D. Falk, 2002
http://www.amuseum.org/book/page2.html
[1 Maccabees is a writing by a
Jewish supporter of the Maccabees, ca 100 BCE. The
writer describes the nature of the crisis faced by Jews in the Hellenistic
period, and the revolt led by the Maccabees. The work
is included among the Apocrypha]
After Alexander son of Philip, the Macedonian, who came from
the
[The traveler Pausanias
describes the city of
On entering the city there is a building for the preparation of the processions . . . Hard by is a temple of Demeter with images of the goddess herslf and of her daughter . . . From the gate to the Cerameicus there are porticoes, and in front of them brazen statues of such as had some title to fame, both men and women. One of the porticoes contains shrines of gods, and a gymnasium called that of Hermes. In it is the house of Pulytion, at which it is said that a mystic rite was perfomed by the most notable Athenians, parodying the Eleusinian mysteries. But in my time it was devoted to the worship of Dionysus . . .
Here is built also a sanctuary of the Mother of the gods . . .
In the Athenian market-place maong the objects not generally known is an altar to Mercy, of all divinities the most useful in the life of mortals and in the vicissitudes of fortunr, but honored by the Athenians alone among the Greeks. And they are conspicuous not only for their humanity but also for their devotion to religion.
In the gymnasium not far from the Market-place
. . .
There is but one entry to the Acropolis [a fortress containing temples to Athena and other divinities] . . .
The Athenians have other law courts as well . . .
[adapted from Loeb translation]
“. . . if one can give the name of “city” (polis) to those who possess no government offices, no gymnasium, no theatre, no market-place, no water descending to a fountain . . .”
[Tacitus, a Roman historian writing ca. 110 CE,
discusses various theories concerning the origin of the Jews, and prefers a
popular story that the Jews were a race of lepers expelled from
As I am about to relate the last days of a famous city, it
seems appropriate to throw some light on its origin.
Some say that the Jews were fugitives from the island of Crete .
. . There is a famous mountain in Crete
called Ida; the neighbouring tribe,
the Idaei, came to be called Judaei
. . . Others assert that in the reign of
Isis the overflowing population of Egypt, led by Hierosolymus and Judas, discharged itself into the
neighbouring countries. Many, again, say that they
were a race of Ethiopian origin, who in the time of king Cepheus were driven by fear and hatred of
their neighbours to seek a new dwelling-place. Others
describe them as an Assyrian horde who, not having sufficient
territory, took possession of part of
Most writers, however, agree in stating that once a disease [leprosy], which horribly disfigured the body, broke out over
Moses, wishing to secure for the future his authority over the nation, gave them a novel form of worship, opposed to all that is practised by other men. Things sacred with
us, with them have no sanctity, while they allow what with us is
forbidden. In their holy place they have consecrated an image of
the animal by whose guidance they found deliverance from their long
and thirsty wanderings. They slay the ram, seemingly in derision of Hammon, and they sacrifice the ox, because the Egyptians
worship it as Apis. They abstain
from swine's flesh, in consideration of what they suffered when
they were infected by the leprosy to which this animal is liable. By
their frequent fasts they still bear witness to the long hunger of
former days, and the Jewish bread, made without leaven,
is retained as a memorial of their hurried seizure of corn. We
are told that the rest of the seventh day was adopted,
because this day brought with it a termination of their toils;
after a while the charm of indolence beguilded them
into giving up the seventh year also to inaction. . . .
