This encounter highlights Holofernes’ attitude as a vain and arrogant general, full of confidence in his power and military achievements. He believes he can achieve anything: capturing the rebellious city and the beautiful woman who has come to his tent. Judith understands how to exploit the general’s weaknesses, which he perceives as strengths.
11:11-15 could be a criticism the author makes of his contemporaries and puts into Judith’s mouth: a political-religious movement gaining strength in Jerusalem, marked by a certain laxity and neglect of Israel’s religious traditions and precepts. The author recognizes that this is the gateway for contemporary enemies to undermine religion, ultimately leading to the loss of national, cultural, and, of course, religious identity. In the Assyrian camp, Judith preserves her Jewish identity through both her food and her devotional practices (12:1-9).