5. As his crowning glory he took Joppa for a portand made it a gateway to the isles of the sea.
6. He enlarged the borders of his nationand gained control of the country.
7. He took many prisoners of warand made himself master of Gazara, Beth-zur, and the citadel.He cleansed the citadel of its impurities;there was no one to withstand him.
8. The people cultivated their land in peace;the land yielded its produce,the trees of the field their fruit.
9. Old men sat in the squares,all talking about the good times,while the young men put on the glorious raiment of war.
10. He supplied the cities with foodand equipped them with means of defense,till his glorious name reached the ends of the earth.
11. He brought peace to the land,and Israel was filled with great joy.
12. Every one sat under his vine and fig tree,with no one to disturb them.
13. No attacker was left in the land;the kings in those days were crushed.
14. He strengthened all the lowly among his peopleand was zealous for the law;he destroyed the lawless and the wicked.
15. The sanctuary he made splendidand multiplied its furnishings.
16. When people in Rome and even in Sparta heard that Jonathan had died, they were deeply grieved.
17. But when they heard that his brother Simon had become high priest in his place and was master of the territory and its cities,
18. they sent him inscribed tablets of bronze to renew with him the friendship and alliance that they had established with his brothers Judas and Jonathan.
19. These were read before the assembly in Jerusalem.
20. This is a copy of the letter that the Spartans sent: “The rulers and the city of the Spartans send greetings to Simon the high priest, the elders, the priests, and the rest of the Jewish people, our brothers.
21. The ambassadors sent to our people have informed us of your glory and renown, and we rejoiced at their coming.
22. In accordance with what they said we have recorded the following in the public decrees: Numenius, son of Antiochus, and Antipater, son of Jason, ambassadors of the Jews, have come to us to renew their friendship with us.