18. When no fewer than nine thousand fled into two towers well equipped for a siege,
19. the Maccabee departed to other places that needed his urgent attention, leaving Simon, Joseph, and Zacchaeus with a sufficient force for the siege of these towers.
20. Some men in the towers bribed greedy people around Simon. These people in turn, after receiving seventy thousand drachmen, allowed some of the enemy to slip away.
21. When the Maccabee found out what happened, he gathered the leaders of the people and accused them of selling their brothers for silver by setting free the enemy.
22. He executed the traitors and then quickly took the two towers.
23. He was successful in all things relating to war and killed more than twenty thousand men in the two towers.
24. Timothy, who was defeated by the Jews earlier, assembled a large number of foreign troops and brought many horses from Asia. He arrived intending to fight against Judea.
25. As he approached, the Maccabee’s followers prayed to God for help. Sprinkling their heads with dust, wrapping themselves with mourning clothes,
26. and falling down opposite the foundation of the altar, they begged God to be gracious to them, to be hostile to those hostile to them, and to be an opponent of their opponents, just as the Law promises.