But when the king entered Mount Zion: Good News Bible renders this clause well by saying “But when the king entered the Temple area on Mount Zion.” The text does not say the king entered the Temple itself.

And saw what a strong fortress the place was: It is possible that the king’s promise to the Jews in verse 61 did not mention the defenses of the Temple; the king’s letters quoted in 2Macc 11.22-33 say nothing about it. But the Syrians were long ago described as deceitful (see 1Macc 1.30) and it is likely that once they had achieved their goal they did not feel that they needed to do what they had promised, especially when they observed just how strong the defenses really were. A possible model here is “and saw the strong fortifications around the Temple itself.”

He broke the oath he had sworn should not be difficult to translate.

And gave orders to tear down the wall all around: The wall is part of the defenses that Judas had built around Mount Zion (see 1Macc 4.60). Contemporary English Version has a helpful model for this clause: “and ordered his soldiers to tear down the fortress walls.”

An alternative model for this verse is:

• But when Antiochus entered the Temple area on Mount Zion, and saw the strong fortifications around the Temple itself, he ordered his soldiers to tear down the fortress walls.

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.