While such was the state of affairs may be expressed as “Meanwhile” (Good News Bible), “While all this was going on” (New Jerusalem Bible), or even “At this time.”

It happened that the people of Tarsus and of Mallus revolted: Good News Bible and several other versions omit it happened that. It is not necessary to keep this clause, but it does have a function. It indicates that the events just described have a relation to the events about to be described. New English Bible combines this clause with the previous one, saying “It was at this point that.” Tarsus and Mallus were cities in the province of Cilicia, on the southeast coast of Asia Minor, and translators may include “the province of Cilicia.” An alternative model for this whole clause is “the people of the Cilician cities of Tarsus and Mallus revolted.”

Because their cities had been given as a present to Antiochis, the king’s concubine: The gift of these cities to Antiochis meant that the taxes collected from them would go to her. The cities revolted because they considered this an insult to their pride, or perhaps they feared that they would have to pay even heavier taxes. A concubine was a woman who regularly slept with a man, and had a recognized place in the household, but who was not his wife. The word “mistress” (Good News Bible) is a rough but adequate modern equivalent in English. In other languages such women are called “minor wives” or “second wives.”

One way to approach this verse is to mention the giving of the cities first before their revolt, since the gift was earlier in time. Then the revolt can be tied closely with the next verse. Here is a model that does this:

• While all this was happening, King Antiochus gave the cities of Tarsus and Mallus [in the province of Cilicia] as a gift to his mistress [or, concubine/minor wife] Antiochis. The people of these two cities then rebelled….

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.