[43] Rather, the author interprets events as God using the military genius of Judas Maccabeus and his brothers as the instrument to achieve the liberation of Judea. Protestants and Jews regard it as generally reliable history, but not a part of Scripture. [50] He also cites the fact that it makes various "admissions against interest" such as openly describing rebel military defeats, unlike 2 Maccabees which obscures or omits such matters. He also requires Jewish leaders to sacrifice to idols. "Exodus ch. The people of Israel have been specially chosen by the one true God as covenant-partner, and they alone are privileged to know and worship God, their eternal benefactor and unfailing source of help. Many scholars believe that they were placed there after the composition of the book by some inspired editor . In the book itself, "Maccabee" is used solely as a personal title for Judah Maccabee (Latinized as Judas Maccabeus). It became part of the deuterocanon in early Christianity. 1 Alexander of Macedon son of Philip had come from the land of Kittim and defeated Darius king of the Persians and Medes, whom he succeeded as ruler, at first of Hellas. And it was the chief propaganda instrument of those non-practicing Jews who were trying to introduce Gentile customs into Israel. The kingdom began to decline under Ptolemy IV Philopator, who was a bad administrator and led a dissolute life. by Daniel R. Schwartz. First Maccabees or 1 Maccabees is most famous as the source of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. And they tore in pieces the books of the law which they found, and set them on fire. And from the people were gathered together to them many, every one that had forsaken the law; and they did evil things in the land; VERSE 53. and they made israel to hide themselves in every place of refuge which they had. It tells how the Greek ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes attempted to suppress the practice of basic Jewish religious law, resulting in the Hasmonean revolt against Seleucid rule. [40] Jews who complain about Judas's activities "bring to the king an accusation against the people". Simon, who was called Thassi; VERSE 21. and entered presumptuously into the sanctuary, and took the golden altar, and the candlestick of the light, and all that pertained thereto. [49]He argues that the author was likely an eyewitness to at least some of the battles described given his great accuracy and plausibility in describing terrain and troop movements, and was able to obtain firsthand accounts from others in interviews. It describes the promulgation of decrees forbidding traditional Jewish practices by King Antiochus IV Epiphanes and the formation of a rebellion against him by Mattathias of the Hasmonean family and his five sons. The setting of the book is about a century after the conquest of Judea by the Greeks under Alexander the Great, when the country was part of the Greek Seleucid Empire. More wars involving Judas and his brothers Simon and Jonathan are reported in chapters 5, 6 and 7. 16:1 Then John came up from Gazara, and told Simon his father what Cendebeus had done against their people. The persecution of Antiochus IV presumably radicalized the Jews. in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. Maccabees , (fl. While enforcement may be targeting only Jewish leaders, ordinary Jews were also killed as a warning to others. However, we believers CANNOT do evil that good may result. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Demetrius' death is reported in 1 Maccabees 10:50, and Ptolemy VI Philometor and Alexander Balas, claimant to the Seleucid throne, enter into an agreement under which Alexander marries Cleopatra Thea, Ptolemy's daughter (1 Maccabees 10:58). [30], After the death of Judas and a period of lawlessness,[31] he is succeeded by his brother Jonathan Apphus, whose battles with the Greek general Bacchides are recounted in chapter 9. VERSE 32. The following is a brief analysis of 1 Maccabees: (1) 1 Maccabees 1:1-10: An account of the rise of the Seleucid Dynasty. It frequently imitates biblical phraseology and directly cites biblical precedents. The Book of 1 Maccabees CPDV summary. VERSE 57. It also uses anachronistic terms at times to make explicit parallels between the exploits of the Hasmoneans and earlier Jewish heroes; for example, it refers to the coastal region of Palestine as the land of the Philistines, despite the Philistines no longer being a relevant cultural grouping in the era. 1 Maccabees A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary. Hope for life beyond death enabled the people of God to commit their lives fully to the God who had called them, even when this seemed of no benefit in worldly terms. VERSE 58. The same fate overtakes another persecutor, Nicanor, who dies because he threatened to destroy the Temple. Werner Kappler[de] published a critical edition of the Greek text in 1936, an eclectic compilation of the various surviving manuscripts and the best construction of the original text. 25) gives testimony to the existence of an original Hebrew text. Check our glossary of terms. Corrections? 