Judith Upbraids the Rulers of Bethulia
Judith 8, verse 1. In those days, Judith got word of this matter. She was the daughter of Merari, the son of Ox, the son of Joseph, the son of Oziel, the son of Elkiah, the son of Ananias, the son of Gideon, the son of Raphaim, the son of Ahitub, the son of Elijah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Eliab, the son of Nathanael, the son of Salamiel, the son of Sarasadai, the son of Israel. Judith 8, verse 2. And her husband was Manasseh, of her own tribe and family. He had died at the time of the barley harvest. Judith 8, verse 3. For as he supervised those binding the sheaves in the field, he was overcome with heat stroke and fell on his bed and died in his city of Bethulia. They buried him with his fathers in the field lying between Dothan and Balamon. Judith 8, verse 4. Judith remained a widow in her house for three years and four months, Judith 8, verse 5. setting up a tent for herself on the rooftop of her house, and she wrapped sackcloth around her waist and wore the garments of her widowhood. Judith 8, verse 6. She fasted every day of her widowhood, except for the day preceding the Sabbaths, the Sabbath days themselves, the eves of the new moons and the new moons, and the feasts and days of celebrations of the house of Israel. Judith 8, verse 7. Beautiful in stature, she was very lovely to look upon. Manasseh, her husband, left her gold and silver, men and women servants, and livestock and fields. She kept up this property, and Judith 8, verse 8. no one spoke ill of her, for she feared God and was devoted to Him. Judith 8, verse 9. When Judith heard the angry words the people spoke against the rulers, being weak for want of water, and the things Uzziah said to them, by oath promising them after five days to surrender the city to the Assyrians, Judith 8, verse 10. she sent her faithful maid, who was responsible for all her possessions, to call on Chabris and Charmis, elders of the city. Judith 8, verse 11. They came to her, and she said to them, “Listen to me now, rulers of the people of Bethulia! Your words spoken today to the people are not right, nor is the oath you have sworn and pronounced between God and yourselves, promising to surrender the city to our adversaries unless the Lord turns and helps you in so many days. Judith 8, verse 12. “Now who are you to have put God to the test this day, setting yourselves up as God's equal among the sons of men? Judith 8, verse 13. You are testing the Lord Almighty, but you will never come to know anything! Judith 8, verse 14. You cannot plumb the depths of the heart of man, nor grasp the thoughts of his mind. How then do you expect to search out God, who made all these things, and come to understand His mind or comprehend His purpose? No, brothers! Do not provoke the Lord our God to anger. Judith 8, verse 15. For if He does not wish to come to our aid within five days, He has the power to protect us anytime He pleases, or even to destroy us before the face of our enemies. Judith 8, verse 16. But do not put a time bind on the purposes of the Lord our God, for He is not to be threatened as is a man, nor to be coaxed as a human being. Judith 8, verse 17. “Therefore, while we await His deliverance, let us call upon Him to help us, and if it pleases Him He will hear our voice. Judith 8, verse 18. For there has not arisen in our generation, nor has there been in this present time any tribe or family or people or city of ours that bowed down to gods made with hands, as happened in earlier times. Judith 8, verse 19. Because of this, our fathers were given over to the sword and to pillage, and that is why they suffered a great defeat before our enemies. Judith 8, verse 20. But we know no other god but Him; therefore we have hope He will not disregard us nor any of our nation. Judith 8, verse 21. For if we are seized, all Judea will fall, and our sanctuary will be plundered, and He will make us accountable for its profanation with our blood. Judith 8, verse 22. For the slaughter of our brethren, the captivity of our land, and the desolation of our inheritance He will bring upon our heads, regardless of where we are enslaved among the Gentiles. We will be an offense and a reproach in the eyes of those who master us. Judith 8, verse 23. For our servitude will not be to our benefit; rather, the Lord our God will turn it to humiliation. Judith 8, verse 24. “Now my brothers, let us set an example for our people, for their very lives depend upon us. Furthermore, the sanctuary, the temple, and the altar rest upon us. Judith 8, verse 25. Besides all this, let us be thankful to the Lord our God, who is testing us just as He did our fathers. Judith 8, verse 26. Remember His actions toward Abraham and how He put Isaac to the test. Recall what happened to Jacob in Mesopotamia of Syria while shepherd to the sheep of Laban, the brother of his mother. Judith 8, verse 27. For He has not tested us with the fire, even as He did them, to search out their hearts. Nor has He punished us. Rather, the Lord scourges those drawing near to Him as a warning.”
Uzziah's Answer
Judith 8, verse 28. Then Uzziah said to her, “All that you said you spoke with a good heart, and there is no one who will oppose your words. Judith 8, verse 29. This is not the first day on which your wisdom has been evident, but from your earliest years all the people have recognized your understanding, because the disposition of your heart is good. Judith 8, verse 30. But the people are very thirsty, and they compelled us to do just as we spoke to them and caused us to take an oath which we will not break. Judith 8, verse 31. Now pray for us, since you are a devout woman, that the Lord will send rain to fill our cisterns, and we shall not faint from thirst again.” Judith 8, verse 32. Then Judith replied to them, “Hear me, and I will do something which will be known unto all the generations of our descendants. Judith 8, verse 33. You must stand at the gate tonight, and I will go out with my maid, and within these days in which you promised to surrender the city to our enemies, the Lord will deliver Israel by my hand. Judith 8, verse 34. But you must not ask me what I am going to do, because I will not tell what I am going to do until I complete the task.” Judith 8, verse 35. So Uzziah and the rulers said to her, “Go in peace, and may the Lord God go before you to take vengeance upon our adversaries.” Judith 8, verse 36. So they left the tent and returned to their posts.