopotamia and dwelt there for a long time”), and then they went forth to the land of Canaan, etc. (verse 9 and following verses).

Judith 5:9. But their God told them to depart from their dwelling and go to the land of Canaan; they settled there and became very rich in gold and silver and cattle. Judith 5:10. From there they went down to Egypt, for famine had covered the face of the land of Canaan, and there they remained while they found sustenance, and multiplied there so greatly that their nation could not be numbered. Judith 5:11. But the king of Egypt rose up against them and dealt cunningly with them, burdening them with hard labor and the making of bricks, and made them slaves. Judith 5:12. Then they cried out to their God, and He struck down the whole land of Egypt with terrible plagues, and the Egyptians drove them from before them. Judith 5:13. God dried up the Red Sea before them, Judith 5:14. and led them by the way of Sinai and Kadesh-Barnea; they drove out all the inhabitants of that desert; Judith 5:15. and settled in the land of the Amorites, destroyed all its inhabitants by their might, crossed over the Jordan, and inherited all the highlands, Judith 5:16. and drove out from before them the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Shechemites, and all the Girgashites, and dwelt in it many days. Judith 5:17. As long as they did not sin against their God, they prospered, because the God who hates iniquity was with them. Judith 5:18. But when they departed from the way He had prescribed for them, they suffered severe defeats in many wars, were led captive to a foreign land, the temple of their God was destroyed, and their cities were captured by their enemies. Judith 5:19. Now, having turned back to their God, they have returned from the dispersal in which they were, have taken possession of Jerusalem, where their sanctuary is, and have settled in the highlands, because it was desolate. Judith 5:20. And now, my lord governor, if this people is deluded and they sin against their God, and we observe that there is an offense in them, then we shall go and overcome them. Judith 5:21. But if there is no transgression in this people, then let my lord withdraw, that the Lord may not protect them, and their God may not be for them—and then we shall be a reproach to the whole world. 9–21. Achior’s speech is remarkably accurate, intelligent, and in a strictly orthodox manner represents the history of Israel. What is particularly striking here is how well Achior discerns the secret of the indomitable strength and vitality of the Israelite people through all the vicissitudes of its fate and trials. This secret is fidelity to Jehovah and the path prescribed by Him. Achior notes throughout the whole history of the Israelites a strict correspondence between their prosperity and the degree of this fidelity, and dispassionately yet convincingly and justly concludes that in the present moment it is not military strength, however reliable it may be, that can decide this in favor of Holofernes, but solely and only the degree of fidelity to Jehovah at which the Israelite people is struck by the attack from Holofernes.

Judith 5:22. When Achior finished this speech, all the people standing around the tent murmured, and the mighty men of Holofernes and all who inhabited the seacoast and the land of Moab spoke, saying: let him be killed immediately; Judith 5:23. for we will not fear the children of Israel: they are a people who have neither army nor strength for a strong force of resistance. Judith 5:24. Therefore, come, lord Holofernes—and they shall become the prey of all your army. 22–24. For all its remarkable restraint and good judgment, Achior’s speech displeased the assembly precisely because it made the success of such enormous and battle-tested forces dependent on some mystical power of an insignificant and weak people. His voice remained completely isolated and produced the opposite effect: the assembly of commanders unanimously and earnestly begged Holofernes to lead them against Israel as certain prey, and Achior was demanded to be put to death immediately.