But they did not answer them: The verb answer refers to resisting the attack. For this whole clause Good News Bible has “but the Jews did nothing to resist,” and Contemporary English Version uses “But the Jews did not try to defend themselves.”

Or hurl a stone at them or block up their hiding places: Throwing stones and moving rocks to construct barricades are examples of defensive measures the Jews did not take. If they did these things, it could be considered work, thus violating the Sabbath. For these two clauses Good News Bible has “they did not even throw stones or block the entrances to the caves where they were hiding,” and Contemporary English Version has “not one of them threw a rock or even tried to pile up rocks in front of the caves.” The word for “caves” is not in the Greek text, but since their hiding places could be blocked with stones for defense, it is natural to assume caves are in view.

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.