Judith 9:7-9
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
7 “Here are the Assyrians, a vast force, priding themselves on horse and chariot, boasting of the power of their infantry, trusting in shield and spear, bow and sling.(A) They do not know that you are the Lord who crushes wars;[a] 8 Lord is your name. Shatter their strength in your might, and crush their force in your wrath.(B) For they have resolved to profane your sanctuary, to defile the tent where your glorious name resides, and to break off the horns of your altar with the sword. 9 [b]See their pride, and send forth your fury upon their heads.(C) Give me, a widow, a strong hand to execute my plan.(D)
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- 9:7–8 You are the Lord who crushes wars; Lord is your name: cf. Ex 15:3, “The Lord is a warrior; Lord is his name” and Jdt 16:2, “The Lord is a God who crushes wars.”
- 9:9–10 In a five-fold petition, Judith asks that God see their pride, send fury on their heads, give her a strong hand, strike down the enemy through her deceit, and crush their pride by the hand of a female (theleia, see also 13:15 and 16:5, rather than the more usual gyne, woman). In an androcentric society, there was no greater dishonor for a male than that he die at the hand of a female (see Jgs 9:53–54). Nine verses emphasize that by her hand God’s deliverance is accomplished: 8:33; 9:9, 10; 12:4; 13:4, 14, 15; 15:10; and 16:5.
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