1 and 2 Maccabees are stories that reflect on oppression and resistance. Antiochus makes Judaism illegal. VERSE 37. In the middle of the week he will cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease. for the second, on the basis of the information given in the first letter they refer to (2 Mace. He then imposes a tax and establishes a fortress in Jerusalem. It has traditionally been considered highly trustworthy, although it is to some extent the "official" version of history according to the Hasmoneans and from the Maccabean point of view. The book covers the whole of the revolt, from 175 to 134 B.C.E., emphasizing how the salvation of the Jewish people in this crisis came through the family of a zealous priest named Mattathias, particularly his sons, Judas Maccabeus, Jonathan, and Simon, and his grandson, John Hyrcanus. According to the first book of Maccabees, one of the Hellenistic kings defiled the temple, forbade circumcision, and even set up altars to his gods. a place of exercise. 4:59). [9][10] The author appears to be very familiar with Judea and its geography, but appears less well-informed about the wider Hellenistic world. On his journey, the son Tobias meets Sarah, who is afflicted by a demon. And they stored up arms and food, and gathering together the spoils of Jerusalem, they laid them up there, and they became a sore snare: VERSE 36. and it became a place to lie in wait in against the sanctuary, and an evil adversary to Israel continually. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. After the episode of Heliodorus (3:1-40), the writer lays great emphasis on the inviolate sanctity of the Temple and implies that Antiochus suffers the terrible death he does suffer because of his profanation of it. Later Jewish leaders thought poorly of the rule of the Hasmonean dynasty for several reasons, and a document so openly celebratory of them was problematic. First Maccabees gives a detailed account of the struggle in Palestine over a period of fifty years, from the time Antiochus IV Epiphanes came to the throne up to the death of Simon, the last of the Maccabee brothers (134 B.C.). (Das erste Buch der Maccaber [Kurzgefasstes exegetisches Handbuch zu Sign up for our short, weekly email about how we're inviting people to discover the Bible. 1 Maccabees 10, Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, One of over 125 Bible commentaries freely available, this commentary was originally compiled by priest and biblical scholar Rev. 1:7 So Alexander reigned twelves years, and then died. II Maccabees focuses on the Jews revolt against Antiochus and concludes with the defeat of the Syrian general Nicanor in 161 bce by Judas Maccabeus, the hero of the work. Mattathias and His Sons. VERSE 25. It purports to be a historical account of the repression and miraculous salvation of Egyptian Jewry during the reign (221205 bce) of Ptolemy IV Philopator. 1.12.70 The rise of Antiochus IV Epiphanes and subsequent crisis3.19.22 The leadership of Judas Maccabeus in the revolt against the Greeks9.2312.53 The leadership of Jonathan (Judas brother)13.116.24 The leadership and subsequent assignation of Simon (also a brother of Judas), 1.12.32 Letters from Jews in Jerusalem to those in Egypt3.16.31 The conquest of Jerusalem by Antiochus IV Epiphanes7.1-42 The torture and murder of seven brothers and their mother8.19.29 The victory of Judas Maccabeus over the Greeks10.1-38 The purification of the Temple11.115.39 Ongoing conflict and the eventual victory of Judas. [47] No angels or miracles come to save the Jews; rather, it is the divinely-approved firm leadership of the Hasmoneans that leads to victory.[9]. Antiochus persecutes the Jewish people. Alexander the Great. There is a faithful remnant. It was included in standard printed Christian Bibles in the deuterocanon section. Here are 8 handy tips to get your book club up and running. Ptolemy IIs court at Alexandria was famed for its learning. "[45][46] Even if "heaven" is merely shorthand for "God in heaven", 1 Maccabees is remarkably secular in its depiction of the conflict. Simon follows Jonathan as the next Jewish leader "in place of Judas and your brother Jonathan",[34] taking on civil, military and liturgical roles: "great high priest, governor, and leader of the Jews". 1 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book written by a Jewish author and included in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox canons of the Bible. Chapter 14 also features a long panegyric praising Simon as a worthy leader.[10]. And they shed innocent blood on every side of the sanctuary, and defiled the sanctuary. In the town of Modein, the priest Mattathias finds the situation intolerable. And there came great mourning upon Israel, in every place where they were; the beauty of the women was changed. Antiochus forbids both circumcision and possession of Jewish scriptures on pain of death. The author propagates "Hasmonean propaganda" in the sense of upholding the righteousness of the Hasmoneans and their just claim to rule the Hasmonean kingdom. First Maccabees was written about 100 B.C., in Hebrew, but the original has not come down to us. Finally, after Matthathias dies, his son Judas succeeds in liberating the Temple precincts and reconsecrating the Temple itself in 165 B.C.E. A Greek version of the text was printed for the first time in 15141517 in the Complutensian Polyglot Bible. In 168 BC, he desecrates the Temple by setting up an "abomination of desolation" (establishing rites of pagan observance in the Temple, or sacrificing an unclean animal on the altar in the Holy of Holies). The Writer gives his final summary. VERSE 5. 