Single lesson
Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace
2 Maccabees 11:1–15
After a new invasion, Judas and his people cry out to God, win an unexpected victory, and then agree to terms of peace.
Before you teach
Lysias, an important official for the king, was angry about what had happened before. He gathered a huge army, cavalry, and elephants, and marched against the Jews. He planned to make the city a home for Greeks, profit from the temple, and treat the high priesthood like something to be sold. Lysias trusted in the size of his forces and did not take God’s power seriously. He came into Judea and pressed hard against Bethsuron, a strong place near Jerusalem. When Judas Maccabaeus and his men heard this, they joined…
Explain the central teaching of Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace, using two details from the reading. After a new invasion, Judas and his people cry out to God, win an unexpected victory, and then agree to terms of peace.
Welcome: Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace
5 minIntroduce “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace” and locate 2 Maccabees 11:1–15. After a new invasion, Judas and his people cry out to God, win an unexpected victory, and then agree to terms of peace. Invite each learner to name a detail or question they will listen for.
2 Maccabees 11:1, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Read and explain the passage
12 minLysias, an important official for the king, was angry about what had happened before. He gathered a huge army, cavalry, and elephants, and marched against the Jews. He planned to make the city a home for Greeks, profit from the temple, and treat the high priesthood like something to be sold.
Judas was the first to take up weapons. He urged the others to risk themselves with him for their own people, and they went willingly. Near Jerusalem, a horseman in white appeared at their head, brandishing golden weapons. They praised God together and took fresh courage.
Lysias then thought carefully about the defeat. He recognised that the Hebrews could not be overcome while Almighty God fought for them. So he sent to make terms, promising that their rights would be acknowledged and that he would speak to the king for them. Judas agreed, seeking the good of the people, and the king accepted the requests sent through Lysias.
Read the selected verses together, pausing at “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace”. Use the source reading below and check the explanation against the words of the passage.
2 Maccabees 11:2, 2 Maccabees 11:3, 2 Maccabees 11:11, 2 Maccabees 11:7, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:9, 2 Maccabees 11:13, 2 Maccabees 11:14, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Discuss the details and their meaning
8 minUse the three questions below. Begin with ““Lysias trusted in the size of his forces and did not take God’s power seriously.” Which details explain how the account reaches this point?” and allow time to find the supporting verses. After a new invasion, Judas and his people cry out to God, win an unexpected victory, and then agree to terms of peace. Ask learners to explain which details support their answer and to identify a question they would like to explore further.
2 Maccabees 11:6, 2 Maccabees 11:5, 2 Maccabees 11:4, 2 Maccabees 11:7, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:9, 2 Maccabees 11:13, 2 Maccabees 11:14, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Make and respond: Choices and outcomes evidence map
12 minWork on “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace: Choices and outcomes evidence map”. Follow the materials and steps below, using “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace” as reading headings. Each learner should include at least two accurate details and their verse references. Share one observation from the finished sheet and explain how it connects with the central teaching.
2 Maccabees 11:1, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Closing: return to Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace
3 minRevisit 2 Maccabees 11:1–15. Invite a learner to summarise what the group has learned about Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace and another to support the summary with a verse. Give learners a moment to complete their response sheet. They can share a question or, if appropriate for the group, join the optional prayer.
2 Maccabees 11:1, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Questions to explore
“Lysias trusted in the size of his forces and did not take God’s power seriously.” Which details explain how the account reaches this point?
Lysias trusted in the size of his forces and did not take God’s power seriously. He came into Judea and pressed hard against Bethsuron, a strong place near Jerusalem. When Judas Maccabaeus and his men heard this, they joined the people in tears and prayer, asking the Lord to send help for Israel.
2 Maccabees 11:6, 2 Maccabees 11:5, 2 Maccabees 11:4
How does this moment affect the rest of the account: “Judas was the first to take up weapons.”?
Judas was the first to take up weapons. He urged the others to risk themselves with him for their own people, and they went willingly. Near Jerusalem, a horseman in white appeared at their head, brandishing golden weapons. They praised God together and took fresh courage.
2 Maccabees 11:7, 2 Maccabees 11:8, 2 Maccabees 11:9
“Lysias then thought carefully about the defeat.” How does this ending connect with the beginning?
Lysias then thought carefully about the defeat. He recognised that the Hebrews could not be overcome while Almighty God fought for them. So he sent to make terms, promising that their rights would be acknowledged and that he would speak to the king for them. Judas agreed, seeking the good of the people, and the king accepted the requests sent through Lysias.
2 Maccabees 11:13, 2 Maccabees 11:14, 2 Maccabees 11:15
Make, think or respond
Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace: Choices and outcomes evidence map
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or pens
- a Bible or the source reading on this page
Try it together
- Fold a sheet into three panels or draw three columns. Label them “Words or actions”, “What happens next”, “Verse reference”.
- Read 2 Maccabees 11:1–15. Use “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace” as your reading headings and add a short quotation or detail with its verse reference to each panel.
- Compare your notes with a partner. Check that every quotation is accurate and every conclusion has support in the passage.
- Compare two actions or statements in the account and explain their different outcomes.
The finished sheet keeps the details of Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace connected to their Bible references and gives the group a way to explain what they noticed.
Adapt for your group
- For learners who need more support, prepare the reading headings “Lysias and Judas Negotiate Peace” and let them match short quotations to the correct heading.
- For confident readers, compare two sections of 2 Maccabees 11:1–15. Ask for a written explanation with two supporting references and one question that the text leaves open.
An optional closing prayer
“God, help us listen carefully as we read 2 Maccabees 11:1–15. Help us understand what we have read, ask thoughtful questions and respond with care for others. Amen.”
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
2 Maccabees 11
1 Now after a very little time, Lysias, the king’s guardian, kinsman, and chancellor, being very displeased about the things that had happened,
2 collected about eighty thousand infantry and all his cavalry and came against the Jews, planning to make the city a home for Greeks,
3 and to levy tribute on the temple, as on the other sacred places of the nations, and to put up the high priesthood for sale every year.
4 He took no account of God’s power, but was puffed up with his ten thousands of infantry, his thousands of cavalry, and his eighty elephants.
5 Coming into Judea and approaching Bethsuron, which was a strong place and about five stadia away from Jerusalem, he pressed it hard.
6 When Maccabaeus and his men learned that he was besieging the strongholds, they and all the people with lamentations and tears made supplication to the Lord to send a good angel to save Israel.
7 Maccabaeus himself took up weapons first, and exhorted the others to put themselves in jeopardy together with him and help their kindred; and they went out with him very willingly.
8 As they were there, close to Jerusalem, a horseman appeared at their head in white apparel, brandishing weapons of gold.
9 They all together praised the merciful God, and were yet more strengthened in heart, being ready to assail not only men but the wildest animals and walls of iron,
10 they advanced in array, having him who is in heaven to fight on their side, for the Lord had mercy on them.
11 Hurling themselves like lions against the enemy, they killed eleven thousand infantry and one thousand six hundred cavalry, and forced all the rest to flee.
12 Most of them escaped wounded and naked. Lysias himself also escaped by shameful flight.
13 But as he was a man not void of understanding, pondering the defeat which had befallen him, and considering that the Hebrews could not be overcome because the Almighty God fought on their side, he sent again
14 and persuaded them to come to terms on condition that all their rights were acknowledged, and promised that he would also persuade the king to become their friend.
15 Maccabaeus gave consent upon all the conditions which Lysias proposed to him, being careful of the common good; for whatever requests Maccabaeus delivered in writing to Lysias concerning the Jews the king allowed.
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.