
16 Therefore, he never withdraws his mercy from us. However, he does not deal with us in this way, 15 choosing to inflict punishment on us before our sins have reached their height so that he will not have to punish us more severely at that time.
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14 In the case of the other nations the Lord waits patiently to punish them until they have reached the full measure of their sins. 13 Indeed, it is a sign of great benevolence when sinners are punished promptly rather than having their wrongful acts escape retribution for a period of time.

Now I urge those who read this book not to be disheartened by such calamities but to realize that these punishments were inflicted not for the destruction but for the discipline of our people. 11 Others who had assembled in some nearby caves to observe the Sabbath secretly were betrayed to Philip, and all were burned to death together, since their piety kept them from defending themselves in their respect for the holiness of the day.ġ2 Purpose of Divine Judgment. They were publicly paraded around the city with their babies hanging at their breasts and then hurled headlong from the city wall. 10 For example, two women were brought to trial, charged with having circumcised their children. Thus it was clear that disaster was imminent.

7 Furthermore, on the monthly celebration of the king’s birthday, the Jews were forcibly compelled to partake of the sacrificial victims, and when the festival of Dionysus was celebrated, they were forced to wear wreaths of ivy and to take part in the procession honoring him.Ĩ At the suggestion of the citizens of Ptolemais, a decree was issued to the neighboring Greek cities ordering them to adopt the same policies toward the Jews, compel them to partake of the sacrifices, 9 and put to death those who refused to conform to Greek customs. They also brought into the temple sacrificial offerings that were forbidden, 5 so that the altar was covered with abominable offerings that were prohibited by the law.Ħ No one was allowed to keep the Sabbath or to observe the traditional feasts or even to admit being a Jew. 4 The Gentiles made the temple a center of debauchery and licentious revelry, as they used the sacred precincts for immoral pleasures with prostitutes and intercourse with women. 2 He was also instructed to profane the temple in Jerusalem and dedicate it to Olympian Zeus, and to dedicate the sanctuary on Mount Gerizim to Zeus the Hospitable, as had been requested by the people who inhabited that place.ģ This evil onslaught harshly intensified the grievous distress of the people. 1 Not long afterward, the king sent an Athenian senator to force the Jews to forsake the laws of their ancestors and to live no longer in accordance with the laws of God.