This worship, however introduced, is upheld by its antiquity; all their
other customs, which are at once perverse and disgusting, owe their strength
to their very badness. The most degraded out of other races, scorning their national beliefs, brought to them their contributions and
presents. This augmented the wealth of the Jews, as also
did the fact, that among themselves they are inflexibly
honest and ever ready to shew compassion, though they regard the rest of mankind with all the hatred of
enemies. They sit apart at meals, they sleep apart,
and though, as a nation, they are singularly prone to lust, they
abstain from intercourse with foreign women; among
themselves nothing is unlawful. Circumcision was adopted by them
as a mark of difference from other men. Those who come over to their religion adopt the practice, and have this lesson first instilled
into them, to despise all gods, to disown their
country, and set at nought parents, children,
and brethren. Still they provide for the increase of their numbers. It is a crime among them to kill any newly-born infant. They hold
that the souls of all who perish in battle or by the hands of
the executioner are immortal. Hence a passion for propagating
their race and a contempt for death. They are wont to bury
rather than to burn their dead, following in this the Egyptian cus tom; they bestow the same care on the dead, and they hold the same belief about the lower world. Quite different
is their faith about things divine. The Egyptians worship many
animals and images of monstrous form; the Jews have purely
mental conceptions of Deity, as one in essence. They call
those profane who make representations of God in human
shape out of perishable materials. They believe that Being to be
supreme and eternal, neither capable of representation, nor of decay. They therefore do not allow any images to stand in their
cities, much less in their temples. This flattery is not
paid to their kings, nor this honour to
our Emperors. From the fact, however, that their priests used to chant to the music of flutes and cymbals, and to wear garlands of ivy,
and that a golden vine was found in the temple, some have
thought that they worshipped father Liber,
the conqueror of the East, though their institutions do not by
any means harmonize with the theory; for Liber established
a festive and cheerful worship, while the Jewish religion is
tasteless and mean. [Loeb translation]
[Strabo, a Roman writing ca. 22 BCE, shows some knowledge of Judaism, but some considerable confusion (e.g., that Moses established the Temple at Jerusalem, that Jews were vegetarians and practiced female as well as male circumcision.)]
. . . the Egyptians were the
ancestors of the present Jews. An Egyptian priest named Moses, who
possessed a portion of the country called
By such doctrine Moses persuaded a large body of right-minded persons to
accompany him to the place where
His successors continued for some time to observe the same conduct, doing
justly, and worshipping God with sincerity. Afterwards superstitious persons
were appointed to the priesthood, and then tyrants. From superstition arose
abstinence from flesh, from the eating of which it is now the custom to
refrain, circumcision, cliterodectomy, and
other practices which the people observe. The tyrannical government produced
robbery; for the rebels plundered both their own and the neighboring countries.
Those also who shared in the government seized upon the property of others, and
ravaged a large part of
[translation Hamilton and Falconer; from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/roman-jews.html]
[Seneca was a Stoic philosopher, ca. 5 BCE–65 CE. Cited
by Augustine, City of
But when speaking of the Jews he [Tacitus] says: “Meanwhile the customs of this accursed race have gained such influence that they are now received throughout all the world. The vanquished have given laws to their victors.” He shows his surprise as he says this, not knowing what was being wrought by the providence of God. But he adds a statement that shows what he thought of their system of sacred institutions. “The Jews, however, are aware of the origin and meaning of their rites. The greater part of the people go through a ritual not knowing why they do so.”
[Loeb translation]
[Juvenal was a Roman satirist, ca. 60–130 CE]
Some who have had a father who reveres the Sabbath, worship nothing but the clouds, and the divinity of the heavens, and see no difference between eating swine’s flesh, from which their father abstained, and that of man; and in time they take to circumcision. Having been wont to flout the laws of Rome, they learn and practice and revere the Jewish law, and all that Moses handed down in his secret tome forbidding to point out the way to any not worshipping the same rites, and conducting none but the circumcised to the desired fountain. For all which the father was to blame, who gave up every seventh day to idleness, keeping it apart from all the concerns of life. [Loeb translation]
[The Jewish historian Josephus, writing in the late 1st c. CE, complains of accusations against the Jews, especially by Apion]
(79) . . . while they accuse us for not worshipping the same gods whom others worship, they think themselves not guilty of impiety when they tell lies of us, and frame absurd and reproachful stories about our temple. . . .
