Judith 13

1 When evening came, his slaves hurried away. Bagoas shut the tent from the outside and shut out those who waited on his lord, and they all went off to their beds; for they were worn out, because the drinking had gone on so long. 2 Judith was left alone in the tent, and Holofernes lay fallen forward on his bed, for the wine had washed over him. [a]

3 Judith had told her slave to stand outside her bedchamber and watch for her coming out, as she did every day; for she had said she would be going out to her prayer, and she had spoken to Bagoas in the same words. [b] 4 So they all went out from his presence, and no one was left in the bedchamber, from the least to the greatest. Then Judith stood by his bed and said in her heart, “Lord, God of all power, look in this hour on the work of my hands, that Jerusalem may be lifted up. 5 For now is the time to take hold of your inheritance, and to carry out what I have set my hand to, for the shattering of the enemies who have risen against us.” [c]

6 Then she went up to the rail of the bed, which was at Holofernes’ head, and took down his sword from it, [d] 7 and she came close to the bed and took hold of the hair of his head and said, “Make me strong, Lord, God of Israel, this day.” 8 And she struck his neck twice with all her strength, and took his head from him.

9 She rolled his body off the bedding and pulled the canopy down from its posts. A little afterward she went out and handed the head of Holofernes to her attendant, 10 and her attendant put it in the bag of food. Then the two of them went out together, as they always did, to pray; and they passed through the camp, went around that ravine, climbed the mountain of Bethulia, and came to its gates.

11 From far off Judith called to the men keeping watch at the gates, “Open, open the gate! God is with us — our God — to show his strength yet in Israel, and his power against our enemies, as he has done this very day.” [e] 12 And when the men of her city heard her voice, they hurried down to the gate of their city and called the elders of the city together. 13 They all came running, from the least of them to the greatest, because her coming was past all their expecting; and they opened the gate and welcomed the two women in, and they lit a fire to see by and crowded around them.

14 Then she said to them in a loud voice, “Praise God, praise him! Praise God, who has not taken his mercy away from the house of Israel, but has shattered our enemies by my hand this night!” 15 Then she drew the head out of the bag and showed it to them and said, “Look — the head of Holofernes, the commander of the army of Assyria; and look — the canopy he lay under in his drunkenness. The Lord struck him down by the hand of a woman. † 16 And as the Lord lives, who kept me safe on the road I went: my face is what deceived him, to his own ruin, and he did no sin with me to defile me or shame me.”

17 All the people were beside themselves with amazement, and they bent low and bowed down to God, and said with one mind, “Blessed are you, our God, who have brought the enemies of your people to nothing this day.”

18 And Uzziah said to her, “Blessed are you, daughter, by the Most High God, above all the women on the earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who made the heavens and the earth, who guided you to strike the head of the leader of our enemies. 19 For your hope will never depart from the hearts of people who remember the strength of God. [f] 20 And may God turn all of this to your lasting honor, and come to you with good things, because you did not spare your own life when our people were brought low, but went out against our ruin, walking a straight path before our God.” And all the people said, “So be it! So be it!” [g]