1 Maccabees is the most extensive source of information on events in Judea from 175 to 135. Ps 119:89-90). 1 In those days Mattathias, son of John, son of Simeon, a priest of the family of Joarib, left Jerusalem and settled in Modein. The Greek text is extant in two of the three oldest codices of the Greek Septuagint: the Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Alexandrinus. I Maccabees is the only contemporary source for the civil wars in Judaea, and the only surviving one for Judaean-Syrian relations after the reign of Antiochus IV. Elephants were an important part of the army of Antiochus. It was probably written sometime in the second century bc, in other words very shortly after the events it described. (1 Maccabees 2.62-64). Another explanation concerns the different origins of the books. The [] The book's author is unknown, but is assumed to have been a devout Jew from the Holy Land who may have even taken part in the events described in the book, or at least knew older people who participated in them. the hundred and forty and third year. When war broke out between these two brothers the Romans intervened, took Jerusalem and brought the monarchy to an end. VERSE 23. [19], The book was probably originally written in Hebrew. As noted above, if ancient manuscripts of the hypothesized original Hebrew version existed, they have been lost. 1 Maccabees is best known for its account of the recapture of Jerusalem in the year 164 BC and rededication of the Second Temple: the origin behind the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Because of the accuracy of the historical account, if a later date is accepted, then the author must have had access to first-hand reports of the events. It is accepted in the Catholic and Orthodox canons. The origin of the word "maccabee" is unclear; it may derive from the Hebrew word maqqabi (= hammer)a reference to Judas' physical strength and exploits. VERSE 31. The book of 1 Maccabees is the most thorough account of the deeds of the sons of Mattathias and the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire; 2 Maccabees is a more sensationalized account that focuses on a briefer period of time and adds cool stuff like flying ghost armies; 4 Maccabees is a homily rather than a narrative, focusing on the . Some Protestants include the book as biblical apocrypha, material useful for background and edification but that is not canonical. And there came exceedingly great wrath upon Israel. But he also wants to show that Gods purpose in permitting persecution is to discipline the Jews in order that he may not take vengeance on us afterwards when our sins have reached their height (6:12-17). (Jason of Cyrene was a Hellenized Jew who wrote a five-volume history on the times of the Maccabees. George Leo Haydock. [13] The word "Maccabees" in plural, however, does not appear to have been used until centuries after the Maccabean Revolt. 1 Maccabees 1. He bans the observance of the sabbath and the offering of sacrifices at the Temple. In true Deuteronomic tradition, the author insists on fidelity to the law as the expression of Israels love for God. Rabbinic Judaism generally disapproved of the rule of the Hasmonean dynasty, but the book is openly pro-Hasmonean, one of several factors for a lack of enthusiasm for the book within later Judaism. The later Jewish historian Josephus most likely used some form of this text in writing his account of the Maccabean revolt. One of the most notable and unusual aspects of the book of 1 Maccabees by absence is the lack of any direct mention of God. [1], The author of 1 Maccabees is anonymous and unknown. And he took the spoils of the city, and set it on fire, and pulled down the houses thereof and the walls thereof on every side. Other texts lay stress on the intercession of the saints and the value of prayers for the dead (12:43-46), which are the basis of the dogma of the communion of saints. The words "God" and "Lord" never occur in the text, always being replaced by "Heaven" or "He.". To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here: The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia: Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed. Book of Daniel. Antipathy toward the Seleucid-friendly Hellenizing Jews is unsurprising, as they were enemies in war, but 1 Maccabees extends criticism to internal Jewish opponents of the Hasmoneans as well. Requires Jewish leaders to sacrifice to idols the Temple precincts and reconsecrating the Temple solely. To decline under Ptolemy IV Philopator, who was a bad administrator and a... 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