(80) . . . Apion hath the impudence to pretend that" the Jews placed an ass's head in their holy place;" and he affirms that this was discovered when Antiochus Epiphanes spoiled our temple, and found that ass's head there made of gold, and worth a great deal of money . . .
(89) He [Apion] adds another Grecian fable, in order to reproach us . . . (91) Apion . . . says that "Antiochus found in our temple a bed, and a man lying upon it . . . a Greek . . . he was seized upon by foreigners, on a sudden, and brought to this temple, and shut up therein, and was seen by nobody, but was fattened by these curious provisions thus set before him . . . and was by them informed that it was in order to the fulfilling a law of the Jews, which they must not tell him, that he was thus fed; and that they did the same at a set time every year: that they used to catch a Greek foreigner, and fat him thus up every year, and then lead him to a certain wood, and kill him, and sacrifice with their accustomed solemnities, and taste of his entrails, and take an oath upon this sacrificing a Greek, that they would ever be at enmity with the Greeks; and that then they threw the remaining parts of the miserable wretch into a certain pit."
[Whiston’s translation, ada[ted frp, from http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/apion-2.htm]
[Alexander the Great brought
Alexander, when he saw the multitude at a distance, in white garments, while the priests stood clothed with fine linen, and the high priest in purple and scarlet clothing, with his mitre on his head, having the golden plate whereon the name of God was engraved, he approached by himself, and adored that name, and first saluted the high priest. The Jews also did all together, with one voice, salute Alexander, and encompass him about . . .
And when he went up into the temple, he offered sacrifice to
God, according to the high priest's direction, and magnificently treated both
the high priest and the priests. . .
. the next day he called them to him,
and bid them ask what favors they pleased of him; whereupon the high priest
desired that they might enjoy the laws of their forefathers, and might pay
no tribute on the seventh year. He granted all they desired. And when they entreared him that he would permit the Jews in
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
NOW when Alexander, king of Macedon, had put an end to the
dominion of the Persians, and had settled the affairs in
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[Ptolemy I Soter, Greek ruler
of
. . . all
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
But when Ptolemy had taken a great many captives,
both from the mountainous parts of Judea, and from the places about Jerusalem
and Samaria, and the places near Mount Gerizzim, he led
them all into Egypt, and settled them there. . . . he distributed many of them into garrisons,
and at Alexandria gave them equal privileges of citizens with the
Macedonians themselves; and required of them to take their oaths, that they
would keep their fidelity to the posterity of those who committed these places
to their care. Nay, there were not a few other Jews who, of their own accord,
went into
[Seleucus I Nicator,
Greek Ruler of
THE Jews also obtained honors from the kings of Asia when they became their auxiliaries; for Seleucus Nicator made them citizens in those cities which he built in Asia, and in the lower Syria, and in the metropolis itself, Antioch; and gave them privileges equal to those of the Macedonians and Greeks, who were the inhabitants, insomuch that these privileges continue to this very day . . . [adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
WHEN Alexander had reigned twelve years, and after him
Ptolemy Soter forty years, [Ptolemy II] Philadelphus then took the
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
2:25 When he [Ptolemy IV Philopater] arrived in Egypt, he increased in his deeds of malice . . . 27 He proposed to inflict public disgrace upon the Jewish community, and he set up a stone on the tower in the courtyard with this inscription: 28 "None of those who do not sacrifice shall enter their sanctuaries, and all Jews shall be subjected to a registration involving poll tax and to the status of slaves. Those who object to this are to be taken by force and put to death; 29 those who are registered are also to be branded on their bodies by fire with the ivy-leaf symbol of Dionysus, and they shall also be reduced to their former limited status." 30 In order that he might not appear to be an enemy to all, he inscribed below: "But if any of them prefer to join those who have been initiated into the mysteries, they shall have equal citizenship with the Alexandrians." [RSV]
[Mentions the Jewish council of elders (gerousia) during the time of Ptolemaic rule (late 3rd
c.–early 2nd c. BCE). The council was a body of leading men that
represented the Jewish community to the Ptolemaic overlords]
"King Antiochus [III the Great] to Ptolemy [governor], sends greetings. Since the Jews, upon our first entrance on their country, demonstrated their friendship towards us, and when we came to their city [Jerusalem], received us in a splendid manner, and came to meet us with their senate [council or elders, or gerousia], and gave abundance of provisions to our soldiers, and to the elephants, and joined with us in ejecting the garrison of the Egyptians that were in the citadel, we have thought fit to reward them, and to retrieve the condition of their city, which hath been greatly depopulated by such accidents as have befallen its inhabitants, and to bring those that have been scattered abroad back to the city.”
