1 Jonathan realized this was a good time to make sure the Romans remained on friendly terms with the Jews. So he sent some messengers to Rome.
2 He also wrote letters to the city of Sparta and other places for the same reason.
3 When the messengers arrived in Rome, they met with the Roman senators and said, “Jonathan the high priest and the Jewish people have sent us here to renew our friendship with Rome and to make sure we remain allies.”
4 After the meeting, the Romans wrote letters to the other nations where the messengers were going. In these letters they said, “Help these men return safely to Judea.”
5 Jonathan himself wrote a letter to the people of Sparta in which he said:
6 Jonathan the high priest, the other priests, the Jewish council, and the rest of our people send greetings to our dear friends in Sparta.
7 Some time ago, your king, Arius, sent a letter to Onias, our high priest. Arius said that Jews and Spartans are related, as you can see from the copy of the king's letter we have sent along with this letter.