15 They set out the treasures, and when Antiochus and a few of his friends entered the temple, the priests immediately locked the doors behind him.
16 Then they killed him and his friends by dropping heavy stones on them from a trap door in the roof. Afterwards, the priests chopped the dead bodies into pieces and tossed the heads to the people outside.
17 Let's always praise our God for punishing these wicked enemies!
18 On the twenty-fifth day of the month of Chislev, we will celebrate the Temple Festival. We think you need to know this, so you can celebrate it just as you celebrate the Festival of Shelters and the Festival of Fire.This Festival of Fire goes back to Nehemiah, who rebuilt the temple and its altar, then offered sacrifices.
19 All this happened long ago, when our ancestors were dragged away to Persia, and some faithful priests took fire from the altar. They secretly hid the fire at the bottom of a dry cistern, and they hid it so well that no one ever found it.
20 Many years later, when it pleased God, the Persian king sent Nehemiah back to Jerusalem. Nehemiah then told some descendants of those priests to find the hidden fire. But after returning, they told us, “There is nothing in the cistern except an oily liquid.”Nehemiah told them to dip out some of the liquid and bring it to him.
21 Then, after the sacrifice was ready, Nehemiah ordered the priests to sprinkle the liquid over the offerings and the firewood,