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[Josephus cites a
description of the Jerusalem Temple by Hecateus of Abders, ca. 360–290 BCE]
“There is no image,
nor statue, nore votive offering therein; nothing
at all is planted, there, neither a grove nor anything of that sort. The
priests abide therein both nights and days, performing certain purification
rites, and drinking not the least drop of wine while they are in the temple.”
[adapted from Whiston
translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[The Letter of Aristeas dates
from the 2nd c. BCE and belongs to the Pseudepigrapha]
92 The ministration of the priests is in every way unsurpassed both for its physical endurance and for its orderly and silent service. For they all work spontaneously, though it entails much painful exertion, and each one has a special task allotted to him. The service is carried on without interruption - some provide the wood, others the oil, others the fine wheat flour, others the spices; others 93 again bring the pieces of flesh for the burnt offering, exhibiting a wonderful degree of strength. For they take up with both hands the limbs of a calf, each of them weighing more than two talents, and throw them with each hand in a wonderful way on to the high place of the altar and never miss placing them on the proper spot. . . . The most complete silence reigns so that one might imagine that there was not a single person present, though there are actually seven hundred men engaged in the work, besides the vast number of those who are occupied in bringing up the sacrifices. Everything is carried out with 96 reverence and in a way worthy of the great God.
We were greatly astonished, when we saw Eleazar [the High Priest] engaged in the ministration, at the mode of his dress, and the majesty of his appearance, which was revealed in the robe which he wore and the precious stones upon his person. There were golden bells upon the garment which reached down to his feet, giving forth a peculiar kind of melody, and on both sides of them there were pomegranates 97 with variegated flowers of a wonderful hue. He was girded with a girdle of conspicuous beauty, woven in the most beautiful colours. On his breast he wore the oracle of God, as it is called, on which twelve stones, of different kinds, were inset, fastened together with gold, containing the names of the leaders of the tribes, according to their original order, each one flashing forth in an indescribable way 98 its own particular colour. On his head he wore a tiara, as it is called, and upon this in the middle of his forehead an inimitable turban, the royal diadem full of glory with the name of God inscribed in sacred letters on a plate of gold . . . having been judged worthy to wear these emblems in the 99 ministrations. Their appearance created such awe and confusion of mind as to make one feel that one had come into the presence of a man who belonged to a different world. I am convinced that any one who takes part in the spectacle which I have described will be filled with astonishment and indescribable wonder and be profoundly affected in his mind at the thought of the sanctity which is attached to each detail of the service. (Translation R. H. Charles, from http://www.ccel.org/c/charles/otpseudepig/aristeas.htm)
[A Jewish writing of the 4th or 3rd c. BCE, belonging to the Apocrypha]
But I alone went often to
[Ben Sira is a Jewish writing ca 180 BCE, belongs to the Apocrypha. This is a eulogy of the high priest Simon, and shows the high status and power held by the high priest. It describes his majestic appearance at the sacrificial service on the Day of Atonement]
The leader of his brethren and the pride of his people
was Simon the high priest, son of Onias,
who in his life repaired the house,
and in his time fortified the temple.
2 He laid the foundations for the high double walls,
the high retaining walls for the temple enclosure.
3 In his days a cistern for water was quarried out,
a reservoir like the sea in circumference.
4 He considered how to save his people from ruin,
and fortified the city to withstand a seige.
