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Judith / Chapter 1

Judith 1

12 verses • Latin Vulgate (Jerome)

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians ruling from Nineveh, wages war against Arphaxad, king of the Medes. He summons allies from across the ancient Near East, but the western nations refuse his call. Arphaxad is defeated, and Nebuchadnezzar turns his wrath toward those who spurned him.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The historical setting is deliberately anachronistic — Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon, not Assyria, and Nineveh had already fallen. Most scholars read this as a literary signal that the book operates as theological narrative rather than strict chronicle.

Translation Friction

The geography and political identifiers resist easy harmonization with known history. Jerome himself translated the book hastily, noting its contested canonical status, yet rendered it with narrative force.

Connections

The pattern of an arrogant imperial power summoning vassals and being refused echoes the hubris narratives found throughout the prophets (Isaiah 10, Ezekiel 28-32). The theme of divine sovereignty over earthly empires undergirds the entire book.

Judith 1:1

Arphaxad itaque rex Medorum subiugaverat multas gentes imperio suo et ipse aedificavit civitatem potentissimam quam appellavit Ecbatanis.

Now Arphaxad, king of the Medes, had subjugated many nations under his rule, and he himself built a most powerful city, which he called Ecbatana.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

subiugaverat
"had subjugated"

Establishes the theme of imperial domination that pervades the book.

Translator Notes

  1. Ecbatana (modern Hamadan, Iran) was indeed the Median capital. The Vulgate form 'Ecbatanis' reflects Jerome's Latin adaptation of the Greek.
Judith 1:2

Ex lapidibus quadratis et sectis fecit muros eius in altitudinem cubitorum septuaginta et in latitudinem cubitorum triginta turres vero eius posuit in altitudinem cubitorum centum.

From squared and cut stones he made its walls seventy cubits high and thirty cubits wide, and he raised its towers to a height of one hundred cubits.

Judith 1:3

Per quadrum vero earum latus utrumque vicenorum pedum spatio tendebatur posuitque portas eius in altitudinem turrium.

On each side, their square faces extended twenty feet across, and he set its gates to the height of the towers.

Judith 1:4

Et gloriabatur quasi potens in potentia exercitus sui et in gloria quadrigarum suarum.

And he gloried as one mighty in the power of his army and in the splendor of his chariots.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

gloriabatur
"gloried"

Self-glory becomes a recurring marker of those whom God will humble in this narrative.

Translator Notes

  1. The boasting of Arphaxad mirrors the pride that will later characterize Nebuchadnezzar and Holofernes — a literary foreshadowing.
Judith 1:5

Anno igitur duodecimo regni sui Nabuchodonosor rex Assyriorum qui regnabat in Ninive civitate magna pugnavit contra Arphaxad et obtinuit eum.

So in the twelfth year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, who ruled in the great city of Nineveh, made war against Arphaxad and prevailed over him.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

Nabuchodonosor rex Assyriorum
"Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians"

A composite literary figure representing total imperial menace.

Translator Notes

  1. The identification of Nebuchadnezzar as 'king of the Assyrians' ruling from Nineveh is historically impossible but theologically deliberate — collapsing multiple empires into a single archetype of pagan tyranny.
Judith 1:6

In campo magno qui appellatur Ragau circa Eufraten et Tigrin et Iadason in campo Erioch regis Elicorum.

In the great plain called Ragau, near the Euphrates and Tigris and Jadason, in the plain of Arioch, king of the Elymeans.

Judith 1:7

Tunc exaltatum est regnum Nabuchodonosor et cor eius elevatum est et misit ad omnes qui habitabant in Cilicia et Damasco et Libano.

Then the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar was exalted, and his heart was lifted up, and he sent messengers to all who dwelt in Cilicia, Damascus, and Lebanon.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

cor eius elevatum est
"his heart was lifted up"

A classic biblical idiom for pride preceding a fall (cf. Deuteronomy 8:14, 2 Chronicles 26:16).

Judith 1:8

Et ad gentes quae sunt in Carmelo et Cedar et inhabitantes Galilaeam in campo magno Esdrelon.

And to the nations in Carmel and Kedar, and to those dwelling in Galilee, in the great plain of Esdraelon.

Judith 1:9

Et ad omnes qui erant in Samaria et trans flumen Iordanem usque ad Hierusalem et omnem terram Iesse quousque perveniatur ad terminos Aethiopiae.

And to all who were in Samaria and across the Jordan as far as Jerusalem, and throughout the whole land of Jesse, until one reaches the borders of Ethiopia.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Land of Jesse' (terram Iesse) is an unusual designation, possibly a corruption of 'Goshen' or an intentional literary choice linking the land to the Davidic line.
Judith 1:10

Ad hos omnes misit nuntios Nabuchodonosor rex Assyriorum.

To all these, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, sent his messengers.

Judith 1:11

Qui omnes uno animo contradixerunt et remiserunt eos vacuos et sine honore abiecerunt.

But they all with one mind refused him and sent them back empty, rejecting them without honor.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

uno animo
"with one mind"

Ironic unity — the nations are unanimous in defiance, which will provoke the catastrophic response that drives the entire plot.

Judith 1:12

Tunc indignatus Nabuchodonosor rex adversus omnem terram illam iuravit per thronum et regnum suum quod defenderet se de omnibus regionibus his.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar, enraged against all that land, swore by his throne and his kingdom that he would take vengeance on all those regions.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

iuravit per thronum et regnum suum
"swore by his throne and his kingdom"

Self-referential oath; contrasts with Israel's oaths by the living God.

Translator Notes

  1. He swears by his own throne — not by any god — establishing his self-deification, the central sin the book will punish.
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