In the one hundred and sixty-fifth year Demetrius the son of Demetrius came from Crete to the land of his fathers: The one hundred and sixty-fifth year corresponds to 147 b.c. (see the comments on 1Macc 1.10). For Demetrius the son of Demetrius, Good News Bible has “Demetrius the Second, the son of Demetrius the First.” However, Demetrius~II did not become king until later (see 1Macc 11.19), so translators will have to decide if it is a problem to refer to him as “Demetrius the Second” at this point. For most languages it will probably be helpful. An alternative model that avoids this problem is “the son of King Demetrius, also named Demetrius.” Crete is a large island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Greece. It is approximately 800 kilometers (500 miles) from the coast of Palestine. The land of his fathers is of course Syria, which Good News Bible helpfully names. It is obvious that Demetrius took a ship from Crete to Syria. So we may translate came from Crete to the land of his fathers as “sailed from the island of Crete to Syria, the land of his ancestors.”

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.