5 How glorious he was when the people gathered round him
as he came out of the inner sanctuary!
6 Like the morning star among the clouds,
like the moon when it is full;
7 like the sun shining upon the temple of the Most High,
and like the rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds;
8 like roses in the days of the first fruits,
like lilies by a spring of water,
like
a green shoot on
9 like fire and incense in the censer,
like a vessel of hammered gold
adorned with all kinds of precious stones;
10 like an olive tree putting forth its fruit,
and like a cypress towering in the clouds.
11 When he put on his glorious robe
and clothed himself with superb perfection
and went up to the holy altar,
he made the court of the sanctuary glorious.
12 And when he received the portions from the
hands of the priests,
as he stood by the hearth of the altar
with a garland of brethren around him,
he
was like a young cedar on
and they surrounded him like the trunks of palm trees,
13 all the sons of Aaron in their splendor
with the Lord's offering in their hands,
before
the whole congregation of
14 Finishing the service at the altars,
and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty,
15 he reached out his hand to the cup
and poured a libation of the blood of the grape;
he poured it out at the foot of the altar,
a pleasing odor to the Most High, the King of all.
16 Then the sons of Aaron shouted,
they sounded the trumpets of hammered work,
they made a great noise to be heard
for remembrance before the Most High.
17 Then all the people together made haste
and fell to the ground upon their faces
to worship their Lord,
the Almighty, God Most High.
18 And the singers praised him with their voices
in sweet and full-toned melody.
19 And the people besought the Lord Most High
in prayer before him who is merciful,
till the order of worship of the Lord was ended;
so they completed his service.
20 Then Simon came down, and lifted up his hands
over
the whole congregation of the sons of
to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,
and to glory in his name;
21 and they bowed down in worship a second time,
to receive the blessing from the Most High.
22 And now bless the God of all,
who in every way does great things;
who exalts our days from birth,
and deals with us according to his mercy.
23 May he give us gladness of heart,
and
grant that peace may be in our days in
as in the days of old.
24 May he entrust to us his mercy!
And let him deliver us in our days!
25 With two nations my soul is vexed,
and the third is no nation:
26
Those who live on
and the foolish people that dwell in Shechem.
27 Instruction in understanding and knowledge
I have written in this book,
Jesus
the son of Sirach, son of Eleazar,
of
who out of his heart poured forth wisdom.
28 Blessed is he who concerns himself with these things,
and he who lays them to heart will become wise.
29 For if he does them, he will be strong for all things,
for the light of the Lord is his path. (RSV)
[Josephus describes the rise to influence of Joseph Tobias, which became
a very wealthy and powerful family through tax-farming. He takes advantage of
the laxity of the high priest Onias]
This happened when Onias was high priest; for
after Eleazar's death, his uncle Manasseh took the
priesthood, and after he had ended his life, Onias
received that dignity. He was the son of Simon, who was called The Just:
which Simon was the brother of Eleazar, as I said
before. This Onias was one of a little soul, and a
great lover of money; and for that reason, because he did not pay that tax
of twenty talents of silver, which his forefathers paid to these things out of
their own estates, he provoked king Ptolemy Euergetes
to anger, who was the father of Philopater. Euergetes sent an ambassador to
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[Josephus describes the rise to influence of Joseph Tobias, who became a
very wealthy and powerful through tax-farming. He takes advantage of the laxity
of the high priest Onias]
This happened when Onias was high priest; for
after Eleazar's death, his uncle Manasseh took the
priesthood, and after he had ended his life, Onias
received that dignity. He was the son of Simon, who was called The Just:
which Simon was the brother of Eleazar, as I said
before. This Onias was one of a little soul, and a
great lover of money; and for that reason, because he did not pay that tax of
twenty talents of silver, which his forefathers paid to these things out of
their own estates, he provoked king Ptolemy Euergetes
to anger, who was the father of Philopater. Euergetes sent an ambassador to
There was now one Joseph, young in age, but of great reputation among
the people of
And when the day came on which the king was to let the taxes of the cities to farm, and those that were the principal men of dignity in their several countries were to bid for them, the sum of the taxes together, of Celesyria, and Phoenicia, and Judea, with Samaria, [as they were bidden for,] came to eight thousand talents. Hereupon Joseph accused the bidders, as having agreed together to estimate the value of the taxes at too low a rate; and he promised that he would himself give twice as much for them: but for those who did not pay, he would send the king home their whole substance; for this privilege was sold together with the taxes themselves. The king was pleased to hear that offer; and because it augmented his revenues, he said he would confirm the sale of the taxes to him.
