The number of those who fell by the sword, with those burned alive, came to eight thousand men: Good News Bible begins this verse with the phrase “That day” for naturalness in English. For fell by the sword, Good News Bible has “killed in the battle,” which is a helpful model. The Greek text says specifically that those who died were eight thousand men, that is, 8,000 soldiers. However, it is really not clear whether the author, writing in Hebrew, intended to include civilian casualties in the number given. Good News Bible is nonspecific, but translators who must be specific should say “men” or “soldiers.” An alternative model for this verse is:

• That day 8,000 [or, eight thousand] enemy soldiers died fighting Jonathan’s army or were burned to death.

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.