1. And Antiochus son of Demetrius the king sent letters from the isles of the sea to Simon the priest and governor of the Jews, and to all the nation;
2. and the contents thereof were after this manner: King Antiochus to Simon the chief priest and governor, and to the nation of the Jews, greeting:
3. Forasmuch as certain pestilent fellows have made themselves masters of the kingdom of our fathers, but my purpose is to claim the kingdom, that I may restore it as it was before; and moreover I have raised a multitude of foreign soldiers, and have prepared ships of war;
4. moreover I am minded to land in the country, that I may punish them that have destroyed our country, and them that have made many cities in the kingdom desolate: