The Temple Is Rededicated

After their enemies were defeated, Judas and his kindred went up with the gathered army to Mount Zion to cleanse the holy place. They found the sanctuary desolate and the altar profaned, so they mourned before God. Judas appointed men to fight those in the citadel until the holy place was cleansed, and he chose blameless priests devoted to the law.

The priests removed what had been defiled, pulled down the profaned altar, and stored its stones until a prophet should decide about them. Then they built a new altar with proper stones, repaired the holy place and courts, made new holy vessels, and restored the temple service with lamps, incense, bread, and curtains. They also pulled down foreign altars and sacred enclosures.

On the twenty-fifth day of Chislev, the same day the sanctuary had been profaned, they offered sacrifices again after they had ceased for two years, fell down in worship, and praised God. For eight days they celebrated with music, hymns, branches, and palm fronds, remembering their recent hardship in the mountains and caves. They ordered that these days should be kept every year, and they fortified Mount Zion for protection.