The Five Books of Maccabees in English

Exploring ancient Jewish history, this collection includes five books that, while not part of the Hebrew Bible, are found in some Septuagint manuscripts. The first two books hold canonical status in the Septuagint and Vulgate, making them significant to Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, as well as being part of the Protestant Apocrypha. I Maccabees specifically chronicles the political, military, and diplomatic events during Judaea's interactions with Antiochus IV Epiphanes and concludes with the death of Simon Maccabeus, high priest in Jerusalem.