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[Zenon papyrus no. 4 in CPJ
1:125-6, 257 BCE. A letter from Tobias, the wealthy and prominent Jewish
supporter of Hellenism in Palestine, descendant of Nehemiah’s arch-enemy by the
same name, and loyalist to the Ptolemaic rulers in Egypt, to Apollonios, finance minister of king Ptolemy II, 257 BCE.]
Tobias to Apollonios greeting. If you and all your affairs are flourishing, and everything else is as you wish it, many thanks to the gods! I too have been well, and have thought of you at all times, as was right.
I have sent to you Aineias bringing a eunuch and four boys, house-slaves and of good stock, two of whom are uncircumcised. I append descriptions of the boys for your information.
Goodbye. Year 29, Xandikos 10.
Haimos: About 10, dark skin, curly hair, black eyes, rather big jaws with moles on the right jaw, uncircumcised.
Atikos: about 8, light skin, curly hair, nose somewhat flat, black eyes, scar below the right eye, uncircumcised.
Audomos: about 10, black eyes, curly hair, nos flat, protruding lips, scar near the right eyebrow, circumcised.
Okaimos: about 7, round face, nose flat, grey eyes, fiery complexion, long straight hair, scar on forehead above the right eyebrow, circumcised.
[translation from CPJ 1:125-6]
[Note: that they were circumcised does not necessarily mean that the last two boys were Jewish]
http://www.amuseum.org/book/page4.html
[Antiochus III the Great, Greek ruler of Syria/Babylon, 223–187 BCE]
Now it happened that in the reign of Antiochus the Great,
who ruled over all Asia, that the Jews, as well as the inhabitants of Coelesyria, suffered greatly, and their land was sorely
harassed; for while he was at war with Ptolemy Philopater,
and with his son, who was called Epiphanes, it fell
out that these nations were equally sufferers, both when he was beaten, and
when he beat the others: so that they were very like to a ship in a storm,
which is tossed by the waves on both sides; and just thus were they in their
situation in the middle between Antiochus's prosperity and its change to
adversity. But at length, when Antiochus had beaten Ptolemy, he seized upon
[Josephus cites a letter from King Antiochus III (223–187
BCE) concerning the Jews, ca. 198 BCE]
King Antiochus [III] to Ptolemy, greeting. "Since the Jews, upon our first entrance on their country, demonstrated their friendship towards us, and when we came to their city [Jerusalem], received us in a splendid manner, and came to meet us with their senate, and gave abundance of provisions to our soldiers, and to the elephants, and joined with us in ejecting the garrison of the Egyptians that were in the citadel, we have thought fit to reward them, and to retrieve the condition of their city, which hath been greatly depopulated by such accidents as have befallen its inhabitants, and to bring those that have been scattered abroad back to the city. And, in the first place, we have determined, on account of their piety towards God, to bestow on them, as a pension, for their sacrifices of animals that are fit for sacrifice, for wine, and oil, and frankincense, the value of twenty thousand pieces of silver, and [six] sacred artabrae of fine flour, with one thousand four hundred and sixty medimni of wheat, and three hundred and seventy-five medimni of salt. And these payments I would have fully paid them, as I have sent orders to you. I would also have the work about the temple finished, and the cloisters, and if there be any thing else that ought to be rebuilt. And for the materials of wood, let it be brought them out of Judea itself and out of the other countries, and out of Libanus tax free; and the same I would have observed as to those other materials which will be necessary, in order to render the temple more glorious; and let all of that nation live according to the laws of their own country; and let the senate [council of elders, or gerousia], and the priests, and the scribes of the temple, and the sacred singers, be discharged from poll-money and the crown tax and other taxes also. And that the city may the sooner recover its inhabitants, I grant a discharge from taxes for three years to its present inhabitants, and to such as shall come to it, until the month Hyperheretus. We also discharge them for the future from a third part of their taxes, that the losses they have sustained may be repaired. And all those citizens that have been carried away, and are become slaves, we grant them and their children their freedom, and give order that their substance be restored to them."
