1 When Judith had finished her prayer to the God of Israel,
2 she stood up, called her slave woman, and went down into the house as she always did on Sabbaths and festival days.
3 She took off her sackcloth and her widow's clothes, had a bath, and put on rich perfumes. She brushed her hair, tied a ribbon round it, and dressed herself in the fine clothes she used to wear on joyful occasions when her husband Manasseh was still alive.
4 She put on sandals and all her finest jewellery: rings and earrings, and bracelets on her wrists and ankles. She made herself so beautiful that she was sure to attract the attention of any man who saw her.
5 Judith gave her slave woman a leather bag of wine and a jar of oil to carry. She filled a bag with roasted barley, cakes of dried figs, and several loaves of bread baked according to Jewish food laws. She carefully wrapped all the food and dishes and gave them to her slave.