But they had no food in storage, because it was the seventh year: As the Revised Standard Version footnote indicates, some Greek manuscripts read “in the Temple” rather than in storage; the two Greek words involved resemble each other closely. Good News Bible combines both readings by saying “in the Temple storage bins,” but this is done on translational grounds rather than textual ones. We prefer to go with Revised Standard Version here, but there is really nothing wrong with following Good News Bible or even saying “in the Temple.” We believe any solution can be justified translationally, so no footnote is required. For the seventh year, see the comments on “a sabbatical year” at verse 49. Contemporary English Version reverses these two clauses at the beginning of this verse, saying “But it was the year when they had let the fields rest, and they ran out of supplies … in the temple.”

Those who found safety in Judea from the Gentiles had consumed the last of the stores: The people in view here are the refugees from Galilee (1Macc 5.23) and from Gilead (1Macc 5.45) who had come to Jerusalem. In preparing for the sabbatical year, the people in Jerusalem had not anticipated having these extra people to feed. The stores refers to food in storage. For the last half of this verse some translators may wish to follow Contemporary English Version with “because they had given what little food they had stored in the temple to those who had run away from the Gentiles and had come to Judea,” but we may also say “because the small amount of food they had stored in the Temple was given to those people who had run away from the Gentiles….”

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.