Read & explore together
The Closing Words of 2 Maccabees
These final verses close 2 Maccabees by stepping out of the story and speaking about the writing itself. The writer ends the book, admits his limits, and explains why careful wording matters to readers.
Understanding the passage
Understanding this record
This passage from the Catholic additional books is an editorial conclusion, not a new event. It refers back to the account of Nicanor’s attempt, notes that the city had been held by the Hebrews from that time, and then finishes the book with a personal closing comment: 2 Maccabees 15:37.
2 Maccabees 15:37–39Main takeaway
The ending of 2 Maccabees closes the book plainly, speaks modestly about the writer’s work, and says that shaped language can delight those who read the story.
Explore the record
Open a card to explore the full explanation and its Bible references.
01The book is brought to its endThe writer first looks back to “the account of the attempt of Nicanor” and then says, “I also will here make an end of my book.”
Explanation
The writer first looks back to “the account of the attempt of Nicanor” and then says, “I also will here make an end of my book.” That direct first-person statement makes the purpose of the passage clear. It is a formal ending to the written account: 2 Maccabees 15:37.
02A final link to what was told beforeVerse 37 also says that “the city” had “from those times been held by the Hebrews”. The verse does not add further detail here.
Explanation
Verse 37 also says that “the city” had “from those times been held by the Hebrews”. The verse does not add further detail here. Instead, it briefly connects the closing words to the account already given before the writer stops writing: 2 Maccabees 15:37.
03A modest view of the writingThe writer does not praise himself. He says that if the story has been written “well and to the point”, that was what he wanted, but if it is “poorly done and mediocre”, then it is the best he could do.
Explanation
The writer does not praise himself. He says that if the story has been written “well and to the point”, that was what he wanted, but if it is “poorly done and mediocre”, then it is the best he could do. The tone is modest and honest: 2 Maccabees 15:38.
04Why style matters to a readerThe last verse gives a comparison. Wine alone and water alone are called distasteful, but their mixture is pleasant.
Explanation
The last verse gives a comparison. Wine alone and water alone are called distasteful, but their mixture is pleasant. In the same way, “the fashioning of the language” is said to “delight the ears of those who read the story.” Then the writer ends: “Here is the end”: 2 Maccabees 15:39.
Questions to explore
Pause, look back at the verses and talk together.
01What sentence shows most clearly that the writer is ending the book?
Find the first-person words where the writer says he will make an end of his book: 2 Maccabees 15:37.
02How does verse 38 show a modest attitude toward the work?
Notice that the writer names both a strong result and a weak one, and in either case speaks of doing his best: 2 Maccabees 15:38.
03According to verse 39, what does carefully fashioned language do?
Stay with the verse’s own explanation: it says shaped language delights the ears of those who read the story: 2 Maccabees 15:39.
Read the Bible passage
World English Bible ClassicScripture quotation · Public domain
2 Maccabees 15:37–39
37This then having been the account of the attempt of Nicanor, and the city having from those times been held by the Hebrews, I also will here make an end of my book.
38If I have written well and to the point in my story, this is what I myself desired; but if its poorly done and mediocre, this is the best I could do.
39For as it is distasteful to drink wine alone and likewise to drink water alone, while the mingling of wine with water at once gives full pleasantness to the flavor; so also the fashioning of the language delights the ears of those who read the story. Here is the end.