And these were the contents of this epistle. He also published a decree through all his kingdom in honor of the temple, which contained what follows: "It shall be lawful for no foreigner to come within the limits of the temple round about; which thing is forbidden also to the Jews, unless to those who, according to their own custom, have purified themselves. Nor let any flesh of horses, or of mules, or of asses, he brought into the city, whether they be wild or tame; nor that of leopards, or foxes, or hares; and, in general, that of any animal which is forbidden for the Jews to eat. Nor let their skins be brought into it; nor let any such animal be bred up in the city. Let them only be permitted to use the sacrifices derived from their forefathers, with which they have been obliged to make acceptable atonements to God. And he that transgresseth any of these orders, let him pay to the priests three thousand drachmae of silver."
[adapted from Whiston translation, http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/]
[The Jewish people were divided into pro-Hellenistic and anti-Hellenistic
factions. Fighting broke out among the priestly classes over the prize of the
high priesthood, a position of great wealth and power. Previously the high
priesthood had been a hereditary office; now hopeful candidates bribed for it]
(RSV) 3:1
While the holy city was inhabited in unbroken peace and the laws were
very well observed because of the piety of the high priest Onias
and his hatred of wickedness, 2 it came about that the kings themselves
honored the place and glorified the temple with the finest presents, 3 so
that even Seleucus, the king of Asia, defrayed from
his own revenues all the expenses connected with the service of the
sacrifices. 4 But a man named Simon, of the tribe of
Benjamin, who had been made captain of the temple, had a disagreement with the
high priest about the administration of the city market; 5 and
when he could not prevail over Onias he went to
Apollonius of Tarsus, who at that time was governor of Coelesyria
and Phoenicia. 6 He reported to him that the treasury in
24 But when he arrived at the treasury with his bodyguard, then and there the Sovereign of spirits and of all authority caused so great a manifestation that all who had been so bold as to accompany him were astounded by the power of God, and became faint with terror. . . .
4:1 The previously mentioned Simon, who had
informed about the money against his own country, slandered Onias,
saying that it was he who had incited Heliodorus and
had been the real cause of the misfortune.
2 He dared to designate as a
plotter against the government the man who was the benefactor of the city, the
protector of his fellow countrymen, and a zealot for the laws. 3 When
his hatred progressed to such a degree that even murders were committed by one
of Simon's approved agents, 4 Onias recognized
that the rivalry was serious and that Apollonius, the son of Menestheus and governor of Coelesyria
and
7
When Seleucus [IV] died [175 BCE] and
Antiochus [IV] who was called Epiphanes
succeeded to the kingdom, Jason the brother of Onias [III]
obtained the high priesthood by corruption, 8 promising the king at an
interview three hundred and sixty talents of silver and, from another source of
revenue, eighty talents. 9 In addition to this he promised to pay one hundred
and fifty more if permission were given to establish by his authority a
gymnasium and a body of youth for it, and to enrol
the men of
23
After a period of three years Jason sent Menelaus, the brother of the
previously mentioned Simon, to carry the money to the king and to complete the
records of essential business. 24 But he, when presented to the king, extolled
him with an air of authority, and secured the high priesthood for himself,
outbidding Jason by three hundred talents of silver. 25 After receiving the
king's orders he returned, possessing no qualification for the high priesthood,
but having the hot temper of a cruel tyrant and the rage of a savage wild
beast. 26 So Jason, who after supplanting his own brother was supplanted by
another man, was driven as a fugitive into the
15 Not content with this, Antiochus dared to enter the most holy temple in all the world, guided by Menelaus, who had become a traitor both to the laws and to his country. 16 He took the holy vessels with his polluted hands, and swept away with profane hands the votive offerings which other kings had made to enhance the glory and honor of the place. 17 Antiochus was elated in spirit, and did not perceive that the Lord was angered for a little while because of the sins of those who dwelt in the city, and that therefore he was disregarding the holy place. 18 But if it had not happened that they were involved in many sins, this man would have been scourged and turned back from his rash act as soon as he came forward, just as Heliodorus was, whom Seleucus the king sent to inspect the treasury. 19 But the Lord did not choose the nation for the sake of the holy place, but the place for the sake of the nation. 20 Therefore the place itself shared in the misfortunes that befell the nation and afterward participated in its benefits; and what was forsaken in the wrath of the Almighty was restored again in all its glory when the great Lord became reconciled. . .
