The king with barbarous arrogance was coming: Barbarous may be rendered “cruel” or “savage” (compare 5.22; 10.4). The Greek word translated arrogance can be rendered “intention” (New English Bible) or “thoughts” (Goldstein). For this clause New American Bible has “The king was advancing, his mind full of savage plans.” We may also say “As King Antiochus advanced into Judea, his mind was full of savage [or, cruel] plans.”

To show to the Jews things far worse than those that had been done in his father’s time: Revised Standard Version‘s footnote on things far worse than those that had been done gives simply another way of understanding the grammar of the Greek text; it does not involve a textual problem. Translators may choose it, but our preference is for the interpretation in the Revised Standard Version text and in Good News Bible. Good News Bible provides a good model for this last half of the verse, and Contemporary English Version is also helpful with “to punish the people of Judea more severely than his father had ever done.”

An alternative model for this verse is:

• The king [or, King Antiochus] continued to advance into Judea. He intended to do things to the Jews that were more cruel and savage than anything his father had ever done.

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.