25. But when the people heard these things, they said, What thanks shall we give to Simon and his sons?
26. for he and his brethren and the house of his father have made themselves strong, and have chased away in fight the enemies of Israel from them, and confirmed liberty to Israel.
27. And they wrote on tables of brass, and set them upon pillars in mount Sion: and this is the copy of the writing: On the eighteenth day of Elul, in the hundred and seventy and second year, and this is the third year of Simon the high priest,
28. in Asaramel, in a great congregation of priests and people and princes of the nation, and of the elders of the country, was it notified to us:
29. Forasmuch as oftentimes there have been wars in the country, but Simon the son of Mattathias, the son of the sons of Joarib, and his brethren, put themselves in jeopardy, and withstood the enemies of their nation, that their sanctuary and the law might be established, and glorified their nation with great glory:
30. and Jonathan assembled their nation together, and became their high priest, and was gathered to his people:
31. and their enemies purposed to invade their country, that they might destroy their country utterly, and stretch forth their hands against their sanctuary:
32. then rose up Simon, and fought for his nation, and spent much of his own substance, and armed the valiant men of his nation, and gave them wages:
33. and he fortified the cities of Judaea, and Bethsura that lies upon the borders of Judaea, where the arms of the enemies were aforetime, and set there a garrison of Jews:
34. and he fortified Joppa which is upon the sea, and Gazara which is upon the borders of Azotus, wherein the enemies lived aforetime, and placed Jews there, and set therein all things convenient for the reparation thereof:
35. and the people saw the faith of Simon, and the glory which he thought to bring to his nation, and they made him their leader and high priest, because he had done all these things, and for the justice and the faith which he kept to his nation, and for that he sought by all means to exalt his people:
36. and in his days things prospered in his hands, so that the Gentiles were taken away out of their country, and they also that were in the city of David, they that were in Jerusalem, who had made themselves a citadel, out of which they issued, and polluted all things round about the sanctuary, and did great hurt to its purity;
37. and he placed Jews therein, and fortified it for the safety of the country and the city, and made high the walls of Jerusalem:
38. and king Demetrius confirmed to him the high priesthood according to these things,