6:1 Not long after this, the king sent an Athenian senator to compel the Jews to forsake the laws of their fathers and cease to live by the laws of God, 2 and also to pollute the temple in Jerusalem and call it the temple of Olympian Zeus, and to call the one in Gerizim the temple of Zeus the Friend of Strangers, as did the people who dwelt in that place.
3 Harsh and utterly grievous was the onslaught of evil. 4 For the temple was filled with debauchery and reveling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots and had intercourse with women within the sacred precincts, and besides brought in things for sacrifice that were unfit. 5 The altar was covered with abominable offerings which were forbidden by the laws. 6 A man could neither keep the sabbath, nor observe the feasts of his fathers, nor so much as confess himself to be a Jew. [RSV]
(RSV)
After Alexander son of Philip, the Macedonian, who came from the
5 After this he fell sick and perceived that he was dying. 6 So he summoned his most honored officers, who had been brought up with him from youth, and divided his kingdom among them while he was still alive. 7 And after Alexander had reigned twelve years, he died.
8 Then his officers began to rule, each in his own place. 9 They all put on crowns after his death, and so did their sons after them for many years; and they caused many evils on the earth.
10
From them came forth a sinful root, Antiochus Epiphanes,
son of Antiochus the king; he had been a hostage in
11 In
those days lawless men came forth from
16
When Antiochus saw that his kingdom was established, he determined to become
king of the
20
After subduing
He committed deeds of murder,
and spoke with great arrogance.
25
26 rulers and elders groaned,
maidens and young men became faint,
the beauty of women faded.
27 Every bridegroom took up the lament;
she who sat in the bridal chamber was mourning.
28 Even the land shook for its inhabitants,
and all the house of Jacob was clothed with shame.
29
Two years later the king sent to the cities of
36 It became an ambush against the sanctuary,
an
evil adversary of
37 On every side of the sanctuary they shed innocent blood;
they even defiled the sanctuary.
38
Because of them the residents of
she became a dwelling of strangers;
she became strange to her offspring,
and her children forsook her.
39 Her sanctuary became desolate as a desert;
her feasts were turned into mourning,
her sabbaths into a reproach,
her honor into contempt.
40 Her dishonor now grew as great as her glory;
her exaltation was turned into mourning.
41
Then the king wrote to his whole kingdom that all should be one people, 42 and
that each should give up his customs. 43 All the Gentiles accepted the command
of the king. Many even from
51 In
such words he wrote to his whole kingdom. And he appointed inspectors over all
the people and commanded the cities of
54
Now on the fifteenth day of Chislev, in the one hundred
and forty-fifth year, they erected a desolating sacrilege upon the altar of
burnt offering. They also built altars in the surrounding cities of
62
But many in
[Jewish modernizers favored embracing Hellenistic
culture, and set about transforming
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~dfalk/courses/ejud/jerusalem_hell.htm