Commentaria in Judith
Chapter 7
Synopsis of the chapter.
Holofernes besieges Bethulia, cuts the aqueduct, seizes the fountains, and so by thirst compels the besieged to demand surrender; but Ozias persuades them to wait five days for help.
1. And Holofernes commanded his army the next day to go up against Bethulia. 2. Now there were in his army a hundred and twenty thousand footmen, and twenty-two thousand horsemen, besides the preparations of those men that had been taken, and that were brought from the provinces and cities of all the youth. 3. They all prepared themselves together to fight against the children of Israel, and they came by the slope of the hill to the top which looks towards Dothain, from the place that is called Belma, as far as Chelmon, which is over against Esdrelon. 4. But the children of Israel, when they saw the multitude of them, prostrated themselves upon the ground, putting ashes upon their heads, praying with one accord, that the God of Israel would show his mercy upon his people. 5. And taking their weapons of war, they sat down over against the places, which lead through the narrow way between the mountains, and they guarded them all day and night. 6. Now Holofernes in going round about, found that the fountain, which supplied them with water, ran through an aqueduct without the city on the south side: and he commanded their aqueduct to be cut off. 7. Nevertheless there were springs not far from the walls, out of which they were seen secretly to draw water, to refresh themselves a little rather than to drink their fill. 8. But the children of Ammon and Moab came to Holofernes, saying: The children of Israel trust not in their spears nor arrows, but the mountains are their defence, and the steep hills and precipices secure them. 9. Wherefore that thou mayest overcome them without joining battle, set guards at the fountains, that they may not draw water out of them, and thou shalt destroy them without sword, or at least being wearied out they will yield up their city, which they think, as it is situate in the mountains, cannot be overcome. 10. And these words were pleasing to Holofernes and to his officers, and he placed a hundred men at every fountain round about. 11. And when this watch had been kept twenty days, the cisterns and gathering of waters failed among all the inhabitants of Bethulia, so that there was not within the city enough to satisfy them, no not for one day, for water was daily given out to the people by measure. 12. Then all the men and women, young men and children, gathered about Ozias, and all together with one voice, 13. Said: God be judge between us and thee, for thou hast done evil to us, in that thou wouldst not speak peaceably with the Assyrians, and for this cause God hath sold us into their hands. 14. And therefore there is no one to help us, while we are cast down before their eyes in thirst, and in great destruction. 15. And now assemble all that are in the city, that we may of our own accord yield ourselves up all to the people of Holofernes. 16. For it is better that being made captives we may bless the Lord, than to die and be a reproach to all flesh, after we have seen our wives and our infants die before our eyes. 17. We call to witness this day heaven and earth, and the God of our fathers, who taketh vengeance on us according to our sins, that you immediately deliver the city into the hands of the army of Holofernes, and let our end be short by the edge of the sword, which would be made longer by the drought of thirst. 18. And when they had said this, there was great weeping and wailing of all in the assembly, and for many hours they cried to God with one voice, saying: 19. We have sinned with our fathers, we have acted unjustly, we have committed iniquity. 20. Thou, because thou art merciful, have mercy on us, or at least punish our iniquities with thine own scourge, and deliver not them that confide in thee to a people that knoweth not thee, 21. That they may not say among the Gentiles: Where is their God? 22. And being wearied with these cries, and tired with these weepings, they held their peace. 23. And Ozias rising up, all bathed in tears, said: Be of good courage, brethren, and let us wait for the Lord’s mercy these five days. 24. For perhaps he will put a stop to his indignation, and will give glory to his name. 25. But if after five days be past, there come no aid, we will do the things which you have spoken,
2. “A HUNDRED AND TWENTY THOUSAND (the Greek has: “170 thousand footmen”), TWENTY-TWO THOUSAND HORSEMEN.”—Auxiliary forces had therefore been added, and ten thousand new horsemen; for in chapter 2, verse 7, only ten thousand horsemen were reckoned. These auxiliaries Nabuchodonosor sent, who himself also intended to follow with the whole strength of his army, as the Greek has, chapter 2.
3. “FROM THE PLACE THAT IS CALLED BELMA, AS FAR AS CHELMON.”—Belma is a city at the foot of the mountain on which Bethulia is situated, called Abellina by Brocardus. In the same place near Dothain is the city “Chelmon,” or, as the Greek has, Cyamon: in both Holofernes pitched his camp, as the Greek has, and drew up his line for battle and for the assault on the city.
6. “THAT THE FOUNTAIN, WHICH SUPPLIED THEM WITH WATER, RAN THROUGH AN AQUEDUCT,” etc.,—that is, poured water into the city by an aqueduct, and therefore Holofernes, cutting the aqueduct, turned the water away from the city. Serarius suspects that for “dirigeret” one should read “dirigaret,” that is, “irrigated”; but “dirigeret” fits this place plainly enough. For a fountain directs and sends water through a channel into the city.
8. “THE CHILDREN OF AMMON AND MOAB CAME TO HOLOFERNES.”—The Greek has: The princes of Idumea and Moab. For the Idumeans, in attacking the Jews, pretended to be Ammonites, as I said in chapter 5, verse 9. These therefore persuaded Holofernes to occupy the fountains, and so to destroy the Jews with thirst.
Mystically: “Then the devil cuts the aqueduct when he causes the pursuit of letters to be interrupted. But there were fountains not far from the walls, the teachings of the Philosophers, who brought some solace of knowledge and honesty, from which they were seen to draw water to refresh themselves rather than to drink their fill”; so Rabanus; so also St. Augustine on Psalm 72, and St. Gregory on chapter 4 of the Canticle. Again the devil cuts the aqueduct when he turns us away from prayer: for through prayer, as through a channel, all the grace of God flows into us; whence, when it is cut off, the devil overcomes and takes us.
11. “The Cisterns and Gathering of Waters Failed.”
The Greek adds: And their infants were dismayed, and the young men failed for thirst, and fell in the streets of the city and in the passages of the gates, and there was no longer strength in them.
12. “THEN ALL GATHERED ABOUT OZIAS,”—worn out with thirst, demanding with loud voices that he should give Bethulia to Holofernes. For nothing is more terrible to the besieged than thirst; for thirst torments far more sharply than hunger: whence generals besieging a city are accustomed to turn away the waters, that they may destroy the citizens with thirst, and so force them to surrender, according to that: “The tongue of the suckling infant hath stuck to the roof of his mouth for thirst,” Lamentations chapter 4. The history of Lysimachus king of the Macedonians is well known, who, when in Thrace he suffered want of water and thirst, surrendered himself with his camp to the enemy, but when he had drunk water cried out: “O gods! for how small a pleasure have I made myself a slave from a king!” Let the same be said by the covetous, who for a point of pleasure make themselves slaves of the infernal Holofernes, that is, of the devil, who will destroy them in hell with thirst, so that they cry with the rich glutton: “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water to cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame,” Luke 16.
18. “THERE WAS GREAT WEEPING AND WAILING OF ALL IN THE ASSEMBLY.”—The Greek has “in the proseuche,” that is, in the synagogue where the place of prayer was.