He commanded him to encamp against Judea: This clause does not refer to making an actual camp, but to beginning military action against Judea. Good News Bible has “and gave him orders to move against Judea.” We may also say “He commanded him to attack Judea.” In some languages this command may be stated in direct speech; for example, “He said, ‘Take these troops and attack Judea.’”

And commanded him to build up Kedron and fortify its gates, and to make war on the people: Kedron was a town about 5 kilometers (3 miles) southeast of Jamnia, near the Mediterranean coast. Antiochus wanted Cendebeus to fortify Kedron and use it as a base of operations from which to attack Judea. Good News Bible identifies the people as “the Jewish people,” which is good. New English Bible does the same by saying “our people.” An alternative model for the first sentence of this verse is “He said, ‘Take these troops to invade Judea and attack the Jewish people. Rebuild the town of Kedron and makes its gates stronger, so that you can attack the rest of Judea from there.’”

But the king pursued Trypho: Good News Bible says “The king himself continued to pursue Trypho,” which could be a bit confusing, because Antiochus did not pursue Trypho while he laid siege to Dor. A better model is “As for the king, he pursued [or, chased after] Trypho.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.